Growing up we used a lever action 30-30 to hunt woodchuck's. It was during this developing time frame my decision was made, I was not a lever action fanboy. Shopping today for a 30-30 bolt action has come up empty.

Online eduction has brought me to the 350 Legend, usually I avoid the latest and greatest chambering's. Several companies are manufacturing bolt action rifles in this caliber.

Any of you have experience with this platform both positive & negative would be gladly appreciated ?

Buddy bought one in a cheap Ruger bolt gun to hunt deer here in the southern part of Michigan where the regs prohibit bottle necked rifles.

Has a 2-7 Leupold on it.

He killed a couple does with it, both died quickly. The range was 70 and 110 yards respectively

I too am interested in it. I have a Colt AR I almost never shoot and am considering a .350 upper for it.

Its like an updated .351 WSL, except the ammo is available and pretty cheap.

During the peak of the ammo madness I would often see .350 on the shelves.

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Rule of law, not a man.

I would look a little harder for your bolt action 30/30. Most common is Savage 340 series. The Rem 788 in 30/30 is pricy and Win 54. There are some other older models that I can’t recall.
Before I bought a 350 Legend and couldn’t find a BA 30/30, I would look at some of the BAs chambered in 7.62 x 39mm. It’s about equal to 30/30
cheap ammo and will definitely be around a long time.

The Ruger American in 350L is a fine gun. A friend has one , and another in 450 Bushmaster. With a Vortex 3-9 (I believe) he’s shooting nice groups at 200 yds. 350L ammo is always on the shelf at Walmart. Not much recoil either

This rifle in 350 Legend with 3X to 9X Vortex Crossfire scope is awesome...flat shooting...an exceptional cartridge...very accurate...I harvested a deer last year at 100 yards with this...only 1 shot needed...this cartridge was a godsend to the whitetail hunters here in Ohio...it is accurate out to 200 yards...I believe that once you try the 350 Legend you will see no need for the 30-30...Roger

Don’t overlook the mighty Savage 170 pump .30/30.

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If you are looking for 30-30 performance I'd just go with an unmolested SKS. sights are good for me to 75 yards and ammo is cheap

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Forum consigliere

The 350 is an ideal deer caliber. The 30-30 is a classic, but if you want modern equipment and modern ammo the 350 can’t be beat. I’ve had one shot kills at 45, 85, and 125 yards in a gun with a 10.5 inch barrel.
I like to hunt, so I go with solid tools over nostalgia.

Another is the 7.62X39 caliber. The Ruger RAR rifle is amazingly accurate with Academy Monarch ammo.

The .30-30 Winchester cartridge was developed in 1895 for lever action guns with spring loaded tube magazines. Most bolt action rifles are chambered for cartridges with more pointed bullets for accuracy and trajectory. Accordingly, not as many bolt action rifles were chambered in .30-30 making them more rare and priced higher to collectors.


My brother has taken numerous deer with his SKS. Cheap shooting. There are other chamberings like .300 Savage that are still produced, comparable to .30-30, and available in reasonably priced BA rifles.

The .30-30 and .30-06, were both developed over 100 years ago and are more than adequate for any North American game. My Marlin 336s, Winchester 70s, and my custom 1903 springfield are about as solid as solid gets. I'll take blued steel and walnut over synthetics all day long.

sjbrdn is spot on about 7.62x39.

It has ballistics near equal to the .30-30 at the muzzle and exceeds .30-30 round nose ballistics by about 325 ft pounds and 160 fps at 200 yards. There are a number of bolt actions available in 7.62x39:

- Zastava M85 Mini Mauser (as well as the older Interarms Mini Mk X, Remington 799, and Charles Daly Mini Mauser versions);

- CZ 600 (as well as the older CZ 527);

- Ruger American;

- Savage Scout; and

- Howa Mini Hunter;

Plus some I am probably not aware of.

——

Cartridge wise the .350 Legend has great performance for a 1.8” straight wall cartridge with .30-30 round nose ballistics. But it runs at 55,000 psi and has a bit more bark than the .30-30.

If you hand load, the .30-30 offers a much wider range of spire point bullet options that put it ahead of the .350 Legend in terms of trajectory and retained energy, as does the 7.62x39.

If I were choosing between the three in a bolt action rifle, I’d pick the 7.62x39.

The TC Contender with a 30/30 barrel is a lot of fun.

My main rifle cartridges are 30/30 and .308, I’m trying to keep it simple.

350 is here for AR crowd. I’m not saying it’s a bad cartridge, it’s all they could squeeze out of case with AOL limitations. It’s marginal in power if it wasn’t accurate at 100yds it would be useless. It’s remake of the old 351W.
All in all about 357max dupe. It’s not a replacement for 30/30 and is a niche caliber. Popularity is because of low end bolt guns are cheaper than buying levers for straight case states.

After posting earlier today about abundance of ammo I found myself at Walmart. 28 boxes of Winchester 180gr and 150gr. Without knowing ballistics I’d probably lean towards 150gr in hopes of a few more FPS.

Thank you these replies have helped remove some brain fogging. Stopping in stores and shopping online the 30-30 pool is basically empty. The 350L ammo can be found stocked, personally still see it as a niche chambering. The 7.62x39 is something to sleep on, my experiences AK/SKS are long ago with steel-case ammo and a lot of dead 55-gallon drums. The Howa 1500 mini action is definitely a great idea, my 1500; 22-250 is by far the best centerfire BA rifle have had the opportunity to varmint hunt with.

Those cheap, accurate bolt guns chambered in a round that also functions in an AR with with ammo that’s easy to find are terrible! Who’d want that?

You can always keep your eye out for a Savage/Stevens bolt action .30/30. I found this one for $250 earlier this year at a Tactical Timmy store. Some young ‘un got $100 store credit toward a Springfield XD.

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Rule of law, not a man.

A lot depends on if you have any intentions of reloading. The Legend will have a wider selection of bullets weights and styles compared to the 7.62x39 (or the 30-30 in a lever). If you plan on using your new rifle for any plinking, the Legend can be reloaded using relatively inexpensive 9mm bullets. The Hodgdon site is finally showing some loads using pistol powders. Another thing that will apply to some is the type of rifle. Not everyone is overly fond of hunting with military style rifles. Slinging an AK or SKS over your shoulder is not everyone's first choice. I also want to add that even if you don't reload, Winchester and Browning both make inexpensive practice/target ammo in 350 Legend with prices around $15 a box.

Regarding the previous comparison made between a .300 Savage and the .30-30, that is incorrect. The .30-30 and the .303 Savage (now long obsolete) are ballistically near-twins. The .300 Savage is much closer in performance to the .308 Win. About the only significant difference between the two is that the .300 Savage has a somewhat shorter case neck.

I have a few Savage bolts in 30 WCF. Use a sidemount with a period correct scope and it shoots well. Although not the best trigger pull.

A Remington 788 in 30 WCF would be a great find.

I bought a CZ 527 Carbine in X39 to take advantage of cheap ammo. Problem was, it shot so well that I decided to reload for it. Ballistics are similar to the 30 WCF, maybe a little lower. It's a great combination if you're not set on the 30 WCF.

A .300 savage factory load in 150 grain bullet is 240 fps faster than the .30/30 with a 150 grain bullet. I consider that comparable. I did not say identical. The .308 150 grain FL is 190 fps faster than the .300 savage with the same bullet weight.

Both the .30-30 and the .308 can be loaded to speeds that overlap the minimum and maximum loads of the .300 savage. Using the same bullet weight, the max .30-30 load exceeds the minimum .300 savage load and the max .300 savage load exceeds the minimum .308 load. So both the .30-30 and .308 loads are comparable to the .300 savage on opposite ends of the charts.

My point is that if he wants a BA rifle, there are COMPARABLE loads out there with similar ballistics and recoil that are still manufactured today and the rifles are available in affordable categories.

Hornady still loads the .303 savage-I have a case of it. But it is a limited run and I was making reference to calibers that are still relatively easy to find-current shortages excluded.

I load 30/30 with bullets as light as 110-115gr for varmits. I also load 100gr 1/2 jacket plinkers . But my favorite is hot loaded Speer 130gr Hp
It’s my hustle load for 30/30, it’s extremely accurate in Marlin 336 and Savage 219. They have to be single loaded in tube magazines.
There was a time when you couldnt give away Rem 788 in 30/30. With spitzer bullet and brass formed from 375 Win and Ball powders you can make the old 30/30 scoot. Up close to 300 Sav. velocities. Now 788s are quasi collector items.

+1 on this! They may not be the prettiest guns, but they are handy, accurate and fine shooters.

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The best I can with what I got

You nailed it!!!!!!!!!!!..........A lot of smoke and no fire...........you can't make sumthin what it ain't.

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S&W Accumulator

REALLY? The 30 cal has 100's bullet selections that can be used in both the 30/30 also the 7.62x39(.311-.312 in.). Whereas the 350 which in in reality is a .355 in cal has very few choices. Load it with real heavy bullets it slows to a crawl.

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S&W Accumulator

Savage 340E sold on the big auction place last night, Weaver 4x, sidesaddle and what appeared to be NIB second magazine, $485. + 40. shipping, add in another $25. for FFL fee's plus tax all around. Was nice but IMHO little bit on the pricey side.

I picked up a Springfield 840 (Savage 340 under the hood) a couple of years back for $200 from LGS. Came with a Springfield 4x scope made in Japan. I loaded up some 130 FNSP speer bullets for it and took to range, was getting <.75" at 50 yards without trying too hard. Used leverevolution powder and was hitting 2700FPS. Went ahead and removed scope and added Fiber optic sites (sold for the marlin 60) on it. Nice handy little woods gun now. The thing is amazing light and shoots wonderfully. It is in excellent shape and looks like it could have been built in the last few years instead of decades ago.

Rosewood

I am kind of boycotting the 350 legend myself. I am still ticked they use .355 bullets instead of .357. I can't think of any good reason to use .355 myself. Betting it was a millennial that came up with the idea...

Rosewood

Re: OP. Have a modicum of experience w/ the .30-30 using Win. and Marlin LR's. None w/ BA rifles. Have a Marlin Waffle Top 336 that has been used hard. Will hold under 2.5 inches w/ standard sights and common domestic factory ammo, mostly 170 gr. RN ammo.

Very little to recommend restriction of rifles for deer hunting. Seldom see any benefit is forcing hunters to use a less effective shotgun, etc. Happily, the .350L nicely sidesteps the mindless restrictions by offering a round that in good rifles is remarkably accurate, effective on deer sized game in the fields, available in a range of loadings and best of all available in a variety of actions from bolt, lever and semi-auto all of which can fire the round w/o any problems.

In the southeast 48 states, the .350L will be welcomed by those who hunt in the woods and fields where common shots are from maybe a few yards on out to say 200 yards. Those who insist on Youtube popular sniping shots at 1/4 mile or more will use a different caliber. Those who want to reload using .357 caliber will buy .355 bullets and load up. Or, they might just have a barrel converted to .357 bore and load away.

For my part, I'll make due with the Waffle Top. Church members have kindly kept their eyes open and bought .30-30 ammo as they found it, a goodly amount of which is now in my cabinet awaiting the coming deer season. If I were buying a rifle, I'd likely look really hard at the .350L as I live on the coast of Ga. where shots are seldom if ever more than maybe 120 yds., unless I'm shooting at steel plates at the range. Sincerely. bruce.

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Any of them will do in the deer woods.
The 30-30 ballistics often given are with a 24" rifle bbl, 20in carbine bbl ballistics are of course less.
The 30-30 uses a 150 and 170 gr bullet. The AR/SKS rd a much lighter bullet as usually loaded so the paper ballistics give higher vel.
The heavier bullet loaded x39 rd slows down of course but still has more than enough punch for deer hunting.
Around and around it goes...

The lack of 30-30 bolt rifles is just that if you are set on having one and that round as a combination. The choices have pretty much been laid out here.
A few customs have been built with success on small ring pre98 Mausers and some other MilSurp rifles. But that's not a way to go if looking for a rifle on a budget.
These same conversions have also been done to the x39 rd as well.
All for the fun of doing up project guns.

The 350L,,I have no experience with it. Just what I read and my usual first impressions are what they generally are with most 'new cartridges'.
Why? I ask. I understand the conection to the beloved AR builders and for that it's an understandable path.

But as a cartridge it self, I don't see where it offers anything above or beyond what is already available or has been around for the last century.
I was not aware of the odd bullet dia till this thread. That seems strange to me, but I guess AR types wouldn'r be shooting light loads with 38sp cast bullets in those rifles!.
Someone with a BA in the caliber might though. There you could probably get away with cast 9mm /380 bullets.
But again that's not the direction this is going I have a feeling.

My Rossi M92 lever action .357 Mag approaches 3030 power with pointed leverevolution bullets. It’s light and trim and fires cheap.38 special ammo and is a ton of fun and is a lot classier than a plastic stock gun.

I bought beat up Sav 340 when I was in Army. I bought Lee loader and a guy showed me how to load for it with 7.62 GI ammo. He gave me a powder measure made out of a pen body and a cheap screw driver with correct size hole drilled through plastic handle. Stuck 7.62 bullet in hole and pried it out of case. Dumped powder in cup and then dipped it out for 30/30 and loaded with pulled 7.62 bullet. All I had to buy was primers.
Shot well enough to shoot a sack load of jack rabbits. Although the bullets left something to be desired as varmit loads.

Winchester killed the .375 Win in its crib by putting out rifles a couple years before .375 Win ammo was readily available. Then it never put it out in quantity or at good prices. They also diluted the market by also coming out with the .356 Win and .307 Win within a few years, and as a result none of them really found acceptance when any of the three, if properly supported with loads of reasonably priced ammo up front would have probably gathered a loyal following to support continued production of rifles and ammo.

Winchester seems to have learned from that and applied the lessons learned to the .350 Legend.

My understanding is that they’ve also lobbied for .350 Legend game regulations in multiple states. If they’d done the same for the venerable .30-30, I have no doubt it would be on approved lists in those same states. But if they did that Winchester would not be selling new rifles as there are about 10 million .30-30s already out there.

With the .350 Legend, they create a market for their XPR rifle.

I based the ballistics in my prior post on the 2260 fps I actually get in a 20” Model 94 carbine with the Winchester 150 gr factory load.

I do get the 2390 fps listed on the box in my 1926 26” Model 94 rifle, and my 1966 26” Model 94 Classic rifle.

So it’s a case of Winchester using velocity numbers based on 26” rifles that they have not made in significant numbers since 1957 when it discontinued the Model 64 rifle. To be fair they have come out with 26” rifles again in the last decade or so, but they haven’t exactly flooded store shelves.

What is your point? I think we already established it as a 100yd deer cartridge. 200 is stretching it, it’s not a replacement for 30/30. Point being if you are one rifle guy the 350L is not even in the running for an all around rifle. The only reason for it is the cartridge restrictions for deer in some states. The Bolt actions are just spin offs from a legal deer cartridge for ARs. Not saying they are bad.

Agreed. I use 150 gr plated bullets for plinking loads in various .30-30s. Provided I keep the velocity down around 1750 fps in the old broach rifled Winchester 94s I get good accuracy. They start stripping jackets at around 1800 fps.

I use the 123 gr 7.62x39 bullets as well in my .30-30 TC contender.

Cast bullets also work great and you can get them from 150 grains up to 190 grains.

Not sure why the 350 L and 450Bushmaster are getting beat up so much as poor performers. The fact is they out perform a shotgun slug of any caliber and give you repeated shots which todays hot rod muzzleloaders do not. Their primary purpose is for deer hunting where restricted to a straight wall case. Until NY started to allow rifles in the western part of state I was forced to use a Wingmaster with slug barrel. I would have loved the option of using the 350L. As a teenager on public land I might see only 1 buck a season. If he walked by at 150 yds all I could do was watch. I wasn’t able to increase my odds till I hit 21. I got my pistol permit and eventually a .243 Encore.

I guess I thought the popularity of the 30-30 had more to do with popularity of the Lever Action Rifles - Winchester and Marlin than it did with the actual round itself.

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NRA LIFE MEMBER

Actually, for it's time it was quite a marvel. And it's still a great round, when used within it's limitations. All those lever guns helped it alot, but so did grandad's stories of carrying one over hill and dale. Tradition is a big part of hunting/shooting for many people.

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The best I can with what I got

Jack OConnor said “ anybody that can’t go it the woods with a 30/30 and come out with a deer, has no business in the woods” Truer words have never been spoken. And for Newbies Jack is regarded as the Father of the 270. There isn’t many standard or military calibers I haven’t owned, with a helping of Wildcats.
There isn’t many real deer hunters left. Most deer are now shot from stands and usually less than 100yds. Don’t really matter what your rifle is.
A stationary or feeding deer is easy to lay down even with a 22.

It’s because they don’t care about reloaders. Why should they. They want to sell guns and factory ammo and that’s why they are in business. If someone wants to reload its on them. Please give me an example of a factory cartridges that put the wants and needs of reloading over factory sales.

Winchester made it 355 because that is 9mm. They strike a zillion of these every year. The use essentially straight 556/223 cases. Again about a zillion per year. Hornady, Federal, etc all do the same. What they did do was develop specific rifle velocity bullets in 355. Combine the two and you have a highly marketable product to buyers who want and are willing to pay for something new and in my experience quite effective.
And, I can reload the copy of the factory Hornady round I settled on in the beginning. So what’s not to like.

Same here......Solution in search of a problem........Why didn't they just reintroduce the 351 Win.????

The WOW GEE WHIZ guys can have it.........I'll stick with whats already proven.

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S&W Accumulator

IMO the value of the 350 Legend is only apparent when foolish hunting regulations require a straight wall cartridge, when shots will be taken only up to 150 yards, or when one wants to hunt deer with an AR 15 while keeping recoil down.

For some reason people have huge bias against AR cartridges. A 150 grain .35 caliber bullet doing 2325 FPS out of a 16” barrel is only a 100 yard cartridge while a .30 caliber 150 grain bullet doing 2375 out of a 20” barrel is somehow the best deer slayer ever. The only practical difference between the two is a few inches of drop at 200 yards.

I’ve seen at least a dozen threads comparing .45-70 and .450 for Bushmaster. It’s apparently well know that a 300 grain .450 caliber bullet going 1880 FPS is a marginal for hogs at 150 yards while the .45-70 with its 300 grain bullet doing 1880 FPS is good for buffalo out to 500 yards….

Its the same dim-bulbs who will say a .38/40 launching a .40 caliber 180 grain bullet at 950 fps is a “hard-shootin’ man-killer” but a .40 S&W sending a .40 caliber 180 grain bullet at 950 fps is “Short & Weak”!

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Rule of law, not a man.

I would bet that a very high percentage of deer shot in the lower 48 are at ranges below 200 yards, and often well below that. Personally, every deer I have taken was within 75 yards. I wouldn’t dare attempt a 200 yard shot, let alone further. I agree with O’Connor. I once knew the chief balllistician at Federal. He felt that if there were no hunting rifle calibers available other than .308, .30-‘06, or .270, pick one, no American hunter would be any worse off. Remember, a .270 with 90 grain bullets makes a very adequate varmint rifle.

And you can duplicate any .308 load you want with the .300 Savage. In fact, you can use the same reloading recipes. Factory .300 S loadings (that is, if you can find any) are quite conservative and offer only a very limited selection of bullets. It’s not unusual to find rifles originally made in .300 S re-chambered to .308. I have not tried it, but I have read that .300 S cartridges can be used in .308 rifles, but I don’t know why anyone would do that.

Other issue with .355 over .357. There were already .357 bullets that were suitable for 2000+FPS, there were not any in .355, they had to make a new line of bullets to work.

Rosewood

Sent an email to Windham Weaponry yesterday inquiring on a 350L upper. Scrounging the LGS and Walmart not one box of 30-30, they all had 350L on the shelves. Many of the points mentioned in this discussion have presented me with insight. On a positive note my roll here has slowed a little, guy named Max selling his estate off on GB, scored another of his Model 10's.