.244 Remington

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richhodg66

Well-Known Member
Have been a big fan of the 6mm for a long time. Have never shot cast in mine, but I want to. I have kind of wanted one of the old slow twist 722s for this (plus I like the 722 regardless of caliber) but they are getting rather hard to find and expensive when you do.

If a rifle is marked .244, does that mean it is likely to have the slower twist? I have missed in the past year or two on a couple of nice rifles so marked built on quality small ring actions on Gunbroker. I kind of figured these were barreled before Remington re-introduced the cartridge with the new twist, would that be a good assumption? I kind of figure asking most types on Gunbroker to actually measure the twist is unrealistic.

Thoughts?
 
CWLONGSHOT

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
Not necessarily... The first ones from its intro in '55 till '58 maybe it was 1:12 but Remington realized there error and changed it. So according to Rem records, there are 1:9 244's! Then later renamed it to 6mm with the 1:9 (or close)

You will want to run a rod with a tight patch and measure to know.

I also love the 6mm Rem. Always have but still dont really own one. I say it that way as I have a action @ a gunsmith having a 24" 1:8 6mm Rem barrel fitted!!

NO molds in 6mm here and no real desire to try any at this time. I was a le to buy a lifetime supply of the Speer 105's. I have had three 243's and pop still has one now. These have worked well for us.

CW
 
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Rick H

Rick H

Well-Known Member
I have a 6mm Rem 788 that I love. The specs say it has a 1:9 1/3" twist. I have not shot cast through it, using Jacketed 95-105gr. bullets for antelope and whitetail deer hunting. I feel it and the 243W are the minimum cartridge for deer sized game. I don't use it for varminting and would be uncomfortable using it on medium/large game with cast.

While the slower twist 244R barrels might allow you to drive a cast bullet a bit faster, I see no reason you couldn't shoot cast with accuracy from the "quick" twist 1:9+ barrels. You might have to hold velocities down but they should be adequate for small pest control and target work.

If you like the 722 Remington and the price is right, go for it. I don't think you lose anything with the quicker twist and you gain versatility.
 
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abj

Active Member
I have a 722 in 243 Win. My dad bought it when Remington came out with 243 but before they renamed the 244. I never thought about it much until I was reloading with 100 grain jacketed. Wouldn't shoot 100's worth a darn. Having some conversations with folks older than me suggested that Remington used the 1:12 barrels on the first 243's because they had so many. So I checked, and sure enough it's 1:12. I would think a marked 722/244 would be the slower twist. But like CW said, the only way to know for sure is check. Dad bought the one I have in 59 I think. If you don't own it yet, you might check the serial number range to see if it was the late 50's, probably a slow twist. After Winchester's market gain with the 243, Remington had to regroup and things started changing with the 6mm twist rates.
Tony
 
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richhodg66

Well-Known Member
My thought is the slower twist would be better to shoot cast in. The bullet mold I have is an 85 grain design. No plans to hunt with cast. I have killed deer with cast, but 7mm is as small as I've gone. I'd like to do it with a 6.5 and am pretty sure I can do it cleanly, just a project that is further down the road.

Seems Jim Carmichael wrote once that the slow twist worked fine with 100 grain bullets if I remember correctly.

My 6mm is also a 788, spooky accurate. Foolishly traded off a 600 a few years ago, wish I hadn't.
 
Matt

Matt

Active Member
My .243s with 1/10 twist barrels shoot the 100 grain RCBS cast bullet well. My 1/14 inch twist 6mm PPC doesn’t shoot the 100 grain real well but the bullet holes in the targets at 100 yards are perfectly round indicating they are stable. A .244 with 1/12 should work fine with a 100 grain cast bullet. I have a 244496 Lyman (85 grain GC) that I haven’t done much with that I hope will be more accurate in my PPC.
 
CZ93X62

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
No 6mm or 244 experience, but LOTS with the 243. The RCBS 6mm-95-SP bullet has been LIGHTS OUT for me in 243, I've won a couple "Group" contests with a Rem 788 at NCBS over the years. That rifle is a righteous 1 MOA shooter with that bullet atop 12.0-14.0 grains of 2400. It groups almost that well with Lyman #245496. The RCBS carries a bit better in wind, and is just over 1 MOA at 200 yards. The 243 has been by some distance my most successful cast bullet varmint caliber to date.
 
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BudHyett

Active Member
The above notes on twist rate show any rifle marked .244 with a factory barrel needs checked. I've hunted with both the .243 and 6mm Remington which I like. For jacketed on coyote, the 100 gran Sierra Softpoint Boattail works well with H-4831 in both cartridges. l like the 6mm bore, but few people realize the shooter must get above 85 grains to gain better wind-bucking capability over the .22 caliber varmint bullets.

Cast bullets, the RCBS 243-095-SP shoots well in several rifles and a Long Range Handgun. I've got a Savage Striker in 6mm BR with 1:10 twist that loves this bullet. I also have the SAECO #243 85 grain mold that weighs 94 grains (linotype alloy) with lubricant and gascheck. This bullet shoots well, but the RCBS mold does better at 200 yards.

I have a 6X47 with 1:14 twist that I've tried an Eagan 68 grain mold with mediocre results. I eventually gave up on it for cast and now strictly shoot it on prairie dogs with a 60 grain Sierra Hollowpoint. The rifle shots well with jacketed under 70 grains. I have an Eagan 85 grain mold that I have yet to cast, I hope to do this year if I can find "spare" primers.
 
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fiver

fiver

Well-Known Member
i shoot 58gr. bullets in my old worn down 243 for rock chucks.
it's toasted enough i have to actually clean the barrel every 40-50 rds. to keep it accurate.
if i ever find a decent smith around here it's gonna get re-barreled into something like a 260 or 280 err 7-08.
 
CZ93X62

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
Not a thing wrong with a 260 or 7-08. Great calibers.

Still, there will ALWAYS be a 243 in my gun safe, as there has been for over 30 years. Given the usual sizes of our CA muleys and blacktails, a 243 with 100 grain controlled-expansion bullets like the Nosler Partition or similar-sized but lighter weight Barnes TSX/TTSX are perfect for the quarry. I long ago lost count of the 243-harvested jackrabbits and ground squirrels over the years. It pains me to say this, but the 243 is superior to the 22-250 as a rat whacker.
 
CWLONGSHOT

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
I like the 7/08 too. Never had a 260, but I have a 6.5/270!

Bought a 7/08 in a brand new Ruger 77 about 1983/4? Sold it about ten years later was never super happy with accuracy. Bought my wife a Savage 7/08 2018. OMG is that rifle accurate!!!

Id have a 260 before a 6.5 Creed!

Looking for ward to my own 6mm Rem hopefully about the end of next Month. (March)

CW
 
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abj

Active Member
I do have an addition to my story on the 12 twist-243. I did get some short for weight 100 grain Hornadys to shoot sub MOA at 100 by using IMR-3031. The ballistician at Speer I think gave me the recipe. If memory serves it was either side of 34. grains. He also said I won't find that load in modern load manuals. He was right, but I did find it in a very old Nosler book (70's) and it was listed as their accuracy load. He said something to the effect that a faster powder,IE... fast launch might work. It did. What didn't work was the long low drag profiles.
I have never shot cast in anything smaller than a 30 so I won't be much help in that area.
Tony
 
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