300 Savage vs 30 WCF

[Catpop]

For those that have first hand experience with both, I’d like to hear your opinions.
I’ve got a friend that hunts black bear every year with his 300 Savage Remington 760 he got maybe 50 year’s ago on graduating high school.
I’ve shot a lot of 30-30 and 35 Remington, but nary a 300 Savage.
Thanks in advance

 

[Col. Harrumph]

FWIW, the 300 Sav is said to have been the Army's inspiration for the 7.62x51 NATO round.

 

[jmr40]

I've never shot 300 Savage, but it ain't hard to figure out the difference. When introduced the 300 Savage basically duplicated 30-06 loads in 1920. Of course 30-06 ballistics improved and the 308 was a little better basically duplicating 30-06 loads from WW-2.

Both 300 Savage and 308 have a significant speed advantage over 30-30 plus both will take pointed bullets whereas most 30-30's are limited to RN or flat nose bullets

 

[Bfh_auto]

Using pointed bullets in all three the 300 Savage is pretty much in the middle between 308 and 30-30.
But since the 30-30 is generally limited to round nose bullets because of platform.
The 300 Savage is substantially better as the range gets longer.
Up close you can hardly tell a difference between 308 and 30-30 for killing because of the effectiveness of a rn or fp bullet at putting its energy to work.

 

[FROGO207]

30 WCF/30-30 is made for use in weaker lever actions. The 300 Savage is about 5% slower than the 308 mostly due to the shape of the neck and how gases exit the case. Both can be used in a stronger bolt type action. They both outshine the 30-30 in balistics and speed and really show an improvement on anything over 70 YDS. Pointed bullets, no need to crimp, and a stronger bolt type action also help with accuracy over the 30-30 as well. It has been said that 300 Savage is harder to reload but it is no more of a problem than a 30-30 round to me.

 

[Roverguy]

I had a Savage 99 in 300 Savage, the rifle I most regret letting go. Shot a couple of deer with it at typical New England, sub 100 yards distances. I have several 30-30 rifles in lever, bolt, and single configuration and have killed hogs, deer, and black bear with them. Most black bear are sub 300 lbs and are no harder to kill than deer.

As mentioned above, the differences between the two matter at 150 yards and beyond, where the 300 will retain velocity and a flatter trajectory better. But then, the rifle will
matter more too. I have never owned a centerfire lever gun that delivered better than 2 MOA. Some have been 3 MOA at best. So, if the 300 is in an accurate 99 or bolt rifle, it will deliver to 200 yards and beyond.

If I were counting on ranges of 150 yards and beyond, my preference would be for the 300 Savage. At ranges under that, the lighter, handier rifle, regardless of chambering, would be my preference.

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

My 760 in .300Savage rattles from decades of field use. My Marlins in .30-30 and .35Rem have likewise been used to put a whole bunch of meat in the freezer. The 760 shines over clear cuts where a 300 yard shot might be all you get. Anything from a 150 pound hog or deer is on its way to the butcher. The .30-30’s ideal for deer out to 150yds. Not as good for hogs in my opinion. The .35Rem is a much harder hitter but it’s range is about the same as the .30-30. I don’t hunt bears - not tasty in my opinion - but I would consider a hard hitter like the .35 over the .30-30 at under 100 yards and would only seriously consider a .300Savage or better past that.

 

[Random 8]

The .300 Savage is much closer to the .308 when you consider bullets of 150 grains. With 180s, it compares closer to the .30-30 170 grain loadings in terms of terminal performance, as the .300 Sav is handicapped more by case capacity with heavier bullets than the .308 Win.

I've never shot a deer with a .30-30, but have blood trailed many. Many of the hunters I grew up with would shoot nothing else than a .30WCF, usually with 150s as those were cheaper and kicked less for faster follow up shots. I've shot nearly 100 deer with the .300 Sav and .308 loaded down a couple hundred fps mimicking the .300 Sav load in deference to reducing meat damage at close ranges. I've come to the conclusion that the 150 grain soft point spitzer at ~2600fps MV is near about perfect for killing whitetail deer quickly and efficiently. The blood trails tend to be better and shorter than with the .30-30 kills I've been associated with. A hit near CNS will result in DRT just like those snappy new 6.5s with plastic bullet tips, and a hit in the boilers will do massive damage and leave a generous and usually short blood trail. The .30-30 seems to be more of an expand and push through type of wound resulting in 50-100 yard trails as the norm rather than the exception.

At 150 yards or more, that 150 grain spitzer acts more like a 30-30 kill, which makes sense as the velocity is comparable at longer distances to 30-30 at woods ranges.

 

[25-20 WCF]

I’ve used both, the .300 extensively. Few hunters would notice a difference in the field between the .300 and the .308. I can’t say the same about the .30-30 and the .308. The .300 will drive the 170 FN bullets 300 fps faster than the .30-30 will and terminal performance is clearly better - I loaded the 170 CoreLokt in my .300 for thick cover and it anchored deer better than my partner’s .30-30 did with the same bullet. But I finally settled on the 150 BallisticTip in my .300s, a great deer bullet.

Bottom line - I concluded from personal experience that the .300 is noticeably ahead of the .30-30 and the .35 in field performance - assuming proper bullet choices of course. That doesn’t mean I never took my .35s hunting though…


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