7.62x39 or 30-30 for Deer Hunting

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YankeeIronSights

New member
Hello Everyone:

I have been thinking about buying an all purpose rifle that can be used for hunting, home defense and target practice at the range. I have narrowed my selection to a Marlin lever action rifle chambered in 30-30 caliber or a Ruger Mini 30 chambered in 7.62x39. I know they are totally different in terms of action and operation. The Marlin is cheaper than the other but the ammo for the Ruger is cheaper. If you could only buy one, which one would it be?
 
Strictly for deer hunting? The Marlin, for sure.

For 'deer hunting + home defense + gun games'? Neither, I'd rather an SKS than a Ruger anything, but that's just me.


Larry
 
Out of the two mentioned it would be the mini 30. However I would have to side with DT. I'm a SKS fan. And they're tough as nails.
 
I have a buddy who uses a Mini-30 for deer hunting and likes it. It wouldn't be my first choice, but I'm a levergun guy.

I doubt the deer could tell the difference.
 
Non-competitive range shooting? Either.

Hunting whitetail deer? Pretty much either. Comparing capabilities with the iron-sight limit for distance, they're equally effective.

Real-world home defense? I'd go with the Mini-30. Choice of ammo capacity, with higher capacity available as compared to the lever gun. Once loaded, it's easier to merely aim and shoot, with no thought given to cycling the action.
 
Go with the sks. My first gun was a marlin 336w 30-30 and I swapped it 3 weeks ago for a remington 700. The sks, hands down. Keep in mind that a sks is not only cheaper than a ruger, but it was built to be a military rifle. It's tough, and its easy to clean although it doesn't need to be cleaned often. If you just want to shoot the sks for fun you can buy 20 rounds of cheap ammo that the sks will eat up like crazy for $5-$6 where the cheapest 30-30 ammo costs $20 per 20. It's a matter of a 6 round manually operated gun vs a 30 or more round semi auto that is cheaper to shoot and all you have to do is keep pulling the trigger. In a self defense situation you will be shaking and scared, your brain doesn't need to have to operate a lever.
 
I've sighted in several Mini 30's for friends over the years; even with scopes, accuracy was dismal. Perhaps the new ones are better, but I'd expect the Marlin to be at least twice as accurate as the older Mini 30's.

Either cartridge will handle the job fine if you shoot it well.
 
Keep in mind bud you can kill a deer with a .22 and you can defend your home with a pellet gun if you know what your doing. I see it as getting the most fun and versatile gun for your money. I owned a mini 14 once and I can't say that I hated the gun.... I just can't say that it was worth the price.
 
Word of note.

My Yugo wouldn't feed Wolf hollow points. The flat profile would stop on the chamber face and jam. I don't know if a dedicated soft point would work better.
 
Here in Northern Idaho we have numerous critters which can get ya. The wolves are getting very aggresive and have come to know gun fire as the dinner bell. As a result, for thick bush/forest I choose the Mini 30 over either my Marlin or Winchester, both in 30-30. The Mini also carries as well if not better than a lever. I hunt with a 5 rounder in the gun a carry a 20 rounder for post hunt game dressing.
 
For deer, hands down 30-30 lever gun. For everything else 7.62x39 is very easy to find and affordable.

150-170g RN bullet in the 30-30 is more effective on deer than almost any bullet you can get for the 7.62x39.

7.62x39 is not the equal of the 30-30. Close, but the 30-30 consistently outperforms the x39 cartridge at any bullet weight. Maybe only 15-25%( Depending on bullet weight ) but still. The only disadvantage of the 30-30 in a tubular magazine is the need for round nose bullets, but Hornady mono-flex takes care of that. 30-30 with a 160g @2400 fps with 2047 ft/lbs vs. 7.62x39 with a 150 @ 2150 fps and 1540 ft/lbs.

I'd find a pristine example of an SKS myself. SKS's are a great general purpose rifle. I prefer the type 56.

Nothing wrong with a mini 30 though.
'
Boomer
 
I guess it depends on if you are used to a lever action or not. Personally, I'd pick the Marlin because i've used one for 18 years. The action is pure muscle memory for me, so i would have no problem using one for home defense. If you aren't familiar? I'd probably go with the Mini 30.
 
You didn't mention where you live or what distance you'd be shooting.

I've had three Ruger minis and while they were extremely reliable, and fed virtually any ammo I fed them, those particular models weren't very accurate.

If you're talking about plains country distances, I'd almost say neither one.

But if you're talking brush country, either one.

For home defense? Both rounds are awfully powerful, and likely to pass through soft tissue, drywall, etc, and create a danger to others.

I have a hard time with the "one gun for all purposes" idea.

But that's just me.

However, if I could only have one gun, and it had to be one of the mentioned two, I'd go with the Ruger mini 30 tactical. From what I've read, they are designed differently than the earlier models. I've read they are much more accurate.

It would be a great gun for close in hunting and self defense. If you can find one, that is. There aren't many around. Mini 30 tactical, that is.

Edited to add: I just checked gunbroker. There are two pages of Ruger "tactical." Most are mini 14s and 10/22s. (22 cal tactical?)

There is exactly one mini 30 tactical with a buy it now price of about a grand (after shipping, etc).

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=377639967
 
The 30-30 will be more accurate, therefore give you more useable distance, won't be picky about ammo, and will have a wider variety of more suitable hunting ammo on the shelf. 7.62 is a much cheaper plinker, but most of the cheap and military ammo is not suitable for hunting.

For home defense, neither round would be well suited unless you live a lone, and don't have neighbors as rifle rounds tend to penetrate lots of walls and kill people on the other side of them athat are not the intended targets.

If hunting is at shorter distances a 12guage combo with regular barrel and rifled slug barrel might be a better choice to cover the spectrum.
 
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