getting to know my Savage 99

Well, I bought the Savage model 99 in 308 win. I did a simple cleaning and headed to the range. I bought some 168 gr ammo and was treated to a terrible pattern in a 4 x7 oval… not even any semblance of a group. Upon returning home I did a thorough cleaning and removed the 50 years worth of carbon and copper. When perfectly cleaned a tight patch doesn’t feel the greatest as it runs the length of the bore. I ordered some fire lapping ammo and did the shoot and clean routine. It now feels better, but still needs more work. My 165s now group about 4 inches, but some 180s group nicely at 1.5 inches. The slender barrel heats up quickly and there were some marks on the inside of the forearm stock which I sanded to get a better fit and float as best as can be done with how it attatches to the barrel and reciever. I hand loaded some Nosler 180 partitions over 43 grains (minimal load) of that new fangled Hodgdon CFE 223 and my groups are staying at 1.5 inches at 100 yards with either a cold or hot barrel. I am quite happy overall as this is just a nice older leaver gun and will perform excellent as a hunting rifle.

Sounds like your putting the puzzle together. Good work.
DT

That gun was never known for the BEST accuracy. But surely good enough for any big game targeting.

I just had my hands on a rare Savage model 99 .303 caliber— Never saw one before…

Don’t wear the old gun out!! lol

It seems you are getting it dialed food for thought.

A friend of mine shoots a ton of 308s he has found Winchesters 150 grain seems to work the best in any of his 308s

I do have some 150s, I will give them a try. I know the 180s are pretty accurate, and I do like shooting heavy in calber. But in case I need to do some sharp shooting I’ll give the 150s a go.

Whoops! I asked on your other post if you bought the gun! Nice to see you’re having fun with it!

I’ve hunted mainly 308’s for the last 20years and while none of them are Savage, I can say that for the most part, my grouping with 150’s and 180’s doesn’t change much and I’ve killed deer with both. For the last 5 years though, I’ve gone 180gr. exclusively because I moved my stand to a thicker, shorter distance area.

In researching levergun accuracy I came across a Sako Finnwolf, around 10,000 were made in the early 60s to mid 70s I think. Well I tracked a few down and was appalled at the nerve of what they are asking. So I went on gunbroker to test the waters there. What a nerve racking experience. In the end I am now the proud new owner of a Finnwolf, and my wallet is very thin now. The Weaver K4 scope it came with is both poor in magnification and clarity. I mounted a 3 x 9 and it eas off to the range. I was treated to a sweet shooting rifle with an excellent trigger and short smooth action. The calibre is 308 win, and the rifle likes 168s and 180s, groups in wind and rain were just over an inch.

The Savage 99C is getting bored out to .358 Win after the first of the year, and will be more enjoyable with some added knockdown. I will report back on this project as it progresses. Now let’s go kill some Wisconsin deer.

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