Marlin in .45/70 or 30-30

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canuck2a

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Still hunting for my levergun, was originally only considering one chambered in .45/70 then looked at a few in 30-30 now not sure what to do. This will probably be the last rifle I buy for myself for awhile. (kids are becoming more involved in shooting, and are old enough to hunt in the next year.) And I enjoy taking them more and watching helping them shoot, funding their projects is great too.

So with all that being said I want a caliber that is great to hunt all sizes of game deer and moose most common, maybe I will be able to obtain other tags in following years. But Deer is most common.

I know the 30/30 is a proven and great deer caliber, low recoil, and has a longer "practical" (if that is the right word) range 200yds, compared to the .45/70 at 166yds, with more recoil, not to mention way more expensive bullets (to buy or reload)

I am sure with better shot placement the 30/30 will is very capable of taking moose and other game (don't get mad at me here) if one is able to get that perfect placement on the shot.

But then the .45/70 is better for bear defense when out in the bush myself or with the kids. And will knock most game right down.

So convince me why I should go with one caliber and against the other.

Thanks
 
There really is no way to argue the two calibers against each to her as they do different things.

But, if you're looking for something to teach the kids how to shoot I'd go 3030. Cheaper to shoot with moderate recoil.
 
It sounds like you are going to be the "Guide" for your children? There must be reasons why the Marlin Guide gun is usually in 45-70 and you seem
to have listed those reasons. However, unless you are going to be encountering grizzly, polar bear or buffalo, my vote goes to 30-30, it's just easier.
 
Well, the 45/70 you can load down a lot and have fun plinking with it. Not that there's much wrong with the 30-30 anyway. Plus the 30-30 would be cheaper to shoot.

The Model 336C comes in .35 Remington does it not?
 
petew said:
The 30-30 is a great little lever , but it is far from being a 200 yard hunting rifle.
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Based on my experience, I disagree. 30-30 with 170gr loads works fantastic out to 200y on deer/black bear.

OP, I'd go 30-30.
 
For versatility, I'd get a 308. Try to find a Savage 99 lever action with the rotary magazine. The 4570 would be great for bear defence but so would a shotgun with a slug, the shotgun would be a lot cheaper to buy and shoot. My 4570 has a lot of drop after 100yards, I wouldn't use it for deer or moose.
 
Yes I will be the one shooting it, more of the guide for my kids but still want to take my own animals. 30-30 would one day be great for kids to learn on, but what has experience been on larger game like moose/ boar. Also I know i said "practical" range on 30/30 was 200 yds, but realistically any hunting I have done has been 150yds or less probably close to 100yds or less more commonly. I have had .308's and .300 win mags just not really into bolt guns anymore though great to shoot,. I am not buying this to be some great long distance sharpshooter.
 
It's the internet, so we naturally overthink the topic of bear protection. I'd hazard a guess that if you insert a magazine tube worth of 3030 bullets into a bruin, you're then dealing with a dead bear.

I own a 4570 and a 3030. And luckily i reload, as that slows me to afford to shoot the bigger gun often. 3030 is pretty cheap to shoot regardless of whether you load or not.
 
I just bought a Marlin 336XLR (stainless action & barrel / grey laminated stock) in 30-30. I was actually considering a 45-70, but went with the 30-30 for the two most obvious reasons: less recoil and cheaper to shoot. I've had it out shooting once and am very pleased with it. The 30-30 is light enough in recoil even with 170 grainers that it's actually fun to put a couple boxes through it. Previous to this I've always shot a .308 and the 30-30 is a noticeable step down in recoil. I'm not recoil shy, but I know I can shoot more accurately with a lighter recoiling gun. I also think a 170 grain bullet at 2200 fps (muzzle) is good enough for whitetail, black bear, moose, or boar out to 150yds. I've shot about 30 deer in my life, and I can only think of one that was beyond 150 yds (it was 160 yards).
 
I'd say get both. You can buy a good used 30-30 relatively cheap for your kids. It would be much easier for them to shoot well and is probably the best handling rifle for deer and moose hunting. I'd recommend further 170 grain bullets for moose and 150 grain for deer, or the 160 Hornady leverevolution if it shoot swell. If you're concerned about bears and mountain lions, get the 45/70 for yourself.
 
Warden70 said:
I'd say get both. You can buy a good used 30-30 relatively cheap for your kids. It would be much easier for them to shoot well and is probably the best handling rifle for deer and moose hunting. I'd recommend further 170 grain bullets for moose and 150 grain for deer, or the 160 Hornady leverevolution if it shoot swell. If you're concerned about bears and mountain lions, get the 45/70 for yourself.
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X2. I bought a new 1895 in .45/70 last year and love it,so,I bought a 336C in .30-30 this year. They're both excellent rifles and a pleasure to shoot. There's some Marlin haters hanging around these forums that espouse all kinds of garbage about "old" Marlins vs. "new" Marlins,but,it's all BS. That's what the "ignore" button is for. If you buy both,you won't regret it,especially,if you have younguns to give them to.
 
Trimmer 905 said:
X2. I bought a new 1895 in .45/70 last year and love it,so,I bought a 336C in .30-30 this year. They're both excellent rifles and a pleasure to shoot. There's some Marlin haters hanging around these forums that espouse all kinds of garbage about "old" Marlins vs. "new" Marlins,but,it's all BS. That's what the "ignore" button is for. If you buy both,you won't regret it,especially,if you have younguns to give them to.
Click to expand...

It's BS to the uneducated, and it's not garbage.

Glad you found a couple nice new production ones and are happy with them. Own maybe 50 or so more, then post about everyone spouting off BS.......
 
canuck2a said:
Still hunting for my levergun, was originally only considering one chambered in .45/70 then looked at a few in 30-30 now not sure what to do. This will probably be the last rifle I buy for myself for awhile. (kids are becoming more involved in shooting, and are old enough to hunt in the next year.) And I enjoy taking them more and watching helping them shoot, funding their projects is great too.

So with all that being said I want a caliber that is great to hunt all sizes of game deer and moose most common, maybe I will be able to obtain other tags in following years. But Deer is most common.

I know the 30/30 is a proven and great deer caliber, low recoil, and has a longer "practical" (if that is the right word) range 200yds, compared to the .45/70 at 166yds, with more recoil, not to mention way more expensive bullets (to buy or reload)

I am sure with better shot placement the 30/30 will is very capable of taking moose and other game (don't get mad at me here) if one is able to get that perfect placement on the shot.

But then the .45/70 is better for bear defense when out in the bush myself or with the kids. And will knock most game right down.

So convince me why I should go with one caliber and against the other.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Where do you live? That is the first question. If you don't live in grizzly country, you don't "need" big bear medicine. And even if you did, .30-30 will kill a big bear with the right bullet selection and shot placement. The old timers simply did not participate in bear defence threads, they grabbed their old lever action and went out into the bush without worrying all that much.

In a practical sense, the .30-30 is a "do-it-all" calibre. It will kill anything with authority, provided it limitations are respected. The gun rags will tell you otherwise and that you need a ".XXWSSM super duper mag whatever" to effectively kill a white tail. That's a bunch of baloney.

Calibre selection is more about the ranges you will be shooting at and the specific animal you will most often be stalking.

Before 1970 or so, the very great majority of all large game in Canada was easily harvested with .30-30's, .44-40's and .303 British guns. That's a fact. Gun writers haven't moved the dial on this fact in any compelling way if you ask me. Against a big bear, a bigger calibre just makes shot placement less of a factor as they hit harder with more kinetic energy.

Reality is I have both calibres in a Marlin 336SS and a Marlin 1895GS and sometimes carry each, but the .30-30 is a far more versatile calibre that kicks less and costs less to shoot. I have my .45-70 mostly because it's fun. Truthfully, I also carry a .44 MAG Win92 with about equal measure.

Do what makes you happy, this is an argument for the heart, not the head.

Finally - depending on the age of your boys, .30-30 is a pussycat on the shoulder compared to a .45-70 load meant for grizzly work.
 
Claven2 said:
Where do you live? That is the first question. If you don't live in grizzly country, you don't "need" big bear medicine. And even if you did, .30-30 will kill a big bear with the right bullet selection and shot placement. The old timers simply did not participate in bear defence threads, they grabbed their old lever action and went out into the bush without worrying all that much.

In a practical sense, the .30-30 is a "do-it-all" calibre. It will kill anything with authority, provided it limitations are respected. The gun rags will tell you otherwise and that you need a ".XXWSSM super duper mag whatever" to effectively kill a white tail. That's a bunch of baloney.

Calibre selection is more about the ranges you will be shooting at and the specific animal you will most often be stalking.

Before 1970 or so, the very great majority of all large game in Canada was easily harvested with .30-30's, .44-40's and .303 British guns. That's a fact. Gun writers haven't moved the dial on this fact in any compelling way if you ask me. Against a big bear, a bigger calibre just makes shot placement less of a factor as they hit harder with more kinetic energy.

Reality is I have both calibres in a Marlin 336SS and a Marlin 1895GS and sometimes carry each, but the .30-30 is a far more versatile calibre that kicks less and costs less to shoot. I have my .45-70 mostly because it's fun. Truthfully, I also carry a .44 MAG Win92 with about equal measure.

Do what makes you happy, this is an argument for the heart, not the head.

Finally - depending on the age of your boys, .30-30 is a pussycat on the shoulder compared to a .45-70 load meant for grizzly work.
Click to expand...

OP, ^^^^^^ this is your answer.
 
GMC403 said:
It's BS to the uneducated, and it's not garbage.

Glad you found a couple nice new production ones and are happy with them. Own maybe 50 or so more, then post about everyone spouting off BS.......
Click to expand...

I have to agree with "Warden70".

If you sample only 2008 to 2012 production, there is plenty to complain about in a Marlin. The 2013 and later made guns have been just as reliable, in my experience, as anything Marlin made since about the mid-1970's. The biggest "unfixable" issue, in my experience, is that the quality of walnut used has been on the sharp decline since the 1980's and I hate stamped or laser engraved checkering.

I've worked on a LOT of marlins. I'm not basing this on a small sample size. I've yet to see a problem Remington-made Marlin, even from the 2008-2012 period (yes, I know that includes some JM production, which really trailed off in quality near the end IMHO), that could not be made "just fine" with some basic gunsmithing work. The bones were always good. Most common issues were burrs in the action, barrels slightly out of index, edges left too sharp, or machine swarf under parts causing them not to be tightened down properly during assembly. On ONE gun out of maybe 60 or so I've gone over for people, there was a rifling issue (gouges in the rifling) and Remington warranty replaced the gun immediately.

YMMV.
 
^^^^^^

Not sure why you're quoting me. I was responding to a claim about excellent "NEW" Marlins.

(Warden70) was talking about used rifles, and I agree with him too.

If "minor" gun smithing or warranty work is acceptable to you for a new Firearm then so be it. On a pre owned rifle, sure.
 
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