killer243

some good points here. however if you do get a scope look at a fixed 4 power scope. i have a 35 remington. "just about the same as a 30-30 just a liitle bigger" and i put scope rings on it that allow me to look under the scope and use open sights or look though the scope a big advantage for we you don't need a scope at close range. i think you know this as well but to get deer under/around isn't very hard and the 30-30 is great for that range. i would give it 150 yards or so for your advarage shooter. and for someone who puts 500-1500 rounds though the gun a year should be able to pull of shoots out to and around 200-250.

buy the gun and keep your shots around 100 yards until you are comfident you can take shots father out

Trushot_archer

Thatnks Guys.

I do have a scoped slugger that I can use to about 100 effectively. Winny 1400 with a Bushnell 4x. I can stack them in 3" at 100 but haven't ventured any farther as most of my hunting to date has been thick Michigan timber and all my kills with it have, indeed, been within bow range.

So I do have a little experience with shooting (using a solid rest, and general shooting).

I just wonder of the .30-30 would be redundant with the slugger I already have.

Part of the draw of a rifle for me is range and I'd like to become proficient enough to shoot (at targets for a long while) out to 300-350 and feel good so...

.270? 7MM?

Being almost exclusively and archer these days I DO understand shot placement very well and probably won't hunt with a rifle unless it's a "Hail mary" on a guided deal where time is a factor in a foreign area....but I'd like to have the option should it ever make the difference btw. empty handed and a trophy.

speyrjb

Tru-shot,

As alot of people have mentioned, the 30-30 is more of a short range gun. If you are looking for something that will reach out and touch something that is 300-400 yrds away then you are going to want to look at some of the more modern calibers. The 30-30 just doesn't have the velocity to get out that far. However, a 30-30 would be an upgrade to your slug-gun. Less recoil, more accurate, shorter, easier to tote around, and cheaper to shoot. You may want to look into some of these calibers:

25-06
.264
.270
.280
7mm08
7mm Mag
.308
30-06
300 mag

These are just a few. The options are almost endless. You will probably want to shoot a few of these calibers and look at balistic data before making a decision on what caliber will be right for you. All of the above mentioned calibers have some pros and cons.

Also, check out the gun forums. Some good info on various calibers there. Hope this helps! Good luck!

RustyOlRanger4x4

spey sounds about right to me if I were you id try talking to some friends with different rifles and get them to let you pop off a few shots and see what you like but 30-30 isant really what you need for those longer shots sure you "might" could make them but if you can save a little extra money id go for a larger caliber personally I like the 30-06 but .308, 7mm, 300win mag, 270 and 25-06 are all great calibers to and if you can get a new gun them new short mags are nice calibers too

mia_hia

i would have to say the 270 is the perfect gun for deer

skeeter 7MM

I have 2 levers in 3030 they are great little guns but don't see much action anymore on deer. However based on your recent post I'd say skip the 3030 for your only rifle and look for one that will allow you to reach 300 or better more confidently. If deer only list is long but 25-06, 270, 308.....etc. If you plan on hunting anything bigger like elk or moose then I'd look at 3006, 7rem mag, 300win mag, 300wsm...etc!

I assume you'll buy factory ammo so factor this in as well when searching, you don't want to buy your rifle then when it is time to use it have to search high and low for a few boxes of ammo.