30/30 for moose?

In my eyes as a Moose hunter is it capable, Yes but limited. What I see being the biggest problem for myself with this cartridge is the distance or yardage of the area I hunt. If in a certain situationyou are faced to make a choice to shoot or not you are more apt to shoot and if your judgemnt is effected over the moment you may not have the ballistics to back up your thought process.
Yes the 30-30 is capable , yes its a proven Killer, yes its a popular cartridge, But not for me on a moose hunt. There are to many of fine cartridges that offer a much better approach to this big animal.
 
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DarrylDB said:
Werent you shooting at a running Coyote/Wolf last week at some few hundred yards?
Cmon, dont play the respect card...
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last week I was sitting in this computer chair. havent shot at a wolf since I got one Jan19th with one standing shot at 75 yards. last coyote I shot was standing at 275 yards Jan 12th.

a may of posted in the MatchKing thread about shooting at a running wolf at 350 yards or so, but it was previously wounded.

truth be told I have little problem with shooting at a running wolf or coyote, shows my respect level for them I guess.

I really dont think Id shoot at a moose quarter mile away with a 308, but I dont own a 308, nor have I ever shot a moose past 130 yards, so I dont know if I ever will be in that situation.

we're getting pretty off topic here now, so grab your 30-30 and go moose hunting folks, and make sure to post up the pics



tb
 
Sorry, that was an old thread, and I meant to put a smiley behind the Respect card thing...

Here is a pic...


329930.jpg
 
339545.jpg


In the above image, the entrance wound is facing you, just above the shoulder.
The Hornady 170 grain Interlock did not exit, it penetrated aproximately 20", breaking one rib, taking out the lungs, shocking the spine enough for an instant kill, and lodging deep in the offside shoulder.
I was shooting from well above the moose. I guess it would be comparable to a tree stand shot.
 
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Win94 said:
...................absolutley nothing wrong with using a .30-.30 Be a hunter and get within the proper range and kill your moose. If this is wrong, every archery hunter should donate his bow and arrows to the local high school for gym class.;)

..............just because you have a .308 doesn't mean you are silly for not taking it. There are alot of archery hunters that have magnums in the closet that grab their bows instead. Its all about hunting and challenges.

...........oh yeah, and you muzzle loader guys better give that up to!!!:rolleyes: :D :D
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Now I'm REALLY LAUGHIN'!!:D
Cat
 
Between the 30-30 and the .308 I will pick the .308. My moose guns are 45/70 (short range) and 300 WM (open space).

I have a brand new BAR 308. Would I take it moose hunting? Maybe. But I do think a 45/70 and 300WM are better options.

Danny Boy
 
Why use a 30-30 when I have heard countless stories of people killing everything from ground hogs to grizzlies with a .22!!!

Your not a real moose hunter until you use a .22 to hunt them.

I'm with the "yes you can but why would you" group
 
cdngunner said:
Your not a real moose hunter until you use a .22 to hunt them.
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In New Brunswick you can use ANY centre-fire firearm for big game. Including a .22 centre-fire on moose. 30-30 is perfect within it's range limitations.
 
Hard to argue that a .30-30 is not effective on moose when its been putting meat on the table for near a century.:cool:

Other calibers are faster and more powerful, but the moose is still dead with a .30-30.
 
303carbine said:
The 30-30 will do but as others have stated you should wait for the best shot and place it in the heart lung area at a reasonable distance not over 150 yards. Be prepare to track if you don't get it right.:eek:
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"if you don't get it right" with a 300 win mag, 7 mm Mag or anything, be prepared to track. Gut shot is gut shot, no matter what you shoot it with.
 
303carbine said:
The 30-30 will do but as others have stated you should wait for the best shot and place it in the heart lung area at a resonable distance not over 150 yards. Be prepare to track if you don't get it right.:eek:
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Yeah, because if you use something larger, you don't have to hit the heart/lung region. And if you use something like a .458 Winchester, if you "don't get it right", you won't have to track.

Now I'm sorry to pick on poor 303 here, but this is the problem that seems to be over-hanging this place. If you use a large enough rifle, you don't have to be a proficient shot, and you can take less than perfect shots at unwounded animals.

A moose shot in the wrong spot is going to require tracking no matter what he is shot with. If you are proficient and confident in your shooting with the 30-30, you will be more likly to place an accurate shot to the vitals. And that is more important than velocity differences between the 30-30, the .308 and the 30-378. Go and enjoy your hunt, and take the ol girl out. It's what she wants. Best, cheapsk8
 
cheapsk8 said:
Yeah, because if you use something larger, you don't have to hit the heart/lung region. And if you use something like a .458 Winchester, if you "don't get it right", you won't have to track.

Now I'm sorry to pick on poor 303 here, but this is the problem that seems to be over-hanging this place. If you use a large enough rifle, you don't have to be a proficient shot, and you can take less than perfect shots at unwounded animals.

A moose shot in the wrong spot is going to require tracking no matter what he is shot with. If you are proficient and confident in your shooting with the 30-30, you will be more likly to place an accurate shot to the vitals. And that is more important than velocity differences between the 30-30, the .308 and the 30-378. Go and enjoy your hunt, and take the ol girl out. It's what she wants. Best, cheapsk8
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There is no problem overhanging this forum. It's simple use enough gun!
My grandmother used to kill moose with a 25 steven but I'm not recommending that either:rolleyes:
I think you'll speed up the process by putting a hole thru both sides of any animal. That is something a 30-30 is not likely to do!
 
senior said:
There is no problem overhanging this forum. It's simple use enough gun!
My grandmother used to kill moose with a 25 steven but I'm not recommending that either:rolleyes:
I think you'll speed up the process by putting a hole thru both sides of any animal. That is something a 30-30 is not likely to do!
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I have shot moose with both the 30-30 and the 30/06.
Neither have put the bullet through the hide on the other side. All of the bullet energy was expended in the moose.
Both have had the heart/lung area total destroyed in in both the bullet was found just under the hide on the far side of the moose.
I would not hesitate to use a 30-30 on a moose out to 175 yards as long as the rifle had a scope.
I prefer hunting with the 30/06 because I know it's trajectory and can make one shot kills out to 250 yards with it. That is about 75 yards further than my certaintly of making a one shot kill with a 30-30.
 
30-30

Hornady just came out with a new bullet for the 30-30 it is a 160 with a muzzle velocity of 2550 fps it drops 12" a 300 yrds from what I have been told it will be late spring before they are in retail outlets. Thats sounds impresive for the little 30 cal they are also making the same change in the 45-70, 444, 450 as well.
 
senior said:
There is no problem overhanging this forum. It's simple use enough gun!
My grandmother used to kill moose with a 25 steven but I'm not recommending that either:rolleyes:
I think you'll speed up the process by putting a hole thru both sides of any animal. That is something a 30-30 is not likely to do!
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The views I pointed out were implying that with a big enough firearm, shot placement is less than important. That is indeed a problem.

Lets define enough gun. Enough to blow a moose off it's feet? Enough to take a shot at 500 yards? Enough to put a hole through the lungs and bleed it out?

Because if it is the last one, and knowing that most moose are shot at less than 100 yards, the 30-30 is just fine. The problem isn't just use enough gun. The 30-30 is enough. The problem is put the bullet in the right spot. And the opinion that seems rampant around here is that a larger firearm makes up for poor shot placement.

The original question was asked of an individual who was very proficient with his 30-30. That is a better selection than a .308/300/45-70/458 that he may not be as proficient with. Any medium to heavy-for-caliber bullet from 6.5 on up starting at 2000 fps or higher is sufficient for moose.

I have to ask two questions about people that make statements about a 30-06/300/338 blowing through both sides of a moose while a 30-30 wil not.

1. Do they really understand anything about terminal ballistics?
Because an identical expanding bullet hitting at a lower impact velocity quite often exhibits greater penetration than the faster bullet due to less violent bullet expansion. High velocity wounds often look impressive, due to surrounding tissue being bloodshot, but the actual permanent wound channel isn't always larger.

2. How many moosse kills have they actually been in on?
EVERY moose I have seen shot in the heart/lungs has dropped within a few yards regardless of caliber(lets not bring rimfires into the dicussion please, they are irrelavent). The ones who have run were hit poorly, even with .300 mags. Moose are not whitetail deer. Their behavior when shot well, is different.


Now this isn't to pick a fight. My point in my original post was to explain that too much emphasis is placed on horsepower, and not shot placement.
I just hate to see someone not use a particular firearm they are proficient with because someone else feels the need to outdate a cartridge that has a excellent track record just because there is something bigger out there.
 
I have personally seen a moose almost get away from a badly placed .375 H&H.

The reason the guy bought it was because he lost one with a 300 mag.
Shot placement FIRST, firepower SECOND!!
Cat
 
While I agree with most of what you say Cheapsk8 :)

Your statement " And the opinion that seems rampant around here is that a larger firearm makes up for poor shot placement. "
I have not seen any evidence of that statement around here:confused:
Most guys on this forum are somewhat proficient.

And I will still stand by my statement & reply to the original question, which was a choice between a 30-30 & a 308 owned by poster, that a 308 is better than a 30-30 for moose!
No info was giving on range, skill level, type of sites or cartridge quality used!
So you can only assume most 30-30s are open sited lever guns with factory 170's which is certainly not a bullet designed for larger (than deer) animals!
Will they kill moose ...ABSOLUTELY....BUT....
The average 308 is quite likely to have a scope & have 150 or 180 PSP bullets in it which is a much better choice for moose!
To that surely you can't argue :confused:
 
senior said:
While I agree with most of what you say Cheapsk8 :)

Your statement " And the opinion that seems rampant around here is that a larger firearm makes up for poor shot placement. "
I have not seen any evidence of that statement around here:confused:
Most guys on this forum are somewhat proficient.

And I will still stand by my statement & reply to the original question, which was a choice between a 30-30 & a 308 owned by poster, that a 308 is better than a 30-30 for moose!
No info was giving on range, skill level, type of sites or cartridge quality used!
So you can only assume most 30-30s are open sited lever guns with factory 170's which is certainly not a bullet designed for larger (than deer) animals!
Will they kill moose ...ABSOLUTELY....BUT....
The average 308 is quite likely to have a scope & have 150 or 180 PSP bullets in it which is a much better choice for moose!
To that surely you can't argue :confused:
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Senior,

I've shot moose with both the .308 and the .30.30 and still am a big advocate of the .30.30.

As much as I don't want to;) , I have to agree that the .308 is a "better" choice.

I think that many of the more powerful cailbers are a "better choice" which is fine as long as the .30.30 is not considered a "bad choice."

The .30.30 has proven itself too many times in hunting circles over the past hundred years to be dismissed as a "not enough" round.
 
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