Marlin 336 w Micro groove

[Boondocker]

Hello Gents

My father inlaw gave my grandson his marlin 3030 and the little man will be old enough to shoot it in a few years. I want to work up a good mild practice load for him. I would be interest in a good cast design gc and non gas check that can be beefed up for deer when the time comes. I am not new to casting so lay it on me. Powder choices will help also. Thanks Boon:castmine:

[454PB]

A caliber would help!

[Boondocker]

Oh Geez

Brain fade sorry. 3030

[Echo]

Brain fade was on our chum from Big Sky - you named 3030 in your original post. Getting old is just pure hell...

The Lyman 3118 (non-GC) has been used for time imemorial for plinker loads in most 30 calibers, and should work just fine, if cast fairly hard to handle the MG rifling. Light loads of shotgun/pistol powders (7-10 grs) should produce acceptable accuracy.

[jimkim]

I like the SAECO 630 and Ranch Dog TLC-311-175-RF* or the Lyman 311041. I shoot the RD with and without GC's. I load both it and the 630 over 7.0gr of Red Dot for plinking and rabbit and squirrel. I have also used 8.0gr of Unique. For a little more power I load the GCed RD and 311041 over 10.0gr of Unique or 13.0gr of Blue Dot. Those are my mild loads.

* Ranch Dog is out of 311175's now. He wont have more until July. When I bought my 311175 it was called the 311165. Michael recently changed the designation.

[Hurricane]

RCBS has two molds you may interest you. They are the same 150 grain bullet but one is a gas check and the other is a plain base bullet. The GC is 30-150-FN and the Plain Base is 30-150-CM. They call the 30-150-CM their Cowboy Bullet.

[454PB]

Brain fade was on our chum from Big Sky - you named 3030 in your original post. Getting old is just pure hell...

The Lyman 3118 (non-GC) has been used for time imemorial for plinker loads in most 30 calibers, and should work just fine, if cast fairly hard to handle the MG rifling. Light loads of shotgun/pistol powders (7-10 grs) should produce acceptable accuracy.


No, Easy. Take a look, he did an edit. The original post did NOT have the caliber.

I've had excellent results in my Marlin and 94 Winchester 30/30's with the Lee 170 gr. FN GC and IMR 4895.

[Boondocker]

In 454"s defense I did edit my first post to include the caliber. That is what I like about this forum is the great deal of knowledge and the willingness of everyone to help.:-D There is some fine selections you fellas pointed out I may have find one or four. I like the idea of the unique as the son inlaw carted 8#"s home that some give him, Lots of shootin a 7 to 10 grains. I never liked it in the pistols as I looked like a coal miner after the shootin sessions lol. Thanks Boon:castmine:

[corvette8n]

I used Lee 150gr flgc over 8.0 gr of Unique for a .22 like plinker at 50 yards.

[35remington]

You'll find Unique to be quite clean burning using the recommended charges in your rifle.

[KYCaster]

I went through the same thing with my son and a 336 in 35 Rem. He was nine years old at the time and small for his age so I was concerned that the recoil of full power loads would be too uncomfortable for him to develop his mardsmanship skills.

What we settled on was lighter bullets at the same velocity as his hunting loads. We found that Speer 125 gr. jhp pistol bullets at 2050 fps would shoot to the same POI as the 200 gr hunting loads out to at least 200 yds.

With that load he was able to fire dozens of rounds at a range session with no discomfort. We shot up several hundred rounds that summer and by the time deer season rolled around he could hit a two liter bottle at 200 yds from a variety of positions.

He got his button buck through the heart at about 60 yds. I was very proud of him.

Anyway, that worked very well with the .35 so I see no reason the same thing couldn't be done with the 30-30. The Lee "soupcan" at 115 to 120 grs should be a pretty good candidate for the lighter boolit, but I haven't worked with it enough to recommend any hi-vel loads. It should be fairly simple to match the velocity of a 175 or 180 boolit so the lad can get some quality practice without beating him up.

Jerry

[EDG]

If the rifle has not been shot a lot you might want to shoot 100 or so rounds of j word bullets through it to deburr the reamer marks on the lands.