A Tale of Two Thirties

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“A Tale of Two Thirties”

Collecting and shooting vintage thirty-caliber rifles are the prime activities covered here. The group of “old thirties” that we like includes the .30-30 Winchester, the .30-40 Krag, the .30-06 Springfield, the .300 Savage, the .308 Winchester (Yes, the .308 has been around long enough to qualify as an old thirty), and maybe a couple of others when I get around to them. These are the thirties that dominated the sporting and military scene throughout the twentieth century. We like to test factory loads and handloads for thirty-caliber rifles. We like the classic rifles, and we also have a taste for plain or obscure pieces, largely forgotten, that are sometimes found to perform at a high level. After that, be they bolts, levers, single shots, or semi-autos, we like them all.

If you are interested in firearms and you like to read, then I think you will enjoy what we have to offer at this site.

Pure Content

Every article and post concerned with collecting and shooting vintage thirty-caliber rifles is an original essay written by an individual firearms enthusiast (that is me) with content arising from personal experience with the arms and ammo described. Every group reported has been shot by this single individual using guns and ammo provided by his personal resources. There is no advertising on this site, and there will be no reprints of articles from other sources, no guest editorials, and no promotional material, except that I will reference useful background material in the shooting literature, when appropriate. I will sometimes write about and test new products, mainly ammunition, to put them in context with what has gone before. I will also not hesitate to tell you what I like and what has given good results in shooting trials.

Shooting Results are Featured

There are plenty of places to read descriptions of guns, but not nearly as many places to read accounts of the shooting of vintage thirty-caliber rifles or of trials that evaluate some aspect of rifle shooting. Here at A Tale of Two Thirties we shoot ‘em, because we want to find out how they do and then write about it. We love to shoot factory loads and handloads, both. Shooting the old thirties also involves the care and accuracy tuning of the rifles, sight and target design and use, and shooting technique. In other words, all aspects of safely putting a .30-caliber bullet in a target are on the table. Quite often the shooting strategy will involve comparison of two or more items, for example, two different rifles, two different cartridges, or two different loads. Hence, many projects result in “A Tale of Two Thirties.”

In this milieu of the thirties we will also occasionally insert a variety piece. Thus, you might see something about handguns, shotguns, or a personal experience of the author of this site. Just something you get in the output of a long-term gun nut. In choosing this title for my site, I mean no disrespect to that master novelist, Charles Dickens. I could never hope to come close to his use of the English language. It is just a play on words that I hope will catch a bit of attention.

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