[chatter box]

Has anyone had any good results from remingtons reduced recoil ammo? I have one month to get two 10 year old girls ready for a deer hunt. They've been shooting 22's for years and love it and are excited about there first hunt. I had a chance to buy a remington woodsman .243 last year but each want there own gun for the hunt. My choice is to buy a new gun (money is tight) or to use my 270 or 30/30. My 30/30 is a trapper 94 and the smaller size fits them well but the recoil is way to much. That leaves trying to reduce the recoil on my 270. We will be hunting over a wheat field that has a view of 600 yards. I think I can keep the shots to less then 100 yards pretty easy. I've looked at a Rossi .243 scope combo for $199 new but I've seen some bad post about the groups for this gun. So my question is will remintons reduced recoil realy reduce the recoil to make it worth the trouble or should I look for anothe option?

 

[mattsbox99]

There are lots of good reviews on it and its been very accurate. Its also kind of tough to get.

 

[TMan]

I have one month to get two 10 year old girls ready for a deer hunt.

My 30/30 is a trapper 94 and the smaller size fits them well but the recoil is way to much.

The Remington Managed Recoil loads shoot very well, no worries there.

Have you considered putting a Decelerator pad on the Trapper? It really takes the bite out of a rifle. Sierra makes a 125gr HP for the .30-30, and Speer makes a 130gr FP, that you could load at the low end of the range for 4320 or 4895, and it would be fine for a shot out to 100yds on a whitetail. At 2000-2200fps, it would have no more recoil that a .243 with a 100gr bullet. Recoil is modest even by .30-30 standards.

I've shot both bullets at full speed from a couple .30-30's, they are very accurate.

 

[25 Otter]

I picked up a box of 300 RUM Managed Recoil in 150gr awhile back. I was having trouble getting brass,so I figured at $35 a box it was worth trying,if for no other reason than to get some once fired brass. I was VERY pleased with it's performance. I figured it would be a bunch of hype. I was wrong. It shot very well. 3 shots touching at 100 yds,dead center left and right,just a smidge lower than my whitetail handloads. By the way, my whitetail loads are light by Ultra Mag standards,and the Managed Recoil still kicked less. I planned to run them out off hand at some swinging steel at the range. I decided to put them back for deer hunting here in PA. I can tell you one thing. I'll pick up some more if I find them at a good price in the future. And I have been rolling my own ammo since 1976!

 

[broom_jm]

Welcome to ShootersForum, Chatter box.

You didn't mention if you reload, but even if you do not, the Managed Recoil ammo should help you out. It is absolutely worth the money, for what it does, and if you keep the shot distances modest, it is still very effective at delivering humane kills on deer-sized animals. The advice about using a good recoil pad will also go a long way toward taking the sting out of recoil.

 

[Jakeway]

One other thing to do for the girls: put a Kick-Eez cheek pad on the stock. It really helps the kids get their face firmly on the stock and their eyes alligned with the scope. And it cushions the upward thrust of the recoil.

You can see it in this larger view of my avatar pic.

 

[BarkBuster20]

I dont have any experience with the .243 using reduced recoil ammunition.. But using 100 grain factory corelokt ammo, i find the recoil a bit sharper than my 30-30 trapper using 170 grain corelokts.. Find some factory 125 grain bullets for the 30-30, and a recoil pad and i would imagine it would be no more recoil than the .243 with reduced recoil loads.. maybe less.

I think if the 30-30 is way to much recoil, the .243 might be too much as well.

 

[broom_jm]

I dont have any experience with the .243 using reduced recoil ammunition.. But using 100 grain factory corelokt ammo, i find the recoil a bit sharper than my 30-30 trapper using 170 grain corelokts.. Find some factory 125 grain bullets for the 30-30, and a recoil pad and i would imagine it would be no more recoil than the .243 with reduced recoil loads.. maybe less.

I think if the 30-30 is way to much recoil, the .243 might be too much as well.

I think you're right, but not because of the inherent characteristics of the two cartridges. Most 30/30 rifles are in a Model '94 Winchester whereas most 243's are in a bolt-action. The difference is in the design of the typical stock on those two guns, with the '94 being far less kind to the shooter. Lots of drop at heel and comb, along with a hard buttplate results in more felt recoil than your average 243 Winny. I would suggest that this is true as long as you're comparing "normal" or reduced recoil loads, for each.

 

[TMan]

I think if the 30-30 is way to much recoil, the .243 might be too much as well.

I shoot my M77/MKII .243 regularly, and even with 100gr bullets, loaded up, it's pretty mild. Shooting my .30-30 along side the .243, it seems to kick a bit more, but it's quite a bit lighter, and has a butt plate. Growing up on a farm, I used a .32 Spcl from time to time to bump off ***** in the chicken house, and even a 12 years old, it seemed pretty substantial with 170gr loads. Shooting lighter bullets makes a lot of difference though, with a good recoil pad, it might be OK.

 

[BarkBuster20]

I have never shot a bolt action .243, I sighted in a remington pump action .243 for my cousin to use for deer season, and it seemed to have a little more pop than my 30-30. Definitly agree with broom though, that the stock design on the '94 is going to offer more of an unpleasent shooting experience than a bolt action. I would expect with a good recoil pad, and 125 grain bullets it shouldnt be any more unpleasent to shoot than a bolt action .243 with reduced recoil loads, something to experiment with anyway.

 

[broom_jm]

When I loaded up some "youth" loads of H4895 and Nosler 125gr BT's for a 30-'06, at around 2500fps, my wife said they kick noticeably less than her T/C Omega with 2 pellets and 250gr saboted XTP's. Now, both of those are more recoil than a .243, but I was looking at full-throttle loads for the 30/30 and the same 125gr BT; they will get to 2500fps, with the right powder. The extra weight and better stock design of the 03A3 '06 would probably mean the kick is less than the same bullet/velocity from a Model '94 in 30/30. Neither are objectionable to an adult, but a 10 year-old might feel differently.

Hodgdon's youth loads are down around 2000-2100fps, with a light-for-caliber, flat-nosed bullet. That makes more sense if a tubular magazine is being used, although if you load with one in the chamber and one in the tube, there is no reason you can't use a pointed bullet. I'm not sure I would do that unless I plugged the tube, though...just for added safety. Regardless of how you go about it, there are definitely more than a few options on how to create reduced recoil loads for the 30/30. If you don't reload, you're pretty much stuck with whatever Managed Recoil loads you can find.

 

[BarkBuster20]

As far as FT lbs of recoil are concerned i think the .243 and 30-30 are about equal with full throttle loads, comparing the 150 grain 30-30 ammunition too 100 grain .243 ammunition, of say remington corelokt, i could be wrong.

 

[broom_jm]

Yep, you could be, but not too far wrong.

In general terms, the recoil from a 243 Winchester and 100 grain bullets is about 9 ft/lbs, from a 7.5lb gun, while the recoil from a 30/30 Winchester and 150 grain bullets is about 11 ft/lbs, from a gun of similar weight. You can look at that two different ways: The recoil of the 30/30 is only 2 pounds greater, or it's nearly 25% more. If you're a young child and sensitive to the amount of felt recoil, that additional 2 pounds might matter a great deal. Also, as previously mentioned, the relatively poor stock design of the Model '94 will make that 11 pounds sting quite a bit more than the 9 pounds from a bolt-action 243. A reduced charge under 125-130gr bullets, along with a good recoil pad, will make the 30/30 generate less felt recoil than full-throttle 243 rounds, and at woods ranges, should still be very effective.

 

[the blur]

I too am fansinated by the M-R ammo, as I am anti recoil.
I brought some in .30-06, & 7mm-08.
Havn't fired them yet, but I wonder if they will cycle my semi auto's ?
they box says maybe / maybe not.

M-R was hard to find for a while, but I finally got it.
now I just need to get to the range.

I don't think they make it in .243.............

 

[purpledragon]

The .243 with reduced loads is very manageable for the youngsters. I have an NEF youth compact .243 I bought for a backpack rifle. My 7yo grandson shoots it with loads of 27gr. imr 4198 80gr soft points,and he is a little feller. If you have access to a nef or a bolt in .243 that would be your ticket. The recoil is less than a 2 1/2" .410 low brass...........hope this helps

 

[fred243]

I've shot the .308 reduced recoil. Out to 100 yards they were fine and grouped well, but when trying to shoot them out to 200 yards the point of impact was 8-9 inches different then the 100 yard shots. I was very confused after the first few shots at 200 yards and moved the target back in to 100 yards and hitting the center circle fine. Moved it back out to 200 yards and the same thing happened where the point of impact was concerned 8-9 inches different. The .308's are the only ones i've shot. Maybe a little smaller bullet in the .243 like the new Hornady 80gr GMX and a good recoil pad. Good luck on the hunts.