Been looking at bolt action rifles in these two calibers and trying to see the pros and cons of each for deer and hog hunting. Not a fan of AR/AK rifles nor Ruger Americans. Considering a Savage (not Axis). My thoughts lean towards the 300 BO due to availability of bullets and brass. Any thoughts from y’all?

If it were me, I would go with the 7.62x39. A little more oomph, unless you're looking for subsonic usage. Too bad the 35 Remington isn't offered in a little bolt action, that would be ideal for a light, close range rifle.

Following along. Looking for a rifle for my 8 year old for whitetail next year. Looking hard at the CVA Cascade in 300 BO, but keeping my eyes peeled for a CZ 527 in either 300 BO or 7.62x39, as well. Will definitely run suppressed, but likely not subsonic.

I see upon more research, there is quite a following with the 300 BO among the subsonic and suppressor crowd. My goal is the opposite. I want to get as much velocity and energy as safely possible with whichever cartridge it decide on.

The 300 Whisper was developed for sub sonic 240gr.
The 300 BlackOut was a reincarnation to shoot both subs & supers.

For velocity/energy factors-
The 300 HAM'R

(I load/shoot all 3 chambers in direct impingement, semi auto, suppressed platforms)

The .30 Russian has a bit more case capacity. Some (Ruger?) make them with .308 barrels which opens up bullet selection. While there is lots of cheap 7.62x39 ammo out there, almost all of it isn’t reloadable (easily) with berdan priming and steel cases.

I’ve been using a .300 BLK AR pistol as my deer gun (we have some odd rules) and it’s been adequate to 150-200 yards for me.

I think the .300 is the easier option for hunting in the US, but the .30 Russian is definitely the more potent round.

ive got a cz527 carbine in 7.62x39 with a zeiss tierra... shoot handloads or factory.. great little pickup or deer stand rifle...

I have both, a 7.62 x39 in a boat paddle ruger 77. And an ugly, but shootable 300 blk out in the American.
Hands down winner is the x39. The barrel is .308, at least in the Ruger. It shoots cast bullets well at sub sonic levels. 30-30 power level in a bolt gun. The blk out, is fun. The little powder charges amuse me, but I find it the ugly step daughter of the two.

if you want more the bigger case always wins.

both are 'compared' to the 30-30.
you could just make life easy, get one of them save some cash,, and skip all the nonsense.

quote:

Originally posted by Lamar:
if you want more the bigger case always wins.

both are 'compared' to the 30-30.
you could just make life easy, get one of them save some cash,, and skip all the nonsense.

Now why would I do that! It takes all the gun collecting fun out of it. (LOL)
Besides, I already have a 30-30.

I have a 35 Rem bolt action for sale. If I want to shoot bullets slow, they have to be big ones. No, wait; they have to be big anyway. No need for a pest gun, and that is anything under 33 caliber.
Please no hate mail about suppressors, etc. I get more than I can read now.

300 bko is really meant for subsonics. Until you get down to under 150 grn bullets muzzle velocity is at or near minimum impact velocity for most bullets. There are special bullets that work at those velocities though, but range is severely limited.

.300 BLK and never look back. My son, starting at 8yo, has kill killed a beau coup of game with his. Mostly all one shot kills…hogs, WTs, African game up to zebra.

The load I will share got a pass through kill on a zebra. It was given to me by Michael McCourry.

Win 296 and Cutting Edge Bullets 100g flat-base raptor.

My rifle shoots 20.3 grains.

in a bolt gun? I'd likely pick the russian - but wouldn't complain if it was a BO

I have a lot of 7.62x39 easy choice.

Would be easy to load it subsonic.

The 300 BO works also.

Most likely a bit better in a magazine feed rifle that uses Standard. AR mags.

Think bolt guns in 7.62x39 are a little more common, but wanting something different is more my style, i.e., maybe a Carcano or SR Mauser in 7.62x39.

quote:

Originally posted by Uncle Grinch:
Think bolt guns in 7.62x39 are a little more common, but wanting something different is more my style, i.e., maybe a Carcano or SR Mauser in 7.62x39.

Just food for thought, in a SR Mauser the 35 rem operates at lower pressure and has a slightly larger case rim diameter than the Russian round.

I agree. The 35 REM is a nice round.Tom has, or had, a nice 91 Argentine in 35 Remington that I looked at. It would be a sweet little rifle, but it’s not in the budget right now.

With W296 and CEB 100g Raptors…you can approach 2500 fps in the .300 BLK w/ almost zero recoil and a bullet that will penetrate a LOT.

My rifle shoots to the ~same POI at 100 and 150.

What’s not to like?

I had a .300 BO built on a small Sako action. Neat little gun which shoots a 130 gr Hndy at abut 2200 fps. That's maybe a hundred or so less than a 7.62x39 might do out of the same barrel. Nothing wrong with either for the intended purposes, but you get more shells in the magazine with the BO and bolt actions with the .223 bolt face and magazine are easier to find if you're building a rifle. I make all of my brass from abundant .223. 'Taint hard to find 7.62x39 brass either, but has been mentioned, watch out for steel bodies and Berdan primer pockets.

I did own a Mini Mark X in 7.62x39 a while back. Couldn't get less than 4" groups with either .308 or .311 bullets. Probably a sorry barrel on that rifle, so it went on down the road to provide a measure of pleasure to some other shooter.

I would just pass on both and have, I honestly have no use for either, but certainly respect ones right to privilege.

All this reminds me of an American woman who was shot three times by some maniac with a Kalashnikov. When asked how she felt afterwards, she replied that she was glad he had not been using something decent like a .30-30.

quote:

Originally posted by sambarman338:
All this reminds me of an American woman who was shot three times by some maniac with a Kalashnikov. When asked how she felt afterwards, she replied that she was glad he had not been using something decent like a .30-30.

I recall an American Army physician who had served in the Vietnam war remarking that the 7.62x39 was one of the "mildest wounding" rounds he had encountered in treating gunshots. The short, relatively slow FMJ bullet would neither expand nor tumble. However, a quick-expanding bullet like a Hornady 130 spire point or a Nosler 125 Ballistic Tip (and others of that ilk) make the little round quite effective on animals like medium-sized whitetails and smaller. I've seen several 200 lb feral hogs taken with a single round from a .300 BO, which proves little except that where a bullet strikes an animal is often more important than what bullet it is struck with.

Dr. Fackler.