Caliber 30-30 use in Africa???

[IvW]

If you put a bad shot on an animal, the animal doesn’t care how big of a gun you used. I’ve watched as poorly hit animals absorb 45 caliber and 12 bore bullets to no effect. Just as I’ve watched animals simply roll over and die after being hit properly with small calibers.

Each can use what the want. For Africa it often needs to conform to some minimum caliber requirement.

Although the 30-30 makes the cut on many minimum requirements there are many better choices.

By all means take it to Africa but use it within it's limitations.

A low power scope is a good idea on a leopard over hounds hunt. Hunting leopard cannot be compared to hunting a black bear over hounds, not the same thing.

30-30 is a poor choice for leopard no matter how it is being hunted.

 

[Rule 303]

Each can use what the want. For Africa it often needs to conform to some minimum caliber requirement.

Although the 30-30 makes the cut on many minimum requirements there are many better choices.

By all means take it to Africa but use it within it's limitations.

A low power scope is a good idea on a leopard over hounds hunt. Hunting leopard cannot be compared to hunting a black bear over hounds, not the same thing.

30-30 is a poor choice for leopard no matter how it is being hunted.

I will disagree on the low powered scope for me. Mainly, for me-not everybody, a Red dot or peep sight is faster when up close and personal.

Watching those videos I recon a 30-30 lever action would have been a far better choice than the rifles they were using, or simply the same rifle with a red dot sight.

Yes I would rather something with a bit more clout than a 30-30, say a 356, 307, 375 Winchester in a Modle 94 lever action.

 

[leslie hetrick]

I sat in a blind on one hunt with a .375 h&h cz 550 and my longest shot was 35 yards and a 30-300 would have been fine

 

[IvW]

I will disagree on the low powered scope for me. Mainly, for me-not everybody, a Red dot or peep sight is faster when up close and personal.

Watching those videos I recon a 30-30 lever action would have been a far better choice than the rifles they were using, or simply the same rifle with a red dot sight.

Yes I would rather something with a bit more clout than a 30-30, say a 356, 307, 375 Winchester in a Modle 94 lever action.

Bear in mind the client needs to fire one clear shot to hit the leopard in a tree, through branches etc. Most cannot make that shot with open sights. We are not talking about the client backing up on a wounded leopard.

For the PH it is a different setup for sure but not for the client. I want a client using a scope for that first shot 1-6 power being ideal for that.

 

[crs]

Scopes have their place and that place varies with the shooter, rifle, situation, etc.
From express sights on through hi powered scopes , it all just depends. And yes, the critter to the left was taken at 20 yards using a receiver mounted aperture sight. AKA peep sight.

 

[Rule 303]

Bear in mind the client needs to fire one clear shot to hit the leopard in a tree, through branches etc. Most cannot make that shot with open sights. We are not talking about the client backing up on a wounded leopard.

For the PH it is a different setup for sure but not for the client. I want a client using a scope for that first shot 1-6 power being ideal for that.

I see the point you are making, how ever a scope on 1 or 2 power will not allow most to see what they can't see-the twigs, branches etc- with the naked eye or a red dot as red dots are 1 power. The peep/open sight is more of a draw back on the first shot as you are focused on the front sight not the actual target so can miss seeing things.

 

[IvW]

I see the point you are making, how ever a scope on 1 or 2 power will not allow most to see what they can't see-the twigs, branches etc- with the naked eye or a red dot as red dots are 1 power. The peep/open sight is more of a draw back on the first shot as you are focused on the front sight not the actual target so can miss seeing things.

Sure if he is experienced using them, biggest drawback is many clients never used irons or are not competent with them.

 

[Rick Cox]

When Ray brought up using a 30-30 of his grand dad's in Africa for a safari, it got me to thinking about taking mine over there. Mine is also my grand dad's and think it would be awesome to hunt with that gun.

Are lever action rifles allowed into various countries of Africa?

What about the 30-30 for leopard? This would be in an "run over dogs" or bait situation so the shooting would be close. I know there are some very good 30-30 bullets out there and would think they would work nicely.

Or is this just a dream I'm having?

My PH Gideon with Westfalen Safaris told me once it was his preferred rifle for going after wounded cats. Fast handling, light, and hard hitting at close range...

 

[Rule 303]

Sure if he is experienced using them, biggest drawback is many clients never used irons or are not competent with them.

I can't talk about your experiences but what you say does not surprise me. Most shooters under 40 I find were never taught to use open/peep sights. The other draw back with open/peep sights is age. My eye sight is such that the front sight is normally blurred and, as you know, it needs to be clear as can be, to be spot on target. This is why I prefer red dots for close and fast shooting.

 

[AWLee]

Bear in mind the client needs to fire one clear shot to hit the leopard in a tree, through branches etc. Most cannot make that shot with open sights. We are not talking about the client backing up on a wounded leopard.

For the PH it is a different setup for sure but not for the client. I want a client using a scope for that first shot 1-6 power being ideal for that.

Depending upon where you are hunting, you are just as likely to bay a leopard on the ground as tree it. Dog hunting is a close range game and if a person is spending the coin for such a hunt they should be as prepared as possible. That goes to practicing with iron sights, red dot or low power optics.

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

Tha Namibian plains game hunt with the 30-30 Marlin didn't come off, but a hunt in Zimbabwe did. I used the 30-30 to down two warthogs, just fine. Carrying this little rifle is an absolute pleasure and it comes straight up on point.

 

[Sika98k]

Tha Namibian plains game hunt with the 30-30 Marlin didn't come off, but a hunt in Zimbabwe did. I used the 30-30 to down two warthogs, just fine. Carrying this little rifle is an absolute pleasure and it comes straight up on point.

View attachment 340475

Damn, I like the headgear. Where did you obtain that ?

 

[Major Khan]

I shall weigh in with my personal experiences , regarding the .30-30 Winchester calibre as well ( however , I shall be using Indian game as an example , so it cannot be of much direct help, I am afraid ) . I have seen many of my American clients during my career take down 300 pound South Indian Wild Boars with utter impunity , by utilizing the .30-30 Winchester calibre Model 1894 lever rifle .
I have seen it deliver extremely good results on our Asian Sloth Bears , provided that shot placement was extremely critical.
Regarding leopards / panthers ... I have seen it deliver extremely satisfactory results on village panthers / spotted leopards . But these weigh no more than 140 pounds .
For a large forest panther / hunting leopard ... a .30-30 Winchester calibre rifle would make for an extremely poor choice . These brutes can easily weigh in excess of 218 pounds .

The .30-30 Winchester is not a long range cartridge by any means .

By the way , another forum member recommended a book to me recently called " The Saga Of Wally Johnson : The Last Ivory Hunter " . I have been reading a soft copy of the book for the last 1 week and I recently finished it . Wally Johnson actually used a 30-30 Winchester calibre Model 1894 lever rifle to successfully dispatch 550 pound African lions for a brief amount of time , until he acquired his .375 Holland & Holland magnum calibre pre 64 Winchester Model 70 . Of course , I do not recommend this dangerous practice even 1 bit !

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

Hi Sika98k, they are made by a company in Johannesburg called Melville and Moon. They are a terrific hat, no wonder the early hunters wore them - light, ventilators to keep your head cool and best of all there is a webbing inside so the hat does not make direct contact with your head.

Damn, I like the headgear. Where did you obtain that ?

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

I shall weigh in with my personal experiences , regarding the .30-30 Winchester calibre as well ( however , I shall be using Indian game as an example , so it cannot be of much direct help, I am afraid ) . I have seen many of my American clients during my career take down 300 pound South Indian Wild Boars with utter impunity , by utilizing the .30-30 Winchester calibre Model 1894 lever rifle .
I have seen it deliver extremely good results on our Asian Sloth Bears , provided that shot placement was extremely critical.
Regarding leopards / panthers ... I have seen it deliver extremely satisfactory results on village panthers / spotted leopards . But these weigh no more than 140 pounds .
For a large forest panther / hunting leopard ... a .30-30 Winchester calibre rifle would make for an extremely poor choice . These brutes can easily weigh in excess of 218 pounds .

The .30-30 Winchester is not a long range cartridge by any means .

By the way , another forum member recommended a book to me recently called " The Saga Of Wally Johnson : The Last Ivory Hunter " . I have been reading a soft copy of the book for the last 1 week and I recently finished it . Wally Johnson actually used a 30-30 Winchester calibre Model 1894 lever rifle to successfully dispatch 550 pound African lions for a brief amount of time , until he acquired his .375 Holland & Holland magnum calibre pre 64 Winchester Model 70 . Of course , I do not recommend this dangerous practice even 1 bit !

Thank you Major Khan, I will be using this little rifle for many hunts and will post the results regularly

 

[Firebird]

I love your idea, just remember, while the .30-30 can do lots of stuff, there are better rifles for the job.
I still hunt with my (pictured) old winchester almost every year --for deer. I used to be able to kill them at 200 yards no problem. Nowadays, my eyes won't let me do it. 100 maybe a couple yards beyond and thats it. The rifle levels them out to 200 so its not the rifle-more appropriately the bullet, but my eyes benefit greatly from good optics and I KNOW you aren't going to defile any old lever action by adding a scope!
But to take one on a special safari with stalking to under 100 yards and shooting plains game being the main goal, for sure I love that idea. Love it!
As for leopard, there are just much better options and before I drop the cost of my house to hunt one, I'm going to use a very accurate scoped rifle for that safari. Remember, your life, your ph's and trackers lives are all at stake and lots of guys have screwed that once in a lifetime shot up with their favorite scoped high performance leopard rifle. . .
I've spent countless hours handloading for my .30-30 (open sights of course) and it just won't beat any of my scoped rifles. And handloading for open sights is a pain in the keester! I did improve on factory loads in both speed and accuracy but it still isn't my first pick for opening day of deer season. I have (several) more appropriate rifles in the safe.
New style bullets really do work great, new powders (try hornadys Leverevolution) really are that good and lever actions really are that much fun to shoot. Maybe on a future safari I would plan to use it to stalk and get close and really level some plains game but not for leopard, not even with hounds, there are just better options available.

 

[Firebird]

I had to dig for a minute to find this pic. Over thirty years ago I shot my first deer. That was dads old marlin which is that one rifle I heavily regret selling. Round nosed ammo which I think was Hornady frontier in a red and black box. My dad was much more pleased than me. We dragged it down the mtn to a Mrs.Wards alfalfa field and she let us drive in to get it. Her doctor son owns the property now, built a huge house on it and while they still grow alfalfa they aren’t too keen on letting hunters in there. Thanks for bringing up some great memories!

 

[Waterbuck2008]

A 30-30 is a proven swatter of whitetail-sized game out to 150 yards, and seems to have the right velocity for ideal terminal performance of (gasp!) 150 and 175 grain PowerPoint and CoreLokt cup and core bullets. Lots of Dead Right There results, at least for me. If I were so inclined, I wouldn't hesitate to use it on African plains game, excluding the big boys, inside 100 yards. But I have a .375 H&H, so I'll never know.

 

[crs]

Heeler 75,
See the lever on that Winnie 95 leaning on that dead buff?
That was RSA and levers have been used in Africa for years. Back to and including Teddy Rs Safari.

If you match your 30-30 gun and ammo to the game, it will do fine if you shoot it well.
I you cannot find an outfitter, I will tell you one that has hunted a lot of game with clients using lever guns. He will also advise you on which game best fits the rifle, For instance a Kudu is a little smaller than a Rocky mountain elk, so,,, get close and whack em!

 

[Jeffrey]

A good addition to any classic lever gun is a peep sight. Williams and Lyman both made no tap no drill options that can still be bought on ebay