.30 M1 carbine for deer
 

What are your thoughts on a .30M1 carbinefor deer hunting? I know it's not the best gun, but my little bro needs a rifle this year and it's the only extra "small" caliber I have. He's a pretty good shot w/ it, and assuming good shot placement will it take a deer out to 75 yds?

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

It's plenty of gun out to 100 yards and then some if you practice with it .

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

At 75 yards I don't think it would be a problem. If you put a slug through the deer's lungs he's not going far.

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

Yes a .30 carbine will kill a deer at close range, but you have to be a real good shot! Not my choice for deer.

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

It was considered a mediocre manstopper by many of the people who used it in WWII, So i'd be skeptical of it as a deer round. Just my opinion.

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

10-4, Good Buddy!

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

I don't know why, but I was thinking the M1 used the 7.62x39 cartridge. I was wrong. It uses it's own unique cartridge. The 7.62x39 round is simular to the 30-30 but not quite as good. The 30-30 is a bit faster with a heavier bullet offering more down range energy. The 30 carbine has a lighter slower bullet yet at around 110 grns and 1990 fps (winchester hollow points). Where as the 30-30 has a 170 grn bullet that moves at 2200 fps and a 150 grn offering that goes 2390. The 30-30 has over twice the energy at 100 yards than the 30 carbine has. The 7.62x39 is slightly less than the 30-30.

I spent a few minutes reading some articles on the 30 carbine and from what I can tell it was built to an improvement over the 45 cal pistol and lighter and easier to carry than the 30-06. Sort of like the modern MP-5 would be my guess.

For referance a 158 grn .357 in a carbine has more energy than the 30 carbine. 100+ ft/lbs to be exact.

Will it work, sure it will if you use a hollow point bullet. It's a lot better ballistically than a .410 slug and people kill deer with that. Like said above just try and keep your shots fairly close. The other issue is if it is legal to use where you live. I tried to look it up and couldn't find anything as far as restrictions on centerfires. The only thing I could find is it has to be larger than .23 cal. I would check and make sure first though. Many states and counties have restrictions on semi auto rifles and how many shells they can hold. If it's legal to use you may have to get a magazine that only holds 5 rounds. MI is that way.

Good luck,
Paul

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

Deer are poached with .22 rimfire rifles. That doesn't make the .22 LR a deer cartridge. The same can be said for the .30 Carbine. Its ballistics are inferior to the .357 Magnum, and that round is condemned for use on deer.
For the humane harvesting of game, use a cartridge up to the task. Any knowledgeable sportsman would give the same advice.

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

The ballistic are not as good as a .357 in a carbine, however they are better than a .357 in a shorter pistol barrel.

I was not saying it was a good round for deer, his question was will it work at 75 yards. In my opinion, yes it will. Would it be my choice, nope. Like I said though, it is better than a .410 slug gun and I know plenty of people that have taken deer with that. Energy wise it is pretty close to a 44 mag out of a pistol.

This is just comparisons between factory loaded ammo from winchester, not handloads or anything.

Paul

RE: .30 M1 carbine for deer
 

my grandfather said more than once he shot japanese soliders more than a half dozen times when they were all charging, because the thing had no stopping power whatsoever and the guys were all adrenaline charged so they probably didn't feel a whole lot. the .30-06 M-1 garand and BAR on the other hand, he said, pretty much destroyed a guy. not much you can do about a 183-gr. API going through you.

If you use it, keep the shots short and make sure they're place well.