30/30 recipe

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man..no 30-30 in OKC.

I checked H&H, Dicks, Wal-Mart, Bass Pro, Academy, Outdoor America. Everyone says they haven't seen 30-30 in 4 months. Deer season is almost upon us. I guess I am going to try and make some with what little components I can find.
 
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Well..I am itching to pull the trigger....a hit of some factory ammo might soothe my twitching.. But I also want to build some ammo to closely replicate some of the LeverEvolution ammo. I would be happiest if I could get a box of that....then get the stuffs to make it....

Just kind of surprised to see that there is none to be had here in OKC. I think we were hit by hoarders and opportunists pretty hard here in OKC. It probably doesn't help that we have gun shows every weekend at the fairgrounds. Really large gun culture here.
 
brainwake said:
Well..I am itching to pull the trigger....a hit of some factory ammo might soothe my twitching.. But I also want to build some ammo to closely replicate some of the LeverEvolution ammo. I would be happiest if I could get a box of that....then get the stuffs to make it....

Just kind of surprised to see that there is none to be had here in OKC. I think we were hit by hoarders and opportunists pretty hard here in OKC. It probably doesn't help that we have gun shows every weekend at the fairgrounds. Really large gun culture here.
Click to expand...
I have shot a few boxes of 30-30 LVR ammo and usually the product doesn't match the hype but here it does. That is very good ammo and it will add 50 yards to your levergun useability. I loaded up the brass with LVR powder and the 160gr FTX bullet and while accuracy was good I couldn't match the factory velocity but that was a known fact going into the loading.
 
I chrony'd some loads I made with 37.0 grains of Lever powder and 160 grain FTX bullets and came up with 2414 fps average. The factory ammo advertised 2400 fps. Now I was shooting over a chrony with ambient temperature of 103 degrees Fahrenheit, but I would say that is pretty close to factory duplication. Using Hornady's ballistic calculator that extends the range to 400 yards with about 800 ft. lbs. of energy sufficient for deer/antelope.
 
Try a Sierra FNHP 125 grain with around 34 grains of IMR-3031. Maybe 34.3. That shoots good in my 30/30 20" lever gun. That is if I want full power loads. Otherwise I load that bullet with 24.5 grains of VV-N120, and it is so accurate at 75 to 100 yards it just stacks bullets in the same hole.

Using the Sierra 125 grain FNHP with 24.5 grains of VV-N120 only travels at 2150 fps, but every round is 2150 or 2149 fps. I have chrono-graphed this many times, and it is always the same. 2150 or 2149 round after round after round.
It will kill deer easily at these ranges. I keep a red dot on this 30/30, and zero it at 75 yards. It is my close range thick stuff rifle. Or if I just want to plink at a gravel pit with a lever gun. @ 50-75 yards it is dead on, and has zero recoil. Maybe as much as a .223 from an AR-15.
 
4895,
you mention 37grains of LVR with the 160 FTX? Is that based on Hornadys recipe? I had tried working that up and got huge recoil and huge booms out of my HandiRifle. I checked Hodgdons website and they list 35.5 as max??? I ended up pulling my remaining bullets and was going to work up from below 35.5. I usually think Horn is pretty conservative but given what I was experiencing, I think I will trust the powder manufacturer on this one. For what its worth...
 
4895,
you mention 37grains of LVR with the 160 FTX? Is that based on Hornadys recipe? I had tried working that up and got huge recoil and huge booms out of my HandiRifle. I checked Hodgdons website and they list 35.5 as max??? I ended up pulling my remaining bullets and was going to work up from below 35.5. I usually think Horn is pretty conservative but given what I was experiencing, I think I will trust the powder manufacturer on this one. For what its worth...
Click to expand...

I did work up that load accordingly following the recipes in Hornady's 7th? edition. I have no signs of excess pressure and excellent accuracy and trajectory. A person could start at maybe 34.0 grains and increase from there but that is up to them. If my 1971 WIN94 can handle it I am sure your handi-rifle with its stronger action will be fine. That being said, every rifle may behave like its own animal and twist rate, primer changes, temperature, lot-lot differences in components, and most importantly how you hold your tongue play into the performance/results of each test.

In the following post I was shooting a load with H-335 to point of aim at 50 yards. The FTX load at 50 yards is quite a bit higher. Once I adjusted to get on paper I shot a decent group from the sandbags with iron sights. I'm not a great shot with iron sights but this shows the potential of the Lever load with FTX bullets. YMMV.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?p=8458716#post8458716

I would bet money that load is pretty much the same as the factory ammo.
 
I was just surprised with the difference between Hornady and Hodgdon regarding max. Like I said my handi was booming to the point where I didn't even want to take the crony out and check them out. :)
 
If you decide on a spitzer type bullet, look at those that will expand at the velocity you will achieve in your contender. Or use a dedicated 150 grain30/30 round nose bullet. I like Win 748 or IMR 3031 behind a 150 Speer flat point in my levers.
 
Just choose the 125 grain FNHP from Sierra. That's the money maker.
 
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