Help me decide PLEASE!!!

[MoMan]

Bear with me here Folks, this REALLY does have to do with handloading.

O.K., I already have a Rossi M92 in 45lc and love it. I came across an opportunity to buy a 1951 Marlin 336 Waffle Top, in 30/30. I really want to buy this rifle, but am apprehensive about the reloading for it.
Ya' see, I have been loading for handguns for years, but never got into the rifle reloading. I half thought about getting a 357 lever gun just so I don't have to change my ways. I haven't had to trim any of my handgun brass yet.

Am I over thinking this? Is reloading for rifle really the mystery I am making it? I did some reloading years ago for 308, but I don't remember having to trim my cases. That was over 30 years ago, and I was loading with a hand loader.

Can someone PLEASE help to set me straight? Incidetally, I have a new 308 bolt action that I would love to load for now as well!!

Thanks in advance for any help you Folks can give.

[Moon Tree]

Just do it. Handloading rifle ammo isn't difficult. I load .270 and .243. So what if you need to trim the cases. Buy a case trimmer. I have an inexpensive hand crank trimmer. I usually trim all my .357 and .45 colts so that they are the length for consistent seating and crimping. Even new brass will vary a little.

[Archer]

I started out reloading .45 ACP and .30-30.
Neither is hard to reload for and the differences between .45 ACP and .45 Colt are mostly crimp related.
You will get fewer reloads out of the brass for .30-30 than the .45 Colt, especially if you try to run max power loads.
If you keep the loads medium warm the brass will last a while.

Key to .30-30 is trimming to a consistent length and uniform chamfering so you can get a consistent crimp. The brass tends to be a bit thin so too much crimp will buckle the case if you are using a traditional crimp die. The Lee Factory Crimp Collet Die is a bit more forgiving.
Toss the brass when:
1) It cracks
2) There's not enough neck tension to hold the bullets in place against spring compression in the mag tube 3) The brass thins above the head (I check for this mostly on semi auto rifles with a paper clip scratcher on the inside f the case)
4) Any evidence of burn through (very rare unless you miss 3 above)
5) If the primer pocket becomes too loose to reliably hold the primer.
6) If you decide to ditch a batch or lot as showing too many signs of wearing out and start with a fresh batch.

.30-30 kicks a bit more than .45 Colt unless you are pushing magnum level loads in the Colt.

[Ranch Dog]

I reload all kinds of stuff, I think a total of 27 different cartridges. I treat all my rifles the same, whether they are bottlenecked or straight wall. Yeap, 357 Mag for the 92 and 30-30 Win treated the same; cases lubed for sizing, trimmed, primer pocket prep, Collet Factory Crimp Die; the whole lot. It is just not that big of deal and it involves little to no time.

I started this with a Lee Loader many years ago but I still have a Loader for every rifle cartridge I shoot. You didn't say what kind of equipment you are using now but that isn't much of a deal. Trimming isn't a big deal either if you use the Lee Case Trimmers.

I'm a Lee guy and their 2017 Catalog explains how it everything works, it is worth downloading and reading. Page 27 has a list of rifle cartridges and part numbers for the various tools used with each specific cartridge. Might as well look at both Winchesters; 30-30 & 308! I wouldn't jump to that, start at the first and see how it all works. If the Lee stuff interest you, Titan is a top notch place to buy.

I taught my grandson to reload before he was four. Fact is ,he was reloading my 357 Mag 92 rifle ammo! I never let him work alone but he also didn't make mistakes like I've seen adults make. I guess that is because he started without any preconceived notions and just followed a simple plan. I also taught a young man to reload for his new Marlin 336Y when he was 8 using the Lee Loader but he progressed to a press when he was 9. He was a small framed kid and needed reduced recoil ammo back when ammo was tough to find, even the 30-30 Win. This young man is in high school now and has an impressive amount of hunting, shooting, & reloading experience which means that he a very disciplined fellow. It is amazing what this stuff will teach an individual. Anyway, nothing to worry about. Dive in!

[Ohio3Wheels]

Not a mystery just a bit different. Sizer needs adjust correctly so you don't push the shoulder back, but with factory rifles and your own cases the advice to screw it down until is just contacts the shell holder should be good. Follow a good manual and work up your loads, lever guns by their nature will give you a little more case stretch than a bolt gun but with a new gun it shouldn't be a problem. I have a 336 in 35 Rem that I've had since 75 and I cant measure case stretch on it using a surface plate and a really good height gauge and it's probably had about 500 rounds through it over the years.

In short I don't believe loading bottle necks is any more difficult than straight walls just different. Either way it's fun.

Make smoke,

[rondog]

Just do it! 'Tain't no thang..... Ain't nothin' like holding a handful of beautiful, perfect rifle rounds that you made yourself!

[MoMan]

I passed on the rifle, just because my further inspection showed some serious pitting in the bore.

I REALLY appreciate everyone's replies on this. I think I am going to keep my eyes open for a Rossi M92 in 357 mag. I really like the Rossi 45lc I have.

To answer a couple of the questions asked: I am using a Lee Turret press, and all Lee equipment. I will download that catalog and read through it for the case trimming.

I'm sure I will be back here soon enough asking about a certain 357 lever gun. Thanks again for all the help, and guidance you guys provided.

[Ranch Dog]

I passed on the rifle, just because my further inspection showed some serious pitting in the bore.

I REALLY appreciate everyone's replies on this. I think I am going to keep my eyes open for a Rossi M92 in 357 mag. I really like the Rossi 45lc I have.

To answer a couple of the questions asked: I am using a Lee Turret press, and all Lee equipment. I will download that catalog and read through it for the case trimming.

I'm sure I will be back here soon enough asking about a certain 357 lever gun. Thanks again for all the help, and guidance you guys provided.

Being your eyeballing a 357 Mag you ought to consider any used Marlin in 35 Rem if it is to be a whitetail rifle. I have no doubt that this has to be the most under rated deer cartridge of our lifetime.

[Archer]

RD's probably right about the .35 Remington being under rated.

No doubt that's because Winchester and Marlin both have built many times the number of .30-30s compared to .35 Rem production. If you are looking for factory off the shelf ammo the .30-30 is probably the way to go. If you don't mind a little searching and/or mail order ammo is an option and most especially if you are reloading anyway the .35 starts to make sense.

The .30-30 will be a bit easier to find in both the rifle and the ammo though.

[MoMan]

This rifle won't be my deer rifle, I have that taken care of. This would just be a fun range gun. But then again, what gun isn't a fun range gun?

Thanks again for the suggestions. Now I have to go on a quest to find that "special" rifle.