Partition bullet in 30-30 Contender

[Keith L]

Discussion of velocity required to make a partition bullet work effectively in another thread has me wondering if my planned deer hunting load will work.

I just got a 30-30 barrel for my Contender and plan to scope it and sight it in for our upcoming deer hunting season.  For years my favorite deer hunting companion is an old Marlin 30-30 lever gun and it prefers Federal Premium factory loads with partition bullets.  I don't shoot enough of them to have the dies to reload.  I had planned to sight in the Contender with cheaper bullets to get it close, then try the Federal Premiums and if they shoot well use them durring the season.

Has anyone used these rounds successfully?  Anyone done any corono work with them to see if they are fast enough?  Now I am wondering if I should wait until I can do some handloading to get just the right loads, but that would mean not until next deer season.

Thanks for comments.

[Crayfish]

Keith - What bullet weight have you been using in the Marlin?  I didn't even realize that Federal loaded the partition in the 30-30!   Obviously I've never tried them then, but I can tell you that I chrono'd some 150gr PMC factory loads at 2100fps 15' from the muzzle of my 14" Contender.  I would think that most factory loads would be very similiar, assuming you have a 14" Contender as well.

Given that, my personal opinion would be that the Partition would be a little too hard for this kind of starting velocity ... you'll be below 1800fps at 150yds which may not be enough to expand this bullet reliably.  Again, I have no personal experience ... just a gut feel!  Inside of 100yds it may work just fine!

Let's see what others have to say ... Crayfish

[KYODE]

no experience here, but i had always heard the nosler partition has a soft frontal section that expands fairly easily, and the rear section remains to drive on thru. looking forward to hearing if anyone has used them.
if they are factory 30-30 flat nose, i'd guess they would work out to reasonable range. i doubt the velocity loss is that great in  a 14" barrel compared to 30-30 rifle length barrels.
i chronographed some winchester factory 150gr hp's out of my 14" 30-30AI barrel. they averaged around 2240fps(rough figure without looking)

[Crayfish]

That's right, Kyode ... I forgot that the Partitions would have to be flat-nosed in order to be factory loaded in a 30-30.  In this case, they will expand better but are certainly not necessary at 30-30 handgun velocities.  For simplification (using the same load in rifle / pistol) they will probably work just fine.

... Crayfish

[41MAG]

  You might want to try the winchester 150gr hollow point. They are made for thin skinned animals. They work great out of my 14" 30-30 Have for a while. :lol:

[BCB]

Keith L.

Actually, I wonder if the price of “premium” ammo is worth the $$$$ in a 30-30 Winchester caliber?  I really donÂ’t know if the price of it is worth the $$$$ in many other calibers!!!  Guess I am from the old school that just shot factory ammo of 40 years ago and then started reloading and was just reloading plain olÂ’ Hornady bullets—the 150 grain round nose in my lever 30-30 rifles.  My dad has used a 30-30 lever Marlin since the late 1940Â’s—again, only factory ammo until I started reloading.  Then it was the Hornady 150 grainer.  All of these 30-30 lever rifles have taken white-tails and done it humanely at distances to ‘bout 125 yards.  I do use the Hornady 130 SSPSP bullet in my Contender in 30-30 caliber—very good results also.  NOW, it is just plain olÂ’ wheel weight bullets—cast bullets that is!!!  They work dang well and cost about 18¢ per 50 cast bullets.  Dang sure not “premium” bullet prices!!! Accuracy is at the 2” or slightly less mark at 100 yards with the ‘scoped rifles and Contender.

Just trying to save you a few $$$$ with my comments.  Good-luck with your 30-30, a good caliberÂ…BCB

[Keith L]

Thanks for all the comments.

I didn't tell you the length of the barrel, my mistake.  It is a Super 14 pruned to 12 inches.  

I used the high priced bullets in the Marlin initially because I thought I needed the extra punch of the partition bullet.  They group much better at 100 yards with my Marlin (less than an inch for a 5 shot group vs four inch groups.  But where I hunt I never get a shot longer than about 40 yards anyway.  So my guess is that you are right, it is a waste of money.

Well, maybe I can get a scope on the barrel this weekend and see if I can hit anything with it,

Again, thanks for all your help folks.  This is a good campfire to sit around!

[spinafish]

e-mail Nosler with your concerns and see what they have to say... :grin:

[Miller]

I called Nosler and they told me the Partition would reliably expand out to 175-200 yards coming from a 14" Contender barrel.  However beyond that the energy issue becomes problematic on game other than deer.  Hope this helps!

[Robert]

Seems like they developed loads for the 30-30 with flat and round-nosed bullets for other reasons also.  At first, I was excited about being able to use spire-point bullets in my Contender, supposedly more accurate and reach out further..but I went back to 170 gr Hornady round-nose bullets.  There is a reason for this though.  The lever-30-30 was/is a good brush gun.  People started putting scopes on some of them for better long range accuracy but......what for?  What is the use of being more acurate at long range if it will not kill effectively at long range?  Plus there is the 'romance' of the unscoped 30-30 lever.   Ok bear with me here....the 30-30 Super 14 with original rifle sights is a MORE PERFECT brush gun.  I have scopes on everything else, but have never shamed my 30-30 Contender with a scope.  It has a very special use, just the way it is.  Recently, I put the original rifle sights back on my 10" 7TCU as well.  These two barrels are so easy to navigate heavy brush and rough terrain with a sling setup.

[Keith L]

I am sure that you are right.  I scoped mine when I got to the point were my bifocals prevented me from having front and rear sights in focus at the same time.  I have a socpe for my 30-30 Contender barrel, but as far away as I hold the pistol focus shouldn't be a problem.  Where I hunt shots are rarely longer than about 30 yards and I sight the gun in for 50.

Thanks for all the input.  I bought some of the 150 grain Remmingtons and will try them this weekend.  If they work well then I know what I will be using the following weekend.

[Big Gun]

I shot the Remington 150s in my Super 14 contender last year for deer - worked great.  Grouped at about 1.5 inches at 100 yds shooting off of the bench.  I used a 3x Tasco scope, I am thining about up grading to one of the variables as shots in my area are normally at or slightly beyond 100 yds.  I did manage to take a button buck with it while sneaking around in some corn stocks on a windy day, he was laying down about 60 yds ahead of me facing away - I put the bullet in the middle of the rib cage and it exited just in front of the far shoulder, he ran about 50 yds and dropped.  I am hoping for a repeat performance in a couple weeks from now, and I plan to use the same set up with the 150 gr Remington factory core-locked bullets.

[Robert]

I like those corelokts too.  I just bought a box and I can easily re-load for 30-30...but for 8 bucks for 20 shiney new ones....pretty good deal.  I got the 170's though.