Plinking 30-30 Win?

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So I just bought a pre 64 Winchester 94 off EE that I am pretty excited about and now I’m looking into feeding it. Is there such thing as affordable “plinking” 30-30 ammunition or am I looking at $2 per round hunting ammunition? I don’t reload so factory ammunition is a must. I’m not looking to put 1000’s of round through it, just have some fun.
 
Yes, if you do not reload, going to likely be buying and using hunting ammunition if you want to fire it. If you plan to start to reload, before spending a nickel - try to find large rifle primers - is no point to buy the gear, if you can not find them.
 
You should really plan on getting into reloading. You'll reduce the cost considerably and make rounds more suited for plinking.

If you don't then at least save your brass and sell it. Right now 30-30 brass is hard to find. You'd probably get between $0.50 to $0.75 a piece for the once fired brass.

Chris.
 
No such thing as cheap 30-30 anymore.

Pre-covid you could, sometimes get $ 1 per round.

Reliable Gun and Tiger Arms had great deals on Federal Remmington ammo in the past.

The past.

Re-loading is truly the way to go now, not just for large caliber.
 
You should really plan on getting into reloading. You'll reduce the cost considerably and make rounds more suited for plinking.

If you don't then at least save your brass and sell it. Right now 30-30 brass is hard to find. You'd probably get between $0.50 to $0.75 a piece for the once fired brass.

Chris.

This maybe the time to start reloading. As others have said ,,,,, get a source of large rifle primmers first. Then use
CAST bullets , which should be easy to get & save you much money over jacketed bullets. I started reloading about 1971
and glad I did , over all the years of supply chain shortages. I also keep stocked up on primmers & powder for a 3 + year
period . Cast my own bullets from wheel balance weights , as needed.
 
So I don't hate the idea of reloading, the issue is space. I live in a tiny basement suite in Metro Vancouver and space is in short supply. Is this something I could do at a kitchen table? Maybe store everything in a bin in the closet?
 
So I don't hate the idea of reloading, the issue is space. I live in a tiny basement suite in Metro Vancouver and space is in short supply. Is this something I could do at a kitchen table? Maybe store everything in a bin in the closet?

You can do re-loading in a small space, but your press has to be in a solid position.

As for storage - storing powder and primers is a bit different from Firearms and Loaded Ammunition.

Again, can be done.
 
So I don't hate the idea of reloading, the issue is space. I live in a tiny basement suite in Metro Vancouver and space is in short supply. Is this something I could do at a kitchen table? Maybe store everything in a bin in the closet?

As was answered in Post #10 - yes, I think could do all of it at kitchen table, except the sizing part - need your press on something solid - likely more solid than most kitchen tables that are common now, although my Aunt's table in farm house in 1960's was likely more substantial than many work benches here. I think lever action rifles typically want at least Full Length sizing, if not Small Base sizing - so just Neck Sizing (like you used to be able to do in the inexpensive "pound in" Lee Loader kits) likely not enough for a lever rifle.

I found ad for one that might work - Fix this link and go there to see it - hand held Lee brand press - I never used it, so do not know how well it works - need dies to use it for resizing and bullet seating.
ht tps://www.amazon.ca/Lee-Precision-Breech-Lock-Press/dp/B0050Z5A6E

If you have never re-loaded and/or are not tooled up for it, a press and dies are fairly major - but only first step - likely similar dollars yet to spend on other gizmos - at minimum - and then to find primers, bullets, brass and powder to go with those. Many of us have a space where our re-loading toys are set up more or less permanently - but, as you describe, you would have extra fuss to unpack and repack for each session - all that is needed could be stored in a box of medium (or small) size Roughneck RubberMaid tub with lid.

About no end to the toys for reloading - some necessary, some not - is likely a real good idea to first get one or two books. I found "Modern Reloading- Second Edition" by Richard Lee to be inexpensive and covers many topics - and was not too expensive. Then maybe a reloading manual by main line bullet maker - Speer, Hornady, Nosler, or Sierra - at least as much for the first 1/3 of book discussing how to reload - as for the recipes found later in those manuals. Another good one to get early on might be Lyman 49 or Lyman 50 - I notice must be corporate things going on - Lyman manuals mostly illustrate how to do with Lyman tools; Speer manual usually shows how to do similar job with RCBS tools, etc. So gives you insight about tooling to get.
 
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As was answered in Post #10 - yes, I think could do all of it at kitchen table, except the sizing part - need your press on something solid - likely more solid than most kitchen tables that are common now, although my Aunt's table in farm house in 1960's was likely more substantial than many work benches here. I think lever action rifles typically want at least Full Length sizing, if not Small Base sizing - so just Neck Sizing (like you used to be able to do in the inexpensive "pound in" Lee Loader kits) likely not enough for a lever rifle.

I found ad for one that might work - Fix this link and go there to see it - hand held Lee brand press - I never used it, so do not know how well it works - need dies to use it for resizing and bullet seating.
ht tps://www.amazon.ca/Lee-Precision-Breech-Lock-Press/dp/B0050Z5A6E

If you have never re-loaded and/or are not tooled up for it, a press and dies are fairly major - but only first step - likely similar dollars yet to spend on other gizmos - at minimum - and then to find primers, bullets, brass and powder to go with those. Many of us have a space where our re-loading toys are set up more or less permanently - but, as you describe, you would have extra fuss to unpack and repack for each session - all that is needed could be stored in a box of medium (or small) size Roughneck RubberMaid tub with lid.

About no end to the toys for reloading - some necessary, some not - is likely a real good idea to first get one or two books. I found "Modern Reloading- Second Edition" by Richard Lee to be inexpensive and covers many topics - and was not too expensive. Then maybe a reloading manual by main line bullet maker - Speer, Hornady, Nosler, or Sierra - at least as much for the first 1/3 of book discussing how to reload - as for the recipes found later in those manuals. Another good one to get early on might be Lyman 49 or Lyman 50 - I notice must be corporate things going on - Lyman manuals mostly illustrate how to do with Lyman tools; Speer manual usually shows how to do similar job with RCBS tools, etc. So gives you insight about tooling to get.

Lots of info, thanks! I will toy with the idea and try to convince the girlfriend it will save me money in the long run haha
 
Lots of info, thanks! I will toy with the idea and try to convince the girlfriend it will save me money in the long run haha

Is likely that others found different than me, but getting into reloading did NOT save me much money - where I used to think a box of 20 was a lot of cartridges, I tend to reload in batches of 50 or 100 these days - and can read of the handgun shooters that load several hundred or thousands of rounds at a time. You likely will make cheaper cartridges than store bought - even after amortizing the tooling cost - but you will shoot a LOT more - usually.

For perspective, there are reloading die sets for 26 different cartridges on my shelf - not counting the primer pocket swagers, de-capper dies, collet bullet puller, "M" dies and so on. So reloading can be very much like a rabbit hole to fall into - or eating potato chips - is hard to have just one.

Specifically about plinking loads for Winchester 94 - two pictures below - we did these up last winter - do not know how they will feed from the rifle magazine - guesstimating those 110 grain hollow point are about 0.030" off the lands - have not yet fired them. Bullets are Speer #1835 - 110 grain "Varmint" - .308" - loaded into 30-30 Win using Start Load of AA2230 powder. I used same bullets in 308 Win - maybe 30 years ago - as practice ammo for our son who was about 11 or 12 at the time - walking pastures, shooting at gophers or jack rabbits - sometimes even got some.

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I was reloading 308 for under 1$

I was just using those 150 grn berry bullets that were 17$/100, then used Reddot powder and primers were 7$ a sleeve.

Today's price might still be under a dollar. The bullets are about 22$ now, I can find large pistol primers for 11$ a sleeve and only need like 5-8grn of reddot powder.
 

As mentioned above - not so sure if those type loaders work for Win 94 lever action - maybe with new brass or for a few reloading times only? They only neck size the case. I used that Lee Loader system to load hundreds, maybe thousands, of 308 Win for a bolt action rifle - back in the day. Many hundreds done on floor in living room - hard plastic head hammer and a piece of 2x4 on the carpet. But biggest advantage is that kit contains absolutely everything (except hammer) you need to do basic reloads that go "bang" - and then if like me, will start adding more gizmos, until not using much of it any more.

As I remember, need to use new brass, or brass from ammo fired in your rifle, to use those Lee Loaders - if you buy somebody else's brass, usually have to Full Length Re-size or Small Base Re-size - somehow - else good chance they will not fit into your rifle.
 
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I was reloading 308 for under 1$

I was just using those 150 grn berry bullets that were 17$/100, then used Reddot powder and primers were 7$ a sleeve.

Today's price might still be under a dollar. The bullets are about 22$ now, I can find large pistol primers for 11$ a sleeve and only need like 5-8grn of reddot powder.


Yup - time has changed the cost, for sure! Those 110 grain 30-30 loads shown above. My notes do not go back completely - assume that I got that AA2230 power for $40/pound (after taxes) - if so, that reload was 51.2 cents each - not counting brass. That load will get 259 loads from pound of powder - so 15.4 cents for powder that I had on hand, for another cartridge that I no longer shoot much. CCI Large Rifle Bench Rest Primers (CCI BR-2) were $68 (after taxes) per thousand in 2013 when I bought them, so 6.8 cents per primer. Bullets were $145 (after taxes and shipping) for 500 in 2019 - so 29 cents each. No clue how long that brass would last - with that load, likely forever - I would guesstimate 20 times reloading them like that, minimum. I paid $40 for 50 new W-W 30-30 brass in 2019 (from CGN!). If you live in a city and do not have to pay postage or shipping to get stuff, price likely lower than I paid. Was 2.5 hours drive (to there) to Brandon, Manitoba (?) or maybe it was to Regina, Sask. to get that powder, and one hour drive (to there) to Yorkton, Sask to get the primers.

Compared to CCI Quiet 22 Long Rifle that I bought last week in Canadian Tire - 11.75 for 50, after taxes - so 23.5 cents each - plus a 100 kilometre drive to there, and same back to here. But we likely used $1000 in tooling to make those handloads - did not have to use all those toys, but made doing up the 20 loads easier to do.
 
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