BigGameHunt.net Hunting Forums

[jim muir]

I recently was informed that a .30-30 was only marginal for whitetail deer and black bear, I need to know have deer and bears gotten that much tougher since the east coast was first settled and hunting was done with .36 caliber muzzle loaders? Are they now invulnerable to a well placed .45 colt bullet? Sorry if i missed the memo.
I myself Love the .30-30 for a bush deer gun. But i also love the .30-06 and every single .300 magnum I've been given the chance to shoot...as a matter of fact I've never fired a gun i didn't like.

[Taku]

Amen. I love my 30.30 and have used it effectively for moose and caribou.

I've never shot a bear....but they make me nervous and I'd probably wnat something larger for that. We generally have a 12 gauge in camp loaded up for a bear...but rarely need to fire a shot off because we have 2 huskies in camp and the bears stay the hell away.

But I do agree.....the 30.30 is a great gun and has, I've been told, taken more Whitetail than anything else....plus it's just a very cool gun to shoot.

[Tatertot45]

I'm not sure why people feel the need to "rate" a guns ability to kill game. i believe that if you stay within the confines of the guns ability, there is no issue. Example: if i were hunting with a 30-30, i would pass on a 400 yard shot. I would however, take a 100 yard shot. I hear the same thing about bows and draw weight. i just ignore them and go about my business.

You're not alone in your view. we hear ya. Preach on, brother Jim!!!

[WesternHunter]

There is a mindset out there that has developed. It's called "using too much gun". I used to think that only newbies to hunting were guilty of this. Not the case. I think the vast majority of cartridges used today for deer are way more than a hunter really needs. I think a lot of it is sprung from gun and hunting magazine writers and outdoor columnists boasting about the latest greatest new high powered cartridge. Even past writers like Jack O'Connor were somewhat guilty of this. Early users of the .270 winchester were often dissatisfied that the new cartidge (at the time) ruined too much meat on deer. Back when the .250-3000 savage was introduced, it was all the rage as an ideal deer cartridge. I think it still is a great cartridge. Apparently most hunters no longer think so and have abandoned it in favor of a "BIG GUN" because they think they need one.

People seem to go for whatever is being pushed on them or marketed to them, instead of using common sense, good judgement, and deciding realistically what is needed. I see it in every product field within hunting, on everything from useless gut-hooks on knives to magic bullets to oversized rifle scopes. Hunters can use whatever they want and are satisfied with. Better to use too much gun than to use too little. Still, for deer, cartidges in the high velocity .270 cal, .280 cal, 7mm, and .30 caliber range are much more than is really needed. Just my opinion. Then again a lot of hunters (myself included) prefere to use one gun and cartidge for everything, deer, antelope, and elk. Hence the use of 7mm mags, .270 Win, .30-06, and 300 win mags on deer.

Oh by the way. The .30-30 isn't just good as a brush gun used in close range shooting. The .30-30 has plenty of enegry and point blank range to take a deer out to almost 300 yards.

[ELK-AHOLIC]

I agree with all you guys! More deer are killed with a 30-30 each year than any other round. I use a 7mm Mag for most of my hunting, It works great for long shots. My dad shot a nice Elk with a 30-30 10yrs ago. I Have a Marlin 444s that I use for my woods gun, people will say the same thing about the 444. Its not a good round for Bear and etc. I smoked two huge Black Bears and 1 huge bull Elk and countless deer with my 444 marlin. If it's loaded with the proper bullets the 444 marlin will work on all North American game even big Bears. The 30-30 is in the same boat, if you load the round with good bullets its fine for almost anything you will need it for.

[redrider]

I'm with you Jim, I love using my lever action 30-30 while in the timber :thumbsup1:

[GBoyd]

I completely agree.

There's no need to turn half the meat into jelly.
Like I said in another thread, I'm considering using a 30-30 for elk because I'm just tired of ruined meat.