30-30 Lever, anyone?

[Elkins45]

Nothing handles better than a lever gun, provided you don't mount a scope on it. If you do that then it handles like any other scoped gun. All of my lever guns wear a receiver sight so I san shoot them to their best accuracy.

I just recently picked up a Winchester 94XTR in 375 win with some cosmetic issues. I can't wait to see how it performs with cast bullets.

 

[Shanghai McCoy]

Worst case of barrel acne I've ever seen Elkins, but the stock wood looks pretty nice.
Hope it's a shooter for ya.

 

[SAGEEN]

I have had a 32 win spec most of my life a few years ago I got a 30 -30 marlin its a shooter for sure I love all my guns some time it hard to decide witch one to use I guess its how you feel that day does anyone else have this problem ?? just wondering....

 

[Zeke/PA]

Because I've been involved with guns for awhile,I own a couple of .30-30's.
The Winchester Model 94's bespeak tradition and really honor a great rifle.
HOWEVER if you want a SUPER ACCURATE Rifle, a scoped sighted Marlin 336 is your best bet. Check your local Gun Shops for a used one though as the RemMarlins are "iffy" in many ways. It only takes an older Marlin topped with a 4X scope for an all around rifle. I have NEVER in mucho years seen one of these Marlins that didn't shoot (super accurate).

 

[Captain33036]

Excuse the poor cell phone pic.

Marlin 336W, 30-30, with Xsystems scout scope mount, Nikon 2x pistol scope, Williams peep sights Williams front fire sight. Wild West trigger, Kick eez butt pad.




Load diversity: 125gr Managed recoil, 170 gr Remington Core lok, Buffalo Bore, Hornady 160 Gr LE tipped round are stated to deliver 1000 ftlbs at 300 yards.

Scope is on QR mounts. So, pop it off for use with the peep sights, when I want a lighter, sleeker carbine close in, or mount the scope and have a highly accurate hunting rifle.

 

[Peter M. Eick]

Mine is a pre-64 Win 94. The target above was 50 shots off the bench at 100 yrds. It is a good reasonably accurate easy to shoot gun. It is easy to handle, has enough punch to be useful and is easy to pack around.

I would not sell mine either. It is with me to the bitter end so to speak.

 

[oldcelt]

I have an old Win.94 30 wcf that goes back to the mid 1930 s and it till kills em dead. It was Dads rifle and when I give it up it will be to my oldest son

 

[DeadFlies]

I have a 1975 vintage (same as me) Winchester M94. It's not a pre-64 but it's not a USRAC either. Light, sexy, smooth as butta' and powerful enough. It was my dad's, now it's mine and someday I've no doubt it'll belong to my son.

If you're cool with irons the M94 is tons of fun and plenty versatile.

 

[Armored farmer]

I bought an sks back when it cost $65.00. I didnt like the short wooden stock so I eventually upgraded to a Tapco collapseable stock. Later I put a reflex sight on the Tapco rail because I didn't like the sights. then I mounted a sling.....and bought stripper clips..now I have nearly $300.00 in it and still dont like the rifle.

 

[palmrose2]

Lately I've been considering a lever action 30-30 for a multi-purpose rifle, but I have never fired one. If you run one of these, which do you have and why? What model do you recommend? Pros and cons or anything else I should know?
I know the 30-30 Win is ballistically very similar to the 7.62x39... is there anything one could reasonably do with a lever that couldn't be done with sn SKS?
Please, share your thoughts.

The one thing you can not do with a lever that an sks is good at, is shoot follow up shots from the prone position.

I've shot a Yugoslavian, and a Chinese SKS and both were as accurate as any 30-30 lever with open sights not of the peep variety. The Chinese was/is my favorite. Magazines can be easily plugged to make legal to hunt with. It is not easy to mount a scope in an acceptable fashion on an SKS of any type.

The 7.62x39 is plenty of cartridge for deer @ reasonable ranges. I've whacked plenty.

 

[montanaoffroader]

I own a Marlin .30-30, a Winchester .30-30, and a Chinese SKS. I also used to own a Yugo SKS (sold it to a friend who really wanted it).

I like them all, but when I go out hunting the Marlin is the one rifle that goes on EVERY hunting trip. Sometimes it's my main rifle, sometimes it's the backup. It is my favorite hunting rifle, and will be the last one to go when I decide to start handing down my guns to my kids.

 

[rodregier]

You can also handload reduced loadings for lever-action .30-30's for plinking on the range.

I've loaded 110g .308 SP bulk projectiles at M1-carbine velocities (say 1900 ft/sec) in .30-30 with a faster rifle power, very soft shooting. Semi-autos need ammunition within a fairly narrow band of velocities for proper function. Between the lower recoil and the SP projectile the tubular magazine doesn't present a primer ignition issue. I would not do this with FMJ's.

 

[Tinpig]

Another fan of older Model 94s here...I wouldn't part with mine for anything.

 

[Captain Capsize]

Several years ago I bought a Marlin/Glenfield 30-30 at my barber shop. It had a Glenfield 4X scope on it. I wasn't expecting much from a $150. scoped rifle but I was pleasantly surprised the first time I took it to the range. It shot 2" groups which was the best i could do with a 4X scope. I thought maybe it would do better with a better scope so I mounted a 24X scope and used it at 18X. WOW, it was shooting groups about 1/2" with factory ammo. I developed a 110 grain load tuned for the rifle and it is shooting one hole groups when bench rested and sand bagged.

The only disadvantage I see to a lever action rifle is when unloading I have to rack each round through the chamber (makes me a little nervous) and the ejected rounds fly out and land in the dirt. Last night after coming down from the mountain in the dark I knew I should unload before walking down the highway to my camp. I didn't dare because the ejected rounds could (would) land in the snow and be lost.

 

[tahoe2]

winchester 30-30

handy, light, and quick handling, a 1974 Win 94 in 30-30.
Plenty of power and plenty accurate 3" @ 100.
I have noticed when the younger set puts down they're AR or AK and
tries the Winchester they are amazed how easy it is to shoot well once they figure out the lever part.

 

[CraigC]

I honestly don't know why anybody would choose an SKS over a good levergun but I'm glad they do. This 112yr old Winchester has its original finish with traces of case colors. It still draws blood and is as good as it ever was.

The one thing you can not do with a lever that an sks is good at, is shoot follow up shots from the prone position.

Oft repeated but obviously by folks who have never done it. The lever protrudes less than the magazine of an AR and a few folks shoot them prone. That said, levers are typically not used for 300yd shots across wide open fields but in the woods. I've been hunting in the woods all my life and can never remember the need to drop into the prone position.

 

[j1]

Yes. Hunt in Pa where semi auto are not legal for hunting.

 

[RubenZ]

I too have a Mod 94 Winchester in .30-30 from the 80's and it is AWESOME. i love shooting that gun. Honestly it excites me more than my AR.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

I have a 1957 Winchester 94 in .30-30, Weaver K4 atop. Have never fired it, so I can't comment on it's accuracy or fun factor. Beautiful gun, though.

 

[rromeo]

I prefer Marlins over Winchesters, but I'd take either over an SKS. Supposedly the Cold War is over, but I grew up hating the Ruskies, so I still can't get myself to buy a Com Bloc gun.

 

[Willie Sutton]

Jeff Cooper said every man should own a Model 94 Winchester.

He never said a thing about the SKS.

Case closed....


They are right up there with a "real" Scout Rifle as one of the great all around rifles of all time. Jeff knew it, said it, and it's true.


"I have a 94 carbine but it is in 32 Special."

A classic caliber. A little known fact is that although the .30-30 (in it's later name) was always a smokeless cartridge, the .32 Win Special rifles had a twist rate that was set up for black powder. This was to gain market in areas where folks were used to handloading their few pieces of brass using hand loading tools, with lead bullets cast locally and often melted over a campfire. The .32 Win Special is special. With smokeless loads it's almost identical to a .30-30.



Willie

.

 

[ICE1210]

I have a late 80's 94 that I bought in a Woolworths in Waynesville NC when I was in college.
It is a classic gun, it just feels right in my hands. I don't hunt with it often any more as I have been led astray by Ruger #1s and the occasional AR. But there's something about walking through the deer woods with a lever gun that makes me dig the 94 out of the vault every now and then. For me, there is no choice, the 30-30 beats the SKS for any application .

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I own a Glenfield (Marlin) in 30-30 I like to use here in the Northeast of PA which I feel is just about the perfect gun here. I also have a Marlin in 45-70 in case I need something heavier although something in 35 Rem would probably cover both Deer and Bear.

 

[buzz meeks]

Found this quote from Cooper:

"This little 94 Winchester in 30-30 continues to delight us. It is no 400-meter weapon, but 400 meters is a fanciful range for any but certain specialties. Out to 200 meters it does just fine, and that is the distance inside which the overwhelming majority of effective rifle shots are taken."

"The Gargantuan Gunsite Gossip" Volume IX, November 13, 1989

One of the most sensible statements I've read about any rifle, but especially the lever action 30-30.

 

[rswartsell]

The Winchester lever throw is shorter and quicker. The stock configuration is also much "straighter". Until the AE it was a complete "no go" for scope mounting. The Marlin has much easier take down for cleaning, and generally, noticeably and consistently better triggers.

For me at least, "micro groove" rifling is exceptionally accurate (not to say Winnies are not accurate, but at least a slight nod to Marlin.)

I love my '70s Marlin 336C. My Yugo SKS will be kept as an example of a "third world" combat weapon, but certainly not in the same league as my Marlin.

Shoot safe.