I doubt that 98% of the rifles on thf ever see close to a thousand rounds through them..IMO.

260 & 7-08 are great calibers if you feel you need a bigger bullet then the 243 offerings

I'm pretty sure you're right about that. Lots of guys check their zero, maybe fire 5 rounds while hunting and that's it for the year. Sure will make a rifle and barrel last a couple of life times though.

H-4350

Every .260 loader I talked to, including Chad, said to use that powder and no other.

It has been exceptionally consistant. I started load development in late March, so mid range temps. I've shot it up to 105F and it's been spot on out to 700 in all the temps and DA's that it's been shot in.

I'll keep plotting shots through the winter to see if it starts to slow down a bit. But I bet it only gains a few tenths of elevation correction to 1K.

The 260 has a lot going for it. IMO, it is a better round than a 243. I like the heavier bullets on target, like a 140 grain. But a 243 can shoot much flatter with the right bullet (105 Berger VLD or 115 DTAC). You just don't get the energy on target if youused a 6.5mm bullet.

For ammo, I load a lot of match quality 260 ammo with the 140 A-max and 139 Scenar. My pricing is $165 per 100 rounds (equals $33 a box of 20). Yes, you can get a cheap, crappy box of 243 at wally world for $20. But it's a simple load with a soft point flat base bullet and ball powder. If you want it to go bang and kill something, it will work. Most people getting the 260 are wanting it for longer range and/or to fill in the gap between a 243 and 7mm-08. A 260 still has light recoil, and the trajectory of a 300 Win Mag. So, it's a very good compromise.

Quality hunting/match ammo is in a totally different category than wally world ammo. I use better brass, much better powder (and loaded more accurate on the powder charge), better bullet and loaded by hand. It is match ammo that can be used to compete with or hunt long range.

Most 243 barrels will hold accuracy to 1100 to 1800 rounds when pushed fast with a 105 or 115 bullet. You can shoot them after this, but accuracy begins to fall off quickly. A 260 normally lasts 2000 to 3000 rounds. I got 2600 rounds on mine before I set the barrel back. Anytime you shrink the bore and increase speeds, barrels will burn out faster (like going from a 6.5mm barrel to a 6mm).

If you want the crappy, wally world 243 ammo, by all means go for it. But the 260 is a little different than the 243, and fills a different niche. If you compare top grade 243 ammo to good 260 ammo, you will see they are almost the same in price.

fwiw - Also checking the velocity on a chronograph at different temperatures even in very cold weather is helpful.

Logging changes without checking with a chrony may or may not produce an understanding of whether the change is due to velocity changing with the temperatures or changes in air density.

Knowing both pieces of information will help lead to more reliable first round hits.

Not saying you're wrong, but I've never believed there would be a noticeable MV change from hot to cold if you have stable powder that is not temperature sensitive. After all the chrono is 10' from the muzzle.

Have you experimented with this scenario? Chrono a load in moderate temp, cold temp and hot temp and noticed a significant difference. And by significant I mean 50 fps or greater.

Several more good points... since the longest range around here is 150yrds I think the 243 would be the better choice for now... after all if I shoot out the barrel couldnt I swap it out for a 260 barrel?

Yes.

And you can readily find a complete rifle in .243 easier than .260

only you can say if its worth it. Id prefer the 260 because i like different rounds. With that being said i only own normal everyday rounds you can get a academy. What i meant by my post if you go with the 260 buy more ammo than you need, because you wont run out. I may be strange, but i dont look at the cost of the ammo when i buy a gun. Hense the 300 wsm, that i shoot hornady custom ammo out of.

how much do you shoot?

Yes, I have checked velocities in a variety of temperatures.

All powders vary with temperature changes, some more than others, and some less than others, but they all vary.

As one example that I studied pretty thoroughly, in my former 7 WSM's, I used RL22 extensively for a while and its velocity changed 0.8 fps/1 degree F change.

With a 100 degree swing, that is 80 fps, which is a big change. MagPro was less sensitive. H4831sc was in between them for sensitivity - but that is specific to that rifle and load, they might be different in a different setup.

Swinging from 100F to sub-freezing temps will cause a drop of velocity along with a likely increase in air density. Both variables are independent of each other, but both are factors for consideration.

As an example of the amount of change, at 1,000 yards with the 7 WSM, elevation would swing between 24 - 27 MOA depending on the variables, and 3 MOA is a big difference on making a hit on a target, especially a reliable first round hit.

Varget in a 308 is less temperature sensitive than any other powder I have tried, but even it varies a small bit.

Temps here that I have shot in varied from a high of 112F to a low in the low teens around 12 - 15F in Brady one winter - right at a 100F swing. Went to Saskatchewan and went out in - 25F, which is a 135F degree swing from peak summer temps.

At longer ranges, all of the little things start to add up.

If you are just going to buy factory ammo and hunt and plink with that, every hardware store from here to yonder has 243 ammo. But, if you are ever going to reload, I'd suggest that you go with the 260. I have a 260 and use it for coyotes, pigs, and deer, and it's a great cartridge. Last year I shot the 120 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip over Reloader 17 at a near max load and it was absolutely deadly. Longest pig shot was right at 400 and he didn't take a step. Longest coyote shot was about the same and he didn't take a step either. Granted, you could probably do the same with the 243, but I vote for the 260. And buy some reloading gear and roll your own. Come join us in the endless discussions over bullets, powders, and primers.

When I go to the range I like to shoot a lot,(or what I think is a lot) 200-300 9mm, 300ish 22lr, 100 or so .223, and 20-40 7.62x54r... at a minimum, when friends and family come along it can be a lot more...

(will probably shoot more out of the mosin when I put a brake on it, we really dont like the recoil)

Will probably shoot 40ish rounds per range trip of 243, when I start to reload I will most likely shoot more... also if I can find a longer range...

So I will have a while until I shoot it out but it will be fun to try... also by the time I do I will have the money for a 260 and hopefully it is more popular...

but then again... having a 260 just to have it would be nice...

So am I right to assume that the 243 is good for anything short of elk in North America?

Im sure a well placed 22lr at a close enough range will do for any animal in the US, so Im talking "in general" about the 243 and in regards to the 260, it can take anything short of the big bears including moose from what ive read about europe?

243 will kill anything in North America, is it the best choice for all nope. With todays bullet availibility it is more versitile than ever. If just hunting deer 243 is fine but anything larger or some of those big farm country or north woods bucks I want more bullet weight like the 260 has.

If I didn't reload I would definitely prefer the 243. Since I do reload, I would get the 260 instead simply because, IMO, it is a more versatile round and has better long range ballistic performance. In it's factory loadings however, American ammunition manufacturers have not caught on to the heavier/high BC bullets that make the 260 shine and most loads use medium 120gr fodder. Last time I checked most manufacturers were using barrels optimized for lighter bullets, which meant for me to be able to shoot the loads I wanted to shoot, I would have to build a custom rifle. So I went with something else instead.

First off, reloading for .260 would be easier than loading for 9mm, so if you go that route it should be a non-issue.

That said, in most Texas hunting (excluding west Texas) you probably won't notice the difference. I see the 260 as a superior long range cartridge, but not many folks are airing bullets out for truly long range kills.

Both the 243 and 260 can be extremely accurate. I'm a total 260 fan boy (building my second now) but if I weren't going to reload I'd go with a .243 and be done with it. Everyone seems to think a .243 is small, but it will kill any native Texas deer with authority.

IMO the .260 is a better round in all performance respects, but the .243 would do just fine for blasting Texas game.

The 243 is surprisingly effective. So much so, that in for hunting Texas, even a 30-06 can be overkill. I personally would have to experience a failure with the 243 before feeling that I needed a 260. Particularly since the advancement in bullet technology offer improvement to any penetration limits the old 100gr @ 3000 load offers. Back it down to a 95gr partition or even an 85gr TSX, and you're blowing through both sides again.

The .260 will be the better performer.Period.

I cannot imagine the recoil difference in the two being an issue. I mean,c'mon, we are talking about a .260.

Ammo cost could certainly be an issue depending on how much you plan to shoot. So that's personal to you and your situation.

80 gr ttsx in the 243 is pretty nasty medicine

For those of you who do reload 260, how much does it cost per 100, 20, or each (whatever you keep track of)?

thanks for all this info, unfortunatly all its done is solidify that it is between these two calibers that i want to get.

Doing some VERY rough math, it looks like it's about $35-$40 per 100 rounds; that is using 140gr SMKs as the projectiles, and assuming a charge weight of 35gr per.

That cost does not factor in brass, but once you buy it...it's good for a while.

My vote has got to be the .243. That being said i've never owned or shot the .260