A 30/30 blows large wound channels through deer and kills them grave yard dead
Yes and no.
Yes, it can blow large wound channels.
No. It doesn't necessarily kill them straight off.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not going to say a 30-30 is ineffective, but I did have an experience where I shot a small doe from a treestand with a Marlin 336. I put multiple shots into her while she just stood there. The end result was watching her walk off with a softball-sized hole in her chest and an 8 foot spurter coming out of her. She wandered about 40 yards, and finally keeled over.
The details are here:
Ode to a 30-30 PT IIIAnother thing I will say is that 30-30 used to be the chambering of choice in my part of the world. Our camp is in SW Bracken County KY, in ZONE 1. We have unlimited antlerless deer permits. It is an opportunity-rich environment. The number of shot strings on the Rifle Opener is phenomenal-- 3/minute on a good one. Back 20 years ago the vast majority of neighbors shot 30-30 and you would hear multiple shots coming from the same place as somebody unloaded their mag at a deer. Over 20 years, those guys have retired from hunting or moved on. The weapon of choice nowadays is 30-06 and 308 and you seldom hear more than 2 shots coming from the same direction at once. Hunter numbers have gone down over the years. Harvest numbers have gone up.
Does that mean that 30-30 was ineffective? No. Did it mean all my neighbors were booger-eating morons? No. What I will say about these 30-30 arguments is that too often I hear pronouncements about 30-30's and various other over-discussed topics, and the guys poo-pooing a perfectly legitimate position come off sounding rather isolated and close-minded.
I've experimented with a bunch of deer rifles and chamberings over the years. Some have been spectacularly good. I'd say my latest, experiment, the 7mm08 was a hands-down winner. Others, like the 44 Mag, have been about what you'd expect. If you look in my reloading log, you'll probably find more experimental 30-30 loads than any other. Yes, I've taken deer with it, but I always found it a little wanting, and I have always figured I could do better.
Am I going to give up on 30-30? No, I'll keep at it. I dig my 30-30 rifles, and want to succeed with them. However, I had to finally admit that there were going to be better chamberings for me.
