*Best* all-purpose cast cartridge?

[GhostHawk]

Hard IMO to beat the old dirty thirty and cast. You have that nice LONG neck. Nice rimmed cartridge just designed for single shots.

You have a wide variety of bullet options from under 100 grains to over 200.

In my case I've done almost all of my shooting with Red Dot, from 3 grains under a 90 gr cast which would be quiet and deadly out to say 50 yards.

To 6-8 grains under the Lee .312 185 gr gas checked for full power loads at 100+

It is IMO a good caliber, one that gets ignored a lot.
You can do a lot with it. Where you go is up to you.

Big Bore is fun, but .44mag and .45 colt 200+ grain bullets are not kind to small game at all.

[JBinMN]

Loaded question time! I'm saving up for a new rifle and I'd like it to be designated for cast boolits and handloads only. Problem is I can't decide what to get...

I don't want a cartridge which would make significant gains from j-words. I'd like it to be powerful enough for deer and eastern black bear but not overpowered for squirrel and rabbit. Gun needs to be about 6-7lb and 16-18" barrel.

I feel like I'm pigeon holing myself into the 30/30 but I'm hoping there's something better... What is y'all's favorite all-purpose?

For the underlined purpose in your OP...

12Ga. Shotgun.

May not be what you expected for an answer, and I realize the 2nd sentence says, "rifle", but a shotgun pretty much fits your criteria.

You can cast your own slugs & shot, or buy factory components & load yourself, or you can get factory rounds/shells.

The weight is close or in the range presented, as well as the length.

Now it is not a rifle, but you can get a rifled bbl, AND a smoothbore if ya like, along with other options like an adjustable choke or use choke tubes.

And also, if it is a single shot, you can get "inserts" to use other cartridges, from the .22 cal up to .44 cal cal, in straight wall type cases, IIRC, and possibly even other cartridges.

Not trying to be snarky, just offering something you may have not considered in your "quest". Besides, for "all purpose" the shotgun fits in quite nicely, IMO, unless you want longer distances than 100+ or so yards.

Anyway,

G'Luck! & I hope ya find what you are looking for!

[dverna]

If you want a light rifle with a 16-18" barrel stay away from the .270, .30/06, etc Too much muzzle blast, if you ever want to shoot full jacketed loads.

Not a fan of the Rugger bolt gun in .357...too expensive and reports of poor accuracy.

My choice is a .30/30. Can get it used in a bolt gun or new in lever action or single shot. Brass is easy to get. I think it is a bit light for large black bears

BTW have a few .30/30's but do not hunt with them as I have better choices and prefer jacketed bullets for hunting. If you can go to a 22" barrel, get the .308.

[arlon]

Seems that short barrel limits things. My favorite do all cartridge is hands down a 30-06. Long neck is very cast bullet friendly. Rifles aren't in vogue and some really nice ones can be had cheap as their owners all ditch them for 6.5mm.. I've loaded several different 30-06 rifles with everything from 90 grain truncated cone bullets intended for 32 caliber revolvers to 240 grain custom mould bullets. Light and accurate enough loads for squirrel and heavy enough loads for elk. Buy a few good moulds and go have fun with it.

[SvenLindquist]

35 remington is a good balance between powder capacity and killing power. You can load pistol boolits for small game that will destroy no edible meat as they wont expand. Then for bigger stuff you can step up to a 200 gr boolit. A JM Marlin is a good snag of it's <$350 and has condition. You can always resell it and never lose a dime. I load mine w/Trail Boss and revolver boolits for small game and am afraid of nothing with the Lee 200gr boolit and a stout load of 4198. You can also scope the Marlin with one of those "holdover/under" reticles which should allow you to have aiming points for small and big game with no messing about.
As Col. Whelen knew many decades ago, going afield with big and small game loads means you won't be eating canned beans at night.

[clearwater]

300 Blackout. Whole variety of boolit sizes and just a little powder. Less meat damage on small game.

350 legend, straight walled and good variety of boolit sizes too. Better for large game. Wonder if you could load several 000 buckshot in it for small game?

Either could be a modern sporting rifle too.

I have a rechambered Handi rifle in 30-40 Krag that shoots 100 to 220 grain cast and has taken a lot of grouse with light loads. Currently working on some gallery loads too. With the 220 grain cast at cast boo lit speeds, it has more energy than a 30-30 with 170 grain cast for big game. Even longer neck than the 30-30 or 30-06.

[clearwater]

Then there is my Dad's solution. 44 mag with heavy cast for deer and shot shells for small game. His was a scoped Ruger Blackhawk, but it could be a carbine too.

[kenyerian]

Contender with a 45/410 barrel.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

I'd be inclined to go with a 32 Special in a Marlin 336. It does hit a little harder than the 30-30. A bigger(diameter) bullet a little faster, I have used 200 gr in my rifles with no stability issues and excellent accuracy at 200 yards. NOE makes a 325008 (130 grains) like the 311008 that would work for small game and target practice fun. Accurate or Mountain Molds could cut a 200 flatnose similar to the RCBS/NOE 30 180/195 flatnose. Cases are available or 30-30 brass can simply be used by sizing up the neck. My 2nd choice would be the 35 Rem in a Marlin 336, all those pistol bullets from 100 grains up and for hunting, a 200-230 grain flatpoint. I think the 32 Spcl or the 35 Rem both would be better for black bear with 200 grain bullets at 2000plus/minus. The 35 Rem can be found or built on a bolt gun, a 358 Win would also work like the 35 Rem but allow heavier bullets at decent velocities. I have a Marlin in 35 Rem that I shortened the Magazine to 3 shots, it is around 6lbs. McPherson has written a great deal on lightening the Marlins. The 32 Spcl has some advantages, being rimmed, light loading does not affect the headspace. Rimless cartridges can shorten/move the shoulder when fired with light loads, so light load brass should be separate from brass used for full power loading or carefully checked/measured for headspace.

[rockydoc]

I would jump on that 35 Remington JM Marlin. Lee 200 gr for deer and bear and Lee 309-105swc for squirrel and rabbits, and general plinking. Very efficient.

[Whiterabbit]

I think you're looking at a 12 ga shotgun.

[trapper9260]

I say you can go with 30.cal in the ones stated .you can size down the 32 cal cast for light loads for small game if you like to that to full powder of what the cart. is of the 30 cal. I done this with my 30 cals. of size down the 32 cal cast to shot light loads in the 30cals. I have some 32 cals I reload for also.If want to go a handgun the 357 mag beside shoot 38spl. with light loads for that also.And use it in rifle .

[Whiterabbit]

357 max might be a great idea. a 16" barrel 35 max can shoot a 250 grain spitzer at 1700 fps easily. trailboss would make for squirrel loads, or you can just zip that 250 grainer right on through. Shouldn;t expand much...

[fiberoptik]

30 US , or as some call it, 30-40 Krag. I have a sporterized one with short barrel & Williams peep sight. Light & handy. Use .32 pistol bullets for tree rats, up to 220 grain bullets for moose, bears, etc. One gun that can do it all.


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[davidheart]

I appreciate all your responses! I've been reading them as they come in, I just didn't want to interrupt the flow of thought. The new cartridges are super nice but I don't know of any rifles being chambered in them now. I'd be more inclined towards an older, more established cartridge even if it's dipping into obscurity.

I also have a love/hate relationship with semi-auto rifles. I like to collect and save my brass from hunts and of course reload, but a semi-auto doesn't share the same concern.

There are two nice JM stamped Marlins at the shop. The 30-30 and the 35 Remington. There's also a rattling Winchester 94 in 30-30 with good rifling... It's just a lot of rattling for walking in the woods...

I'm inclined towards the 35 Remington but it's a microgroove barrel. I don't remember having good success with the microgroove and cast boolits in my old 336. I had amazing accuracy with j-words but not cast.

If I pick up the 30-30 Microgroove I could always send it to Jes to rebore to 32 Special or other cartridge Jes offers... Just a thought.

[dk17hmr]

45/70 would probably do exactly what you want with a 425gr Ranch Dog and a 150gr collar button.

Maybe a 44mag or 45lc or 454 cassul lever action would be worth looking at. But if you don't have a 30/30 yet you might as well get one.

[JoeJames]

45/70 would probably do exactly what you want with a 425gr Ranch Dog and a 150gr collar button.

Maybe a 44mag or 45lc or 454 cassul lever action would be worth looking at. But if you don't have a 30/30 yet you might as well get one.

My all round go to in a rifle is a Rossi R92 in 44 Magnum. But I shoot reduced CB loads - Oregon Trail .431" 240 grain SWC, 7 grains of Unique, 44 Magnum case, running at 1,150 fps. No recoil to speak of but will take care of anything here in Arkansas.

[Bloodman14]

I don't own one, but how about something in.308W? Lee TL-90-314SWC or C-120-2R boolits using Red Dot for small game, up to 200 grain boolits using H4895 or similar. And everything in between! Brass is cheap, and plentiful, dies for it are everywhere, what's not to like?

[woody1]

IMO for your stated purpose (rifle) there are only 2 calibers that really fit. That's 30 and 35. Take a look at the variety of readily available moulds for most any other calibers, then look at the 30's and 35's. I really like the idea of 32 Win. Spl. as a medium game hunting rifle but there's not much available for boolits between round balls and 170-180 grain boolits. Now just pick a rifle you want and you can get most any of the reasonably powered 30 and 35's to do what you want from round ball Starling/tree rat subsonics to large game loads and most anything in between.
OK flame away!

[JBinMN]

IMO for your stated purpose (rifle) there are only 2 calibers that really fit. That's 30 and 35. Take a look at the variety of readily available moulds for most any other calibers, then look at the 30's and 35's. I really like the idea of 32 Win. Spl. as a medium game hunting rifle but there's not much available for boolits between round balls and 170-180 grain boolits. Now just pick a rifle you want and you can get most any of the reasonably powered 30 and 35's to do what you want from round ball Starling/tree rat subsonics to large game loads and most anything in between.
OK flame away!

Haha. Flame?

There are were at least a couple of us that offered up the suggestion of a 12ga. shotgun for the uses asked about by the OP, Rather than in a centerfire rifle

I don’t reckon ya’ll will be getting any “flames” for your post.

We are all just trying to help with our own, “opinion”.