Advantages of a smaller caliber

[model 70]

how wide is the selection of factory ammo?

[PJgunner]

Well, based on the results on six deer with a .243, that one would be the very last one on my list. The difference betwen the .260 Rem. and 6.5x55 is negligable when you think about it, although the short action might not be the best choice for reloading 160 gr. bullet as they are mighty long. The 6.5x55 would need a medium length action to have a proper magazine box length as would the 7x57, a very big favorite of mine. The 7mm-08 is just a modern 7x57 stuck in a short action with precluded the proper loading of 175 gr. bullets.
As factory loaded, the 7x57 is a mild mannered round, and if you can find a Winchester M70 Featherweight chambered for that rounds, you will have a jewel beyond comparison. Of all the bullets I have tried in mine, only the bulk Winchester 150 gr. Power points don't shoot worth a damn. Every thing else is less than one inch, with several weights from the 140 gr. Nosler Ballistic tip to the Hornady 175 gr. running .375" groups. The rifle is quite light weight, looks really neat, and is one of the rifles I don't ever plan to part with. If you're lucky, you might find one in either 6.5x55 or 7x57. My ex-son-in-law has one as well in .257 Roberts. I'd talk him out of it if I could.
FWIW, I also have a .243 Model 70 made around 1968-9. back then, all the short rounds were loaded in long actions, take it or leave it. I have a spare M70 Featherweight stock and I have diofficulty in describing how much light the rifle feels in that stock. I have to do some bedding work to make it more accurate, that one will be a winner as well.
As to why the .243 is last on my list? Well, I've seen six deer taken with the cartridge. The very first one dropped like it was poleaxed. Very impressive. Maybe there is something to the round, I'm thinking. The next five deer were a horse of a different color, with the deer running anywhere from 50 to 250 yards before expiring. The good news is we were hunting on a private rance in open meadows sectioned off by low narrow washes lined with willows. After each shot, we could see the deer running and the final drop. Looking for blood for trailing, I could find little or no blood trail at all. None of the bullets exited. If that had been a heavy brushed area, those deer could have been easily lost. My head instructor in the Hunter Ed group I teach with thinks the .243 walks on water and is quite open about it. For 31 years he's used the round with 31 bang-flops. Last year, he shot a deer that took him and his hunting partner almost half a day to find due to little or no blood for a trail. He' still trying to figure out what went wrong.
I have to agree with Rocky, the .243 is an experts rifle.
I have a /257 Roberts, but have only shot it on paper. It's a Ruger #1B and is too dang heavy for this old geezer to pack out in the hills. Very accurate though.
I'm going more towards the 7x57 every day. I don't know if all the shooting I've done with some seriously hard kicking rifles was the cause or just old age, but my right shoulder has some serious arthritis and shooting the big ones just isn't the fun it used to be. I still shoot them once in a while, but it is getting to be less and less.
Paul B.

[sierra22]

I've been told by a 'smith that it's feasible to put together a 6,5 swede on a Winchester SHORT action as the magazine box will accomodate the cartridge.

I also agree with the 6mm/expert statement. I use a 6mm-223 for deer myself (allthough I'll make no expert claim ) and have shot 14 so far this year. My little 6mm is wonderfully effective, but every once in a while (3 so far) the deer runs leaving very little sign and blood. I know that if this had happened in my younger, more inexperienced years, it would have made for a lot of unnecessary fret and worry.

In comparison, the deer would run maybe once or twice a year when using my 6,5x55 and 120gr NBTs.

[8X56MS]

I can't think of any advantages. I like larger calibers for hunting.

[Evan03]

i wish we could shoot 6 deer in a year. ones all we get. cant test calibers and ammo near aswell you can.

[Adirondacks]

The trick with a 243 is to load your
own. Use 100 grain bullets and
pick a hot load. When loaded like this
it is a potent deer round. And I mean
it. Tales of the 243 being more than
the sum of it's part are many.
I've taken 3 deer with a 243 and 2 of
the three dropped within 50 yards and
the third (an angling away shot) dropped
at just over 100.
Also it's a very accurate and fun round
to shoot.

[Lone Star]

We all have different experiences, and few of us shoot enough animals to determine any answer definatively. Three deer is meaningless in the large picture, but that may be all of our expereince.

For example, my experience with the 6mm on five head of game was not good. Even a 65-pound goat gave the bullets trouble and I almost lost it, even with a good shot. The 6mm will kill of course, I read about it all the time, but based only on my own experience I'd never recommend it. I prefer 100-grain bullets launched far faster than the little 6mm can produce.

Two of my three 6mms were not that accurate (2.5 moa) but a third shot well under moa. The most accurate bullet was the Sierra 85 BT but it was the worst game bullet.