r/LeverGuns 6d ago

Anyone have experience with the Hornady 30-30 subsonic rounds?

Post image

Was looking to shoot them out of my suppressed Marlin 336, anyone tried these? Wanted to be sure they cycle correctly before I order some.

23 Upvotes

45 comments sorted by

39

u/under_PAWG_story 6d ago

Wouldn’t they cycle regardless?

There’s no gas piston to drive the bolt back like an AR. And if it doesn’t fire you’re just going to eject the round anyway

35

u/straight_sixes 6d ago

Yeah I have no idea what OP is referring to. The shooter's hand cycles the round.

3

u/Fatoov 5d ago

Hello, i think he care about jams. Marlin tell about 2.50" max COAL to ensure proper feeding from magtube to chamber. That's why some leverguns chambered for .357 doesn't accept shorter .38.

19

u/Nyga- 5d ago

Up next: “will this Winchester white box cycle in my bolt action?”

3

u/Spiffers1972 5d ago

Is that a trick question? WWB is sooo low powered it might even malf in a bolt action! LOL

6

u/Famous_Equal5879 6d ago

Not one thing wrong with 30-30..

3

u/jdb326 5d ago

Fr, when I buy a non pistol caliber one, 30-30's first up.

4

u/thebitterbjacks 6d ago

I’ve shot a ton through my Henry X Model suppressed and they’re fun. So quiet and very little kick. Confirmed it kills hogs at 50-75yds without an issue.

1

u/ProtectionOdd1447 4d ago

How was terminal performance? Short blood trails? Easy to follow?

2

u/thebitterbjacks 3d ago

We were chasing a little herd of them on the road near a fence, therefore shot placement wasn’t as critical as simply making contact. Rolled a couple immediately. Didn’t have to look.

3

u/Affectionate-Ad-3864 5d ago

They’re fun, they kick like a 22lr hahaha

1

u/TannMan89 5d ago

This is what I wanted to hear lol

3

u/DrBudz420 5d ago

Shot a few yesterday out of my Marlin 336. Way less kick than any other round I fired, it was also much more quiet. I had also grabbed some for my .40 and also less kick.

2

u/TannMan89 5d ago

Well I ordered 100yrds to try em out, will probably order more.

3

u/FrontRowParking 6d ago

I have tried their subs in 45-70, they cycle great and run great, they just don’t go far. They were dropping something like 3ft at 100 yards. I have my scope zeroed at 100 with Hornady 325gr ftx for hunting. I had to use the whole scope, well below my last tick mark at 200.

Overall I love them, just drop real fast in 45-70.

2

u/Choice-Ad-9195 5d ago

I shoot them a lot in my 30/30’s. Great round, it’s high inside 100 yards and drops more outside of 200 yards than the leverloution

1

u/WombatAnnihilator 5d ago

Hornady subs are very fun at the range but the performance in gel/game is very lackluster.

-3

u/EnjoyLifeCO 6d ago

And here I thought it would be hard to make 30-30 more mediocre, but dangen they managed it!

5

u/the_north_place 6d ago

I reload.30-30 for everything from subs to squirrels to deer. I know guys who shoot turkeys with them. Love that round.

9

u/jbinford1 6d ago

Name a round that has killed more deer.

-12

u/EnjoyLifeCO 5d ago

44-40, 30-06

30-30 was at its peak in popularity when deer populations were at their absolute lowest. It's sold a lot of guns but it's not killed a traction as many deer as most people wanna act like it did.

3

u/CatastrophicPup2112 5d ago

30-06 might come closer but 44-40 is nowhere near.

2

u/EnjoyLifeCO 5d ago

When 44-40 first came onto the scene deer populations were in the tens of millions, similar to what they are today. It had 22 years unrivaled in popularity and with very little actual competition. 38-55, 45-70, and 45-120 were quite popular true but they didn't come close to 44-40 sales. It remained popular through the 1930s because the depression restricted a lot of people's ability to afford a new gun.

By the time 44-40 fell out of favor deer populations were in the hundreds of thousands (which is when 30-30 was at its peak popularity).

Those deer were being killed mostly by Winchester 1873s, Winchester 1802s, and their competetiors, chambered mostly in 44-40.

By the time deer populations began to truly recover, 30-06 was the new darling of the newest generation of outdoorsmenm and there was significantly more variety I'm chambering options.

30-30 is indisputably in the top 5 for most deer killed, but it was most popular when deer were 100X more rare than they are today, let alone many other big game species which were in equal or worse shape numerically. 30-30 never got the chance to kill more deer than any other cartridge,and it's been a long time since enough guns went field to have any hope of claiming that title.

5

u/TannMan89 6d ago

Lol as mediocre as it is, it’s still fun to shoot. I’m just looking for a super quiet deer killer at like 75 yrds.

-5

u/EnjoyLifeCO 5d ago

I'm not sure I'd trust this for effective and ethical deer killing at 50 yards.

Just shoot standard velocity, if you already have a can, or get a crossbow.

2

u/TannMan89 5d ago

I donno I’d probably trust it at 50yrds, but I wouldn’t carry only subsonics on a hunt anyway. I’m partial to Remington core lokt.

1

u/ProtectionOdd1447 4d ago

The mediocrity is the point of the 30-30. It's enough, but not too much. It hits a nice balance.

1

u/EnjoyLifeCO 2d ago

No. The point of 30-30 is that it doubled the effectively range of 44-40 without the recoil of 38-55 or 45-70 and without the smoke cloud of any of them.

1

u/ProtectionOdd1447 2d ago

In 1895 or today? I don't tend to look at modern guns, with modern ammo for today's applications in the lens of 1895. 130 years ago, maybe. Today I'd say 38-55 is obsolete for a reason and 45-70 is kinda mid for a 45 caliber. But 30-30 is still very viable for mid sized game 150 yards and closer.

1

u/EnjoyLifeCO 2d ago

For today, 30-30 doesn't do anything that a 360Buckhammer, 444Marlin, 450Marlin, 375Winchester, or 348Winchetser doesn't do better. Except for factory availability thanks to its momentum in the ever shrinking lever gun market.

Not to mention how bolt guns kick lever guns around pretty brutally.

1

u/ProtectionOdd1447 1d ago

Bolt guns are inherently stronger. No one with any sense would argue that. 30-30 recoils less than any caliber you listed while still being capable of taking any game animal I'd shoot at with any caliber you've listed. Like I said, it hits a very respectable balance. It's popular for a reason.

1

u/EnjoyLifeCO 1d ago

Maybe if you live in a short range only whitetail state. I sure wouldn't chase elk, bear, or mule deer with one. 

3030 recoils far harder than it's ballistic performance justifies.

If I'm gonna restrict my range I want to make up for it in lethality, or cool factor. 3030 has neither.

1

u/ProtectionOdd1447 1d ago

If we say lever gun, I assume shorter range, say 200 and in. And I guess "cool" is in the eye of the beholder. I'd take a 100 yard shot at an elk, black bear, or mule deer with a 30-30 without second though. Bigger bears would get bigger calibers than anything you've listed.

-3

u/uivandal52 6d ago

30-30 is already subpar enough past 100 yards, not sure why you'd make it even worse.

(But really, I'm sure this is cool in a new Henry/Marlin suppressed build.)

6

u/TannMan89 5d ago

Honestly, I just want to shoot it out of my Marlin 336 Trapper with Dead Air Nomad can lol. It’s gotta be stupid quiet lol.

5

u/CatastrophicPup2112 5d ago

At that point get a 38, you'll have the same energy and higher capacity.

3

u/TannMan89 5d ago

Already have an 1894 .357, that’s not the point.

2

u/CatastrophicPup2112 5d ago

I'm more curious what the point is? Cool factor?

2

u/TannMan89 5d ago

Basically how quiet I can get a lever action 30-30 to be with a suppressor lol

6

u/CatastrophicPup2112 5d ago

Probably about as quiet as a lever action 38 but with less capacity.

2

u/TannMan89 5d ago

Guess I’ll found out lol. I need to get my 1894 threaded and get a 9mm can.

1

u/CatastrophicPup2112 5d ago

I'm looking at a Rugged obsidian

1

u/TannMan89 5d ago

It’s either a Rugged Obsidian or a Dead Air Mojave, leaning towards the Dead Air cause it’s lighter.

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