I think ballistically the 30-30 will be superior, the case holds more gun powder. Pistol powder is fast and meant to burn in short barrels - to take advantage of a long barrel, rifles use more of slower burning powder. Max pressure is about the same. 170 gr cast pullets can be driven to about the same velocity as a copper bullet in the 30-30. 158 gr cast bullets are about the same story in the 357 Mag.

An advantage of the 357 Mag, is it's easily found in repeating pistols besides lever guns.

An easy check is to consult a good reloading book.

I'm not a fan of 357 but I like 44 Mag. Have S&W and a pos Win 94AE. Would like to have the Rem bolt gun 788.

45-70 comes in good lever actions. There are pistols, tho no double action ones I know of. I have a custom Mauser action bolt gun in 45-70.

If I was starting over the 460 S&W or 500 S&W perhaps the 454 Casell.

 

I like the .44 magnum carbine with 240 grain bullets out to about 100 yards, beyond that I like the 30-30 to about 150 or maybe 200 yards. As for the mention of powder in the "pistol" round, I hand load my .44 Magnum with H110, a slow burning powder that really pushes the heavy bullets at a pretty fast rate. (just not as fast as the 30-30)

Cycling the lever gun in .44 Magnum is a lot smoother and easier compared to a lever gun with 30-30.

 

Nothing inherently wrong with .357 in a rifle. However, leverevolution with FTX bullets is just another in a long line of Hornady Hoaxes. In similar weights the 30-30 is about 600 FPS faster than the .357.

 

At 1 time I owned all of the Winchester Trapper rifles, 357, 44 mag, 3030 I've only killed deer with the 3030 and the 44, I use 180 grain Corbon stuff in the 44 and keep the shots to under 100 yards . The 3030 I would use Hornady leverrevolution stuff and felt good enough for a 150 yard shot.
I'm my opinion the 44 mag was the hardest hitting round in a short rifle barrel
Sold the 357 and 3030 keeping the 44 for life

 

At 1 time I owned all of the Winchester Trapper rifles, 357, 44 mag, 3030 I've only killed deer with the 3030 and the 44, I use 180 grain Corbon stuff in the 44 and keep the shots to under 100 yards . The 3030 I would use Hornady leverrevolution stuff and felt good enough for a 150 yard shot.
I'm my opinion the 44 mag was the hardest hitting round in a short rifle barrel
Sold the 357 and 3030 keeping the 44 for life

I guess I should the reason I choose the Winchester Trapper in 44 mag is because my primary hunting setup is a S&W 629 in 44 mag and a lot of times I'll carry both the handgun and rifle if I'm stand hunting. 1 bullet for both is convenient.

 

The 30-30 has the ballistic advantage over the other 2 cartridges. The actual barrel length of the gun and the bullet design would have the greatest impact of which ever one was the best on game

If you're comparing all 16" Trapper style lever guns, none of them are really good for more than 125yds just because of accuracy or lack there of

The 30-30 is the flattest shooting of the 3 and has the better down range potential

Inside 100yds......pick one!

 

No, if you included the 357 MAX ( not Mag) then you would have something more to contemplate. But ballisticslly, the 30-30 has the lead in most every area over the 357Mag, even at longer barrel sizes. Plus, you need to consider other options available to the 30-30 if you don reload, like the availability of Hornady Leverevolution offerings.

357MAX can shoot 357Max, 357Mag and 38special. Legal to hunt mid-size game in states that allow straight-walled cases unlike the 30-30.

With 44mag, also a straight walled cartridge, you can also shoot 44special, if you can find it, otherwise reload. Also, can hunt mid-size game in states where straight-walled is the only option.

you may also want to consider 350-legend as well, if you want something in an AR platform. That is getting a lot of traction these days.

i like the 30-30. If you reload, you can use pointed projectiles and up the distance and performance of the 30-30. Plus there is the Hornady Leverevolution projectiles That Easily stretches it’s legs. Make sure you only use in a bolt or a single shot rifle For safety reasons If reloading with pointed projectiles (with exception of Hornady Leverevolution) ). if lever action, then make it always the first round in the chamber and NEVER a following round From cylinder, unless you have a magazine fed (not cylinder fed) lever action (think Savage Model 99 in 30-30).

it would help what the use of the caliber would be. If Home SD in a Carbine, Given the bullet types available today, I would lean 357 for the reasons stated above. If a designated deer rifle, the 30-30 is just fine And has possibly taken more deer than any other caliber available today. If I were in grizzly country and wanted both a side-arm and carbine in same caliber, it would be the 44mag.

 

I chose the .44 mag. Straight walled cartridges are a favorite in many states as being legal for hunting. I only needed to shoot 100 yds or so, mostly a lot closer. The shorter round means more in the tube, and faster cycling, so it could double as a defensive weapon in a pinch. In fact, I take mine with me when traveling to places unfriendly to ARs. I also did mine up like an AR with a red dot & a light...

 

I have killed deer and antelope with all 3 lever guns. The critters I shot with the pistol rounds died slow, I didn't do it again after a few sad experiences. Most critters I have shot with a 30-30 died quick, and I have shot way more animals with it.

 

Look up Paul Harrell on YouTube. He compares all these calibers in different length barrels. 30-30 is far superior to 44 mag and 44 mag is superior to 357.

 

The practical question then becomes how much does the ammo you want really cost and how available is it realistically going to be?

It's very easy to stock up on .357 and it goes full nukular in longer barrels and have its place.

Obviously, a pistol caliber carbine, or 30-30 for that matter, is never going to replace a real bolt action round.

 

Why not consider 45-70 government? Straight walled lever gun cartridge with ballistic advantages over 30-30

 

I like 357. It is my favorite round. I have a 357 lever gun. I carried it before I got my ruger 77. bolt action 357. Deer here in California don't get large and where Ilive there are few shots over 100 yard. 357 lever works fine. Bolt action works better. I have a 30-30 bolt action. I have shot wild boar with both rounds. the range was rather close. The pigs go right down. the hornady non lead projectile with the plastic tip works just fine. I don't have lever 30-30 as like bolts. If you have to get lever, you will like the 357. It also makes a nice jack rabbit rifle in the off season. A good fast jump and shoot rifle. I have a contender with a 21" barrel in 357 max. It is also a sweet carbine

 

 

All three are good at ranges below 100yards. That said, I have shot several hogs at short range with the 10mm. It's power is between the .357 and .44 but shoots much flatter than the others so aiming is easier. Being in hog country, I always carry a pistol as they may turn on you and my pistol is also a 10mm. I have a Witness Compact 10mm and a HiPoint 10mm rifle.

 

.357 gets a major velocity boost from a 20" barrel, exceeding 2000 fps with some loads. .44 mag tops out with a 16" with most loads. Rossi makes a very handy 16" carbine in .44 which is my favorite.

 

30-30 has another advantage, every mom and pop gas station in rural areas sells 30-30 ammo, 357/.44, not so much.
30-30 is a better deer cartridge than the other two.

SHTF is a different story, but there are better choices there too.

 

I don't have experience with 44 mag, but I shoot a 45 colt lever action with a 20" barrel and load it up close to 44 mag ballistics. I have killed deer with it and it is a hammer at close range. It takes less powder and has a longer case life than m 30-30, but takes more lead when casting bullets. It is a GREAT saddle gun.
I also shoot a 30-30, have for many years, and load for it as well. It is a great hunting round, and has more range when hunting. You can also find ammo (in normal times) at almost any store that carries any ammo at all.

If I had to choose only one or the other, I would personally choose a 30-30 over a pistol caliber carbine, for the way that I use one. I think it really depends on your primary use for it though.

 

I rebarrelled my Marlin 1894 with a 44 cal, heavy octogon barrel, with a fast twist deep rifling.

Then I modified the action to cycle a 44 mag case with a Sierra 300g JSP at 1.750" OAL.

Further, I used my throating reamer to push the throat out slightly, to keeep from jamming this bullet into the throat.

For those interested, the cylinder of a Ruger Redhawk and Blackhawk will also accept this same OAL.

 

Just my general experience and knowledge of ballistics.

.357 is weaker than .30 carbine out of a rifle.
.30 carbine is inferior to the AK47 7.62x39 caliber.
The .30-30 is generally ballistically comparable to the 7.62x39.

.357 won't penetrate, say, a soft ballistic level III vest, whereas a .30-30 will zip thru it.

Ergo a .357 is many steps beneath a .30-30.

Similar analysis to the .44 magnum.

Rifle calibers and pistol calibers are different animals.

 

Just my general experience and knowledge of ballistics.

.357 is weaker than .30 carbine out of a rifle.
.30 carbine is inferior to the AK47 7.62x39 caliber.
The .30-30 is generally ballistically comparable to the 7.62x39.

.357 won't penetrate, say, a soft ballistic level III vest, whereas a .30-30 will zip thru it.

Ergo a .357 is many steps beneath a .30-30.

Similar analysis to the .44 magnum.

Rifle calibers and pistol calibers are different animals.

The only thing I'll add to this is; The core and jacket material used for rifle bullets are sellected to control or even elliminate expansion.

The 30 carbine penetrates very well (even the non FMJ loads) despite its rather modest powder charge, because it was designed as a military rifle round. 357 mag bullets are designed for expansion at handgun velosities, so the REALLY EXPAND at 3-400 f/s faster out of a rifle barrel. These two have almost idendical powder charges, but behave very differently when shot out of a rifle.

The only exception to this is 44 mag. While it was originally designed by Keith to be a handgun hunting cartridge, the subsequent introduction of the 444 Marlin (and 445 SM) drove bullet development, and today a number of 44 cal rifle bullets are available to the handloader. In actual use, a 44 mag loaded with the 300g Sierra and shot out of a rifle, acts very much like a smaller version of the 45-70. It will fully penetrate almost any game, and is limited in use only by its modest muzzel velocity.

 

The only advantage of pistol calibers in a lever gun is more rounds in the magazine and the possibility of ammo commonality with a sidearm.

I'd say that if you plan on the vast majority of your shots being inside of 100 yards, a pistol caliber would be a very viable choice, especially if you may need to shoot high volumes. If you have to shoot further than that, or you just need more kinetic energy, I'd stick with a rifle caliber.

 

A .44 Magnum rifle with 300-grain bullet gets about 1450 fps from a 20-inch barrel. With line of sight with irons about an inch above bore, and 130 yard basic zero, max. height above trajectory is about 4 inches at 70 yards and max. point blank range 155 yards:

.44 Remington Magnum (Carbine Data), Cor-Bon JSP, 300gr

A	A	A	A
Range	Drop (inches)	Velocity	Energy
0	-0.9780	1450	1400
10	0.2596	1426	1354
20	1.3261	1403	1311
30	2.2159	1380	1268
40	2.9231	1358	1228
50	3.4417	1336	1189
60	3.7654	1315	1152
70	3.8881	1294	1115
80	3.8031	1274	1081
90	3.5040	1255	1049
100	2.9841	1236	1017
110	2.2366	1218	988
120	1.2548	1201	961
130	0.0318	1184	934
140	-1.4392	1168	909
150	-3.1653	1152	884
160	-5.1531	1138	863
170	-7.4096	1124	841
180	-9.9415	1110	821
190	-12.7555	1097	801
200	-15.8582	1085	784

 

Paper is really nice and it gives us a comparison point. But real life does make a difference. In my varmint days I could take out ground squirrels at 200 yards no problem. They had a chance at 300. Love my 22-250. now at 69 they have a chance at 200 yards. My eyes aren't what they used to be. Scope works but I have to see them first. A good rifle in 357 does what I need it to do within my limitations. I don't need to look farther. As to the 44 mag, had one, didn't like it. Sold the damn thing. I do have a bolt 30-30 and a savage 24, 30-30 over 20. 30-30 is fine but a little heavy to carry all day. When you look to your rifle consider all things. Not just paper.

 

Now that I think about it, I would be willing to trade my Marlin Glenfield 30-30 for a good 9mm rifle.

 

I don't think its even close. The 30-30 wins hands down. You have pistol rounds against a rifle round. Let pistols be pistols and rifles be rifles. They both have their place. I have a 45 Colt Rossi lever action rifle I had built for Cowboy action shooting and love it, but I'm not going to try to kill a deer with it at ranges over 50 yards. The 30-30 will reach out a lot farther.

 

My 45 colt is a Rossi as well, and while I am firmly in the 30-30 camp for a general purpose rifle, with good strong handloads the Rossi is a hammer on deer out to around 100 yards.

 

Trajectory and velocity decay over 200 yards of Ruger .45 Colt loads in carbine is not up to .44 Magnum, but still useful.

.45 Colt, LBT WFN Cast Lead, 250 grain "Ruger Only" Full-Charge Load Fired in a 20-inch Carbine

Range	Drop (inches)	Velocity	Energy
0	-0.9780	1299	937
25	1.6442	1219	825
50	2.8041	1150	734
75	2.3225	1093	663
100	0.0236	1046	607
125	-4.2605	1006	562
150	-10.6890	972	524
175	-19.4147	943	494
200	-30.5859	916	466

3 inch max. bullet rise for iron line of sight 1 inch above bore. Remaining energy from carbine at 200 yards approximates that of same load fired from revolver near muzzle.

 

.45 Colt, LBT WFN Cast Lead, 250 grain "Ruger Only" Full-Charge Load Fired in a 20-inch Carbine

Range	Drop (inches)	Velocity	Energy
0	-0.9780	1299	937
25	1.6442	1219	825
50	2.8041	1150	734
75	2.3225	1093	663
100	0.0236	1046	607
125	-4.2605	1006	562
150	-10.6890	972	524
175	-19.4147	943	494
200	-30.5859	916	466

Those look more like Ruger handgun velocities then Rifle,I'd expect rifle to be in 1500 +fps range maybe little more ??

I've never loaded any hot 45 colt loads only light plinkers but checking couple manuals 1300 fps for jacketed 250 grain Hornady is out of handgun

 

I like 357 for the fact the revolvers that use the round are much smaller than a 44mag. That said, I would go with a 44mag rifle. I was at the range last weekend when a friend showed up with a 20” Rossi 357 lever gun and a chronograph. He was testing a couple of different reloads he had made. One was 158gr, it was only around 1500fps. Then he tested one loaded with lighter bullets and they maybe got to 2000-2100fps. Is that fast for a pistol round, sure. But I’d much prefer the bigger thump of a 44mag in a rifle. And I’d pair it with a 30-30 for other things