SKS or 30-30 Lever Action?

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - SKS or 30-30 Lever Action?

Posted: 1/17/2011 9:17:26 AM EDT

I'm trying to decide which cheap rifle to leave up at my cabin. My choices are my SKS Para or a Marlin 336 30-30. I want one that will be good for hunting if needed or home defense. Something to leave up there and not overly worry about if it gets stolen (if they can find it). My 30-30 is more accurate but the SKS obviously has higher capacity and removable mags. Opinions?

Posted: 1/17/2011 9:25:54 AM EDT

[#1]

SKS. Reloads faster, round similar in ballistics to the 30-30....probably faster ROF....accurate enough for hunting and certainly for HD.

id make sure its not something that COULD be stolen.

its no good if another gun ends up stolen and used in a crime. We dont need more bad publicity. It would take literally hours for someone to successfully steal any of my stuff. Take the proper precautions and theft can be prevented.

Posted: 1/17/2011 9:41:56 AM EDT

[#2]

between the two, I'd go 30-30. I own both, but for the hunting aspect, the 30-30 336 is a much better rifle. In a home defense situation I would have no problme using my 336 either

Posted: 1/20/2011 8:49:42 AM EDT

[#3]

Good chrome lined Norinco SKS. Faster on the trigger and reload. Keep it lubed up and keep 500 rounds of Wolf 123gr HP on duty. Pick up some 125gr soft points for hunting.

Posted: 1/20/2011 12:30:56 PM EDT

[#4]

SKS for sure.

7.62x39 is cheaper (if you're not reloading)
sks is faster between shots
sks is faster to reload by a long margin if you have ammo on stripper clips
sks is cheaper

Posted: 1/20/2011 3:30:35 PM EDT

[#5]

Between those two for what you want, I would go with the 336.

Posted: 1/20/2011 6:20:01 PM EDT

[#6]

I have 4 sks's but have not shot the marlin but if like a win 92. no hands down on the sks.

Posted: 1/20/2011 7:03:45 PM EDT

[#7]

For home defense nothing beats a reliable semi-auto centerfire rifle or shotgun. Nothing.

Under just the stress of friendly competition I've watched guys short-stroke pumps, fuck up lever-actions all the place, forget to work bolt-actions, etc....

All of the sunny-day range guys and forum bandits will probably blather on about the effectiveness of one caliber vs another being the most important thing and it's really not. Whatever the biggest caliber you are comfortable with putting as many rounds on target with while scared out of your freakin' mind is what matters.

Unless you're seriously trained and/or have been in a bunch of firefights, your capacity to do even simple tasks is greatly diminished under life and death type stress. Working most lever actions reliably probably isn't in that capacity.

There's a reason armies around the world have adopted various semi or fully auto rifles.

So, SKS, no questions. And you can still reliably kill game with it out to 200 yards or beyond if you get a good rifle and practice a ton with it.

Posted: 1/20/2011 7:29:01 PM EDT

[#8]

Since you already have the SKS I would go with that and add a Mosin Nagant and a couple of boxes of good hunting ammo. Mosin's are $70 or so at AIM. 7.62x39 works fine down here, our deer are on the small size. You folks up north tend to have what we would call monster size deer. I would not use 7.62x39 on the deer I've seen hanging in customers garages in northern Michigan. The south side of the lake not the UP.

Posted: 1/20/2011 8:09:03 PM EDT

[#9]

SKS. Chrome lined bore. You can also pull the trigger group out and hide it to make the gun non working. Less likely for someone to steal if it does not work.

Posted: 1/20/2011 9:10:11 PM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
SKS. Reloads faster, round similar in ballistics to the 30-30....probably faster ROF....accurate enough for hunting and certainly for HD.

id make sure its not something that COULD be stolen.

its no good if another gun ends up stolen and used in a crime. We dont need more bad publicity. It would take literally hours for someone to successfully steal any of my stuff. Take the proper precautions and theft can be prevented.

Have to disagree with the part in red. 170gr bullet will penetrate better than 124gr.

Having said that, I'd take the SKS.

Posted: 1/20/2011 9:32:27 PM EDT

[#11]

Quoted:

Quoted:
SKS. Reloads faster, round similar in ballistics to the 30-30....probably faster ROF....accurate enough for hunting and certainly for HD.

id make sure its not something that COULD be stolen.

its no good if another gun ends up stolen and used in a crime. We dont need more bad publicity. It would take literally hours for someone to successfully steal any of my stuff. Take the proper precautions and theft can be prevented.

Have to disagree with the part in red. 170gr bullet will penetrate better than 124gr.

Having said that, I'd take the SKS.

Hopefully that 170grn bullet is flat nosed so it can even be used on the mag tube of a lever action.

Posted: 1/20/2011 9:40:54 PM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:

Quoted:
SKS. Reloads faster, round similar in ballistics to the 30-30....probably faster ROF....accurate enough for hunting and certainly for HD.

id make sure its not something that COULD be stolen.

its no good if another gun ends up stolen and used in a crime. We dont need more bad publicity. It would take literally hours for someone to successfully steal any of my stuff. Take the proper precautions and theft can be prevented.

Have to disagree with the part in red. 170gr bullet will penetrate better than 124gr.

Having said that, I'd take the SKS.

on soft targets, its similar enough ballistics

theres probably 100 different similar threads on the first few pages of google covering this topic at great length.

just one of them

i wouldnt say the ballistic difference between the two rounds would sway my decision one way or another.....I think it really comes down to the firearm itself in this case.

Posted: 1/21/2011 12:31:37 PM EDT

[#13]

SKS.

Faster to shoot (semi-vs-lever and less recoil to boot), faster to reload, little difference in power, plenty accurate, no question of reliability.

Posted: 1/21/2011 4:03:03 PM EDT

[#14]

Hornady 7.62x39 at 300yds = 1500fps/616lb-ft energy and -14.8

Hornady 30-30(160gr LeveRevolution) at 300yds = 1700fps/1025lb-ft energy and -12.1

I'd go with the 30-30.

Hornady does load their SST bullets in the 7.62x39 which is pretty sweet but also makes it more expensive.

Posted: 1/21/2011 9:47:05 PM EDT

[#15]

Why not a Marlin 1894?

.357 and .44spcl/.44mag are useful hunting rounds in many areas. Good for HD too, and with a higher capacity than the .30-30

What about a shotgun? A basic 870 with a slug barrel and smooth barrel package are pretty cheap. 12ga or 20ga, your the boss with either load.

Posted: 1/27/2011 10:14:26 AM EDT

[#16]

As someone who has a marlin 336 .30-30 and can extoll the virtues of it as a deer/brush gun, but I have to go with the sks on this one even though I've never held one, much less fired one.

If someone comes on my property and is threatening me and/or my family I want to have the ability to throw as much lead downrange as is necessary.

I've tried figuring a way to load a lever gun in the time it takes to load a semi-auto with stripper clips and I haven't found an effective way to do it.

Posted: 1/27/2011 7:16:08 PM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:
I want one that will be good for hunting if needed or home defense.
My 30-30 is more accurate

Seems you answered your own question.

I have both, and the only time I pick the SKS over the 336 is if I just want to plink.

Posted: 1/27/2011 7:32:48 PM EDT

[#18]

Given the choice between the two, I'd take the .30-30.

You mention not worrying if it's stolen. Bad attitude to have, as another member has already mentioned. My first question is why leave it there? It's not doing you any good if you aren't there, and how hard is it to toss it in your vehicle when you are going there?

I'd never leave a firearm around where it could be stolen, even if it was one of the beat up, ratty looking 12ga single shots I paid $20 for. It's not the value, it's what some shitbag criminal could do with it.

Posted: 1/27/2011 8:47:37 PM EDT

[#19]

You can find a "carried alot, shot a little" Marlin cheaper than a chicom sks.

You can mount a scope/red dot or whatever optic a lot easier than an sks

you are supporting the USA by buying a Marlin

you are guaranteed to find 30-30 in any little rinky-dink gun shop

you can "topoff" a marlin, you cannot do the same as easily to an sks

Posted: 1/27/2011 9:23:12 PM EDT

[#20]

*I* would have to choose the 30-30. I've been shooting and handling leverguns for about 35 years now. Assuming that it would likely be dark when I need this rifle, *I* would be 100% comfortable with a Winchester or Marlin lever gun. Not so with an SKS.

But I wouldn't choose a 30-30 anyway, my choice would be a 16 inch Win 92 or clone in 357 Magnum.

Posted: 1/28/2011 9:41:59 AM EDT

[#21]

SKS. Pull the bolt and carrier, hide them well in case of theft.

Posted: 1/28/2011 9:44:29 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:
SKS. Chrome lined bore. You can also pull the trigger group out and hide it to make the gun non working. Less likely for someone to steal if it does not work.

Good advice, I did that when I couldn't afford a safe, also my Garand.

Posted: 1/28/2011 12:41:08 PM EDT

[#23]

SKS

Posted: 1/28/2011 2:42:57 PM EDT

[#24]

336

Posted: 1/28/2011 10:37:13 PM EDT

[#25]

Quoted:

You mention not worrying if it's stolen. Bad attitude to have, as another member has already mentioned.

Exactly.

Posted: 2/1/2011 6:28:16 AM EDT

[#26]

any old cheap 30-30 from a yard sale is a great candidate for a trunk gun.... I think half the people in NH have one hanging in the back widow of a pick-up truck. ammo can be found in most any country store. mine lays on the floor behind the front seat of the car most of the time, box of ammo in the console between the seats. never given a thought to it being stolen.... don"t care.

Posted: 2/1/2011 6:36:38 AM EDT

[#27]

In this "one vs the other" debate, I would choose whichever I shot best. I could care less about the action type for the nature of what you are describing.

Both will poke holes and collect meat quite readily. I would choose the one I shot best and worry about other things, like finding an out of sight storage spot that is less likely to be discovered, for when I was not at the cabin.

Posted: 2/1/2011 1:50:25 PM EDT

[#28]

Quoted:

Quoted:
I want one that will be good for hunting if needed or home defense.
My 30-30 is more accurate

Seems you answered your own question.

I have both, and the only time I pick the SKS over the 336 is if I just want to plink.

same here. have both and would go with the 336

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - SKS or 30-30 Lever Action?

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