If I chose to go with a 30-30 instead of a 357 I would have more power if i want it, but for plinking and target work could i find handloads that would be anywhere near as economical as 357 handloads and would i be able to get recoil down to anything like 357 levels to aid my dicky shoulder (oh to be 21 again).

I did see one load written up as 100gr plinker and 10gr unique @ 1675 fps, is this any good and are there others.


Thanks fellas

Bob

Can add in the same bullet and 8.0gr. of Red Dot for just a bit less velocity but at least ne rifle (mine) liked that load better.

OF couse, with cast bullets there are may tested loads in the 1050-1200fps range which ahve worked very well for me...and lucky for you, if you happen not to cast yourown, you happen to be on the Beartooth web-site and their bulelts ae about as good as cast gets.

I shoot 170 grain gas checked bullets over 10 grains of Unique,and they are nice and pleasant to shoot.The big marlin helps tame recoil too.You can use less powder but started with the 10 grain load,and it worked,so why fight it? :)
A lighter bullet would prolly recoil even less,but these are what I got a deal on and they work fine.

there is a company based out of alaska that acctually sells an adapter taht you can load 30 carbine and 357 loads in to your 30-30.

the only real drawback is that you have to load each round indavidually

I load 26 gr of R7 over RCBS mold 170 gr, FP GC 30 cal bullet.
I am sure you can use it to hunt deer. I use it on Plates.
Can't beat the cost.
Happy

8-9gr of Trailboss will fill the case nicely and work quite well with a 150-170gr lead bullet.

Perfect for plinking...

Check the info on this sight. Marshall has an article on using round ball loads for light gallery type loads. I tried tham for 30.06 with mixed results but I did not have time to pursue it to the point of getting some consistancey.

If it looks like something you are interested in and you start loading these, I may be able to assist if my notes are any good.

I use a cast, 165 gr bullet, no GC, and 7 gr of Unique when I just want to play around. It's accurate enough but you couldn't hunt much more then field mice with it.

What kind of accuracy are you guys getting with these reduced loads/varmint loads out of your 30-30?

Also wanted to point out that there is no such thing as an adapter that would allow you to fire a .357 in a 30-30. If anyone has tried the 30 carbine adapter though I would be interested to hear how that worked. Thanks, Doug

Generally, powder costs are pretty close per pound; to make an inexpensive plinking load a powder that uses a smaller charge is economical. Primer cost is identical reguardless of the load being loaded. Lead bullets are less expensive than jacketed. Home cast lead bulles are the least expensive and can be as good as the time and effort you put into them. Lower pressure loads do give longer case life, so there is some savings there...but 30-30's are so mcommon, that free or nearly free brass is usually possible.

That 7.0gr. of Unique load and a 165-170gr. cast bullet will earn somthing like 1180-1230fps. At thse speeds, gas checks aren't really required and the 7gr. charge works out to 1000 loads per pound of powder. It's the home-cast lead bullet where the real savings are.

170gr. at 1200fps may sound kind of whimpy, but it's pretty close to a typical .357 handgun.

I'd really prefer to cast them myself if looking for accuracy....giving you the control not only to control bullet diameter, but the ability to repeat those bullets year after year.

To get the best accuracy, will have to play around with some variables...seating depth, alloy type, neck sizing, crimp type, .2gr. steps in powder charge, bullet diameter (and here I'd start with .310"), etc.

Accuracy with lead bullets is out there, the search doesn't cost all that much, and the shooting to find that "perfect load" is a whole lot of fun in iteself.