But if you or him have another more powerful rifle to bring it as a back up. All of the elk/bear killed with 30-30/243/308/'06 and other various non-magnums will come back to life, and haunt the guys that used such pip-squeeky cartridges . Wasn’t there an article here in TTAG about a five-foot something tall First Nation woman who dropped a big game critter with a .22lr? every since Winchester first came out with the 30-30 many, many years ago it has been used as a very successful hunting rifle. But doubts vanished as sportsmen of stature used the .270 — most notably Jack O’Connor. The 30-30 was a very common round back in the day but not so much today. Hunt within the limits of the gun, and enjoy!!! In 2016, other than “Primitive Arms” season and scatter gun hunting, I only use AR’s. An unnecessary cartridge being used on a bought-and-paid-for guided private land ‘hunt’ on a ranch that boasts a 4,700 sq ft lodge. Not really an AR guy (although I’ve got one I keep in the truck with a 2-7x scope just in c ase I’m ever in Vegas and someone starts shooting out a hotel window at a country music concert). A large bear. The.30-30 cartridgehas the reputation of having killed more deer than any other cartridge. It’s when your shot placement is a little less than perfect that a larger more powerful car tridge makes the difference. I spend some time on the range and I'm confident in myself and my gun to make a shot on an elk out to 400 yrds all day long. As it turns out, the hunters were using Hornady SST bullets with a much higher ballistic coefficient. It’s been around for more … I kept my shots to 100yds max, because I wasn't sure if it had enough fpe. I've had deer run father after being shot with my 30-06. Most assuredly. But the math works and reality backed it up. . I also don’t see the necessity of the .30 caliber bullet, but many other do, which is partially what I think drives the desire for the 300BO, 7.62X39, 7.62X40WT, and the 300Ham’r. In fact, the largest bull my father ever killed--a huge 6x6 over by Yampa, was killed with a 30-30. The 6.8mm has performed admirably on 4 pigs and one deer. Today, there are many superior calibers available for elk … I think maybe people don’t understand that there are free ranging elk in west Texas. Others consider it adequate, but not ideal. As I said in my original article, it’s not my first choice for elk. I built a AR in 300 HAMR, just because I had a bunch of parts lying around and wanted to try something different. Now, if you’re out for hogs, the AR has validity. And that’s exactly what they got. Is this common? Reply. With the 150gr SST loading, a 200 yard broadside shot on even elk is certain to reach the vitals. William J Le Petomane says: October 30, 2018 at 10:53 . One in each foot. Former gun slinger, current gun writer. He ain’t no real writer, Bill Wilson probably hooked him up. I have killed elk with (cast bullets in all): 405 WCF with a 300gr, 35 WCF 250gr, 30-30 165gr, 45-90 300gr, 50-70 425gr, 44 Mag 220gr, and my personal favourite- a Colt 1860 revolver, shot a young bull at 12 yards with a patched round ball. © COPYRIGHT 2020, THETRUTHABOUTGUNS.COM. it doesn’t validate this rounds existence. The .30-30 does not even have 1,000 Ft/Lbs of energy at 200 yards. I used a 30-30 for years and never wounded an animal, the farthest a shot animal ran was 60 yrds. What a shame these animals had to die to show the world something so pointless. As Jon said, GET A LIFE ! With a simple pull of two pins you can turn a lightweight service rifle into a firearm capable of taking North America’s largest game at reasonable distances. You have entered an incorrect email address! One in each knee. . The .30-30 is NOT one of the greatest elk hunting rifles by any stretch of the imagination. (And in a recent comment about two weeks ago I noted how a neighbor had to shoot a moose at 100 yards multiple times with 180+ grain bullets out of a .30-06 Springfield rifle — all heart shots no less — and even then it took upwards of a minute for the moose to fall over.) Grandpa's .30-30. It dropped both of them within a short distance, with, by any measure, great ballistic performance. May as well have just driven down to the on-site stockyard and shot a cow while the under the supervision of an employee.