Betting $20 on the old 340 Savage

[blixen]

I've had a couple 30-30 Sav. 340s pass through my life. I like 30-30 cartridge so much that I'm trying to put up with the things I don't like about the 340 design (my latest is a Stevens with a surprisingly crisp trigger). Unfortunately, I've never been able to get better than mediocre accuracy out of it with Lee .311 185 grain boolits. The bore measures about .3095-.310. And I've been frustrated by the tendency for the rounds not to want to chamber fully, even with the base of the boolit back to the primer hole (I exaggerate).

So, yesterday I popped $20 on a Lee .309 170grain mould.

I want this to be a walkin'-around-the-desert/jack wabbit gun--in place of a .22. Figuring I'll use plinking loads 7-8 grains of Red/Green Dot or 2400.
Here's one of the discussions that keeps me trying to get this rifle to shoot:
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?215581-Savage-340-E-Yourr-thouhts

[badge176]

Tool Dip on the bolt handle?!

[badge176]

I 'bedded' one of mine like that. I installed 'pillar' in action screw hole- cut to length and epoxied in place, then glass bedded receiver back from recoil lug, that lug itself, and the first 2.5" of the barrel (fill the barrel nut grooves with modeling clay!). I free floated the barrel from there forward. Haven't shot it enough to judge effects but it is WAY more fitted to the stock.

PS I omitted the barrel band in my free-floating efforts. If I can't get her to sing, I'll try a silicon pressure bump at end of fore end (3-5 lbs pressure)...

[blixen]

Badge: I'm thinking about doing something similar with bedding. Yes, the barrel band sure looks problematic. I'm evaluating a couple of "problem" rifles, preparing to begin my winter projects.

A previous owner did the bolt handle--it seems more "professional" and durable than Tool Dip. For one thing, it slides on and off. Also, the Lyman peep was mounted by a shade-tree gunsmith--it's a little farther forward than it should be.

[sthwestvictoria]

Here's one of the discussions that keeps me trying to get this rifle to shoot:
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?215581-Savage-340-E-Yourr-thouhts I don't understand that because in that thread poster fouronesix states he had a 340 but couldn't get it shoot so sold it and bought at Remington 721!

Regardless I have a Savage 340 in 30-30, have only had it a month but am getting to know it. They are rough but everything works. My trigger is not bad, I was expecting worse after reading about them. Mine came with side mount scope for $AUD400, one magazine.

This is my first work - bear in mind only at 50metres:
86073
The powder AR2208 is sold by Hodgdon in the US as Varget. AR2206H is sold at H4895. That is the Lee 170grain FP, pan lube, ACWW with 2% tin for lower target, Lee 150grain FP for the upper target.

This is another link about a method to bed these rifles and improve rear bedding by brazing a small block behind the trigger:
http://www.leeroysramblings.com/gunsmithing_savage_340.htm

[TXGunNut]

That's the cool thing about Lee 2-cav moulds, it's a cheap way to see if a given boolit profile will work for you. With the new alignment pin design they're actually pretty good moulds, IMHO.

[bones37]

I just picked up one of these bolt action(Savage/Stevens) in 30/30, mine is actually a Revelation 225-E, which was made for Western Auto. I stumbled across it at a local pawn shop, and what I noticed immediately was its condition. It appeared to have never been used, or for that matter shot. Blue was easily 99%, and stock condition was about 95%, with a majority of the stocks condition being the cheap 'painted' finish flaking off in several spots. I checked the bore for copper fouling, and found none. After I dis-assembled the rifle I realized there was dried up factory preservative underneath the wood line. I am hoping this will be as much fun as my lever gun in 30/30, in fact, I'm waiting on a 90 grain lee mold (for .30 luger) for a plinker.
bones.

[runfiverun]

I never realized these were hard to get to shoot.
I just bought an old used mold and tried some powders, everything seems to work.
I am using a nei mold that is a loverign design, or if I wanna swap ammo around between rifles I use the rcbs 30-150 fngc [which shoots a bit better groups until I get @ 2400 fps]
maybe I should find a side mount and try a scope.
iv'e tried just about everything from 2400 through mil-surp 4831 and settled on my 223 load of aa-2230 as my everyday "stuff" load.