[7mmRUM]

My 9 year old son really wants a lever gun as his first deer rifle. I have a 45-70, not a good starter so i am looking at a 30-30, but was wondering what the recoil of the 32 sp is compared to the 30-30,
Thanks!

 

[rbyham]

The same with 170gn. The 30-30 with 125 or 130gn bullets is less.

 

[Littlemarlin]

Very mild and not noticeably different than a .30-30. Should be excellent for a 9 year old. Long live the .32 Special!

 

[woodtick007]

I would not buy your boy a 32 special.... the reasons are that 32 special ammo is more costly and much harder to find.... Your son can buy 30-30 virtually anywhere from a mom and pop grocery store in the middle of nowwhere to any place that sells guns and ammo. Chances are that you can pull out the junk drawer at your hunting camp and find one or two 30-30 rounds....they might not be pretty but one pull of the trigger and "brown goes down".

 

[358 Win]

Yea but everybody knows the .32 Win Special is "SPECIAL". Ammo is not hard to find for the .32 Specia here in NE PA, but the .32 Special was one of the more popular lever action rounds here in my neck of the woods. Yes the ammo is more expensive but not to the point that the average non reloader can't afford a box or two every year. Recoil for the 170gr load in 30-30 and the .32 Special are practically identical. I have
three 30-30's and four .32 Specials so I'm somewhat familiar with both. I shoot cast bullets in both and the .32 Special is the hands down winner
as far as accuracy goes with cast. Pick a powder, load up some cast bullets in the .32 Special and an accurate load is easy to fine. It has been
the best cartridge to immediately get a great cast load. Plus Hornady loads the FTX bullet in the .32 Special just like the 30-30 except it is five
grains heavier in the .32 Special. Killed a nice doe with the FTX factory 165gr load in 2009. Bang flop.
358 Win

 

[BR549]

There is nothing wrong with loading the 45-70 so he can shoot it. Buy some lead 405gr. bullets and use 25grs. of 2400 powder in the case of your choice. It's mild recoiling and quite accurate. He will be able to shoot that combo as well as the 30-30.

 

[City Slicker]

I would not buy your boy a 32 special....

That's right leave them all for me. ;D I love them. Really, the only slight disadvantage is fewer places carry 32 ammo, but I wouldn't let that stop me if I found one at a reasonable price. Since you're a member on MO you know you're gonna reload if you don't already. Components are readily available. My hunting buddy started his daughter on one (my 336A) and she really shot it well.

Edit add....the load we started her on was the standard 170gr bullet over 28grs of IMR3031. We never ran it over a chrony, just guessing 1900fps out of the 24 inch barrel.

 

[woodtick007]

32 is difficult to find and more costly now..........for the past couple years its almost been impossible to locate. I was at a Meijer's here in Michigan today...they had 80 boxes of 30-30 in both 150 and 170gr for $12.99 a box....they had 9 boxes of 35 Rem in 200gr for $24.99 and there was a slot that said 32 Special for $19.99....there were 0 boxes and a big red sticker that said "discontinued". Do you think the boy will have an easier time finding 32 special in twenty years when the boy is 30 years old? There is virtually no gain in the 32 over the 30-30 so why advise a man get his boy something that brings nothing to the table other than additional ammo cost and the possible drama of the young man not being able to pickup a box of ammo near his hunting camp because he forgot his two boxed on the bedroom dresser before he left.... Doo Doo happens.

 

[wreckhog]

Factory 45-70 405's kick the same as factory 30-30s. Neither is ideal for someone that has never shot before, but are certainly manageable if you work up to it.

 

[bigjeepman]

My 9 year old son really wants a lever gun as his first deer rifle. I have a 45-70, not a good starter so i am looking at a 30-30, but was wondering what the recoil of the 32 sp is compared to the 30-30,
Thanks!

Like quite a few of our members, I have introduced a pretty large number of new shooters to my favorite pastime. Not knowing how much shooting your nine year old son has done and with what rifles, it is a little difficult to make any suggestions. I introduced a ten year old boy to shooting a few years back that was darn near as big as I am. After three trips to the range using only .22 rifles, I let him shoot my .243 Ruger M77 all weather coyote rifle. He handled it as well as a .22. I have also had other ten year olds that were still only shooting .22 rifles a year later because I recommended to their parents, I just didn't think they were ready for more.

I have a nine year old nephew that I started on shooting last summer and he is still limited to .22 rifles. He weighs a grand total of 59 lbs. Should he be shooting a 30-30 or a 45/70 already? I think not in his situation. My plan is to start letting him shoot my 1894 CB .357 rifle later this year if he can handle the weight of the rifle very well shooting free hand.

I'm no professional instructor and these are just my opinions. I think every young shooter should go at "their" capable pace.

Here is a recoil table for you to refer to showing comparisons ...
http://www.chuckhawks.com/recoil_table.htm



bjm

 

[358 Win]

Oh, but that's what makes handloading such a wonderful hobby!! Twenty years down the road the young man will have something not everyone has. As far as components go, at the very least it might get him into casting his own. One pass thru the .32 Special die and 30-30 brass becomes viable .32 Special brass. Everybody and I mean everybody has a 30-30! The .32 Special is a caliber not everyone has so it's not plain
jane vanilla. I'm going to be 60 years old next birthday and I didn't own a 30-30 or 30-06 until 2005. Just always thought, what the heck, every
body has one, too much plain jane vanilla for me. Nothing at all wrong with the 30-30, or 30-06, just never warmed my cackles. Now I have three 30-30's and two 30-06's. Kinda that's why I have such a passion for the .358 Win , .35 Whelen, and .350 Rem Magnum. Just a wee bit out
of the ordinary, but more effective than most hunting calibers. There just is not any viable reason to advise against a certain caliber unless it is
impossible to keep the rifle shooting, and the .32 Win Special certainly does not fall into that category. Same as advice not to buy a certain kind
of automobile. I like Chevys, you like Fords, he like's Dodges, ad infinitum. Neither argument holds any water.
358 Win

 

[blue today]

I love the 30-30. If I was you would get him one. I also own a 32 and agree with everone here about finding ammo. There are more bullet choices for the 30-30. I will get me another 30-30 Marlin when I come across a good deal.

 

[Marlin32]

Fantastic option for the young lad. Recoil is not noticeably different than the 30/30, in fact in my 336A 32, it is heavier and less recoil than the carbine 30/30.

AND it is still a very viable deer killer!!! Not sacrificing anything.

Don't worry about bullet availability. Good grief. Buy 5 or 6 boxes first time you can, will last him forever. I wouldn't choose a gun based on ammo availability. More important things to worry about.

If you load your own, even better for the lad.

But I hate to see him get hooked on the 32 Special, one more person I have to compete with one buying craze hits me.

 

[35REMSHOOTER]

Plenty of 32spl. ammo here in Pa, Cabelas always has it....ya just can't wait till the week before deer season opens to buy it.
Actually it harder to find 35 Rem. ammo here the 32 spl.
I love the 32spl., shot my first deer with it in 71

 

[papabear]

I'm with Bigjeepman on this one. Forget the .45-70 until the kid gets some experience and size. Many long years ago, my 110# bride was routinely wanting to shoot my shotgun, an Ithica Featherweight @6.75#. I had always fed it 1 oz dove loads for her. One day, for some reason I didn't want to take time for her to shoot, she insisted, I slipped a short magnum in the gun and handed it to her. Not only was that cruel, but the experience ruined a budding bird hunting companion. She has not fired a firearm of any kind since. Bring the young man along slowly. He can tell you when he is ready for more horsepower. Best Wishes, Jack

 

[35REMSHOOTER]

I'm with Bigjeepman on this one. Forget the .45-70 until the kid gets some experience and size. Many long years ago, my 110# bride was routinely wanting to shoot my shotgun, an Ithica Featherweight @6.75#. I had always fed it 1 oz dove loads for her. One day, for some reason I didn't want to take time for her to shoot, she insisted, I slipped a short magnum in the gun and handed it to her. Not only was that cruel, but the experience ruined a budding bird hunting companion. She has not fired a firearm of any kind since. Bring the young man along slowly. He can tell you when he is ready for more horsepower. Best Wishes, Jack

I know the feeling when I was about 9 my Uncle handed me his pre-64 Model 70 30-06 with a steel butt plate,it was summer had on just a T-shirt MAN!! till this day 45 years later when I hear the word 30-06 I my shoulder twitches.

 

[CJ-5]

You could buy up 500 rounds of 32 Special and give them with the gun - kinda like a US Savings Bond for shooting. Or when he is 30 and I am 72 he can PM me, or e-mail, or whatever we will be using then to communicate, and I will load him a box or 2.

 

[bigjeepman]

I know the feeling when I was about 9 my Uncle handed me his pre-64 Model 70 30-06 with a steel butt plate,it was summer had on just a T-shirt MAN!! till this day 45 years later when I hear the word 30-06 I my shoulder twitches.

Now that is funny ;D. But as funny as it is, it happens too often.

I'm with Bigjeepman on this one. Forget the .45-70 until the kid gets some experience and size. Many long years ago, my 110# bride was routinely wanting to shoot my shotgun, an Ithica Featherweight @6.75#. I had always fed it 1 oz dove loads for her. One day, for some reason I didn't want to take time for her to shoot, she insisted, I slipped a short magnum in the gun and handed it to her. Not only was that cruel, but the experience ruined a budding bird hunting companion. She has not fired a firearm of any kind since. Bring the young man along slowly. He can tell you when he is ready for more horsepower. Best Wishes, Jack

Sorry to hear that happened Jack ... but we all kind of "live and learn." It might just be possible it wasn't totally your fault and shooting was never meant for her. My wife has shot exactly three shots out of a 10/22 Ruger and will not go shooting with me no matter what I promise her :

bjm

 

[City Slicker]

Do you think the boy will have an easier time finding 32 special in twenty years when the boy is 30 years old? There is virtually no gain in the 32 over the 30-30 so why advise a man get his boy something that brings nothing to the table other than additional ammo cost and the possible drama of the young man not being able to pickup a box of ammo near his hunting camp because he forgot his two boxed on the bedroom dresser before he left.... Doo Doo happens.

I understand this logic completely...but it's not a deal breaker. I own 2 .32spl's and a third is in the mail as I type. I have never run out of ammo. Killed two deer last year with factory ammo. I know 30-30 ammo is cheaper and more plentiful, but if I applied that logic to my shooting I'd have to get rid of half my rifles. I'd buy the boy a .32 and tell him both he and his rifle are "Speicial". ;D

 

[woodtick007]

You could buy up 500 rounds of 32 Special and give them with the gun - kinda like a US Savings Bond for shooting. Or when he is 30 and I am 72 he can PM me, or e-mail, or whatever we will be using then to communicate, and I will load him a box or 2.
[/quot

Why don't you be a standup guy and load the boy 500 rounds and send it to the father....that way we won't have to worry about PM's or email or whatever...Just send it to them in a good ole USPS box....