The Best Lever-Action Cartridge You’ve Never Heard Of

Ken Waters was one such designer. A gun author whose 50-year profession included 4 books and lots of of articles in magazines like Gun Digest, Waters was the quintessential gun man. In 1976 he got down to enhance upon the .30-30 by necking down the cartridge to just accept a 7mm bullet, and by 1984 the 7-30 Waters was born.

The 7-30 Waters is a captivating cartridge tailored for lever-action rifles. In some circumstances, it even beats out the .30-30 Winchester. Nevertheless it didn’t garner a lot business success within the 80’s, and right now many hunters have by no means heard of it. Ought to it stay in obscurity, or does it deserve a re-assessment? Hold studying, and you’ll resolve for your self.

Waters’ purpose with the 7-30 was to offer lever-gun hunters a bullet with extra velocity, higher trajectory, and extra long-range killing energy than the .30-30. He used the .30-30 because the father or mother case (presumably to offer handloaders a straightforward method to acquire brass), however he necked it down to just accept a 7mm bullet. He additionally elevated the shoulder angle from 15 levels to 17 levels and moved that shoulder ahead to extend case capability.

The result’s a cartridge that appears so much like a .30-30 however contains a lighter, narrower bullet and barely extra case capability. Waters’ unique design used a 139-grain bullet touring 2,600 feet-per-second (fps), which is about 200 fps sooner than the .30-30’s 150-grain bullet.

In 1984, Winchester launched a Mannequin 94 lever motion rifle in Waters’ cartridge, which coincided with the discharge of Federal’s manufacturing unit load. Federal engineers made just a few dimensional adjustments and opted for a 120-grain bullet, however they retained Waters’ unique imaginative and prescient: that gentle, 7mm bullet hit speeds of two,700 fps from a 24-inch barrel.

The consequence was certainly a cartridge that may produce extra velocity and a flatter trajectory than the .30-30. For instance, these 150-grain .30-30 masses go away the muzzle at 2,390 fps, and drop 6.5 inches at 200 yards and 15 inches at 250 yards. Federal’s present 120-grain 7-30 Waters providing, against this, drops about two inches at 150 yards, 5 inches at 200 yards, and 12 inches at 250 yards.

The distinction isn’t huge, however since each bullets carry sufficient vitality to take down a deer-sized animal at every distance, hunters would possibly fairly desire a bullet that requires much less holdover.

The 7-30 Waters produces extra velocity and a flatter trajectory, however its greatest promoting level is that it does each whereas producing much less felt recoil. That is at all times talked about in accounts of the cartridge. Writing in his well-known tome, “Cartridge of the World,” Frank C. Barnes opines that “the sunshine recoil of this cartridge makes it a superb alternative for a lady, boy, or anybody who’s recoil delicate.” Phillip Massaro additionally notes in “American Hunter” that “many writers of that period touted the brand new cartridge for its delicate recoil, permitting a youthful hunter to precisely place his or her pictures.”

Little or no recoil information exists on the almost defunct cartridge, however what is on the market seems to verify this popularity. Chuck Hawks recoil desk notes {that a} 120-grain 7-30 Waters produces about 10 ft.-lbs. of recoil vitality whereas a 150-grain .30-30 kicks with 10.6 ft.-lbs. That is no nice shakes, however the 7-30 rifle utilized in testing clocked in at 7 kilos, whereas the .30-30 weighed 7.5 kilos. That places the Waters even farther forward within the recoil class, and that lead grows even bigger once we begin speaking about 160- and 170-grain .30-30 masses.

With a flatter trajectory and milder recoil, the 7-30 Waters appeared destined to exchange the venerable previous Winchester in America’s deer woods. Nevertheless it had a deadly flaw. That larger velocity may solely be achieved with a 24-inch barrel. A giant promoting level of a lever-gun is its quick total size and simple maneuverability within the woods. Weapons designed to get probably the most out of the 7-30 Waters have been longer than those who Large Woods hunters most popular, which is a significant cause it failed to realize a lot traction.

“Nearly all of .30-30 lever-action shooters desire the quick carbine, since most are woods hunters,” Barnes explains. “The 7-30, with its gentle 120-grain bullet, is unlikely to finest the .30-30, .32 Particular, .38-55, and so on., with pictures at shut vary. Additionally, it isn’t going to be the reply for the long-range plains or mountain hunter. When fired from a 20-inch barrel, its efficiency is significantly diminished.”

One more reason the Waters by no means actually caught on is that Winchester solely produced a Mannequin 94 chambered within the 7-30 for 4 years between 1984 and 1988. It’s unclear whether or not the Waters would have continued to realize recognition if factory-new rifles had remained accessible, however the bigwigs at Winchester apparently didn’t see sufficient upside after three years to proceed manufacturing.

It is a commonplace Winchester Mannequin 94, however the one one chambered in 7-30 Waters was the XTR-AE.

The explanations the 7-30 Waters failed are apparent sufficient, however an argument can nonetheless be made for the previous (former) wildcat as a superb lever gun cartridge.

Its gentle recoil is a significant promoting level. There’s nothing higher than a soft-shooting lever gun, and restricted recoil can permit even a novice hunter to make an correct, moral shot.

The 7-30 would additionally shine on the sorts of landscapes the place many, if not most, hunters pursue sport. Jap hunters would possibly spend a whole season within the woods, and western hunters want higher long-range functionality. However many pursue whitetail on properties that embody a mixture of shut and open nation. The Waters’ capability to succeed in out to 200 yards is helpful for a shot throughout a pasture, whereas the lighter, 7mm bullets aren’t overkill at shut vary. These rifle-length barrels are rather less handy than carbines, however they’re not completely unmanageable at quick distances.

“The 7-30 is at its finest in damaged nation, with pictures various from patches of brush and timber to open areas with pictures starting from 75 to 175 yards,” Barnes explains.

The Waters nonetheless lives on right now, however maybe not within the kind its inventor initially envisioned.

After Winchester stopped manufacturing of their 7-30 Mannequin 94, one of many solely corporations to take up the quirky cartridge was Thompson/Heart of their Contender line of single-shot break-action pistols. These firearms permit hunters to make use of pointed bullets, and though the shorter barrels don’t reap the benefits of the 7-30’s ballistic potential, its gentle recoil makes it a pleasant possibility for handgun hunters.

For manufacturing unit ammo, these Federal masses talked about above are just about the one sport on the town (Hornady used to supply the 7-30 of their LEVERevolution line, however they don’t presently checklist it on their web site). In case you aren’t capable of finding manufacturing unit masses on-line, it’s straightforward sufficient to handload with a set of dies and a few fire-formed .30-30 brass.

The 7-30 Waters didn’t revolutionize the lever-gun house, but it surely nonetheless represents what makes gun and cartridge designers nice: a relentless pursuit of higher, sooner, and simpler within the discipline. In case you’re fortunate sufficient to come upon a Mannequin 94 within the 7-30 Waters, don’t let it slip by your fingers. You gained’t discover a extra nice rifle to shoot, and it’ll take the largest buck within the woods.