.44 mag vs. 30/30 trapper.

T

trigger45

New member
what is the speed of the .44 and 30/30 in a win trapper carbine? which is better in your opinion out of a rifle? would the ballistics be better out of a 20" barrel? which would benefit more from a longer barrel?
would the lighter weight .44 ( mabe 180gr. )be any better?

any other questions you could dream up would be cool.
thanks
 
From the info that I have seen over the years the 44mag IMO is a better round for the 16in Trapper. The 30WC functions better from a longer barrel (minimum 20in). Having said that however, the last Trapper I owned was the 30WC. It was fairly accurate but had alot of muzzle flash.
 
I would go with the 44 without a second glance at the 30-30 because I know a 300 grain hardcast flatpointed 44 bullet will do a lot more than any 30-30 load for penetration. For deer it wouldn't matter but IMHO the 44 with the proper load would be a better choice than the 30-30 on animals bigger than deer.

For factory loads for the 44 you might look at Speer's 240 GDHP @ 1400 fps [from 6.5" brrl], Speer's 270 GDSP @ 1250 [6.5" brrl], or Federal's 300 grain castcore @ 1250 [7.5" brrl]. You should gain 300 to 600 fps going to rifle length barrel. Most 44 factory 240 grain loads only do about 1250 from pistol barrels but do 1700-1800 from rifle barrels. I would be real curious to see what the Speer 240 GDHP would do from a 16" brrl, I suspect it might break 2000 fps. Which would put it within 100-150 fps of 30-30/170 grain loads from a 16" barrel.

If your using the standard barrels the 30-30 has about a 50 yard advantage for trajectory.
 
I would go with the 44 without a second glance at the 30-30 because I know a 300 grain hardcast flatpointed 44 bullet will do a lot more than any 30-30 load for penetration.
Click to expand...
Not full metal jacket in a 30/30! Ask me about entertaining 30/30 specialty loads :) 1 in the pipe, one in the magazine.
Seriously though...
30/30 would benefit more from the longer barrel. After 16 inches the relatively slower powder in a .44 load will have already peaked, while the slower powder loaded in most 30/30's need a little more burn time in the barrel to reach peak velocity.
If you're going with light and handy, go with the .44
If you want a cheap deer gun that reach out to 150-200yds, go with the 30/30.
 
I'm pretty sure you're not going to get a 240 gr. jacketed bullet going 2,000 fps, at least not in my Marlin 1894P. I've chronoed 180 gr. bullets at a little over 2,000 fps.

Here are some Marlin chrono results:

2400/21.6 grs, 255 gr. LSWC, 1,745 avg fps
(1,724 ft. lbs. of muzzle energy! Keith style bullet.)
2400/20 grs, 240 gr. LSWC, 1,657 avg fps
2400/19.0 grs, 265 gr. GC-LRoundedFP, 1,494 avg fps
2400/21.0 grs, 240 gr. Berry's FP, 1,632 avg fps
(the Berry's is a plated bullet)

I could probably get a 240 gr. LSWC over 1,800 fps. Hard cast lead bullets are going to go a little faster than jacketed bullets.

I think you are going to see about a 200 to 400 fps increase over a 4" barrel revolver. I don't think there is much of a velocity increase over going from a 16" barrel to a 20" one. The Marlin 1894P is a great length, very handy. At max you can get nearly a ton of energy at the muzzle.

I don't know about a Winchester 1894, but the Marlin 1894 will handle 40K of pressure.
 
Seems to me that a 240gr .44 caliber bullet at 1800 fps has just a heck of a lot more oomph than a 170 gr .30 caliber bullet at 2200.

Maybe its just me but that big heavy .44 is a LOT more bullet at just a little slower velocity (especially if you compare both out of a carbine length barrel where the .44 excels).

Plus, you get twice the ammo capacity with the .44.

The 30-30 will give you like 50 yards more reach if it matters.
I would trust the .44 for anything closer, especially if it were intent on eating me.

I like the .44 carbine for everything within 150 yards.
If I were going to get a 30-30 and be limited to 5 rounds, I would just step up to a .444 or a 45-70.
 
30/30 vs. 44 mag., the age-old question!

I experienced the same dilemma this fall, and chose the 30/30 Ranger Compact Winchester with 16" tube because you can squeeze a little better long-range ballistics out of it.

I dearly love my 30/30, due to sheer carryability and since it is very, very accurate, certainly more so than a Marlin .44 I had once. And I believe it kicks less than its .44 brethren, too.

However, I'd still like to have a .44 Trapper someday, since I have seen .44 mag. rifle wounds on deer firsthand and have never shot anything with the .30. I'm not sure how the .30 does, but I know that .44 sure makes a real mess when it hits, even at 125 yds.

But the real reason is that you can shoot lead reloads through the .44 and it is much more economical for plinking fun.

Good luck, and remember, you can't really go wrong with either!
 
Hard cast lead bullets with flat points are good for just about everything. The flat points delivers a lot of energy.

I have some hard cast HP bullets a friend and I cast (my first time) and I'm looking forward to trying them out. They run about 235 grs.

The recoil of the heavily loaded 255 gr. LSWCs seems fairly stout, but not unpleasant to me. I've let guys that shoot rifles regularly shoot the 1894P and they say the recoil is nothing.

I still like light and fast, but having the Marlin has greatly increased my appreciation for heavy bullets. Heavy bullets will retain their velocity better than lighter ones - up to a point.

I can't afford an AR-15 and didn't want to get another firearm at this time that used magazines. The 1894P with a Leupold 2x scope is my tactical rifle!
 
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