.243 Barrel Length For Suppressor Use. 16” or 18”?

[jazz3ring]

I’m getting the barrel cut and threaded on a .243 Win.

Primary use will be for shorter range whitetail hunting out of tree stands and box blinds.

Would you cut it to 16” or 18”? Pros & cons?

 

[AZ_Hunter]

16”. It will be more handy in the blind and the short range use, there is no reason to go longer

 

[hereinaz]

You can easily kill whitetail with a 14” barrel out of a blind.

I only say 16” cause that’s the shortest you can go without a tax stamp.

I hunted in TN with an 18” cause it was the shortest. When I go back I am taking a 12 or 14” barreled mini rifle.

2 inches gets you 50fps and that is irrelevant inside 300 yards.

 

[h2so4]

16”!

 

[Long Cut]

16” and stop overthinking it

 

[TMKSHOOTER]

I feel like 18 inch is a compromise just go all the way and cut it 16.

 

[jazz3ring]

Thanks for the replies. You have me convinced to cut it to 16”.

 

[SloppyJ]

Either is fine. I'm around 2860 with the right load of n555 and 108s in my 18" 6cm and I'm perfectly happy there.

You'll love either one.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

I like 18-20” for long range big game hunting and 14-16” for shorter range. For your application the 16” will be great.

Edit: my barrel length is determined on if I’m shooting supressed or not, which lately, is quite rare to not be supressed.

 

[JDBAK]

16 is plenty long, just louder. Which you could use a greater volume suppressor and be fine.

 

[ACHILLES]

16” 243win is one of my favorite hunting guns. 7.2lbs all up

 

[teamsprock]

What velocities are you getting out of your 16" .243's? I just cut down a factory tikka barrel (1:8 twist) to 16.5". I am hoping I can get the 103 gr eldx bullets to shoot 2600+ FPS. Seems like I should be in the ball park, based off my back of the napkin calculations.

 

[CBB1]

What velocities are you getting out of your 16" .243's? I just cut down a factory tikka barrel (1:8 twist) to 16.5". I am hoping I can get the 103 gr eldx bullets to shoot 2600+ FPS. Seems like I should be in the ball park, based off my back of the napkin calculations.

I’m getting about 2820 with 108s out of a 17” .243. Same Tikka as yours loading with H1000.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Natebonebusta]

18.5” barrel suppressed gets me 2,995fps from the 95gr Nosler BT at the muzzle.

 

[Marbles]

16. I generally go 16.5 so if the threads ever get boogered up it can be cut and rethread.

I went 17 on my 243 Tikka, and at sea level with 108 ELDMs it will work well further that the 450 yards I'm willing to shat at game too.

 

[BugDance29]

For those with shorter (16” or so) barreled 243’s, how loud are they with a decent can?

I am seriously considering having my 22” Ruger cut down to 16 or 18 and buying a 7” can, but am second guessing if it’ll be worth it, due to how dang loud the gun is even with a 22” barrel.

The majority of my hunting is for whitetails in PA and WV, with most shots being 0-150 yards, so velocity is no issue.

16” 243win is one of my favorite hunting guns. 7.2lbs all up

16” and stop overthinking it

 

[blksno]

You can easily kill whitetail with a 14” barrel out of a blind.

I only say 16” cause that’s the shortest you can go without a tax stamp.

I hunted in TN with an 18” cause it was the shortest. When I go back I am taking a 12 or 14” barreled mini rifle.

2 inches gets you 50fps and that is irrelevant inside 300 yards.

Considering we are 3 weeks away from a free tax stamp anyway...I see no reason NOT to register anything I've ever considered putting short barrels on.

You can always leave them long, but at least if they ever revert back to an actual tax...you already have the stamp.
I personally chopped a switch barrel 13" 22 Creed and a 15" 6 Creed. If I was gonna chop a .243...and knew ahead of time I was gonna run a suppressor...I'd probably do 14 myself.
( I didn't have the luxury of doing 14 on the system I choose. 15" was the shortest I could go.)

13" 22 Creed. Flipped the EFR around backward to get as short as possible.


15" 6 Creed (all metal was done afterward...just need to see where the EFR ended)

 

[AZ_Hunter]

Considering we are 3 weeks away from a free tax stamp anyway...I see no reason NOT to register anything I've ever considered putting short barrels on.

You can always leave them long, but at least if they ever revert back to an actual tax...you already have the stamp.
I personally chopped a switch barrel 13" 22 Creed and a 15" 6 Creed. If I was gonna chop a .243...and knew ahead of time I was gonna run a suppressor...I'd probably do 14 myself.
( I didn't have the luxury of doing 14 on the system I choose. 15" was the shortest I could go.)

13" 22 Creed. Flipped the EFR around backward to get as short as possible.
View attachment 985762

15" 6 Creed (all metal was done afterward...just need to see where the EFR ended)
View attachment 985761

The only problem with SBR’ing is the pain to travel interstate with the notification requirements. Unless the ATF changes that too, but I haven’t heard of them doing that.

 

[hereinaz]

The only problem with SBR’ing is the pain to travel interstate with the notification requirements. Unless the ATF changes that too, but I haven’t heard of them doing that.

I saw a report that ATF was working on rules to make all the reporting online and simplified.

But, yes, the interstate travel rules kept me from taking my SBR to a hunt that I could do with a 12” .223 back east.

 

[Long Cut]

For those with shorter (16” or so) barreled 243’s, how loud are they with a decent can?

I am seriously considering having my 22” Ruger cut down to 16 or 18 and buying a 7” can, but am second guessing if it’ll be worth it, due to how dang loud the gun is even with a 22” barrel.

The majority of my hunting is for whitetails in PA and WV, with most shots being 0-150 yards, so velocity is no issue.

R700 at 16.5” with a YHM Resonator K can. I can shoot several rounds without ear pro and have no ringing or discomfort.

Without the can, the muzzle blast is so absurd it will clear a shooting bench and blow debris back into your face. I could not imagine shooting this rifle without a can or ear pro in a hunting scenario.

IF you opt to go down to 16.5” in a .243 just understand you will NOT want to shoot it unsuppressed.
BUT even with a budget can, they’re pleasant to shoot in my experience.