35/30-30
Posted: 07 Jun 2017 07:30
Soon to be starting with a new cartridge, the 35/30-30 Win!
I sent an M94 30-30 Win off to JES for the rebore and rechamber. The donor rifle is one that my dad gave me in trade for a Glenfield. It is a 1966 M94 Antique SRC, which he bought from a discount store on sale for $25 in 1968. My dad is a one rifle guy and until the turn of the century, the only open sight deer hunter I've ever seen in South Texas to this date. By 2000, his eyes were bugging him, so I put a B-Square side mount on the rifle which worked well for a half a decade. Lucky for me, the mount used the existing thread holes on the receiver. Five years later, the side mount and his eyes were not working well, so I gave him my Glenfield 30GT. I tried to give him a better rifle, a Marlin 336ER chambered in 356 Win, but he threw a fit the first time he shot it. He said if he had shoot something that kicked that hard and was that loud, he would just quit hunting. He had used a 30-30 Win for deer hunting since he was a kid, he started deer hunting when his age was still a single digit. So, his choice was a $250 rifle vs. a $2500 rifle, good for me I guess, and he insisted that I take his M94 in exchange. I think this is the last critter he took with this rifle, a Texas speed goat.
I had the foresight to talk him into letting me put a skin on the stocks and that saved a lot of wear and tear on the rifle over its forty years of active use, I know my dad has killed several deer every year with it and hundreds of feral hogs.
The M94 Antique was a Saddle Ring Carbine (SRC) with a round, 20" barrel, full-length magazine tube, and a case hardened receiver with some light scrolling.
The cartridge has always interested me, especially for cast bullet use, because the gain over 35 Rem is that it has a longer case neck so heavier bullets can be used without intruding into the case below the shoulder. There is not any change in the case other than the 35 caliber neck meeting the existing shoulder angle which makes that shoulder very short and the neck longer.
I've had Lee make me some die sets over the years, but their prices have gotten high, it surprised me! Their website indicates that it would be a bit over $200 plus 12 weeks plus. So for the first time in decades, I bought a die set from another manufacturer. I called CH-4D on Monday, and a very pleasant gentleman pulled them from the self, I heard him, and $96 later the two die set was on the way. Once I form the required case samples, I will order an FCD from Lee along with the Case Length Gauge.
This project was supposed to start last year, but I was a bit too busy last summer with my Mom's health issues. Those problems have stabilized so I should have time to dive into this. Once the rifle is returned, I will immediately drill & tap the barrel for the Redfield Jr. IER scout mount that I purchased last year. This base came as a complete kit with the tools. The base itself uses a pillar mount in the rear sight dovetail plus three additional screws into the barrel. The Jr. mounts were pretty near as they have an adjustable integral rear sight that is regulated for the existing front sight. I also plan on refinishing the stocks.
I sent an M94 30-30 Win off to JES for the rebore and rechamber. The donor rifle is one that my dad gave me in trade for a Glenfield. It is a 1966 M94 Antique SRC, which he bought from a discount store on sale for $25 in 1968. My dad is a one rifle guy and until the turn of the century, the only open sight deer hunter I've ever seen in South Texas to this date. By 2000, his eyes were bugging him, so I put a B-Square side mount on the rifle which worked well for a half a decade. Lucky for me, the mount used the existing thread holes on the receiver. Five years later, the side mount and his eyes were not working well, so I gave him my Glenfield 30GT. I tried to give him a better rifle, a Marlin 336ER chambered in 356 Win, but he threw a fit the first time he shot it. He said if he had shoot something that kicked that hard and was that loud, he would just quit hunting. He had used a 30-30 Win for deer hunting since he was a kid, he started deer hunting when his age was still a single digit. So, his choice was a $250 rifle vs. a $2500 rifle, good for me I guess, and he insisted that I take his M94 in exchange. I think this is the last critter he took with this rifle, a Texas speed goat.
I had the foresight to talk him into letting me put a skin on the stocks and that saved a lot of wear and tear on the rifle over its forty years of active use, I know my dad has killed several deer every year with it and hundreds of feral hogs.
The M94 Antique was a Saddle Ring Carbine (SRC) with a round, 20" barrel, full-length magazine tube, and a case hardened receiver with some light scrolling.
The cartridge has always interested me, especially for cast bullet use, because the gain over 35 Rem is that it has a longer case neck so heavier bullets can be used without intruding into the case below the shoulder. There is not any change in the case other than the 35 caliber neck meeting the existing shoulder angle which makes that shoulder very short and the neck longer.
I've had Lee make me some die sets over the years, but their prices have gotten high, it surprised me! Their website indicates that it would be a bit over $200 plus 12 weeks plus. So for the first time in decades, I bought a die set from another manufacturer. I called CH-4D on Monday, and a very pleasant gentleman pulled them from the self, I heard him, and $96 later the two die set was on the way. Once I form the required case samples, I will order an FCD from Lee along with the Case Length Gauge.
This project was supposed to start last year, but I was a bit too busy last summer with my Mom's health issues. Those problems have stabilized so I should have time to dive into this. Once the rifle is returned, I will immediately drill & tap the barrel for the Redfield Jr. IER scout mount that I purchased last year. This base came as a complete kit with the tools. The base itself uses a pillar mount in the rear sight dovetail plus three additional screws into the barrel. The Jr. mounts were pretty near as they have an adjustable integral rear sight that is regulated for the existing front sight. I also plan on refinishing the stocks.
