SC Whitetail Deer with a .30 Carbine? - Page 2

wun_8_seven · October 16, 2009, 08:42 PM

i've killed 4 deer with a 30carbine ,2 with a GI carbine and 2 with a ruger blackhawk all using corbon ammo and all under 50yards. not my first choice but it will work under the right conditions

troy_mclure · October 16, 2009, 09:04 PM

a friend that lives in north Florida hunts deer with his ruger sbh 7.5" bbl chambered in .30 car.

he has no problem taking deer with it.

as in all shooting its all about shot placement.

bigjack59 · October 17, 2009, 09:56 AM

Do, the question I posed is not ironic considering my taglin of "always Bring Enough Gun." That is why I am asking the question, is it enough gun? It is actually a logical progression from my tagline. Anyways...now I see hunters coming on board that have shot deer with the round and been successful. I love vintage rifles, especially military ones. The thrill would be to see if the old warhorse can be useful in my hunts. My K98 is superb, the K31 Swiss does wonders, the Lee Enfield is great. The Swede shoots sweet, the AR in 6.8 is the best of all. But, I am curious, how will this great little gun do?

rickyjames · October 17, 2009, 10:27 AM

i don't understand this conversation. the 30 carbine was used by soldiers during war to stop men. ruger makes a blackhawk in 30 carbine for hunting, t/c makes a 30 carbine barrel for its hunting pistols. people use 357 in rifles and pistols all the time for deer with great success with less power.

there is always a "better" caliber or a "better" choice. someone will recommend a 243, someone else will says that is to under powered and recommend a 270, others will say nothing under a 30/06 is suitable, someone else will up the anti to a 300 mag and before you know it someone will say nothing under a 458 mag is suitable.

know your gun, know your game and know both you and the guns limitations. i see people are hunting deer with 223's claiming good success even tho they are illegal in some states. certainly a 30 carbine within a reasonable range is a reasonable choice.

amd6547 · October 17, 2009, 10:45 AM

The carbine had it's share of wartime detractors, who compared it to the Garand, but it also had it's advocates. The most famouse being Audie Murphy, who had a habit of hunting German snipers with his. He liked his so much, that when the stock cracked, he wired it back together, and refused the offer of a replacement.
With SP bullets, the 30 carbine is a great cartridge fo HD. My CMP Inland is my goto longarm for SD, even though I have 12ga, 5.56mm, and 7.62x39 options.
I believe that deer would be a suitable use for the M1 carbine if it is used as if handgun hunting. Here in Ohio, a 5" barrel 357 handgun is legal. No reason (other than regulation) an M1 carbine shouldn't be also.

bigjack59 · October 17, 2009, 12:49 PM

The award for sanity goes to rickyjames, amd and a couple others. My original question came about because people around here will hunt deer with 357 and 44's in lever guns all day. Then they pull out the underpower arguement based on anecdotal evidence from old soldiers. Nothing against old soldiers, I am becoming one fast, but sometimes we tend to protest a wee bit much about things.

I am putting the carbine through the paces. If I can be confident of 100 yard or less heart or head shot accuracy I am going to shoot some venison with it. And I will sit there channeling all the great old soldiers that used this weapon to great effect, experience a little history the best way possible.

amd6547 · October 17, 2009, 01:35 PM

Why not?
It worked for this guy for bear(s):

Maromero · October 17, 2009, 01:56 PM

I don't know. That rifle looks awfly similar to a Daisy Red Ryder.

SavageSniper · October 17, 2009, 09:24 PM

OK I have no problem with shooting a deer or a hog with a .30 carbine. I have taken a few hogs with one. But there is no way I am going after bear, esp. bear that big, with one.

Fred Rogers · October 17, 2009, 11:47 PM

Never shot a .30 carbine, but i know 7.62x39 is a good deer killin cartridge. The two might be pretty similar. Thing about the x39 is it can be hard to hit them in the shoulder past 300 or so yards. I've got some folks in the ozarks who get clean kills on deer with .223's. The 30 carbine probably isnt underpowered at all for deer but i dont know much about it. I imagine it would be very similar to x39.

Art Eatman · October 18, 2009, 09:24 AM

Fred, the AK round has some 15% more velocity and about 30% more bullet weight. The shape of the AK bullet gives a much better drag coefficient.

In general, the sights on any military weapon are coarse, and precision shot placement is not as easy as with quality sights. This gets us back to the "clean, ethical kill" which is our goal. The problem holds for the buckhorn sights commonly seen on the Winchester 94--which leads to all the comments about the range limitations.

It seems to me that quite often it is not the cartridge as a cartridge which creates problems so much as it is the total package--which includes sights as well as power. Marginal power + coarse sights = problems.

kyle1974 · October 18, 2009, 09:57 AM

I shot my first deer with a 30 carbine....

looking back at the photos, it appears I double lunged the deer and got an exit wound. I was 10 at the time, so I don't recall performing critical ballistic tests to determine whether or not the round was adequate enough. However, Ido have photos of a dead (texas hill country) deer. I shot the deer at about 75 yards, and I don't think my father would have allowed me to shoot much further.

I don't think I'd try to shoot one of the canadian 300 lb'er whitetails, but I don't see any reason why it would work with good shot placement, under moderate ranges.. probably 100 yards or less..

If you shoot a deer through the heart with a 30 caliber bullet, and it penetrates in and out... or the lungs for that matter, what is the point?

I primarily use a 7mm mag for deer hunting now, but that's only because of the range I can take deer at.

musicmatty · October 19, 2009, 10:36 PM

I have killed 6 deer within a 50 to 75 yrd range with my 30. carbine. Placement is everything and that Is why I only take neck shots. The deer is down isntantly and is dead by the time I walk over to it.

I never shoot a deer while it is running and if it is walking, it has to be within a 100yrds regardless of the rifle I am using.

Everyone who hunts, should be tuned up with there shooting skills to take a placement shot with in 100yrds. If you are tuned up, you will have the blessings of toating around a very light and fast moving carbine to harvest your deer with.

Now is the time to be at range honing your shooting skills, before firearms season opens.

bigjack59 · October 20, 2009, 09:37 AM

Exactly what I am doing! Ordered some Corbon rounds as well.

October 16, 2009, 09:04 PM	#27
troy_mclure Senior Member Join Date: November 17, 2008 Location: gulf of mexico Posts: 2,716	a friend that lives in north Florida hunts deer with his ruger sbh 7.5" bbl chambered in .30 car. he has no problem taking deer with it. as in all shooting its all about shot placement. __________________ There is only one tactical principle which is not subject to change. It is to use the means at hand to inflict the maximum amount of wound, death, and destruction on the enemy in the minimum amount of time."

October 17, 2009, 09:56 AM	#28
bigjack59 Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2008 Location: greenville sc Posts: 221	Do, the question I posed is not ironic considering my taglin of "always Bring Enough Gun." That is why I am asking the question, is it enough gun? It is actually a logical progression from my tagline. Anyways...now I see hunters coming on board that have shot deer with the round and been successful. I love vintage rifles, especially military ones. The thrill would be to see if the old warhorse can be useful in my hunts. My K98 is superb, the K31 Swiss does wonders, the Lee Enfield is great. The Swede shoots sweet, the AR in 6.8 is the best of all. But, I am curious, how will this great little gun do? __________________ ALWAYS BRING ENOUGH GUN

October 17, 2009, 10:45 AM	#30
amd6547 Senior Member Join Date: May 27, 2006 Posts: 2,313	The carbine had it's share of wartime detractors, who compared it to the Garand, but it also had it's advocates. The most famouse being Audie Murphy, who had a habit of hunting German snipers with his. He liked his so much, that when the stock cracked, he wired it back together, and refused the offer of a replacement. With SP bullets, the 30 carbine is a great cartridge fo HD. My CMP Inland is my goto longarm for SD, even though I have 12ga, 5.56mm, and 7.62x39 options. I believe that deer would be a suitable use for the M1 carbine if it is used as if handgun hunting. Here in Ohio, a 5" barrel 357 handgun is legal. No reason (other than regulation) an M1 carbine shouldn't be also. __________________ The past is gone...the future may never happen. Be Here Now.

October 17, 2009, 12:49 PM	#31
bigjack59 Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2008 Location: greenville sc Posts: 221	The award for sanity goes to rickyjames, amd and a couple others. My original question came about because people around here will hunt deer with 357 and 44's in lever guns all day. Then they pull out the underpower arguement based on anecdotal evidence from old soldiers. Nothing against old soldiers, I am becoming one fast, but sometimes we tend to protest a wee bit much about things. I am putting the carbine through the paces. If I can be confident of 100 yard or less heart or head shot accuracy I am going to shoot some venison with it. And I will sit there channeling all the great old soldiers that used this weapon to great effect, experience a little history the best way possible. __________________ ALWAYS BRING ENOUGH GUN

October 17, 2009, 09:24 PM	#34
SavageSniper Senior Member Join Date: November 25, 2005 Location: Crawfordville, FL Posts: 494	OK I have no problem with shooting a deer or a hog with a .30 carbine. I have taken a few hogs with one. But there is no way I am going after bear, esp. bear that big, with one. __________________ This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights!

October 16, 2009, 08:42 PM	#26
wun_8_seven Senior Member Join Date: September 17, 2002 Posts: 195	i've killed 4 deer with a 30carbine ,2 with a GI carbine and 2 with a ruger blackhawk all using corbon ammo and all under 50yards. not my first choice but it will work under the right conditions

October 17, 2009, 10:27 AM	#29
rickyjames Senior Member Join Date: July 5, 2009 Posts: 558	i don't understand this conversation. the 30 carbine was used by soldiers during war to stop men. ruger makes a blackhawk in 30 carbine for hunting, t/c makes a 30 carbine barrel for its hunting pistols. people use 357 in rifles and pistols all the time for deer with great success with less power. there is always a "better" caliber or a "better" choice. someone will recommend a 243, someone else will says that is to under powered and recommend a 270, others will say nothing under a 30/06 is suitable, someone else will up the anti to a 300 mag and before you know it someone will say nothing under a 458 mag is suitable. know your gun, know your game and know both you and the guns limitations. i see people are hunting deer with 223's claiming good success even tho they are illegal in some states. certainly a 30 carbine within a reasonable range is a reasonable choice.

October 17, 2009, 01:56 PM	#33
Maromero Junior member Join Date: January 21, 2009 Location: Outside the continental U Posts: 752	I don't know. That rifle looks awfly similar to a Daisy Red Ryder.

October 17, 2009, 11:47 PM	#35
Fred Rogers Junior Member Join Date: October 17, 2009 Posts: 4	Never shot a .30 carbine, but i know 7.62x39 is a good deer killin cartridge. The two might be pretty similar. Thing about the x39 is it can be hard to hit them in the shoulder past 300 or so yards. I've got some folks in the ozarks who get clean kills on deer with .223's. The 30 carbine probably isnt underpowered at all for deer but i dont know much about it. I imagine it would be very similar to x39.

October 18, 2009, 09:24 AM	#36
Art Eatman Staff in Memoriam Join Date: November 13, 1998 Location: Terlingua, TX; Thomasville, GA Posts: 24,798	Fred, the AK round has some 15% more velocity and about 30% more bullet weight. The shape of the AK bullet gives a much better drag coefficient. In general, the sights on any military weapon are coarse, and precision shot placement is not as easy as with quality sights. This gets us back to the "clean, ethical kill" which is our goal. The problem holds for the buckhorn sights commonly seen on the Winchester 94--which leads to all the comments about the range limitations. It seems to me that quite often it is not the cartridge as a cartridge which creates problems so much as it is the total package--which includes sights as well as power. Marginal power + coarse sights = problems.

October 18, 2009, 09:57 AM	#37
kyle1974 Junior member Join Date: November 23, 2008 Location: Texas Posts: 254	I shot my first deer with a 30 carbine.... looking back at the photos, it appears I double lunged the deer and got an exit wound. I was 10 at the time, so I don't recall performing critical ballistic tests to determine whether or not the round was adequate enough. However, Ido have photos of a dead (texas hill country) deer. I shot the deer at about 75 yards, and I don't think my father would have allowed me to shoot much further. I don't think I'd try to shoot one of the canadian 300 lb'er whitetails, but I don't see any reason why it would work with good shot placement, under moderate ranges.. probably 100 yards or less.. If you shoot a deer through the heart with a 30 caliber bullet, and it penetrates in and out... or the lungs for that matter, what is the point? I primarily use a 7mm mag for deer hunting now, but that's only because of the range I can take deer at.

October 19, 2009, 10:36 PM	#38
musicmatty Senior Member Join Date: September 30, 2009 Location: Eastcoast Posts: 346	I have killed 6 deer within a 50 to 75 yrd range with my 30. carbine. Placement is everything and that Is why I only take neck shots. The deer is down isntantly and is dead by the time I walk over to it. I never shoot a deer while it is running and if it is walking, it has to be within a 100yrds regardless of the rifle I am using. Everyone who hunts, should be tuned up with there shooting skills to take a placement shot with in 100yrds. If you are tuned up, you will have the blessings of toating around a very light and fast moving carbine to harvest your deer with. Now is the time to be at range honing your shooting skills, before firearms season opens.

October 20, 2009, 09:37 AM	#39
bigjack59 Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2008 Location: greenville sc Posts: 221	Exactly what I am doing! Ordered some Corbon rounds as well. __________________ ALWAYS BRING ENOUGH GUN