Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters .30-30 Powders

I tried several different powders and even pointy bullets in my Henry single shot. I went back to the old standard 3031 and some 150-grain seconds from Midway to find where it did the best. It shoots great with a bit over max charge.

I have other rifles, for when I need speed and distance. The old standard bullets and velocities are where the 30-30 belongs.

I have killed deer to 168 yards without issue.

748 is your huckleberry

In older days, we used 3031 pretty much exclusively .. dad insisted on using 150 grain sierra pointy-point since we were shooting Savage bolt actions and he wanted the higher ballistic coefficient. (Yeah, I know, but talking to him is like debating a cement block.) It worked pretty well with 170 grain hornadys in a Winchester 94 trapper I owned in the late 80s. In the most recent one, Lever Evolution did really well. I also tried H335, CFE223, and .. I don't recall what else. I would start with Lever Evolution. 3031 accuracy is good but the velocities seem lower than ideal.

That is my same load. Shoots great

my two favorites are H322 and AA2230, but I prefer the 170 grain bullets

Ever wonder why Dupont named 3031 with that number, 30-30 fans?

First off, to be perfectly honest I haven't shot a 30-30 for some time now, especially in full power loads. However, usually IMR 3031 was what I used. I did do some testing with H335 and H4895 but 3031 always seemed to work best in my rifles, one of which has a birthdate if 1911. When I do take it out these days I run mild cast bullet loads through the old girl. It was originally my Great grandfather's gun.

These days when I shoot a 30-30 it's mostly with cast bullets and either Unique or 2400. I still have one unopened can of SR4759 I can use. My favorite bullet for the 30-30 is the Ideal, now Lyman #311291 although my Ideal is marked #308291. I have two molds marked 31141 and 311041, same mold plus a clone made by the now defunct NEI and I've never been able to get any one of those to shoot worth schitt. Not in the 30-30, .303 Savage when I had one nor the .308 and 30-06.

Favorite loads are 30.0 gr. 3031/170 gr. Speer, 5.0 and 10.0 gr. Unique and various weigh cast bullets from 100 gr. to 190 gr. and I also use the 30.0 gr. 3031 with the Lyman 308291. I also have a 311291 two cavity that I sometimes use. I've had the 308291 since 1954 and it's an excellent mold.

These days I treat my 3030s as fun guns. At the most they might be used on harassing a few Arizona jackrabbits but other than that I just kill paper with them.
PJ

My absolute favorite load for the .30-30 is 35 grains of H-414 pushing the RCBS 30-180 FN (192 grains ready to load) 1970 fps from my Marlin 336 A. It works fine in 3 Marlins and 1 Winchester plus a .303 Savage. I got that load from MR. John Kort about 20 years ago and it has worked fine ever since.

Pic I posted earlier with the levermatic was shot with the 311041 w/gas check.

It is my preferred bullet for the .30 Sneezer on the 50 yard butt for obvious reasons....no gas check.


Guess on my part, but you might want to check fit and/or take a look at your alloy hardness.

This.

I quit looking for a 30/30 powder after trying it several years back.

IMR 3031 for me, 30.0 grains & the Hornday 170 grain does the trick in my M-1894 in .32 Winchester special


41

I haven’t loaded.30-30 in about 30 years, but can still remember 30 grains of 3031 with 170 grain bullet. It was one load for which I’d break my ironclad rules of never loading by memory. Who could misremember 30 grains of 3031 for the .30-30?

Always had the best results with W748.
Did just about as well with RL15 and AA2520
Just acceptable with H4895 and H4198 and
the Lever powder. I tried some after all the
good reviews about velocity, but the accuracy
wasn't there with my firearms, and that's enough
for me to disqualify it. I have shot a box of
the factory loaded Leverevolution to rule out
an error on my part, but the accuracy was as
so-so as my loads.
Just picking one ? W748 for me

There's a lot of decent .30-30 powders, but I think today Leverevolution is the clear frontrunner

Here’s a QL fun fact - 3031 gives the highest velocity of any powders with 150gr bullets in 30-30. Even more so than LVR, with 20% less powder.

Wow, Great post. Thanks Chippy and Dan as always for pictures of the rifles and targets. This makes me want to get out the Marlin and see if I can still see through the Lyman Peep.
Nostalgia in the New Year to all.
Cast or Jacket it’s all fun in an bottle neck case with a cool old rifle

I have. It's been awhile, but the LVR was faster and accuracy was similar or a bit better in my gun.

Hodgden says different.

Thanks man, and thanks for the link. I checked the website yesterday, not sure how I missed that.

I assume those 160 FTXs work just as well as other bullets on deer?