Last gun for 2015

[GunnyJohn]

Happy New Year to all,

Yesterday after work I picked up a 99 Savage in 300 Savage. It has been reblued and came with an old Weaver K4 in tip-up mounts. I have an old 2-7 Redfield that I think will fit the character of the rifle well. And give my aging eyes a little more help. The rifling is strong, bore looks good. The action is tight, overall the rifle doesn't look to bad. For $400.00 bucks I don't think I got hurt. What did hurt was the $30.00 a box for store bought ammo. Guess I need to get out more, I didn't realize that ammo was so expensive. Haven't bought any in quite some time. Here are some pics. I'll take it out today and see how she does. Then it's back to the bench for load development with boolits.
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[richhodg66]

Ain't a better hunting rifle available. What you have is a 99EG, in my experience, it's the most common variant and in the most common caliber.

Mine doesn't look near as nice as yours, but wasn't drilled and tapped. It's a good shooter with cast and I have a Redfield receiver sight on it. Action is the slickest of the 99s I own and it handles and points beautifully.

Don't be afraid to reload and cast for that. Most of the stuff you read about the short neck being problematic is academic rather than practical, and it'll do anything a .308 will do for all practical purposes.

Get to a range and enjoy that rifle!

[richhodg66]

By the way, brass can be made easily from .308, but I found it wasn't as uncommon as I thought. When I started loading for it, I was working on mine and also a rifle for my brother who was deployed. I got enough of it off of here and a few other forums that I had a few hundred to give to him and I'm set for a while too. It's a good cartridge, kinda makes a guy wonder why the .308 was ever invented, but the .308 does have a few minor advantages.

[OverMax]

I like these 99s so much I own 3 of em. Mr. 66 above me here is correct. If your reload there isn't a problem to supply your rifle with ammo. If requiring reloadable brass for your rifle. You might want to contact Grumpa here on this site as he might have some available to sell. Or PM contact those who reform 308 brass into 300 Savage for the details in how to do.

Frankly sir: You just bought yourself the best little lever action ever made for the woods. And 400.00 ($) isn't a bad price having to give for one. Congratulations,

[Markbo]

I dont know how you sleep at night. $400? That's a steal for a great​ little woods round

[TXGunNut]

Was lucky enough to stumble across a 95% gun awhile back, it just made it to the top of my project list. I'll be using a Ranch Dog/NOE designed boolit that fits the short neck of this cartridge. Brass was indeed fairly easy to find, seems the cartridge has more than a few dedicated fans.

[richhodg66]

I have that mold, but haven't cast any for it yet. I killed a nice doe the year before last with mine using the NOE clone f the 311041, but it prefers the original Ideal 31141 (NOE one has a bigger nose diameter). I also have a Savage Model 1920 in .300 and it's also a decent shooter, but pickier. FWIW, the standard Ranchdog TL .30-30 bullet works well in the .300 in my experience.

By the way, Zim has some .300 brass for sale in swapping and selling.

[reivertom]

Go back an apologize for stealing that rifle! That is a great find, and a great rifle! I have a 99F in .243 and love the way it shoots. If that scope sets far enough back to be on the mark when you shoulder it, I'd leave it alone. They can be hard to find a scope for that has enough "set back" or eye relief to be comfortable. I had to go with an older Leupold fixed 4X instead of the 1.5-5x20 I wanted to use because it just wouldn't come back far enough to be where I need it when I throw the gun up.

[sav300]

250-3000 brass can also be used/reformed.Have fun with that nice Savage.

[richhodg66]

.250 brass is harder to find than .300, at least here in the states. It's more work, but I'd use GI 7.62 brass if I had to make it.

[dragon813gt]

.250 brass is harder to find than .300, at least here in the states. It's more work, but I'd use GI 7.62 brass if I had to make it.

Yeah, I wouldn't convert any 250 Savage brass. It's to hard to find and to expensive. I convert LC brass for my 99s. Only issue I had is that I needed to buy a small base die for initial reforming. My sizer die didn't set the shoulder back far enough for easy chambering. Beyond that it's one of the simplest conversions. FL size in a 300 Savage die and trim to length.

[OverMax]

I found annealing first thing very helpful in reforming a 308 into a 300 Sav. Originally had problems with my 308 reformed shoulders separating after a couple firings. Bought a Comparitor used it >after I figured out its directions of course.< Haven't had a problem since. In fact I prefer my reformed Fed 308 brass to 300 Savage factory formed. So do 2 of my rifles also.

[TXGunNut]

I have that mold, but haven't cast any for it yet. I killed a nice doe the year before last with mine using the NOE clone f the 311041, but it prefers the original Ideal 31141 (NOE one has a bigger nose diameter). I also have a Savage Model 1920 in .300 and it's also a decent shooter, but pickier. FWIW, the standard Ranchdog TL .30-30 bullet works well in the .300 in my experience.

By the way, Zim has some .300 brass for sale in swapping and selling.

I have the NOE clone of the 311041 as well, stand by for a PM after I do some initial research (head scratching).

[northmn]

I have experience with 3 300 Savages and my daughter still has hers. $30 is a good price for factory loads locally as they tend to go for about $37. I bought reloading equipment and load mine. I had a bolt action 722 Remington and a 99 Savage like you have. As I shoot left handed the 99 went down the road due to its very awkward safety. I made one the prettiest shots on a deer with the 99 I have ever made, and it had excellent intrinsic accuracy. I don't miss it. Sold off the 722 but sometimes wonder if that was that wise. Made a couple of very pretty offhand shot swith it. Liked the standard Speer 150 grain bullets the best in mine and daughters. She has shot a lot of deer with hers with very good effect. Started her out with milder loads using 30-30 Remington Corelok bullets. Her rifle is a Chilean Mauser with a 300 Savage Remington barrel. An acquaintance mentioned his dad was a gunsmith and made quite a bit of money rebarreling the old Remington bolts from 300 Savage to the "30-08's" (308's) as his customers called them. I think it received one of those tradeouts as a gunsmith would have kept some of the barrels. Shoot it enjoy it.

DP

[richhodg66]

I've seen a few 722s that had been re chambered from .300 to .308. Would have been a good idea when they introduced the .308 I suppose, but I'm not sure there's much practical difference between the two.

I worked with a 722 in .300 for about a year, bought it for my brother who was in Iraq at the time and had the itch for a .300 Savage. I have to admit, I like the 721/722 series of rifles, better really than the 700s. Good rifles.

[northmn]

Probably what I did not like the most about the 722 was the scope that came on it when I got it. A rather bulky 3-9. Had I put a very nice Redfield 2-7 on it I may have liked it better. Traded off a lot of rifles over the years just to try something else to see how they work. I bought the Mauser for my daughter because it seemed to me to be about as good of a rifle as I could get for someone that might not want to put up with a lot of recoil. I happened across it at an auction and got it for $150. Put on a screw on Mauser bolt and D&T it for a scope mount. While I still reload for her, should she buy factory ammo it still does not have that much recoil. It has served her very well on a few deer. In its day the 300 Savage was thought to be about the best deer rifle made.

DEP

[Markbo]

I bought an unfired 99 in .308 at a furniture auction of all places. Part of an estate. Only gun I have ever owned tbat remains unfired.