Thread Savage
FNG
- Joined
- Feb 9, 2024
This all started because I wanted a remarkably quiet lever gun for “doe season” here in the Midwest. I hunt on private ground, and I wanted for my son and I to be able to hunt in fairly close proximity to one another, and fill our tags without my shot(s) spooking his deer or vice versa. After considering several different platforms and calibers, I landed on Henry X in 30-30 as my base firearm for this endeavor, with the key here being that Henry’s X-models come with a threaded barrel standard from the factory. The aftermarket furniture shown in the pics is all from Ranger Point Precision, but is inconsequential to the data collection.
This project has taken me over a year, and I can now report the following:
A Henry X in 30-30, outfitted with a Banish 30 can, shooting Hornady factory Sub-X 30-30 loads (175 grain subsonics + XTP bullets with Flex-Tips)…
> is proven doe-lethal inside of 100 yards
> is (to my ear) AS quiet as a typical modern crossbow
> is not loud enough to spook other deer in the same field
> is not audible to another hunter less than 200 yards away, on the other side of a small woods
> is literally the most fun you’ll ever have shooting a rifle. Anyone and everyone who sees me shoot this gun, or shoots it themselves, involuntarily smiles ear-to-ear. There’s just nothing quite like it. The wonderful sound of the lever drowns out the sound the shot itself.
The data I have collected thus far indicates that dropping an average to below-average size whitetail at 200 yards is plausible, however I have not completed enough real world testing to say that attempting such a shot would be ethical. I’ll report back once I have more findings. This is not something I’d plan on firing at a big trophy buck at any distance. At least not as of this writing….
This project has taken me over a year, and I can now report the following:
A Henry X in 30-30, outfitted with a Banish 30 can, shooting Hornady factory Sub-X 30-30 loads (175 grain subsonics + XTP bullets with Flex-Tips)…
> is proven doe-lethal inside of 100 yards
> is (to my ear) AS quiet as a typical modern crossbow
> is not loud enough to spook other deer in the same field
> is not audible to another hunter less than 200 yards away, on the other side of a small woods
> is literally the most fun you’ll ever have shooting a rifle. Anyone and everyone who sees me shoot this gun, or shoots it themselves, involuntarily smiles ear-to-ear. There’s just nothing quite like it. The wonderful sound of the lever drowns out the sound the shot itself.
The data I have collected thus far indicates that dropping an average to below-average size whitetail at 200 yards is plausible, however I have not completed enough real world testing to say that attempting such a shot would be ethical. I’ll report back once I have more findings. This is not something I’d plan on firing at a big trophy buck at any distance. At least not as of this writing….
