30-30 for elk?

I never have hunted Elk with a .30-30 Win, I hunted a couple of times with a friend who would push deep dense revive(s) for Elk using a Win 94 in .30 WCF in the Cascade Mountains, he had killed a couple that way over the years, and from him and others who hunted with him told me he never lost one, My friend said; his shots were always well within the .30-30 range being quite close. I also have some Canadian friends who have hunted Moose with a .30-30 Win in B.C. Canada. Now this goes back to the late 60s and 70s hunting days. With that said; one of my favorite rifles is my (1942) Win .30 WCF I've never used it for Elk but if I had to I think it would work within its range limitations. I had another hunting buddy that used a Remington Mod 8 in .30 Rem for everything, it's pretty much the ballistical twin of the .30-30 Win. Don't get me wrong I don't think a .30-30 WIn is a good choice for Elk, especially big Elk... but yes, it could and has worked.
Just my 0.2 Cheers.

It's all in knowing the gun and how it shoots. I have 2 Win 94 26" octagon barrel and shot 150 gr for years. The past 15 years I've been using 170 gr Nosler or Norma hollow points. If you can consistently hit a paper plate at 150 yds with peep sights (which I don't doubt one bit) a scope will not make a major difference.
Use your heavier loads on the larger animals, and try to keep the distance under 200 yds.

Elk are too noble to be lab rats. Lots of elk were taken decades ago with a 30-30, when thats all people had available. Those days are over. Using an underpowered round these days is nothing but a stunt. Elk size game require a minimum of 1500 ft-lb of energy in a projectile delivered to a vital area. Pre 1960 most elk hunters were feeding their family. Hunting was about subsistence rather than recreation. Times have changed. Don't ask me about archery. I hear far more stories about sticking an arrow in one than actually making a kill. I killed lots of elk, but confess that I wounded some that I never found. Most of those happened when I took a shot that shouldn't have been taken. Young & dumb!

MontanaJack said:

Elk are too noble to be lab rats. Lots of elk were taken decades ago with a 30-30, when thats all people had available. Those days are over. Using an underpowered round these days is nothing but a stunt. Elk size game require a minimum of 1500 ft-lb of energy in a projectile delivered to a vital area. Pre 1960 most elk hunters were feeding their family. Hunting was about subsistence rather than recreation. Times have changed. Don't ask me about archery. I hear far more stories about sticking an arrow in one than actually making a kill. I killed lots of elk, but confess that I wounded some that I never found. Most of those happened when I took a shot that shouldn't have been taken. Young & dumb!

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If subsistence hunters were successful, then what is the argument against their choice of firearm and cartridge?

Did they not also have a choice when procuring their .30/30's?

Surely, having a different preference does not counter argue anothers success?

Palix-Dog said:

My dad killed his first 6 elk with a 30-30. Back in the 50's and 60's. Then he stepped up to a high powdered Savage 99 in 308. Granted this was in the deep timber of the Washington coast at close range. Many an elk has dropped with a 30-30 or 32 win special in the days of old.

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Don't you know that elk have gotten tougher to kill and wear bullet proof vests and armor plate these days???

My son killed his first Roosevelt last year with my grandpa's old marlin 30-30, Buckhorn sights and 150gr. Winchester whatevers. About a hundred yard shot, made it about 20 and face planted. My grandpa killed several moose in Alaska with it and a bunch of deer and elk , that thing has been a killing machine.

I would lean towards the leverevolution loads, if they shoot well in your gun. The 160 grain FTX is an interlock design and the powder/bullet design gives you a slightly longer effective range than most anything else. The "Marlin shortie" comment makes me think the extra range might be helpful.

a buddy of mine came up with some of the NRA's magazine from right before or after WW2 and 3 or 4 guides from Alaska wrote in complaining about these new fangled 30-06 rifles people were using for Grizzly bears while they have been shooting Grizzly bears for years with 30-30's and there was no need for these highpower 30-06's. I thought it was funny, probably all work if bullets are placed well, I think i'll use my .375 for Grizzly

Henry model x 30-30 @ 450 yards Hornaday American whitetail 150gr. They are more capable than you would imagine.

Batsin said:

I would lean towards the leverevolution loads, if they shoot well in your gun. The 160 grain FTX is an interlock design and the powder/bullet design gives you a slightly longer effective range than most anything else. The "Marlin shortie" comment makes me think the extra range might be helpful.

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It's a custom "trapper" size rifle. I can push the 143gr Lever Hammers at ~2300fps through it. Just for giggles I used the basic ballistic app from Berger to see what sort of energy it carries down range. I've included it below.
@med358-boise i always forget about the, "It's just a slower 30 cal" rule. Thanks

Dr. Richard Gray said:

It's all in knowing the gun and how it shoots. I have 2 Win 94 26" octagon barrel and shot 150 gr for years. The past 15 years I've been using 170 gr Nosler or Norma hollow points. If you can consistently hit a paper plate at 150 yds with peep sights (which I don't doubt one bit) a scope will not make a major difference.
Use your heavier loads on the larger animals, and try to keep the distance under 200 yds.

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Nice how many elk have you taken with it? What states are you hunting?

@RockyMtnMT any thoughts on how your 143gr Lever Hammer might do against the Roosevelt elk in the western Cascades of Washington state?

The Barnes 150 tsx .3030 bullet has one heck of a big hollow point. Will open up at .30-30 speed for sure and penetrate like a mono.

I understand hammer makes lever bullets, as does maker. Federal I beleive has a trophy copper loading that might be worth a look.

No doubt a ton of elk and moose have been stacked up with super x power points and corlokts.


I will say, my dad had a bad experience with his .30-30 when I was a kid. I forget what ammo he had but not a handloader or a gun enthusiast at all, some generic soft point. But he hit the bull twice. And it did die, BUT it covered a lot of ground and it simply got too dark and the bush too thick for him and his brother to see anymore. Went out the next morning and of course the coyotes, ravens, and magpies had already halfway eaten it But they still inspected the carcass to see what happened and both shots were solid front chest hits, one of them hit the scapula funny and it veered hard never actually entering the thoracic cavity or striking any vitals and travelled under the skin along the ribs a long ways down the animal, lodged somewhere in the rear quarter. The other shot shoulder punched it and appeared to have fully smashed and penetrated the shoulder joint and entered the chest, but never exited and it seems only damaged one of the lungs, not both, and probably some other "plumbing" near the heart. And as many of you have relayed in your accounts, an elk can go stupid far with one fully functional lung.

He kicked himself about that for a long time. And wondered if he had borrowed my .270 or his brothers .308 or our neighbors .30-06 if things might have been different. AND MAYBE THEY WOULDNT HAVE! I've heard of that scapula deflection thing happening with .300 magnums too, it does just happen sometimes it seems. But it does seem that the shoulder hit with a heavier or tougher bullet launched with more horsepower quite possibly would have done a lot more damage inside the chest cavity and maybe gave an exit wound for faster bleeding out if nothing else.

Even though it's a slower moving cartridge with a good sized projectile, based on that very limited experience it seems prudent to advise treating it in some ways similar to the .243 and other marginal elk cartridges…get close, use a tougher bullet, and be picky with shot placement, broadside double lung meat saver shots NOT ON THE SHOULDER will surely dispatch any elk or moose that walks this earth without much fuss. But it's definitely less forgiving, versatile, and capable than something like the usual all around guns like .270, 7-08, 7 rem mag, .308, .30-06, and .300 win mag (and in this neck of the woods while it's nowhere as popular as it once was the old .303 British still stacks up a lot of big game as well)

wilkup said:

It's a custom "trapper" size rifle. I can push the 143gr Lever Hammers at ~2300fps through it. Just for giggles I used the basic ballistic app from Berger to see what sort of energy it carries down range. I've included it below.

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That's pretty impressive from a trapper. The BC is a little higher with the 160 FTX, but I just don't know if it is enough to matter in your case. Compared to a factory round nose I'd say yes, but against your handload......??