Savage 340/Stevens 325

[Lawyerman]

When did these guns become "vintage" and "Collectible"? I have owned two .30-30's versions over the years. The first was a Stevens 325 C. Never should have sold it but I was in Law School at the time and it was sell it or a Savage 99 to make rent. I swapped scopes on the two guns and sold the little 325. Years later I came into a Savage 340 of later manufacture. I sold it because I never got around to scoping it and it got no use as a result.

Lately I have been thinking about getting one to play with, cast bullet piddling, woods bumming rifle etc.....Sheesh, they want $300 for one now! On the online auctions they are all advertised as "classic" etc....it's a friggen stamped out, mass produced, low end utility/kid/budget rifle for crying out loud! A Winchester 54 is a classic....heck a Remington 721 might even be a classic......

Think I will stick to the local pawn shops who don't seem to have lost their minds on these things! I paid $110 for the 325 and I think $150 for the 340.

Does Weaver still make the scope mounts for these guns?

[txbirdman]

I bought a 340C a couple of years ago at a local pawn shop with 4X Tasco in 30/30 for $125. I use it exclusively with 311291's. Great little CB rifle. The guy had 2 more (not carbines) that I could have had for the same price. They're gone now. Maybe he put them on the auction sites as "Classics".

[Lawyerman]

I really do miss that little 325C. I only owned it for about 4 months or so but got to shoot probably 100 rounds through it. I bought it and the Savage 99 for $250 out of a pawn shop, package deal. The m99 is a .308, it is an E model, not very fancy but a decent rifle. It needed a buttplate and a lever screw, had a Weaver K4 on it that was kinda dark. The little 325 had a butterknife bolt handle, short, handy little bugger, it had a Redfield 1.5-5 on it, post reticle. Both guns were grubby as heck. I spent a couple days cleaning them, ordered the little 99 parts, Tru Oil refinished the stocks etc.....

It came time to sell one of them and I decided the .308 was the better round for all around use and the 99 a little better rifle so I swapped out the scopes and the little 325 went down the road for $150. I still have the 99 and use it to hunt pigs from time to time, killed a dandy 5x5 Mule deer with it about 4 years ago.

I would take a rifle version if I could find one at the right price. I have a gunsmith friend that works for beer! It would be an 18.5" carbine in an afternoon, complete with target crown!

[26Charlie]

Its that the dollar is less collectible. The furhter back you go, the more the dollar was worth. In my youth (1956) I passed up a nice Win M1876 in .45-75 for $125 - I simply couldn't get that kind of money making seventy-five cents an hour picking cucumbers. A few years later I did buy a used Savage 340 in .222 Remington, with side mount and 4X scope (the small-tube .22 scope) for $35. It was a solid rifle, and accurate - gave it to my brother, and don't know what eventually happened to it. Today I buy nice old hunting rifles of that era in the $300 price range, and that rifle would still qualify at $200. $200 now is what $35 was in 1961.
The moral of the story is, if you have the opportunity to exchange dollars for the guns you want, don't hang back - the guns go up and the dollars go down.

[dk17hmr]

I bought a Savage 340A in 30-30, last year at a gun shop just off my Collleges campus. I paid $125 out the door for it. Not that I needed it but it was and still is a fun little project gun. I am slowly getting the parts to make it a great gun. Next part is going to be a nice stock but dont have the coin for it now. It wears a Weaver K3, shooting a light charge of trail boss and a 172gr pointed gas checked bullet I can get 1" at 50 yards pretty easy. My dad wants the K3 for one of his Savage 22 hornets which is wearing a Redfield 3-9, but he doesnt want to give up that Redfield yet. Ill get it from him time is on my side..........just kidding

Check out pawn shops and gun shops you can still pick them up pretty reasonable locally still.

[Bent Ramrod]

Around here at the gun shows you can see the ones in .30-30 for under $200 quite frequently, and they don't move fast. The .22 Hornet goes for more, the .222 (frequently rechambered to .223) for higher yet, and the one in .225 Winchester seems to command the collectors' premium.

Keep looking and bargain hard. Those rifles in .30-30 are very common, and, as far as I can see, not very hot sellers.

[RayinNH]

The Kittery Trading Post has a 325c listed on their site now for $155...Ray

http://www.ktpguns.com/interior.php/pid/28

I thought the link would go to that rifle only but you get the whole list.

[rbstern]

I have one in 30-30, a Foremost 6400 (the JC Penny house brand, I think). It's the "fancy" version with a gold trigger and checkered stock. Had a lot of trouble scoping it at first, nearly sold it, but I gave it one more try, got the scope squared away, it started shooting very tight groups. It wears a K3...Sears branded. Truly a department store rifle.

I really like it.

[James Wisner]

I picked up a 325 Stevens last year for a sample rifle.
It has a Williams side mount and one inch rings, for the grand amount of $99.00

Got looking at it last week to check part dims and take a few pics, tried the trigger pull and holy %^&&, it has a clean 2 1/2# pull.

So am now thinking to load up some of the 31141 GB bullets and lets see what this old girl can do.
They are a great rifle for just having fun with.

Jim Wisner
Custom Metalsmith

[Charley]

Just bought a 340 yesterday, $135 OTD. Broken buttplate, and missing a screw on the front sight. Front sight screw is allready replaced, and I'll find a buttplate to fit.
Bore is like new, cleaned up beautifuly! I'm thinking this one will be just for cast boolits.

[MT Gianni]

Nice going charley. Is yours the 30-30 or another cal.? Gianni.

[Charley]

Nice going charley. Is yours the 30-30 or another cal.? Gianni.

.30/30.

[Lawyerman]

I been looking for a 340/325 since I started this thread so long ago. Found one today! It's a 325 Carbine. It's missing the front sight and someone stripped all the blue from the barrel, action is nicely blued, the bore is excellent and the stock is sound, very few scratches even. Bought it out the door for $125.

Now to find a scope mount from Brownells and do something about that shiny barrel. Who knows why people do what they do? Got a Redfield 4x that will be a dandy on it!

[slughammer]

I been looking for a 340/325 since I started this thread so long ago. Found one today!

Congratulations on finding what you were looking for!

I buddy helped me find a 340 for $125 back in 2005. It came scoped and I had been looking for an aperture to put on it for playing around at the range. Just this winter I found one at the gun shop for $140 installed. (That is installed on a whole nuther rifle). So now I have one of each, both are 30-30.

Now the trick is to find one in 222 for the same price.

[northmn]

I have a Savage 340 in 222 I bought about 5-8 years ago in a gun shop second hand. It is about the only rifle I shoot jacketed bullets out of. I bought it because the 222 brought back memories. Its been a good rifle, a little stiff at the trigger and rusts easily. got it for $170 with the scope mount. Have to shim the scope to reasonably sight it in. Funny thing is that it has a nice walnut stock. Try to get that in a cheap rifle today. I need to check it out for sight in as I missed a coyote with it at a healthy range but have to put up with another 8 inches of snow that just fell and is still falling.

Mnshooter

[454PB]

If you are more interested in the actual gun than the name, look for "Western Field". They were made by Savage and sold by Montgomery Ward, but the same gun. I have two of them, a 30/30 and a .222 Remington.

My first old model Ruger Blackhawk cost $87.50....try finding one for 1/4 of that today.

[Buckshot]

...................GPC- Numrich advertised scope mounts for the Savage 340's.

.................Buckshot