Got a Thuty thuty, need a load

[docone31]

Picked up a real sweet Marlin 30-30. I want to try Pyrodex P in it. I did this in my Marlin 45/70 and it is great! My shoulder is toast, and the reduced recoil brings back the pleasure.
Anyone done a load in the 30/30 case with 180gn bullets

[Rcmaveric]

Actually Unique, 5744, and 2400 work great for me. I like a velocity around 1500 fps. Its highly accurate. Recoil is light by my comfort zone. With that weight bullet recoil starts to get stiff and not so much pleasurable at 1600 fps +. It gets punishing in the 1800fps. I wanted my 30-30 to be light recoil and fast acting for hunting to 100 yards with fast follow up shots on running deer.

I am a yongon by demographics of this site. I just dont like being punished every trigger pull. My sadomasochistic nature ends at the gym. By my calibrated shoulder 1500 fps with 180 gr bullet is light enough for the whole family to shoot all day pleasantly.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[curator]

I too dislike the sharp recoil of my 30-30s with factory ammo. I am loading 180 grain .310" cast LBT LFN gas check boolits cast from ACWW using 25 grains of IMR3031. This load is gentile on the shoulder. Accuracy is excellent in both my Marlin and Winchester lever rifles. Air-cooled wheel weight alloy expands nicely at the velocity attained. Straight-through penetration with large exit wound on big "piney-woods rooters."

[Hick]

My favorite 30-30 loads

The data are Powder type, then bullet weight, then bullet type, powder grains and measured velocity nn my Win 94 30-30

Note: Some of these bullets are NOT suitable for tubular magazines! Those that are not have to be fired single shot.

YMMV

700X 90 32LSWC 4.7 gr 1341
700X 90 32LSWC 4.2 gr 1171
W231 90 32LSWC 5.5 gr 1238
W231 100 BC32RNFP 5.5 gr 1196
700X 110 Plated RN 7.0 gr 1440
700X 110 Plated RN 7.5 gr 1529
HP-38 110 Plated RN 6.8 gr 1280
HP-38 110 FMJ/RN 8.0 gr 1324
HP-38 130 311410 7.2 gr 1348
HP-38 150 FMJ/BT 8.0 gr 1259
700X 165 HCFN 5.0 gr 1069
W231 165 HCFN 9.0 gr 1195
W748 150 FMJ/BT 33.7 gr 2147
HP-38 170 C309-170PB 7.35 gr 1232
HP-38 170 C309-170GC 10.5 gr 1473
W231 170 C309-170GC 10.5 gr 1499
W760 150 FMJ/BT 34.0 gr 1877
W760 110 FMJ/RN 33.0 gr 1809
W231130 311410PB 5.0 gr 1047
W231 170 C309-170GC 6.0 gr 1020

[tsubaki]

My favorite 30-30 loads

The data are Powder type, then bullet weight, then bullet type, powder grains and measured velocity nn my Win 94 30-30

Note: Some of these bullets are NOT suitable for tubular magazines! Those that are not have to be fired single shot.

YMMV

700X 90 32LSWC 4.7 gr 1341
700X 90 32LSWC 4.2 gr 1171
W231 90 32LSWC 5.5 gr 1238
W231 100 BC32RNFP 5.5 gr 1196
700X 110 Plated RN 7.0 gr 1440
700X 110 Plated RN 7.5 gr 1529
HP-38 110 Plated RN 6.8 gr 1280
HP-38 110 FMJ/RN 8.0 gr 1324
HP-38 130 311410 7.2 gr 1348
HP-38 150 FMJ/BT 8.0 gr 1259
700X 165 HCFN 5.0 gr 1069
W231 165 HCFN 9.0 gr 1195
W748 150 FMJ/BT 33.7 gr 2147
HP-38 170 C309-170PB 7.35 gr 1232
HP-38 170 C309-170GC 10.5 gr 1473
W231 170 C309-170GC 10.5 gr 1499
W760 150 FMJ/BT 34.0 gr 1877
W760 110 FMJ/RN 33.0 gr 1809
W231130 311410PB 5.0 gr 1047
W231 170 C309-170GC 6.0 gr 1020

Thanks for taking the time to share your load data results!
Others real world experience is very useful instead of having to rely solely on the various reloading books.

[Edward]

Picked up a real sweet Marlin 30-30. I want to try Pyrodex P in it. I did this in my Marlin 45/70 and it is great! My shoulder is toast, and the reduced recoil brings back the pleasure.
Anyone done a load in the 30/30 case with 180gn bullets

Unique will do what you want easily ,the one you mentioned would never be used in my guns/ED

[JSnover]

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?39923-10-Grs-Unique-The-Universal-Cast-Boolit-Rifle-Load
The Place To Go for light loads. Agree with Edward, I'd start with Unique if you have any.

[barrabruce]

Mine likes 15.5 a2205 over a 150 or 170 grn pp bullet. Velocity around 1550fps.
4227 /4198 on the burn rate charts.

Mild mannered accurate and clean burning.
A ss shot 30-30 thou.

I find slower powders leave mummies in my bore but can be quite good too.
Although by the time I increase the powder to were they burn clean. I’m past where I wanna be.

Hope it helps.

[GhostHawk]

No need to go to black powder to reduce the thump on your shoulder.

Try any 150-160 gr cast bullet and about 4 grains of Red Dot.

Want a little faster, use a gas check, and 8 grains. Trust me, it will stack them up.
And if you put one where it needs to go, it will kill.

But don't take my word for it, try it yourself.

PW Vel SD Group size
RedDot 4.5 898 10.7 1.53
5.5 1024 12.6 1.17
6.5 1136 13.4 1.40
7.5 1221 10.3 1.53
8.5 1317 12.0 4.0

[Wayne Smith]

Dropping your bullet weight will do more to reduce recoil than any other single thing. Drop your bullet weight to 150gr at the highest and dropping velocity to about 1200fps to 1500fps and you will likely find what you need. What powder you use to do this is much less of the issue

[dverna]

Recoil reduction is done three ways....

Reduce velocity
Reduce bullet weight
Increase weight of rifle.

Powder has negligible impact on recoil. Do a search on recoil energy calculation. You can believe physics or old wives tales.

[Texas by God]

I like the Lee C309150F over 25 grs of IMR 3031. Not much recoil and will kill deer and very accurate.

[Markopolo]

Sorry, I have to disagree.. the Red Dot loads WILL reduce recoil and is not a wives tale but experience that speaks. What GhostHawk says above is Spot on... Blue Dot is also a favorite for reduced recoil. Still gets the jobs done loaded to around 1200-1300 FPS... not only that but how many rounds per pound can you get loading even 8 grains of say Red dot compared to even the 25 grains of 3031 that our Texas friend uses.. way more economical to load. I run about 7.5gr of red dot for around 1250fps with a very very slight recoil. No reason not to use red dot. You won’t be sorry.

Marko

[jmort]

I use this data a lot
http://www.gmdr.com/lever/lowveldata.htm

[Tom W.]

If you just want to shoot paper and such the Lee 1cc scoop with Red Dot or Green Dot and a Lee cast 160 gr boolit ( I use a gas check with it ) will shoot very comfortably and ( in my rifle ) accurately. It's two of the loads I use for fire forming to 30/30 A.I.

[Tracy]

Any 100-115 grain cast bullet over 3.5 grains of Red Dot.

[GhostHawk]

You can even go as low as the Lee .314 90 gr TL Truncated cone sized to .311ish loaded over 3 grains of Red Dot.

Would be a great rabbit/grouse load. Almost quiet, like less than a .22lr. Perhaps a touch more noise, but less supersonic SNAP.

[rintinglen]

311-465 122 grain over 17.5 grns 2400. Roughly 1800 FPS. Mild recoil and accurate.
This is one of my favorite boolits, (I have 3 molds, a single Ideal, a dual cavity Lyman, and a 4 cavity NOE). I use it a lot as a light boolit 357 equivalent.

[barrabruce]

Anyone done a load in the 30/30 case with 180gn bullets

I’ll match ‘yer red dot and lower you to 2.5 gns bullseye.(25 yrd load).
If you up it to 3.5-4.0 gns you get about cci quiet loads
Up to about 6.4 gns your looking at the std or target velocity 22lr.
These shoot for me accurately out to 328 yrds.