The 30-30 Winchester...

[El Chivo]

Here is an excerpt from a copied page from some load book I ran across, I don't know which one. Since I consider the 30-30 to be a whiz-bang caliber (compared to .357) I thought it was pretty funny:

"The 30-30 WCF of 1895 was the first American sporting rifle cartridge designed for smokeless powder and was chambered in the slick new Winchester 1894 rifle. As such, this classic combination became immediately popular with game hunters, whose irrational love for this marginally-performing round was conferred by the convenient, effective and shootable carbines made for it. Many ballistically superior lever-action rounds have been marketed over the ensuing 103 years without turning the heads of these loyal adherents.

In modern times, the 30-30 has continued to be a most popular sporting cartridge. On the strength of its reputation, makers like Savage and Marlin de-emphasized their better proprietary cartridges while offering 30-30's to the wool shirt and duck boot crowd. The 30-30 has been developed as an outstanding single shot pistol cartridge..."
Actually my real question was, what is your favorite brand of duck boot?

Hope you get a kick out of it (as I did). I recopied it for this forum because I spent so much time typing it out!

[Swampman]

"Guns and ballistics have fascinated me since boyhood, and I hope this elemental pleasure will endure, for it has offered me a great deal of pleasure as well as kinship with others that only ballistics and a cozy campfire could possibly create. Such cartridges as the .270 Winchester, .300 H&H magnum, .30/06, and even some for the big-bore British favorites are as interesting to me as though magic were contained in these combinations of figures....

What has been the result? I have reached up to the gun rack and taken down the .30/30 carbine by some process of natural selection, not condoned perhaps by many experts by easily explained by those who spend long periods in the wilderness areas. The .30/30 Winchester carbine is light, short, easily worked through dense forest areas and, when carried over arduous trails, lends itself well to canoe, pack-horse, and dog-team travel. Also it is vested with the crowning glory-the open hammer and the lever action, which symbolize the outdoors as do the pattern of a snowshoe or a canoe."

Calvin Rutstrum

I always wear an old G.I. wool shirt when hunting, but usually a worn pair of Jungle Boots adorne my 2 left feet.

Swampman

[Andrew]

I said it over there and I will say it again, some people just can't feel good about themselves unless they talk other things/people down.

[Ysabel Kid]

Someone was sniffing the ol' typeset that day!

[danthegunman]

Someone was sniffing the ol' typeset that day!

+1!!!

[SmokeEater2]

In the immortal words of Bugs Bunny-"What a Maroon!

[spaceman spiff]

" As such, this classic combination became immediately popular with game hunters, whose irrational love for this marginally-performing round was conferred by the convenient, effective and shootable carbines made for it. Many ballistically superior lever-action rounds have been marketed over the ensuing 103 years without turning the heads of these loyal adherents."

Color me irrational and stubborn!!!

Regards,

[JohnnyReb]

I know there is alot of discussion about ballastics and accuracy ad infinitum on gun related sites:

But I have seldom, if ever, shot a rifle that truly compromised my aim
(a gun I could outshoot); and
I have never seen a rifle from which I was willing to take a bullet because it was marginal on power or knockdown.

Not too many years ago, alot of fellas killed each other in war and also obtained meat for the table with .30 black powder smooth bores.

30-30 will get the job done for me.

[Dave]

When the 30-30 appeared it was touted as a high speed, flat shooting small bore compared to the black powder cartridges of the day. It is still a plenty powerful and wonderfully useful cartridge.
The 30-30 combined with short, light leverguns is a marriage made in heaven. If it ain't broke.............

[blueroan]

You may address any further unkind (and true) remarks to the author of LASER-CAST RELOADING MANUAL from OREGON TRAIL BULLET COMPANY by Bruce Gray and Gayl Morse. Gray is/was an IPSC competitor.

What caliber did has taken more deer, etc. in more varied climates and terrain for more years?

Bruce, go stand in the corner!

[FWiedner]

" As such, this classic combination became immediately popular with game hunters, whose irrational love for this marginally-performing round was conferred by the convenient, effective and shootable carbines made for it. Many ballistically superior lever-action rounds have been marketed over the ensuing 103 years without turning the heads of these loyal adherents."

Call me picky, but I suppose that the fact that the little "marginally-performing round" works like it was magic just don't count fer nuthin', does it?

Lord, ye gave them eyes but they cannot see...

[Junior]

All he's looking at is the on-paper ballistics of the 30-30 vs 308, 30-06, etc. The key to the 30-30's success on game is the bullets designed for the 30-30's velocities over its intended range. From muzzle to game, the velocity varies only 600 to 700 fps. It's much easier to make a bullet perfectly expand over such a small range vs a range of 1,000 to 1,500 fps or even more.

My point is: a perfect hunting bullet perfectly expands from muzzle range to the game range. Almost any 30-30 hunting bullet is as near to perfect as possible.

[Old Savage]

Bingo Junior - that's what I thought - if the bullet always works - certain cartidges it always did. The 250 Savage seems to be another whereas the .243 they had to make better performing bullets.

[swany]

Glad to see the leverguns back in the running as I've rejoined. Got the word over at Marlinowners. Swany

Just think about it, we fought WWII with M-1 carbines aplenty. Killing armed soldiers that shot back. Them fellas sure would write an essay if they ever went deer hunting with me when driving a Michigan swamp as I packed a 1911 in that lowly .45 ACP. Them gun porn writers can only praise it if they get a free sample I guess.

[Slick13]

Boy, talk about looking down your nose at a cartridge and those who use it.

I told a friend of mine I was taking my .30-30 black bear hunting this past fall (didn't even see anything), and he immediately starts telling me stories of hunters in Alaska being eaten by bears (like a 100 to 300 lb PA black bear is going to eat me). I said to him, "It's still a 170 grain .30 cal bullet, it will do the job". I could tell he still wasn't convinced.

~Michael

[handirifle]

Boy, talk about looking down your nose at a cartridge and those who use it.

I told a friend of mine I was taking my .30-30 black bear hunting this past fall (didn't even see anything), and he immediately starts telling me stories of hunters in Alaska being eaten by bears (like a 100 to 300 lb PA black bear is going to eat me). I said to him, "It's still a 170 grain .30 cal bullet, it will do the job". I could tell he still wasn't convinced.

~Michael

That 300lb bear surely COULD eat you, but the 170gr 30-30 will just as suredly kill him.

[Slick13]

Boy, talk about looking down your nose at a cartridge and those who use it.

I told a friend of mine I was taking my .30-30 black bear hunting this past fall (didn't even see anything), and he immediately starts telling me stories of hunters in Alaska being eaten by bears (like a 100 to 300 lb PA black bear is going to eat me). I said to him, "It's still a 170 grain .30 cal bullet, it will do the job". I could tell he still wasn't convinced.

~Michael

That 300lb bear surely COULD eat you, but the 170gr 30-30 will just as suredly kill him.

I know it could, but it's unlikely that it would. At first sight of me it would probably run.

~Michael

[J Miller]

Too many people do too much talking, and too little doing.

No matter what they say about it, the 30WCF (30-30) has been taking game reliably for 113 years.
The gun makers have perfected the platform to shoot the ammo, and the ammo makers have perfected the ammo.
In all the calibers we have I can't think of a better gun / ammo combination for general hunting than a Winchester or Marlin lever gun and the 30-30 cartridge.

It simply works, nothing more needs to be said.

Joe

[stretch]

Yeah, all of those old, marginal cartridges like the 45 ACP, 9mm,
45-70, 30-30, 35 Remington and the 30-06 are still doing the job
today. (Okay, not too many gun writers are calling the 30-06 marginal. ) They all still kill lots of critters (quadriped and biped alike), and without 'em the ammo manufacturers might just go broke. The
7.62 x 39 is another cartridge beginning to get a little bit long in the
tooth. I wonder what percentage of all center-fire ammo manufactured that round accounts for every year?

[Griff]

No comment.



No need to give his opinions the validity of an argument. Then, again, he might be right! NOT!!!

[Old Ironsights]

I've never had any problems with the .30-30... but I've never had the desire to own one either.

I likely won't ever get one until/unless my Uncle decides to give me his Savage 170 pump.

I guess I'm just a bigger fan of Straight Wall cartridges.