.357 for 30/30 swap

[rusticbob]

I have a nice new SS in 357 magnum. Bought it for a range gun, not really considering deer hunting with it when purchased.
Now my wife tells me she wants to deer hunt with me after many, many years of asking her. She must be desperate!
I would like to swap for a SS with a but more power, but not too much. Was thinking a 30/30 would be perfect.
It’s a beautiful gun, and very accurate. Has a scope mount also.
Any interest PM me

[rickhem]

That rifle you already have would make for a great deer rifle.
I'm pretty impressed with the ballistics of my .357 Henry BBS. I can get the 158 XTP FP up over 1900fps and still hold about 3" at 100 yards. I think that your rifle would probably do better than that. I haven't used it on a deer yet, but I've had it out there, and it's in the rotation. A 30-30 would most probably extend your range a bit, but over 80% of the deer harvested are with shots under 100 yards, so you already have a great tool for that job.

Now if her desire to hunt can be used as justification for the addition of another rifle to your collection, by all means do it!

[HenryFan]

I have a Single Shot in .30-30 and I am quite fond of it. Since I never learned to pull a bow, I bought it with the idea it might make deer hunting a bit more challenging. In any event, I think rickhem may be on the right track with his comment about the .357 Mag. being a good deer cartridge.

I don't know where you hunt but most of my shots at deer are well less than 100 yards, probably between 50 and 70 yards and I have found the .44 Rem. Mag. cartridge to be an effective deer round. Can the .357 Mag be too far behind?

[BigAl52]

30-30 recoil in a SS may chase your wife right back away from hunting. I dont know if you reload but a 158 gr xtp Hornady and about 14.5 grains of 2400 will take care of a deer out to 100 yards pretty easy

[North Country Gal]

Agree with Al. A lot of shooters assume that the 30-30 doesn't have any appreciable recoil, because it's an old cartridge and a cartridge that ignorant gun writers have been describing as soft shooting for generations. That's just not true. It doesn't have the recoil of a 30-06, of course, but it's definitely more than a revolver cartridge as far as recoil. Try shooting the 30-30 in the most common 30-30 style guns, namely a Model 94 Win or a 336 Marlin and tell me the 30-30 is soft shooting. I even traded off a 30-30 carbine barrel I was using on one of my Contender carbines because it was not fun to shoot. For shooting at the bench, I usually add a slip on recoil pad with my 30-30 lever guns. I would not recommend a 30-30 in a light gun for someone who is recoil shy.

[Bake]

Agree with Al. A lot of shooters assume that the 30-30 doesn't have any appreciable recoil, because it's an old cartridge and a cartridge that ignorant gun writers have been describing as soft shooting for generations. That's just not true. It doesn't have the recoil of a 30-06, of course, but it's definitely more than a revolver cartridge as far as recoil. Try shooting the 30-30 in the most common 30-30 style guns, namely a Model 94 Win or a 336 Marlin and tell me the 30-30 is soft shooting. I even traded off a 30-30 carbine barrel I was using on one of my Contender carbines because it was not fun to shoot. For shooting at the bench, I usually add a slip on recoil pad with my 30-30 lever guns. I would not recommend a 30-30 in a light gun for someone who is recoil shy.

A-men!!! The worst range time I've ever had has been a Winchester model 94, in 30-30 Winchester . . .

[Vaquero]

I will second the all above post, the 357 in a rifle is a very capable round.
I killed a deer with my 357 Rossi the very first year I had it, using a handloaded 158gr jsp.
Distance was around 85-90 yds. A decent 8 point and only made a step or two and fell over.

RP

[HenryFan]

I have never felt discomfort shooting a .30-30 but I recall that the most unpleasant long gun I ever shot was an Ithaca pump action shotgun. If I recall correctly, it was a Model 37 Featherweight but memory may have failed me on that. In my youth, every weekend during deer season, I participated in a deer drive with dogs. A southern thing that I probably have not done in four or more decades since.

I don't know if the light weight of the Ithaca made it unpleasant to shoot or if the stock was specifically designed to torment me.

In any event, when I shot a high-brass 00 buckshot load, there was a cloud of snot, tooth fillings, dandruff, eyeglasses and ear wax where my head had been at the time I pulled the trigger.

Someone told me I should get a Remington 1100 since felt recoil is far less. Out of a sense of self-preservation, I got rid to the Ithaca and bought an 1100. Night and day difference.

Sorry if I got rusticbob's post off track.

[GFK]

I don't hand load yet. So, I bought some .357s in Buffalo Bore, in case my wife or I go hunting with my Marlin 1894. I figured that she would probably shoot a .357 before she try a 30-30. But, who knows?
https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l ... tail&p=100