Remington .30-30 160gr. FMJ-RN?!?!

Andy Griffith · Nov 8, 2009

I went to the gunshow yesterday...

As I'm always looking for deals, I spied an old box of Remington .30-30 factory ammunition for $5.00. It was 160gr. full metal jacket round nose. For the life of me, I don't remember ever seeing this loading.

Was this a loading for law enforcement, deep-penetration on larger game or for pelt hunters which don't want a large hole or just a load for shooting?

It's in the old green box, with an index #123C , and lot #M21GD
Can't be really old, as it has the styrofoam cartridge holder.

I think it is a neat range load...but AFAIK, no one offers a FMJRN .308 bullet other than those for the .30 carbine in 110gr any longer. I'd like to try to handload and duplicate it, but without a bullet, I'll stick to the Hornady and Winchester soft nosed bullets for handloading.

Any information as to the date of manufacture is appreciated.

BreakerDan · Nov 8, 2009

I have a box of these with my old 94. With the styrofoam tray, it is from the 60s-70s most likely as my box is. I believe this load was mainly used for hide hunting as well as some prisons/law enforcement. I have heard this load called the "prison load" before. 30-30s gaurded TX prisons up until a few years ago here according to one gaurd I talked to.

If your box has a big red R on the top and is mostly green then it is from the 60-70s.

2152hq · Nov 8, 2009

We had alot of that ammo when I worked at a County Penitentiary. Safely locked behind glass in the office only to be taken out in times of trouble & turbulance as extra fodder for the tower guns....Savage Model 340's.
How classy was that!
Lucky for us a couple of 351 auto loaders remained in service :>}

BreakerDan · Nov 9, 2009

I had to do some thinking and researching on this one.
The 25-35 and 30-30 were very popular in the whale and
seal hunting industry and it was reported that these hunters
used FMJ (known as metal case or full patch back then) rounds for this. One old hunter in Alaska said this ammo could still be found on shelves in remote outposts used for the mentioned purposes. I found that in a levergun book by Mike Venturino. I do know for sure they were common is prison usage. I'm sure some deer hunters used them to keep from ruining meat too. 25-20, 32-20 were also marketed up into the 1950s in FMJ loadings. I shot a meat hog with one in 25-20 from an old REM UMC Kleanbore box and it worked well.

Wish they still made them because I would use them. Hope that helps.
I have only ever seen 2 boxes of this stuff and I bought one.

Remington .30-30 160gr. FMJ-RN?!?!

Andy Griffith

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BreakerDan

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2152hq

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BreakerDan

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