30-30 distance?
- Thread starter marba
- Start date
Well 'they' say the minimum energy required to kill a deer is about 1100 pounds. I think the .30-30 drops to about that around 200 yards. Now, if you are comfortable with your shooting, I'm sure you could stretch that abit and they say the Leverevolution rounds will do the deed to 300. Really their best work is done under that 200 yard number. 
Brutus
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
With alot of pre-season practice, 260 yards, whitetail buck.
Used a Williams rear peep and a front "firesite" bead from the same company, on a Winchester levergun.
High sight-in zero, with plenty of holdover.
Used a Williams rear peep and a front "firesite" bead from the same company, on a Winchester levergun.
High sight-in zero, with plenty of holdover.
I think that's probably a little high if you ask me. I think probably somewhere in the 900 range would be more than enough.
I think with 'regular' 170's you'd be good out to about 250 yards with about a 9.5 inch drop (not too bad).
With that leverevolution ammo you're probably good for a little farther than that. Probably 300 and change comfortably.
Probably not that many 30/30's that are tricked out to shoot that far out. That's a hellova long shot with iron's
Killed my 43" dall ram this year with an open sighted model 94 in 30-30. This was after I shot 1.5" groups at 100 yards and 5" at 300. (I am currently on an 'open sight' kick, which hasn't cost me any game yet! Got a barren ground caribou yesterday at over 200 yds. He was running full tilt down hill....)
well depends on shooting ability . I had the experience with my dads friend and his old 30 remington pump balistically Identical to the 30-30 He shot a white tail buck at about 150-200 yrds in the front shoulder up high and the bullet did not have the power to bust into the rib cage I had to finish it off with my 300 win when it stopped running. we found the bullet it had broken the shoulder and lodged between it and the rib cagefrom what I can remember. If it had been a clean shot through the rib cage there would have been no problem . so shot placement is critical if it had been a 30-06 or 303 brit it would have had the power.
- Location
- Winnipeg,Man.
With a 30-30 carbine (20 inch barrel) the range is about 150 yards comfortably but I use a 1906 rifle with a 26 inch barrel and have knocked them down at over 200. home loads, I do not use any store bought ammo except .22..
Put a good receiver sight on a 30-30, and you have an easy 200 yd hunting rifle.
The cartridge itself will kill deer way past 300 yd with factory ammo, as the bullets will still expand quite well at that distance. Ask any of the caribou that get whacked by 30-30s up here every year about this time.
Ted
The cartridge itself will kill deer way past 300 yd with factory ammo, as the bullets will still expand quite well at that distance. Ask any of the caribou that get whacked by 30-30s up here every year about this time.
Ted
We used to shoot a game called Rifleman's Rodeo. In "Frontier" class, we were restricted to Iron sighted Lever action rifles shooting a cartridge designed prior to 1900. Needless to say, most of us chose the 30-30. The far target was 300 yards, and the ten ring on that target was about 3½" in diameter. I know that quite a few of us managed to "10" that target once we figured out where to hold that old 30-30. We used receiver sights and they were very easy to hit with. My best score with the 30-30 was 45/50 [5 targets, with 10 possible on each] Don't sell the 30-30 short, it is capable of amazing work in the hands of a skilled rifleman. FWIW, I just recently shot two consecutive sub moa groups at 100 yards with my "Legendary Frontiersman" Model 94 in 38-55 using the Barnes Original .377" diameter 255 grain jacketed bullet and 32 grains of H322. It has receiver sights, but my eyes are not quite as sharp as they once were. When I moved out to 200, my groups swelled to a bit over 2½" still Minute of deer with ease. I'm gonna take it deer hunting this fall. Eagleye.
I hunted for about twenty rather productive years with a 30-06 with a Lyman 48 aperature sight and a good post front sight. I never lost, or missed an animal, with the iron sights, except I missed one moose. I was going to be a smart ass, with two friends, and shoot a larger than average bull moose, standing in a foot of snow, at what I thought was about 400 yards.
It must have been considerable farther, because when I walked over to where it had been, the bullet had hit the snow under its chest, close behind where the front legs had been.
A scope wouldn't have helped a bit, because I hadn't given it enough Kentucky elevation and it would have been the same with a scope.
As somewhat of an alibi for under estimating the distance, I think it was an extra large moose, thus appearing closer than it actuallly was. It made a huge track and later that day and not far away from there, I shot a cow, which was probably the largest moose I have ever shot. There are some of the huge Alaska variety moose that venture south as far as central BC, and this cow was almost surely of the northern sub species.
The big, deep body, with the legs appearing shorter than they usually do on moose, certainly indicate the big variety.
The bull could easily have been the large variety, also.
It must have been considerable farther, because when I walked over to where it had been, the bullet had hit the snow under its chest, close behind where the front legs had been.
A scope wouldn't have helped a bit, because I hadn't given it enough Kentucky elevation and it would have been the same with a scope.
As somewhat of an alibi for under estimating the distance, I think it was an extra large moose, thus appearing closer than it actuallly was. It made a huge track and later that day and not far away from there, I shot a cow, which was probably the largest moose I have ever shot. There are some of the huge Alaska variety moose that venture south as far as central BC, and this cow was almost surely of the northern sub species.
The big, deep body, with the legs appearing shorter than they usually do on moose, certainly indicate the big variety.
The bull could easily have been the large variety, also.
Eagleye, you sure know how to bring back the memories. My 1956 Model 94 had a Williams Fool Proof aperature and a fine gold bead on the front. To get my bullets to drop into the area of the ten ring, I just rested the bead on the top of the shoulder on the three hundred yard goat.
There were five targets, a running deer at 100, a running antelope at 150, a bear at two hundred, a sheep at 250 and the goat at 300. You assumed any position you desired, usually prone, but no rest allowed. You had five cartridges and on your signal a target was called up. The shooter had no idea which target would appear, until all five had been shot at. The pop ups stayed up for four seconds.
The course of fire for most events was any rifle of 243 calibre or larger and any sight.
However, I was on the rules committee at the Salmon Arm shoot and it was actually me who came up with the idea of the "Frontier Event." Rules were any lever action rifle designed before 1900 with iron sights. As Dave has said, I think everyone used a 30-30 for it.
Eagleye shot with us at Salmon Arm, so we competed. Dark Alley Dan, on the CGNs, came from Albera with his family as a sub-junior shooter and his Dad and I had some prettty good competitions. Many of the shooters, usually familes, came from Alberta.
Over the years at the Salmon Arm shoot I won first in the Frontier once, twice I got second and one year third, in the Frontier Event with the 30-30.
I also won some trophies in other events with my 243 and 270.
Here is a picture of my trophies won at it the Frontier in Salmon Arm.
There were five targets, a running deer at 100, a running antelope at 150, a bear at two hundred, a sheep at 250 and the goat at 300. You assumed any position you desired, usually prone, but no rest allowed. You had five cartridges and on your signal a target was called up. The shooter had no idea which target would appear, until all five had been shot at. The pop ups stayed up for four seconds.
The course of fire for most events was any rifle of 243 calibre or larger and any sight.
However, I was on the rules committee at the Salmon Arm shoot and it was actually me who came up with the idea of the "Frontier Event." Rules were any lever action rifle designed before 1900 with iron sights. As Dave has said, I think everyone used a 30-30 for it.
Eagleye shot with us at Salmon Arm, so we competed. Dark Alley Dan, on the CGNs, came from Albera with his family as a sub-junior shooter and his Dad and I had some prettty good competitions. Many of the shooters, usually familes, came from Alberta.
Over the years at the Salmon Arm shoot I won first in the Frontier once, twice I got second and one year third, in the Frontier Event with the 30-30.
I also won some trophies in other events with my 243 and 270.
Here is a picture of my trophies won at it the Frontier in Salmon Arm.
Last edited:
