Advice for new Lever 30-30 owner?

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Plato

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I recently purchased a lever-action Henry in 30-30, with an interest in eventual hunting.
For now I am target shooting and getting familiar with the firearm. Towards that I would appreciate any advice out there for the reliable 30-30 WIN round.
In the short term, what ammo do you recommend for practice?
In the long term, what resources do you recommend for learning about deer hunting in the north-east?

thank you
 
Plato said:
reliable 30-30 WIN round.
In the short term, what ammo do you recommend for practice?
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You will have to experiment with a few brands/types of ammo to find which your particular Henry specimen likes or doesn't.

30-30 ammo goes for $1.5 +/- a round these days. Practice with the cheapest reasonably accurate ammo you can find.
 
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Peep or a low power scope would benefit a lot in the accuracy department. 3030 isn't cheap to shoot without loading your own..that's a whole other expense. Buy whatcha can and practice firing from a position you would most likely hunt from. Lots of videos to watch but getting into a hunt group and learning from others will be of benefit. If that's not an option you can learn lots by spending time in the woods. Also learning the etiquette of interacting with other hunters is important. Some guys can get very possessive of "their spot" despite not owning the property. Be prepared to meet some personalities. Kindness is the higher ground when dealing with those individuals.
 
Cabela’s had core-lokt 30-30 on clearance. Might be worth seeing if your local store has stock. Lee hand loaders can still be found if such things interest you.

I listen to podcasts in the background while doing other tasks. Nothing beats boots on the ground though.
 
If u want to be good with it. You need to practice. To practice u need lots of affordable ammo.
30/30 is a great cast bullet gun. You can load really light to say shoot at your local indoor range during really cold weather. Load heavier or mid range to practice outside and load factory levels with jacketed bullets for hunting.
30/30 is a great gun if you practice alot and can use it.
 
30-30 is a great cartridge. I shot my first bear, deer and coyote with one. That was over 40 years ago....
I have never had any use for the 150 grain bullets. You can't go wrong with federal blue box, remington core-loct or winchester power point 170 grain ammo. Find the one that your gun likes and go for it.
I have found quite often that a rifle will like both the federal and the remington ammo the same, and shoot very close to the same point of impact with both.
I have also noticed that when used within its limitations, the 30-30 seems to be a fast killer. Must be because of the blunt round nose bullets?
 
Despite the enormous cost increase in reloading components, I reload 30/30 ammo at ~$0.25 per round of plinking ammo.

I find my reloading components at auctions and gun shows, for bullets I use bulk copper plated
 
Buy a laser rangefinder , some are really affordable, it will give you a chance to use your rifle to it's potential. Sometine we judge the distance wrongly and passeda shot. 30-30 is good to 200 yard safely on deer .
 
mephisto002 said:
Despite the enormous cost increase in reloading components, I reload 30/30 ammo at ~$0.25 per round of plinking ammo.

I find my reloading components at auctions and gun shows, for bullets I use bulk copper plated
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Um, at today’s prices, 25 cents gets you just the primer …if you’re lucky enough to find them at that price. Those of us lucky enough to still have components purchased years ago can truthfully claim low shooting costs but that doesn’t reflect the reality of today’s costs. Heck, even at CT the cheapest 30/30 rounds are closing in on 2 bucks a pop! I too can claim 25 cent rounds ( by using cast bullets) but the cheapest purchased bullets I found are 00 buckshot (sized down to.309) . And those worked out to about 20 cents each 5 years ago. All this to say that if you can save maybe 50% off the price of commercial ammo , reloading is a good deal in the long run.
 
Al Bear said:
Um, at today’s prices, 25 cents gets you just the primer …if you’re lucky enough to find them at that price. Those of us lucky enough to still have components purchased years ago can truthfully claim low shooting costs but that doesn’t reflect the reality of today’s costs. Heck, even at CT the cheapest 30/30 rounds are closing in on 2 bucks a pop! I too can claim 25 cent rounds ( by using cast bullets) but the cheapest purchased bullets I found are 00 buckshot (sized down to.309) . And those worked out to about 20 cents each 5 years ago. All this to say that if you can save maybe 50% off the price of commercial ammo , reloading is a good deal in the long run.
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I cannot remember when I last purchased factory ammo.
If your only source for ammo is factory, then you will have no choice, but pay the price.

As I said, I purchase components at gunshows and auctions, I reload 30-30 target loads with LPM primers, 10 grs of Unique powder or 15 grs of Alliant 2400 and 30 caliber copper plated bullets.
  • The primers I purchased at the Orangville gun show for $40.00 per 1000 (I purchased at that show Federal Large rifle Magunm primers for $100 per 1000, less than a year ago) $0.04
  • The bullets were $65.00 per 500 $0.17
  • I purchased several pounds of Unique powder for $30.00 per pound $0.04
I do not calculate the brass, as I have quite a bit, and it lasts forever.
(I even received 7 lbs of Alliant 2400 for free just before Christmas, its called networking)

You do the Math.
 
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mephisto002 said:
I cannot remember when I last purchased factory ammo.
If your only source for ammo is factory, then you will have no choice, but pay the price.

As I said, I purchase components at gunshows and auctions, I reload 30-30 target loads with LPM primers, 10 grs of Unique powder or 15 grs of Alliant 2400 and 30 caliber copper plated bullets.
  • The primers I purchased at the Orangville gun show for $40.00 per 1000 (I purchased at that show Federal Large rifle Magunm primers for $100 per 1000, less than a year ago) $0.04
  • The bullets were $65.00 per 500 $0.17
  • I purchased several pounds of Unique powder for $30.00 per pound $0.04
I do not calculate the brass, as I have quite a bit, and it lasts forever.
(I even received 7 lbs of Alliant 2400 for free just before Christmas, its called networking)

You do the Math.
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absolute pipe dream in 2025 brother.
 
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