Savage 99 in the house

[Hatchdog]

I scratched an itch by picking up this Savage 99 chambered in 300 Savage from my son. According to the serial number look up it was manufactured in 1953 but the date code stamp is a “C” which indicates a 1951 manufacture. Regardless, it’s in incredible shape for a rifle this old. Note the color cased hardened lever and trigger guard and how vivid the colors are. The bluing is excellent overall with a little wear at the muzzle and some light handling marks. The wood is also very nice with some marks here and there but nothing deep. It appears this rifle was carried very little in the field. It has a Bushnell Banner 3-9x40 on it which isn’t much of a scope. But for me the advantage is since this rifle was not drilled and tapped by the factory somebody has already gone thru expense of doing so. I can always upgrade the scope but the Bushnell will probable be fine if it holds zero.

I don’t know much about Savage 99’s and welcome any comments or info you can share. I’m thinking this rifle is the original F variant but I need to do more research before making that declaration. It’s a 24” barrel with cut checkering, round counter and schnable fore end.

Here’s a few pics but I’ll take some better ones today.

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[Sir Henry]

Nice looking! I can’t wait for the first range report.

[MuddyWaters62]

Great looking rifle. I have always wanted one, specially one in 284 Win. What caliber is yours? I know you will really enjoy that fine rifle. Please do a range report ASAP!

Muddy Waters

[Hatchdog]

Oops, caliber is 300 Savage, I updated my original post. He gave me a zip bag of assorted 300 Sav ammo that looks pretty old to me. I’m planning on pulling the bullets and dumping the powder and primers. Then I’ll polish the brass and reload it. Probably not with the bullet pulls as some are round nose and others are some type of open tip bullet. Of course with the Savage’s rotary magazine I can use spitzer type bullets. I’ll be looking for some 150 grain to load and some limited research shows I can use 748, Varget or IMR4895 all of which I have on hand fortunately. Best thing is getting the brass, I had five pieces on hand only.

Range report to follow but not until I can find some bullets.

[JEBar]

I bear hunted with a few fellows who carried a 300 Savage .... at that time there was continuous (most good natured ) banter between the fellows with 300's, Model 94 30-30's and a very few who carried Remington 742's chambered for 30-06 .... since I carried a BLR 308, I was a minority of 1 but I joined right in .. .. what I do know is the 300's did the job as did all of the calibers mentioned and and several others as well ..

[Rifletom]

Wow Hatch, that is a beauty! You're going to like that one. Hoping the scopes works out, as it looks time frame correct. Great addition. Nice!

[bandit1250]

That rifle was owned by some one that appreciated guns and knew how to take care of them. I would say it was not used for beating around in the heavy brush hunting areas. Congratulations on getting a fine rifle. The old 300 Savage has put a lot of game in the freezer and canning jars over the years.

[BigAl52]

Neighbor had a 300 Savage when I was a kid. He liked it and killed some Washington deer with it on the west side. Congrats there Hatch she looks good.

[Travlin]

That is a very nice rifle. The forearm is a "schnoble" not scanable. You might want to get a copy of Murray's book THE NINETY NINE. I have a 99-358 that was made in the last years of production . My late friend insisted on buying it for me because I helped him move from Waycross Ga. to Lakeland Fl.The 300 Savage was the inspiration for the 308 caliber.

[Sir Henry]

That is a very nice rifle. The forearm is a "schnoble" not scanable. You might want to get a copy of Murray's book THE NINETY NINE. I have a 99-358 that was made in the last years of production . My late friend insisted on buying it for me because I helped him move from Waycross Ga. to Lakeland Fl.The 300 Savage was the inspiration for the 308 caliber.

I did not know that about the 308.

[JEBar]

a good write-up on the history of the 308 Winchester ====> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.308_Winchester .... I make it a point to not have 2 rifles in the same caliber .... if/when I should ever decide to purchase another rifle, I could easily make an exception

[Hatchdog]

That is a very nice rifle. The forearm is a "schnoble" not scanable. You might want to get a copy of Murray's book THE NINETY NINE. I have a 99-358 that was made in the last years of production . My late friend insisted on buying it for me because I helped him move from Waycross Ga. to Lakeland Fl.The 300 Savage was the inspiration for the 308 caliber.

I did not know that about the 308.

In my reading I discovered that the military was looking for 30-06 velocities in a shorter cartridge and considered the 300 Savage. While the 300 Sav did reach the velocities of the 1920’s 30-06 it was not able to reach the 30-06 velocities of the 40’s so the 308 was born.


Travelin, thanks for the spelling update. I struggled with the spelling and corrected my original post but then read your update. Schnoble is a fun word just by itself and a fore-end style I have liked since Winchester brought out the M/70 Featherweight with this style in the 80’s. Your .358 is a great combination of gun and caliber and your history with yours is priceless. I I know a few local guys that would really like to have that combination.

One more item, I had a local guy contact me and he had looked up my rifle in the Gun Trader Guide and found the variant of my is the EG (II). Not the F as I had thought. The F is a 22” barrel featherweight variant. This helps narrow down my research on my particular rifle but learning about all 99’s is fun too.

[Travlin]

I suggest that anyone that has a serious interest in firearms get a copy of CARTRIDGES OF THE WORLD. There is a lot of good information between its covers including rimfire cartridge history etc. I bought my first copy in 1969 when I bought my reloading press and dies from Herters. I finally wore it out and bought a new copy in 2000. I am still using the press.

[North Country Gal]

I owned a 99 in 250 Savage and really enjoyed it, but it had the traditional twist that favored 87 grain loads and all I could find in factory ammo was the heavier 117 loads. Being a 250, I had no problem trading it. In fact, I made money.

I have to say, I was very impressed with the construction quality. People sometimes associate the Savage label with bargain guns or off brand guns, but that is so wrong when it comes to the 99. I doubt Winchester could've made the gun any better.

The 99 was way, way ahead of its time as a lever gun design. The 300 Savage models can be awesomely accurate, as a friend of mine has discovered. He bought one, sight unseen, in 300 Savage from the original owner in Alaska, of all places. Had it shipped. He sent me pics of the groups he shot with the stock iron sights. Unreal.

We have a 99 collector in our area that goes to a gun show we used to frequent. He only went there to display his collection and talk about 99s. None of his 99s were for sale. It was a real pleasure for me to see some rare versions and some vintage versions. Worth the trip just to see his 99 collection.

Enjoy your 99. Great rifle.

[Centaur]

My first cenerfire rifle was a 99E in 308. I bought it with what I had earned working my uncles farm for the summer, and it probably cost about $100 brand new. Neat rifle, but it kicked my skinny teenage body like a mule. Wish I still had it.

[Hatchdog]

A local guy here just posted that he saw an old Sears ad for Savage 99’s. $21.50.