With your listed requirements or questions, I would say a Bolt is the best.

1) Bolts tend to be more accurate
2) Bolts is very reliable and simple design really
3) Bolts are by far the best to clean and quick
4) Bolts are more common in cal, manufacturer and styles
5) Resale on a bolt is higher , as is the demand

I own a model 94 30/30 and would never pick it over a variety of Bolts I have in the Cabinet for most applications. The only time I toted my Lever over a bolt, was when I had to push serious bush and didn't want the longer barrel or bush marks on my other guns.

bolt.has to be.

slayer

I've used both. My lever action 30-30 has been my favorite gun, and my main deer gun for almost 10 years. Then I swiched to a winchester black shadow bolt action in 30-06. I hated that gun, but not because it was a bolt action. The stock was too long for me, the barrel was too long, and the synthetic stock was cheap plastic that made the rifle feel like a cheap toy in my hands rather than a serious hunting rifle. The bolt was not reponsive and the trigger had alot of creep. But when I hold a remington 700adl with laminated stock, the gun becomes an extention of my arm. I use a 12ga for the moment as my main deer gun, but when I decide for sure that the rem 700 is the one I want, I will buy it.

"Hey ya'll, watch this"

I have bolt actions made by ruger,remington, and savage. I also have lever actions made by winchester,marlin and savage. My favorite rifle to hunt with is a savage 99 in 250-3000.

Bolt actions are stronger,more reliable,on average they tend to be more accurate and are easier to clean.

Edited by - stubblejumper on 01/24/2003 21:44:11

I have a Win 94,30/30 and a Browning Safari,bolt,30/06 and I wouldnt let either one go.They both have their place when I'm hunting.If I'm in the thick swamps or pines,the 94 is the gun I carry.If I hunt the fields,powerlines or open oak flats, the Browning is the gun of choice.To me, it all depends on where you plan to hunt.If I had to choose just 1 rifle,I'd take the bolt action,for versatility,it cant be beat.Just my humble oppinion.

Lever action guns are probably my favorite long guns, I have (have access to my old man's that is) a marlin 1894 rancher in .44mag and a .30-06 Ruger Mark II M-77 standard, to name a few deer rifles, I almost always use the .30-06 because it's glassed, and has a bipod. On drives or stalks, I much prefer to take the lever action though, because it is MUCH lighter, open sighted, and more compact, which leads to a hundred other good things: faster to shoulder handling, faster swinging/readjusting, faster target acquisition, faster action cycles, and just a lot more fun to shoot anyway. I carry it on drives as an option to my SKS a lot, and I absolutely love it.

Granted, it's not as accurate as either of those mentioned, and it doesn't cycle faster than my SKS <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle> and it might really be a toss up between it and my .30-06 on speed, maybe it just feels that way, but it's no slouch, especially for a .44 mag, and it hits hard with the hot loads I pack in it.

Since you said it's a &quot;new rifle&quot;, I'm assuming you have a bolt already, so I'd say GET A LEVER!!! If you don't have a bolt, then get the bolt, every boy should have one of each, but the bolt first!!!!

BTW, don't get a .30-30, get a big bore, like a .44mag, .45-70, .444, .450, .44-40, they'll give you a lot more security with practically the same if not better trajectory ability.

Screw the 10 ring, keep them in the zero!!!

only thing i use is bolt but then again im not a big fan of the calibers lever actions are in.

&quot;She said if I hit that fishin hole today, she's be packin all her things and she'd, be gone by noon....I'm gonna miss her, when I get home.&quot;