68charger_guy

I love my 30-30 and have killed 6 deer with it. I use remington 150 grain shells but would like to try the new hornady lever revolution ammo. I would suggest putting a scope on the gun at some point. Ive only had one deer get away after i gut shot him. In my experience, shot placement is the key with this gun.

hycohounds

i use the 150 silver tip. makes a nasty hole when it comes out. better blood than my .270 or 7mmm....tony

Seif5034

most guys use 30-30's for whitetails where my family and I hunt. West Michigan. as far as distance...depends on how familiar you are with the gun/ammunition. about 200yds would be my max for that cartridge.

FA

Yep, same here. I took an 8pt. this last season at 187yds. He ran about 30 yards and dumped. I have seen an antelope taken at 300 yards with a 30-30 using this new Hornady Leverevolution ammo. I have been using levers for 43 years and have never seen such impressive kills untill this new LE ammo with leverguns.

ButchA

+1

Excellent advice above... You have to see what flavor of ammo your .30-30 will like. Some like Remington Core-Lokt. Others like Winchester Silvertips, Hornady, Federal, etc...etc...

I love my Marlin .30-30 and will never part with it. It has a distinct preference for Winchester Silvertip 170gr, so that's what I stick with.

Also, depending on where you hunt, I'd keep your grandpa's .30-30 traditional and historical, with the plain iron sights. Lots of people put a scope on a .30-30, but I don't. To me, it just looks funny. But then, with the new Hornady LeverEvolution rounds, and a scoped .30-30, you could essentially take a deer at 200-250 yards.

I keep my Marlin .30-30 plain, with the iron sights and only use it in the heavy woods and thick brush, where I need to quickly fire off a shot at maybe 50-75 yards.

For longer ranges, I chose to NOT scope my .30-30, but went out and picked up a nice, used, Savage 110 chambered in .308 and mounted a real nice 3-9x40 Bushnell scope on it. I don't plan on bringing the Savage into the heavy brush and will use it on ridgetops and overlooking fields, where I could shoot up to 200-250 yards if need be.

Two rifles for two different styles of hunting = the best of both worlds!

retrieverman

Here are a couple of links to the Winchester site that compare Power Points to Sivertips. One is for 150 grains and the other is for 170 grains.
http://www.winchester.com/products/catalog/comparerifle.aspx?multiadd=WDMwMzAzLTEtMStBRUEtWDM wMzA0LTEtMQ==&action=3&ctype=1&atype=1

http://www.winchester.com/products/catalog/comparerifle.aspx?multiadd=WDMwMzAyLTEtMStBRUEtWDM wMzA2LTEtMQ==&action=3&ctype=1&atype=1

I personally prefer Hornady LeverEvolution 30-30 ammo, and in my experience, it has much better terminal performance than any other 30-30 ammo that I have killed game with.

As to what size game can be hunted with a 30-30, that is a tough one. I have killed over 25 deer with mine and hogs as large as 250 lbs, but I have heard stories of guys hunting elk and moose with a 30-30. You really hit the nail on the head when you said that shot placement is the key to downing game. Like I said, I use my 30-30's for deer and hogs and have other guns in calibers better suited for larger game, but I am in no way saying that a 30-30 could not be used for something larger.

South County

I've used corlokt 150 grainin a 30-30 336 & a .270 and love them. I will admit I have had better accuracy at long distances with powerpoints. ButI rarely have a shot over 100yds. and the corelokt knockdown power is great.Plus there are cheap

Figsy

Thank you very much everyone, your info has been much appreciated. Over the weekend, my rifle seemed to group best with 150 grain powerpoints. I have some more questions. Are heavier bullets supposed to be used for heavier game? If I wanted to hunt a larger animal than deer (given the 30-30's capabilities), would I use a 170 grain bullet instead of a 150 grain? Is it true that people hunt elk and moose with a 30-30? Guys at my local range this weekend told me this and I don't know if they were pulling my leg. They also told me thatthey have reallyfound no difference in the take-down performance of powerpoints vs silvertips. What has been your experience between the two types of bullets? This is a great forum. Hopefully someday I will be able to help new hunters. Thanks again, Figsy.

TUK101

From what I have been told, the silvertip is the more premium bullet over the powerpoint. My dad used one to kill an elk with this year and it worked beautifully. Yes, the 30-30 can kill an elk or other larger game. But is it the best choice? Nope, there are better rounds out there that are more suited to larger game. With the 30-30 you would definately want to be within 100 yards of an elk or moose and shot placement would have to be spot on. Remember, the 30-30 was the round of choice for many years and took many many game animals and still is to this day. It is a great deer round and is still getting the job done even when there are bigger, better and faster rounds out there today.

c j

It just doesn't get any better than the Hornady LeveRevolution ammo, IMO.I can't see using anything else.

The 30-30has beena great round for 100+ years and the LeveRevolutions just made it better.With the LeveRevolutions, shooting deer at200 yards is now about as reasonable as 100 yards used to be.