30/30 CB Deer?

[WolfyW]

Howdy all! New here.

I dabbled in casting a little 20 years ago. Looking to get back into it with my 30/30 Marlin lever in mind.
Although I plan on enjoying this at the club, wondering how effective this would/would not be for deer.
Any advice, stories, pics, details appreciated.

[Hamish]

Boy, did you come to the right place!

[runfiverun]

umm hmm.
30-30 and cast boolits.
one of the few so easy to outperform jaxketed with, that they shouldn't have even tried to use the newfangeled copper stuff in the rifle.

[DrNick]

Indeed....the collective amount of experience on this board for just that chambering is stunning.

I use a 165 grain boolit with a HUGE meplat designed by RanchDog. It was designed specifically for Marlin leverguns. Sadly he no longer sells them but NOE Moulds (Swede Nelson on this board) makes a copy of it and I can personally vouch for the quality of NOE Moulds.

The velocity required for hunting with the .30-30 can be debated until the end of days. My personal feelings are that a 150-170 grain boolit that flies at around 1800 fps is adequate, so long as you can put that boolit where it needs to go (mind you that goes for ALL hunting). The wide meplat makes the boolit hit like a sledgehammer! This combo is good out beyond a hundred yards...but where I hunt 80 is a long shot. One of the redeeming qualities of these leverguns is their inherrent handiness in the thick woods :)

.30-30 and cast for hunting? Works for me. Experiment a bit, havde some fun and convince yourself :)

Doc

[btroj]

I really like the NOE 311165 RD.

The 30-30 was just made to shoot cast. It's about the ideal rifle for cast as it is easy to get everything out of the rifle that is possible.

So many powders work well. Many bullets too. It is just so easy to make work.

[blaser.306]

Howdy all! New here.

I dabbled in casting a little 20 years ago. Looking to get back into it with my 30/30 Marlin lever in mind.
Although I plan on enjoying this at the club, wondering how effective this would/would not be for deer.
Any advice, stories, pics, details appreciated.

This is my first white tail , taken with NOE's 165 gr RD copy . Seems to have performed just as planned!

[pipehand]

I only have a sample of one to go by, but the 30-30 with a cast boolit worked well for me. Complete penetration, adequate wound channel, short and copious blood trail, and no bloodshot meat. Both my 30-30's are Marlins, and both have been fire-lapped and wear ghost ring sights.

[brstevns]

I have taken a couple of small whitetail with the old Lyman 311291 and the Lee 170 (30-30) bullet. One walked 15 feet the other dropped on the spot. Was shooting loads around 1900fps. Range was no more then 35 yards for each.

[MBTcustom]

You have to keep in mind that cast boolits are a far more effective projectile for hunting with. The damage that a semi-soft lead boolit (think 50/50 COWW and pure water dropped, or even air cooled if you can get the size right) can inflict absolutely leaves jacketed bullets at a disadvantage.
I shoot 35 caliber predominately. I killed a deer this year with a 200 grain, 50/50 air cooled boolit, going 2000FPS. I have shot deer with a 300 winmag and not caused that much trauma. I actually have to harden up my boolits some because they performed too well!
You figure a 30-30 can push a 180 grain cast lead boolit 2100 FPS? Should be about the same result. It aint gonna be no love tap, and will drop em like a sack of wet grain.
I have shot literally thousands of 30-30s with cast lead boolits. 165 grain round nose Lovern style (not recommended), 10 grains of unique powder, and a Winchester LR primer.
I would recommend the RCBS 30-180-FN http://www.midwayusa.com/product/125643/rcbs-2-cavity-bullet-mold-30-180-fn-30-caliber-309-diameter-180-grain-flat-nose-gas-check I have not had any experience with it yet, but it's the next 30 caliber mold I am going to try. It comes highly recommended from other members.

[Wolfer]

In my 336 I shoot the Lyman 311041 ahead of 17 gr of 2400 for 1700 fps. It is very accurate and very deadly. My alloy is pretty soft at 1 part WW to 2 parts pure lead with a little solder with a BHN of about 10.
I could harden my alloy a little and go to a slower powder and up my velocity some but this combo is very pleasent to shoot and so effective I see no reason to change.

[WolfyW]

Wow! Ya, I came to the right place alright.

I'll cast in confidence then. I'm mainly a small game guy, but I have an unused standing invite to hunt deer. So I got thinking, of course.

"Socialist Conglomerate of Kanada"
-Ya, me too. And the shots for me would also be closer due to the jungle we call the deer woods.

One local butcher(and hunter) who processes boatloads of deer here comments that he can't believe the heavy damage to meat he sees regularly. Some deer look like they're almost cut in half. I'm thinking too heavy a caliber, too much expansion or both?
A cast boolit is sounding like a better idea all the time.

[fatnhappy]

I'm thinking the .30-30 might just catch on as a deer gun.


I have a pair of marlins in .30-30. One is early 50s vintage and has real rifling, the other micro-groove. My full power deer load is 28 grains of IMR-3031 and a lyman 311041. I haven't bothered to chrono the load, I know it has more than enough steam for the task at hand.
I've been tinkering with much heavier boolits which I'm certain will kill deer very well indeed.
For a fun plinking load I've had very good luck with 12 grains of 2400 and the 311291. I've head shot a couple rabbits with it. Nice clean holes.

http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h152/lhsjfk3t/001-3.jpg

[quilbilly]

When I did my terminal ballistics test with my 30/30 using the Lee 160 gr RNGC with an MV of 1550 fps, I got over 17" of penetration in soaked phone books with an impressive wound channel. Clearly that boolit at that velocity is more than adequate on deer out to 150 yards even if conventional wisdom says it wouldn't be.

[runfiverun]

the surest way to destroy meat on an animal is to use too much velocity.
and to have a fragmenting bullet/boolit whichever.
ballance the alloy and the velocity and results are good.
it don't matter if it's a 30-30,a 7 mauser,or a 300 win mag.
the strange part is that a soft alloy and jaxket makes the h/v rifles into fragment specialists [don't matter if it's "bonded"]
the straight cast loads seem to do better with the softer alloys at the lower velocity's.
there is a break over point where malleability overcomes bhn

[Idaho Mule]

I readily agree with all the above. 30-30 and cast. JW

[TXGunNut]

Haven't had the pleasure yet but I'm headed that way. My 1st CB kill was a 45-70, 2nd was 45 Colt and next two were 35 Rem. Working with the RD 311-165 and NOE's 311041 so it's very likely my next hunt will involve a 30-30 and a CB. No doubt in my mind it will do the trick if I do my part. I may use a stash of CorLokt J-words to polish some chatter marks out of my old Marlin but can't think of another use for them.

[HiVelocity]

+1 on the Ranch Dog 311-165-RF, "AND" Swede Nelson's copy (I have both!) Buy now what you're ultimately going to end up buying later on anyway. You'll be the hit of the club.

HV

[richhodg66]

I can vouch for the 31141 and the Ranch Dog bullets performing well on deer. I've used a .30-30 Savage and a .308 with a velocity that was easily in .30-30 capabilities. They go down as quick as can be expected with anything if you puit the bullet where it's supposed to go.

It's a very satisfying feeling using a home made projectile. I had done it many times with muzzle loaders and my own cast, but it's no real trick with a bullet a half inch in diameter. Using a "small bore" makes it a little more of a challenge to get things right, but it still isn't difficult to do if you're a reasonably good hunter.

[TXGunNut]

I use RD boolits in 45-70 and 35 Rem so the RD mould was naturally @ the top of my list, especially since Michael was closing up shop. Couldn't resist the GB on the NOE 311041 but getting a bit curious about the 311291 that so many of us seem to like. So many projects, so little time.

[badge176]

A short summary of .30-30 CB tips might include...
1. "slug" your bore and size boolits at least .001 over major diameter
2. many strongly encourage a Gas check in Micro-groove barrels

others can certainly add or elaborate to this list and the search function on this forum is good...

you'll find first-hand accounts of shooting everything from .311 roundball over a smidge of pistol powder through truely heavyweight (bullet weight and powder charges both) loads!

[Larry Gibson]

I've been shooting black tail and mule deer with the 311041 out of the 30-30 and other .30 cal cartridges since '68. I have lost count of the deer I have shot with that bullet. I have used various alloys, solid and HP'd 311041s. My 311041 is a factory HP mould. As runfiverun mentions if too much velocity is used or the bullet fragments meat destruction can be impressive. I would add that occasionaly any bullet of impact velocity of 1600-1700 fps+ will cause a lot of meat destruction. I've really determined there is no rhyme nor reason to it, it just sometimes happens.

With all my hunting cast of 7mm through .375 cal I prefer a medium to heavy fo caliber bullet cast of COWWs + 2% tin with 50% lead then added and let the bullets AC and age for 7-10 days before use. I have shortened the HP stem on the 311041 so the HP is 3/16" deep. I HP the others with the 1/8" Forster HP tool so the HP is 1/8 - 3/16" deep also. Regardles of the cartridge I push these hunting bullets to 2000 - 2150 fps depending on the barrel twist and length. I've found that to be an optimum velocity for delivery sufficient impact velocity out to 200 yards. These softer cast mildly HP'd bullets will expand very well and give terminal results with minimal meat damage. I've come to accept the fact that if I kill an animal with a bullet there is going to be some meat damage. Long ago, after foolishly losing a well shot deer, I decided it was better for me to go with excellent terminal ballistics rather than lower them to avoid meat damage. I'd rather have a little more damaged meat that to lose the entire deer like I did.

Just my own personal choices there based on where I hunt and the size of the deer hunted. Were I hunting the smaller deer in the south or stand hunting as I did in Texas where a "long shot" is less than 150 yards I would also lower the velocity to 1700 - 1850 fps. That's one of the marvelous things about reloading and cast bullets; we can "tailer" the loads to fit the game and hunting situation.........marvelous indeed!

Larry Gibson

[TXGunNut]

Amen, Larry. Haven't seen the need for a HP yet but my limited CB experience has shown that a good boolit in the medium calibers doesn't need much more than 2000fps and a 45-70 does quite well at a considerably slower launch velocity. Even my j-bullet rifles seem to do quite nicely at well under max velocity. I guess I just don't see the need for speed much these days.

[brstevns]

Taken deer with the Lyman 311291 and 31141. The deer nor I could tell the difference. One ran 15 feet the other dropped on the spot.

[jhalcott]

the 30-30 even works in a TC Contender! I've used the 311041 and 311291

[TCLouis]

Blaser.306

Mind sharing the load data used in that successful 165 RD look-a-like loading.

[OregonCaster]

Thinking about purchasing a savage/stevens 30-30 bolt action rifle and playing around with it I cast some Lymans 311041 for my 30-06 but just wondering about that in the 30-30 bolt rifle behind some Unique your thoughts please.

[pls1911]

I'd have a hard time adding to the above posts as folks have covered my
Guns and my favorite bullets.
I would suggest casting soft, sizing .311 or .312 for microgroove, and then heat treating. See another recent thread here...."30-30... Enough again ".. Heavy hogs. Old lever guns and cast bullets.

[Huntsman]

Larry Gibson,
What "gun powder" are you using in your 30-30 loads?
Thanks in advance!

[pls1911]

Oregon: I picked up a couple of the Savages and they may not be the prettiest rifles but they are sweet cast bullet shooters, and won't break the bank. Keeping my eyes open for a Rem 788 in 30-30 too.
TCLouis and Oregon: try 25-26 grains of Reloader 7 and standard primers. I've been very satisfied with the reliable and clean burning accuracy with RD-165, Saeco #315, Lyman 31141, and silhoette shooting with an RCBS 160 SIL.
The effectiveness of this easy load is pictured in the thread on this site I mentioned above
"30-30... Enough again"... an event which is repeated several times a year.

[NLS1]

This is my first white tail , taken with NOE's 165 gr RD copy . Seems to have performed just as planned!

That is a beauty of a deer!

And 30-30 is next on my list for cast! I have a neat old well used Marlin 336 from 1949 just begging to take some deer and pigs with a boolit!

Dan

[NLS1]

Well, I bought a new used Ranch Dog NOE 165 grain gas check mold from a gent here the other day. Just tickled pink I get to blast piggies later this summer with boolits I cast and ammo I reloaded in a 64 year old Marlin!

Man is that on my bucket list! Thanks to all you fellas for reminding me to sling some real lead in the 30-30 this summer!

Dan

[nagantguy]

agree with everyone input and you know what the 30-30 just might one day catch on as a deer round. Think of it a nice light quick handling rifle with fast second shot at hand and all the power and velocity to kill any deer that has ever lived. I wonder if other people know of this? Welcome aboard and get a note pad to write this stuff down this sight is a well spring of cast know how.

[Blammer]

hmm, 30-30 and cast? can we say peanutbutter and jelly sandwich? they just go together.

I like the 311316, 115gr with 2400 as a plinker small game load, although I must admit I'd not be hesitant to shoot a deer with that combo.

[nanuk]

agree with everyone input and you know what the 30-30 just might one day catch on as a deer round. Think of it a nice light quick handling rifle with fast second shot at hand ....

that would require me to carry a second rifle

[GabbyM]

From unsupported positions. Standing off hand with no sling. I can shoot my iron sighted Win 94 AE better than any of my tack driver heavy bolt guns with huge scopes. Since I can hold the light gun more steady. Thus out in the woods to 100 or 150 yards it is pretty hard to beat. My Win M70 in 30-06 with 2x7x Scope would be a very close second.