Inline FabricationLoad DataRotoMetals2Lee Precision
WidenersMidSouth Shooters SupplyRepackboxReloading Everything
Titan Reloading
Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12
Results 21 to 35 of 35

Thread: Thinking about a Savage 99 in 300 Savage.

  1. #21
    Boolit Master Dan Cash's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Western North Dakota
    Posts
    3,327
    Read this thread earlier today and had to dig out my ..300 EG Savage and shoot it. I have not mastered cast bullets for this gun gun yet so don't shoot it as much as some others but with 165 grain jacketed bullets it is a serious shooting piece of equipment. Surprisingly, the 99 or 1899 Savage was quite popular among Pancho Villa's gangsters during the Reveloution based on old photos I have seen. The closed action does keep out mud and dirt; mud and dirt which stops my 1895 Winchester.
    To paraphrase Ronald Reagan, the trouble with many shooting experts is not that they're ignorant; its just that they know so much that isn't so.

  2. #22
    Moderator
    Texas by God's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Location
    Texas
    Posts
    14,335
    I love them, too but none at present. I've had .22 HP, .250, and 30-30 model 1899s and a 99 EG with a gunsmith mounted JC Higgins 4X (Weaver). All except the .22 HP shot great. Classy rifles, indeed.

    Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

  3. #23
    Boolit Master


    Join Date
    Oct 2011
    Location
    Atlanta, NY 14808
    Posts
    2,163
    I like the idea of a rotary magazine, being able to utilize spire pointed ammo, and isn't 300 Savage the predecessor of the .308?
    Micah 6:8
    He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

    "I don't have hobbies - I'm developing a robust post-apocalyptic skill set"
    I may be discharged and retired but I'm sure I did not renounce the oath that I solemnly swore!

  4. #24
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Tennessee
    Posts
    2,794
    Dont think to long! I found a prewar one for 400 but had just that minute bought a M37 16ga, decided to think about it overnight. Yep, went back next day and it was gone gone gone... they dont make them anymore, grab it and see if you like it!
    “You don’t practice until you get it right. You practice until you can’t get it wrong.” Jason Elam, All-Pro kicker, Denver Broncos

  5. #25
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    Kentucky, USA
    Posts
    294
    If I had seen it, I wouldn't have had to ask anybody. I never see deals like that around here. You can't go wrong especially with reloading dies too!

  6. #26
    Boolit Master


    Walks's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Location
    SoCal
    Posts
    3,028
    That's a great deal. I have a 99A from before they lengthened the action & changed the safety. The .300 is a great cartridge. Buy it.
    I HATE auto-correct

    Happiness is a Warm GUN & more ammo to shoot in it.

    My Experience and My Opinion, are just that, Mine.

    SASS #375 Life

  7. #27
    Boolit Grand Master

    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    N edge of D/FW Metromess
    Posts
    10,502
    I lucked into a similar rifle a few years back and like reivertom I wouldn't have hesitated to buy the one in the OP. The 99 isn't very popular around here but the 99 is a great rifle. The 300 Savage is an interesting cartridge as it did indeed inspire the .308 Winchester.
    Endowment Life Member NRA, Life Member TSRA, Member WACA, NRA Whittington Center, BBHC
    Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe
    I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call, Lonesome Dove
    Some of my favorite recipes start out with a handful of depleted counterbalance devices.

  8. #28
    Vendor Sponsor
    ammohead's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    McGill, NV
    Posts
    1,162
    A good buy if the bore is good. Another thing to look for is worn lands at the muzzle from overly agressive cleaning rod wear. This will ruin accuracy fast and is common on rifles that cannot be cleaned from the breech. The 300 Savage has a slow rifling twist rate and will prefer lighter shorter bullets over heavy long ones. This funny considering you will find a lot more 180 gr 300 factory ammo than 150 gr. I have seen moa accuracy with Hornady 135 gr spire points and 130 gr Barnes triple shocks. 140 gr x bullets from Barnes performed really good as well but my vote goes to the triple shocks. Accuracy with all of the model 99s that I have had the pleasure of loading benefitted from proper adjustment of full length sizing dies. You want the shoulder of the case to come up against the chamber shoulder fully without being compressed. Many of the savage chambers were cut generously. I think that this may be because the chamber can be a little difficult to keep clean compared to a rifle that can be cleaned from the breech. Adjusting your sizing die to remove any slop between brass and chamber with shrink group size considerably. And your brass will last longer for more firings. Buy it quickly or it will be gone.
    Last edited by ammohead; 01-13-2018 at 10:35 PM.

  9. #29
    Boolit Buddy
    BPCR Bill's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Battle Ground, Washington
    Posts
    295
    I have wanted another for years, though not in the 300 Savage. I had a 99G Takedown in 22 Savage Hipower years ago, but like a dummy I sold it. I just picked up another in 250-3000, 99G made in 1930. It's a bit rough, but the wood is all good and not cracked. At 50 yards over the open sights it put five rounds into one inch. I love those guns, light and handy. Too bad Savage quit making them, but they were labor intensive to build. Not good for the profit margine if a company wants to survive.
    America is like a healthy body, and its resistance is threefold: its patriotism, its morality, and its spiritual life. If we can undermine these three areas, America will collapse from within. Joseph Stalin


    "Hope" is not a strategy.

    Life member NRA
    US Navy Retired
    NRA Certified Rifle, Pistol, Metallic Cartridge Reloading Instructor, Range Safety Officer

  10. #30
    Boolit Master pls1911's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    CowTown... PantherCity... Texas
    Posts
    1,107
    Bought my first centerfire 48 years ago...a little blonde stocked 99E in .308 with a mounted 4 power International (?) scope of unknown origin.
    I've never fiddled with it other than careful maintenance boys give their cherished toys... have shot 125 grain through 180 grain rounds through it, and never missed a kill. Strange though, I've never shot it at paper and have no idea where it hits, other than where it's pointed.
    Best $60 I ever spent.
    Get the 99...you will enjoy it.
    Salvaging old Marlins is not a pasttime...it's a passion

  11. #31
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    East TN
    Posts
    1,264
    About 5 years ago a friend who works in Atlanta (that puts him 3 hours from me) told me about his co-worker who had just inherited his father's firearms. The father had a large collection of mostly rifles, with a few shotguns and handguns mixed among them. He had several (5-7?) Savage 99s in a variety of calibers, including a 358 Winchester. That one got my blood pressure elevated just thinking about it. The owner planned to sell off all of the 99s because he did not like the way they felt or operated. Silly boy! I pestered my friend over several months to introduce me to this new owner but his work schedule and the owner's did not coincide. After too much time had passed I heard nothing more about the co-worker and whether he had disposed of his unwanted items. Bummer. The next time I speak with my friend I need to ask the final outcome of that stack of 99s, just to remind him that I am still interested if they are available. One never knows.

  12. #32
    Boolit Master



    TNsailorman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Northeast Tennessee Hills
    Posts
    2,568
    I had one time a .300 EG, a .308 Deluxe, and a .308 G. They were all great rifles but as usual, I just had to try something different and traded them for things that didn't pan out. Afterwards, I bought a much used and abused 300 EG from a fellow on GB calling himself BravoKilo and it was worst deal of my life. But that was not the rifles fault. I ended up selling that rifle to a guy in NY for a parts/fixer upper as he had a local gunsmith that had the parts and know how to repair the rifle. Told him the truth about the rifle and gave him a good price on it. The 99's are among the truly great rifles of our time, just too expensive to make these days. My first .300 EG would group 150 grain Hornady spire points into around an inch at 100 yards and that was with a 2 1/2 power Weaver scope from the 1960's. It loved a diet of RL 15 powder. I love those little rifles and I have a great trade on a Remington 700 Enhanced rifle waiting when I can find another one is really good shape(and that is getting harder and harder to do). my experience anyway, james

  13. #33
    Boolit Master Rodfac's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Oldham Co., KY
    Posts
    637
    My experience mirrors that of TNsailorman...I have a 99 EG in .300 that will put three shots into less than an inch and a quarter at 100. It likes 3031, RE15 and 748 with either Sierra or Hornady 150 Spitzers. With a 1960's Weaver K4 it's about as retro as you can see in this part of KY. It's a bit heavier than I like, but that 24" bbl really keeps the velocity up. IF you find that your's is having grouping troubles, try taking the fore end off and inserting a neoprene "O" ring under the head of the screw. It's an old Savage shooter's trick that has worked on both of mine.

    The 2nd one is in .358 Winchester, a "Brush Gun" '99 with a 22" bbl. Its stock was in rough shape and I gave less than $600 for it. The stock cleaned up nicely with tung oil, and we've killed 4 deer in two years shooting RCBS's 250 gr GC bullet. It chrono's right at 1700 fps and as you'd expect, it's in one side and out the other with KY white tails. Good blood trails there... It shoots those 250's so well that son #2 and I have yet to try it with jacketed bullets. Brass can be a problem, but they're easy to make from .308 by expanding the neck. Accuracy BTW with the RCBS 250 is around 2" at 100 yds.

    HTH's Rod

  14. #34
    Boolit Buddy catboat's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Maine
    Posts
    344
    Buy it.

    There is a reason Savage doesn’t make the model 99 these days ( well a couple of reasons). First, they are expensive to make. Second, is that hunters today don’t appreciate the design and would rather have a semi-auto or some Uber mag/cartridge). With all that machining required to create an action in quality steel, fitting of a quality walnut stock today in the USA would result in a rifle costing WELL over $1000 ($1500++?). Just look at what a new Shiloh Sharps 1874 is going for today. When I see model 99 rifles for sale for under $600 , I just think, “ man that’s a lot of rifle for the dollar.”

    The Savage model 99 was a huge advance in firearm design back 100+ years ago. The lever action was king of rifles from the late 1800’s, into the early 1900’s. Bolt action rifles were gaining ground in market share offering higher MV/“power” then tubular mag lever guns in the post WWI era. The Savage 99 was the best of both worlds back then. It offered: a powerful, smokeless centerfire cartridge (300 Savage), a very strong receiver made from modern steel alloy to handle the high pressure cartridges, the ability to shoot spitzers jacketed bullets (thanks to the rotary mag) for longer range energy benefits. It pretty much was/is a bolt action rifle in a lever gun platform. It’s a pretty spectacular firearm, if you think about it.

    My dad had one in 300 Savage ( Schnabel fore end, rotary mag, pistol grip; EG version?) . It shot well ( he never really bench rested it for groups-just a shot or two each season for “a check,” but it would’ve hit a golf ball at 75 yards over the years ( woods hunting).

    Working the action is a joy. It is a wonderful design, and well-made. You can get it for $400? Are you kidding me? Buy it NOW ( yesterday, if possible).

    Shoot it, and appreciate it. You can always sell it- but you will at least have had the pleasure of working with a true classic rifle. Savage 99 rifles are very special firearms, holding an important chapter in the book of rifle design and hunting history.
    Last edited by catboat; 02-09-2018 at 11:48 AM.

  15. #35
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    SE Ks
    Posts
    307
    I have a 1953 M99R in 250-3000 that was factory drilled and tapped. It came out of Wyoming and belonged to my Sister-in-Laws father. It fed her family while she was growing up. Hadn't been shot in years when I got it and had a frosted bore. I've had no trouble getting varmint weight bullets to shoot real well and 100gr Speer Hot Cores don't do bad in it. Use the 87 Hot Core for my deer hunting.
    My son picked up a M99EG in 300 a few years ago, 1954 manufacture if I remember right. He has a Leupold 1.5-6 VX3 on it. In just a short afternoon of trials we found a few loads that would shoot 1 1/4" or so at 100. Both have been good deer rifles, just have too many other rifles to play with to stay with just the one.

Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check