The 30 Carbine round is roughly half way between a 357 magnum and a 44 magnum for energy, in Victoria, it's easily available, along with dozens of other less common calibers, at Pullens. Cost wise, it's expensive for a handgun round, but fairly affordable for a rifle round - expect to pay about $30/50. If you want real cheap 30 carbine, and you don't care to reload, Tula sells it really, really cheap. As far as reloading goes, it's pretty much like reloading for a pistol - magnum pistol powders work well, and Berrys makes a plated bullet for it - as long as you don't load it to max velocities. The carbine itself is an amazing little rifle - probably the handiest small rifle available. It's reliable, fast handling and very useable BUT to get the most out of a GI carbine, you need to get it rebarelled to make it NR.