School me on Sav 99s

[Ranch Dog]

Now that I have a 308 Win in hand, I would like to find a good representative of 300 Sav chambering. At one one time I had a takedown but I've never owned a rifle that shot as poorly as it did. I worked with it for a decade and a half and it literally would not hit the broadside of my barn. I looked great but not usable.

So. I would like one that has a 22" barrelor less and is drill & tapped for scope bases. Any suggestions on a model to pursue?

I've been looking on gunbroker just to see what's out there and at any given time there are about 3 to 5 rifles that aren't beaters, all over priced. Once I figure out a year & model range, I will start searching in my home State for someone interested in a trade to avoid shipping & the FFL fee which inflates the cost of the rifle further.

[Macd]

I am by no means a Savage 99 expert. Mine is a 99f also in 308. I had to have the chamber lightly polished as it was really rough and it would occasionally fail to extract. It groups 2-4 inches at 100. I get the best accuracy with 150 grain bullets. Still It is my favourite hunting rifle.

[oscarflytyer]

I had one, but was a safe queen. Way to nice to take to the woods and beat up. And I have a Rem 760 in 300 Sav that is a woods gun.

Trick is to find a 99 that does not have the butt stock tang crack. If you are serious about one that is in great shape, I can ping the guy I traded mine to. He prob still has it.

[Ranch Dog]

I had one, but was a safe queen. Way to nice to take to the woods and beat up. And I have a Rem 760 in 300 Sav that is a woods gun.

Trick is to find a 99 that does not have the butt stock tang crack. If you are serious about one that is in great shape, I can ping the guy I traded mine to. He prob still has it.

I appreciate it Oscar but I want to find one it Texas to avoid the FFL and possibly shipping. I shot my E today, just three shots, but I'm off to a very fine start with it.

[oscarflytyer]

NP. Loved the one I had in 300 Savage, but too pretty to carry in the woods, and I hate safe queens... I still have one in 284 Win. 20+ yrs as a TX truck gun and shows the wear. But it shoot great!

[Ranch Dog]

284 Win, sweet! About six months ago I almost bought a 303 Sav. It wasn't original in that it was drilled & tapped for the scope bases but other than that; it was clean as a whistle. PPU has started offering 303 Sav brass, so I thought about it, but I don't need another cartridge with 30-30 Win performance.

Probably don't need a 300 Sav either as I have a very clean '49 Rem 722 chambered in that cartridge that is a tack driver.

I doubt that I get back to the shooting bench with my 99E today as I need to take my dad to the doctor but I'm chomping at the bit to do so. I have the Speer HCSPs in 150 & 180-grain but my TMT Precision Records is telling me, for a couple of reasons, that it needs the 165-grain bullet in that series, the nose profile and ogive are the same on all of them and length is added for weight. The 165-grain bullet seated at the Max COAL will place the base of the bullet even with the base of the neck at the Max COAL of 2.810". I would like to get the bullet a little further forward to decrease the current ogive to throat contact, but the SAAMI spec length is all the Sav's rotary magazine will allow.

Ogive to throat contact with the Speer HCSP 2023, 2035, & 2053 occurs at 2.940". So if the setback was .015", that still is a whopping .115"! The barrel length is 20 ½" so the way mind works is that I'm already thinking about cutting off a thread rotation or two and rechambering it with a throat that fit this bullet series at the constant the 99 dictates of 2.810". It shot well yesterday, so I will see how it finishes up and how the middle bullet, the 165-grain shoots when it arrives from Grafs.

I'm not considering the 150-grain Speer 2023 because with the COAL at 2.810" to decrease the jump, the bullet is seated less than a caliber in the case neck. Wasn't going to bore you with the cartridge drawing details but what the heck, here they are.

Speer_2023.jpg

Speer_2035.jpg

Speer_2053.jpg

[Macd]

I hear you with regards to magazine length affecting bullet choice. I have loaded some Barnes 168 TSX's left over from my bolt gun. They are seated right at 2.800 (+/- .005) This puts the boat tail below the shoulder. I haven't shot enough to prove it but I have always felt this contributes to shot over shot variations. The TSX is a favorite hunting round for moose as it has good penetration, expands well and keeps together even when it strikes a bone. It has a more gentle taper from ogive to tip which places it closer to the lands than say a similar weight lead core bullet such as an A-Max. In my bolt rifle, also a Savage, it had good accuracy. The 99 is the only rifle I have that I haven't measured maximum OAL. Going to give it another go sometime as I forget why I decided it wasn't necessary.

[oscarflytyer]

lol! I know the issue with the 99 is mag length. I just put together the Pet Load with 150 Speers to shoot/hunt with in mine. Never wrung it out. Killed a rabbit at 20 yds with it that was dumb enough to stay in the deer field at end of shooting hours! And man, it tasted good!

had a Rem 81 in 300 Savage, loved the gun per say, HATED the recoil of that beast! They TOLD me it would beat you to death, but... a 300 Savage?!? Nah said I. But man it sucked! So away it went.

And then, the other 300 Savage I have. 1952 Rem 760 ADL Deluxe Grade (5 Diamond)! Factory D&T'd, BUT also side drilled with a Griffin and Howe flip off mount. Removed that, sold scope and mount, had holes filled. Put a Nikon 2-7x32 on it. Shooting the leftover Pet Loads (40 grn IMR 4895 behind 150 grn). Need to bump charge down to 39.5 or 39.0. My particular lot of I4895 is a tad warm! I have some work ups in Varget and hope that will work out well. Can't wait to tote the pump in the woods for deer and hogs!

I love a pump almost as much as I do a lever!!! And I just plain like the 300 Savage! I think a Win M70 FW in 300 Savage would be the bomb too! 'Course, then I would have to find it's little sister 250 Savage in the same rifle! lol! If you find a bomb cast load for the 300, pls let me know. I have 3-4 308 molds...

[Macd]

Also have a Rem 760 but mine is in 35 Remington. I shoot a commercial hard cast 204 grain flat point. Great woods gun, fast to swing on target and stays aimed for the follow up shot if needed. Pumps are great especially if you use an 870 for ducks and geese. Mine is also early 50's and I put a 1 - 4 x 20 Nikon scope on it. Nice rifle but a PITA to reassemble sometimes and my port cover is the metal type and it rattles.

[Ranch Dog]

This puts the boat tail below the shoulder. I haven't shot enough to prove it but I have always felt this contributes to shot over shot variations.

I've recorded enough work with the base below the neck, and I believe that it will never shoot as well as if it were contained within the neck. Sometimes, it is what it is, and you have to live with it.

I might have to shorten the COAL to 2.800" vs. the 2.810" as the last round slid forward in the magazine, under recoil, and would not feed.

I won't be able to finish the incremental and evaluation shooting with BL-C(2) until tomorrow, but last night I made sure that the barrel was completely clean. I used JB Bore paste on it and removed a bit more gunk. I kept looking at the muzzle, it felt good, but there was something I just didn't like about it, maybe it was not uniform in wear. I went ahead and "shade tree" recrowned it with my large brass pan head screw chucked up in a drill with JB Bore Paste. Now it looks good. I've done this with several old rifles and it has always helped.

I apologize for not posting pictures, I've just been snowed under here with family stuff. I took some when I was shooting at sunset the other day but the way the setting sun cuts across my range has always produced poor pictures, I trashed them.