NShunter1254
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Nova Scotia Canada
It's because they are cheap rifles to buy and cheap ammunition that's why people used the 30/30.Definitely not because it's the best choice.
Deer Gun Calibre
- Thread starter Found
- Start date
It's because they are cheap rifles to buy and cheap ammunition that's why people used the 30/30.Definitely not because it's the best choice.
beretta boy
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Orillia, Ontario
Some good options have been presented. I swore off the 30-06 for deer years ago.
The 44 Magnum should achieve what you want ... and the 30-30 ( or 38-55 ) also works well, as does the 45-70.
The 243 Winchester, 257 Roberts & 260 Remington are also good choices, with 100 or. bullets ( 120 gr. for the 260 )
If I were looking to a deer only rifle for Central Ontario, I think I'd go with a 7600 Remington pump rifle with something like
a Leupold 1-4x mounted as low as possible on it. ( i.e., Leupold 1 piece mount and super low rings. )
The older Savage levers in 250 Savage are pretty slick little deer guns too !
The 44 Magnum should achieve what you want ... and the 30-30 ( or 38-55 ) also works well, as does the 45-70.
The 243 Winchester, 257 Roberts & 260 Remington are also good choices, with 100 or. bullets ( 120 gr. for the 260 )
If I were looking to a deer only rifle for Central Ontario, I think I'd go with a 7600 Remington pump rifle with something like
a Leupold 1-4x mounted as low as possible on it. ( i.e., Leupold 1 piece mount and super low rings. )
The older Savage levers in 250 Savage are pretty slick little deer guns too !
blasted_saber
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- A blue part of Ontario
I use Federal Fusions because they shoot best out of my gun. However I'd use Rem Core Lokts or Winchester Power Points if they shot as good as the Fusions. Im sure a straight lead bullet would do the trick under specific circumstances, but I;d rather a jacket and a proper hunting bullet.
Look at the price of a new Winchester model 94 and get back to me on the cheap thing.
NShunter1254
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Nova Scotia Canada
- Location
- In lalaland, that is Ottawa.
blasted_saber
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- A blue part of Ontario
How is that any different then a Savage Axis in 300WM?
We're both wrong actually. Price really has nothing to do with killing power
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
The traditional lever action has never been the least expensive rifle on the block, but they are the nicest to carry all day over a tough trail and are very quick to get into action when needed. The cartridge has the ballistics and accuracy that will dependably put deer in the freezer. The problem that the .30/30 has is in it's longevity and numbers. Over nearly 120 years, and tens of millions of rifles, there has been much time and opportunity to criticize the thutty-thutty, plus there are those who believe that nothing old can be as good as something new. Now I'm a .30/06 fan myself, but I certainly see the wisdom of choosing a Winchester or Marlin lever gun for hunting deer under typical woods hunting conditions. A handloader can certainly dial down the velocity (and blast and recoil) of a 180 gr bullet from a .308 or '06, but little can be done about their dimensions and weight. Of course if you find you're hunting open prairie or mountains, a flat shooting round has its advantages, but when the range is short and the action is fast, those advantages can't be realized, but rifles that are longer and heavier, scopes with small fields of view, and the effects of high velocity close range impacts are tangible disadvantages.
If I was to make an observation though, it would be that since the inception of the .30/30, the land, not the game has changed. The change is the cutting of timber which has opened land previously forested, power lines provide animal corridors allowing them to be spotted at longer range, and increased acreages of cleared agricultural land also makes 200+ yards shots the rule rather than the exception. While these changes hasn't made the .30/30 obsolete, it does make a flatter shooting rifle somewhat more desirable in those areas.
Shooter_01
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Durham Region, Ontario
Well said, Boomer.
I hardly think you're overgunned with the 06 on deer.Shoot them in the lungs ......use sturdier bullets etc....nothing wasted.Imagine for the last 75 years now ,the .375 H+H being used on coyote sized antelope in Africa.I found my .338 win mag wrecked less meat than my .270
I guess it's all about what you mean by 'best'.
No doubt there are more powerful rifles, ones with more foot-pounds of energy, ones capable of stopping a charging bandersnatch in its tracks.
The .30/30 kills deer reliably. It does so with current modern loads with expanding bullets and smokeless powder. It did so with cast bullets and black powder. Dead is dead. Will those extra foot-pounds you are paying for kill Bambi any deader?
There are certainly more accurate rifles, ones able to take down a deer at 600 yards.
At the OP's stated maximum range of 50 yards, the cheap, lightweight .30/30 can put a round into the boiler-room ten times out of ten - the famed 'minute of Bambi'. How will a more expensive rifle, with its more expensive ammo and more expensive sights, do any better? Can it hit the target eleven times out of ten?
How will the additional weight, recoil and expense make your choice better than something that is perfectly adequate for the job?
Will it carry itself?
Do the skinning?
Carry out the gutted animal?
Sing you songs and massage your feet?
Of course not. Just as there are men who think they can make their willies longer by buying a Lamborghini, there are hunters who feel that anyone not carrying the newest .397 Megamag Shoulderblaster is hideously undergunned and shouldn't even be in the woods, let alone seriously hunting.
The simple reality is that the .30/30 (despite its shamefully low cost) does everything required of it in the situation the OP describes. Low recoil, perfectly adequate accuracy, perfectly sufficient power and light weight. If one can bring oneself to overlook the horrible shame of not carrying a rifle worth three mortgage payments, I think it's ideal for the job described.
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tactical870
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Buckhorn, Ontario
22 Hornet.......
When I saw this thread, I knew you'd post that.
For the record, I used the 6.8 SPC on deer #4 last night. There is no middle ground between a .30-30 and the .397 Megamag Shoulderblaster? Really?
Boomer is right. While the .30-30 can kill deer, this is not 1895. Deer have not changed much, but hunting certainly has. Can you name ANYTHING that was first produced in 1895 for which there is not a superior product on the market today. If you are into nostalgia, or just want to "limit" your hunting possibilities in the same ways that bow hunters do, the .30-30 is a good choice. But any new hunter who is looking for a deer gun should pick something much more suitable for all the deer hunting he may do in 2013. Later, if he wishes, a .30-30 may be an addition to his collection for many different reasons, but it is NOT the smartest choice as a first deer cartridge.
blasted_saber
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- A blue part of Ontario
....this thread is about a guy looking to add a new gun to his safe, not buy his one and only deer rifle.
I've killed whack of deer with 125-130 grain 6.5 bullets in both a couple of 260 Rem and a 6.5 swede.
Great deer calibre, with good bullets will work on bigger critters, both inherently accurate, long bullets for weight penetrate well and the best part is recoil is very mild.
Great deer calibre, with good bullets will work on bigger critters, both inherently accurate, long bullets for weight penetrate well and the best part is recoil is very mild.
