30-30 Lever, anyone?

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Wow, I have an old Winchester or two in 30/30. You see way more Winnies out here in the west for some reason. Love em all though. I'll say it, "more deer have been killed with the 30/30 than any other caliber". Used to hear that a lot, don't know if it is true, but it is a great rifle/cartridge combo.
 
I hunt with the '94 Win. my dad bought for me in '66. Has an octagon, 24" barrel and peep sights I put on it four years ago. Beautiful wood. I harvested my first deer with it Saturday, 11/23/13 . First deer I ever put sights on.

Mark
 
don't know if it is true,
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How could it not be true??

America's favorite deer rifle in the east, and the west, for over half a century, with over 7 million Winchesters, and who knows how many more Marlins made over the years.

No other deer rifle has ever been made in those numbers.
And none has a chance of having killed as many deer over the last 109+ years as those made in 30-30 WCF!

The 30-30 lever-gun only fell in disfavor after WWII when all the magazine writers started pounding the drums, promoting .270 & 30-06 bolt-actions with scopes as the bare minimum arm to kill a 150 pound deer at 150 yards.

But if you hunt deer in the woods like most of us do?
They ain't made a better deer rifle with a bolt handle on it yet!!

rc
 
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I shot my first deer with a borrowed 30-30, and I still don't own a gun in that caliber.

I'm constantly searching for a 30-30 , would like a bolt gun but would settle for a an older Winchester or Marlin lever gun.
 
dagger dog said:
I shot my first deer with a borrowed 30-30, and I still don't own a gun in that caliber.

I'm constantly searching for a 30-30 , would like a bolt gun but would settle for a an older Winchester or Marlin lever gun.
Click to expand...

There are also H&R Handi Rifles in .30-30. I've never shot one in that caliber, but they have the advantage of being shorter than just about anything with the same length of barrel.

Regards,
Dirty Bob
 
IMO 7.62x39 is borderline for deer, 30-30 is not. A .311" 125g soft point can certainly kill a deer, but I prefer heavier bullets. After 100 yards or so the spitzer bullet advantage starts to pay off, but neither of these are great rounds beyond 150 yards.

Put a 22 to 24" barrel on a 30-30 and put in Hornady Leverevolution bullets and the 30-30 starts to look pretty respectable.


I like the Marlin 336. It has a solid top receiver for easy scope mounting. I like the side ejection and the one screw take down for cleaning.


I wouldn't hunt elk with a .30-30, but the only elk I've shot was small enough and close enough that a 30-30 would have been plenty of gun. In spite of living out West, I've not shot a big game animal beyond 100 yards. ---- I hope to change that someday.
 
Used Marlins are very common here in Pennsylvania. A pristine rifle typically sells for approx. $375. Marlins and Winchester 94 AE models eject the empty cases out the side for easy scope mounting. The AE models came out about 30 years ago. But older 94's eject them straight out the top which many see as a disadvantage.

Mossberg and Rossi build very dependable lever guns in 30-30, too. Henry started building their 30-30 model a couple years ago but reputation is less than ideal in this chambering.

The 30-30 cartridge can be had in factory form featuring the blunt nose 170 grain bullet. This bullet and related performance is within a different league than common 7.62X39 ammo. Something to consider for situations requiring deep penetration or hunting in very thick cover.

30-30 has been toppling big game animals for well over 100 years and still a top seller. This noteworthy feat is genuine affirmation as its value as a big game hunting cartridge!

TR
 
I found this totally unmolested 1942 Model 94 at a local gun show for $500 a few months ago. I don't know why they're so much fun to shoot, but they just are. This one had been sitting for decades I think. Once I cleaned the dust out of it, I found very little actual wear from use. Fair price or not, I found it to be a good deal for me and added it to the small collection. :) Get a lever and have some traditional fun.

m94r.jpg
 
If I had to choose only one rifle to own and use for any situation, it would be my Marlin 336c .30-.30. All others pale in comparison in my opinion.
 
30 30 is the winner unless you are asoldier. Then the semi auto/auto is the winner. What do you want it for?
 
I have a 94 carbine but it is in 32 Special. It's a great little rifle that I bought this Spring from a fellow in Wichita. You really can't beat the fit and solid feel of these old Winchesters...
I'll be taking it out deer hunting on Wednesday here in Kansas.
 
Both the above have tube fed magazines. That limits the ammo to the classic flat or round nose options for safety reasons. Or the soft rubbery points on the Leverevolution ammo and bullets.

But there IS one other lever option that does not have any restrictions on the bullet style. The Savage 99. A rotary magazine means you can reload any of the spitzer shaped sharp nose boat tail bullets used for bolt action .308 ammo as the bullet noses are no where near a primer. The usual chambering for a 99 is in .300 Savage which is a close kissing cousin to the .30-30. But enough of the 99's show up in .30-30 that with a little patience you can open up your reloading options with a fine handling and shooting rifle.

Of course if you reload it's not THAT big a deal to buy .300Savage and load 'em up. You just may not find factory ammo as regularly as with the ubiquitous .30-30 option.

Use wise I've got both an older Glenfield/Marlin (a Marlin with cheaper wood marketed by Sears under their Glenfield house name) and a Winchester 94. Both handle wonderfully with fairly smooth lever action efforts needed to eject and chamber the ammo. And by all the accounts I've read of them the Savage actions are equally slick and clean to operate.

With all three options (four if you include the Mossberg which I have not tried) I think it comes down to your choice being based on what sighting system you will want to use. If plain irons or rear tang or side mount peeps are good enough than any of them become useable. If you need a scope then REALISTICALLY the Winchester drops off the list due to the odd method for mounting the scope. But all three of the other options have solid tops with true side ejection ports that are scope friendly.

Want to reach out a little farther or not be limited to bullet style? The Savage becomes the rifle of choice. Or possibly a Browning BLR, which actually raises the list of possible options to five rifles. Both the Savage and Browning use box or rotating magazines which makes the use of pointed bullets safe. Also both are solid top receivers so they are scope friendly.
 
Personally I would suggest a Marlin 30-30 for hunting as opposed to the sks. I have a norinco SKS which I love, however would take a 30-30 in the field instead if I had one. More ammo choices, easier to load, many more sight options, just a TON of reasons the 30-30 lever would be better. Plus anywhere you ever go will have a wide availibility of 30-30 ammo to suit your needs whatever your hunting from gas stations in rural areas to wally world in city settings!
 
All are terrific rifles.

My lever action rifle is a Uberti 1873 20" in 357/38special. I have a Skinner Peep sight which makes for quick target acquisition and being able to use 38 special makes it lower cost to practice with. They are all fun to shoot and quite accurate.
 
Everyone has an opinion about their favorite rifle, and that opinion is usually different than anyone else's. Presently I own 14 lever action rifles. Most of them are Marlin's, but three are Winchesters. When I was in junior high I bought a model 94 for $40, that was back in 1952. I found that rifle to be an excellent 'deer rifle', good for snap shooting in brush and great to carry in a scabbard while riding my horse. As a good all around rifle, I think a 30-30 is hard to beat for any shooting you plan to do out to 200 yards. In the right hands a lever action rifle is fast, if you don't believe that watch any group of cowboy shooters during a match. Most all of them use a lever action rifle, and a Winchester '73 clone seems to be a favorite. The thing I like about Marlin's you can mount a scope on them easily, and they are very easy to disassemble for cleaning or 'slicking up', much easier than a Winchester. In my opinion a Marlin 1894 in 44 Magnum would be a great gun to have in your vehicle anytime you are travelling in a forested area. All of my lever action rifles are equipped with a tang peep sight.
 
I took note of the comments about the safety.I haven't handled one.Where I hunt we often have cold wet weather.I witnessed a hunter with cold wet hands allow the hammer to slip and fire past other hunters.I don't want the boys in that situation.
 
To answer the OP's original questions... I have a Winchester 94 Ranger Compact. It is kind of like the Trapper model, except the stock is hardwood rather than walnut, and the LOP is 12.5", versus 13.5ish on other models. That short LOP is why I got it - I am short and like a short LOP. As to other reasons, well I hunt mostly with a bolt action .308, but use the 30-30 for woods/heavy brush hunting. It's barrel is 16", so it is very light and easy to put on target in a hurry. I put a ghost ring on it.

As to which to recommend, certainly the Marlin or Winchester would be my top 2 choices. You should handle each - they are a little different feeling from one another. Some folks prefer one over the other for various reasons. I just like the way that the Win. 94 feels in my hands (and the short LOP of the compact).

Marlin 336 = side eject with solid flat top receiver = probably a bit stronger for scoping.
Winchester 94 = top or angle (out the top) eject, depending on build configuration, and with that variations of capability to scope on top or side, again depending on specific build.

Henry makes one that is very nice, albeit a bit heavier than the Marlin or Winchester. It also loads via the front end of its tube (like a tube fed 22) which is a little unorthodox when it comes to "traditional" lever action rifles. I held one and almost bought it, but it has a nearly 14" LOP if I remember correctly, so that was a bit much for me. Nice, solid, pretty rifle though.

There are others out there too, with which I have no experience. Mossberg, Rossi I think.

Hope that helps.
 
3212, I understand your concern about the cross-bolt safety. However, the Marlin rifle's without the cross bolt safety are sought after and worth more money today than those with the safety. Several of mine have cross-bolt safeties on them, but all of them have been disabled with the set screw made for that purpose. It is a terrible handy-cap to have the safety accidentally slipped on during a match when you least expect it.
 
I chose a Rossi M92 in .357 only because I wanted a pistol caliber to match my Cimarron .357. I have hunted with a Marlin 336C in .30-30. Probably my favorite lever gun.
 
I chose a Marlin 336 over the Winchester, because you can easily remove the bolt for cleaning the bore, or for bore sighting.
 
Lever Rifles, yes they are old fashioned when compared to todays rifles. But they shoot like a house on fire with just a little practice and they are so sweet to carry. Give me a 30-30 and I would never feel under gunned. Hornady projectiles and a good stiff load of H 4895 and you will have some serious medicine. The AK boys will feel under gunned. A couple of years ago I gave my son a 336 my Dad had given to me in the early '80's. I missed that gun so much I bought me another and another.
 
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Bought a Remlin 336W in 2010. The scope mount screws were so mis-aligned there wasn't enough windage adjustment in the scope to sight it in. The LGS where I bought it sent it back to Remington. After keeping it for three months(all of deer season), they sent it back having fixed an ejector problem I was unaware of but not fixing the problem it was sent in for.

Thanfully the LGS manager let me pick out a new one. Very rough action and horrible trigger. I polished the internals and installed a happy trigger and now it is a good rifle. Shoots right at MOA with 150 grain Core-Lokts. I have heard that the kinks have been worked out and the newer production 336's are pretty good. If I were to buy another I might try a Mossberg.
 
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