Savage model 99
- Thread starter Bic
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DO NOT LET THAT GUN SLIP PAST YOU!!!! Buy it as soon as he will sell it! You will kick yourself for the rest of your life if you do! Finding an original Mod 99 in VG or better condition is getting harder and harder to do.
Here is what Gun Trader's Guide #27 says about the Savage Model 99:
Introduced in 1899,this model has been produced in a variety of styles and calibers. Original designation "Model 1899" was changed to "Model 99" c.1920. Earlier rifles and carbines - similar to Models 99A, 99B and 99H - were supplied in calibers .25-35, .30-30, .303 Sav., .32-40 and .38-55. Post-WWII Models 99A, 99C, 99CD, 99DE, 99DL, 99F and 99PE have top tang safety other 99s have slide safety on right side of trigger guard. Models 99C and 99CD have detachable box magazine instead of traditional Model 99 rotary magazine.
Hope this helps!
Here is what Gun Trader's Guide #27 says about the Savage Model 99:
Introduced in 1899,this model has been produced in a variety of styles and calibers. Original designation "Model 1899" was changed to "Model 99" c.1920. Earlier rifles and carbines - similar to Models 99A, 99B and 99H - were supplied in calibers .25-35, .30-30, .303 Sav., .32-40 and .38-55. Post-WWII Models 99A, 99C, 99CD, 99DE, 99DL, 99F and 99PE have top tang safety other 99s have slide safety on right side of trigger guard. Models 99C and 99CD have detachable box magazine instead of traditional Model 99 rotary magazine.
Hope this helps!
Mike Irwin
Staff
It could have been made at any time over nearly an 80 year span, in roughly 10 or so different models.
Kind of hard to give you any definitive information one way or the other.
Kind of hard to give you any definitive information one way or the other.
I'll talk to him again and see if I can get the serial number and any other markings that may assist. Plus it will give me an excuse to look at it and feel it again. ( cripes, this almost sounds dirty)
I don't think I have ever felt a gun that came up to point so naturally before.
I don't think I have ever felt a gun that came up to point so naturally before.
mod 99 savage .303
i have just joined this site my name is tim58 i own a mod 99 in .303 ,shooting this rifle is as much fun as you can have with your clothes on . what a lady ,the feel ,the smooth action, and the overall weight ,slender/ slim.. what a fine sporting rifle,to say more ,would be illeagle, mine had a .410 shot gun barrel with the rifle it was called the combo ,by city guys comming to newyork state by bus and train easily carried ,one barrel for small game ,one for big , all a guy needed to feed his family ,back in the twentys , ive researched mine some and found by going to mod 99 site .com it was made in 1922 been in my family ever since it came out of the box !here in new york state 2005 deer season will be the first ever rifle season since 1950 , and i hope to have my 99 on duty i have seen that just the rear peep being a marbles goes for 125.00 on ebay when they have em , however with the .303 at 50.00 bucks a box it costs 2.00 a shot plus .i have the dies for the brass and some brass but thats all i have found i need all the rest ? press? scale ? powder? bullets ? primers and so on and on if i could find a guy that would reload my shells or teach me how to do my own id be set ? but where do i start thats how i got to this site >> timmo58>>
i have just joined this site my name is tim58 i own a mod 99 in .303 ,shooting this rifle is as much fun as you can have with your clothes on . what a lady ,the feel ,the smooth action, and the overall weight ,slender/ slim.. what a fine sporting rifle,to say more ,would be illeagle, mine had a .410 shot gun barrel with the rifle it was called the combo ,by city guys comming to newyork state by bus and train easily carried ,one barrel for small game ,one for big , all a guy needed to feed his family ,back in the twentys , ive researched mine some and found by going to mod 99 site .com it was made in 1922 been in my family ever since it came out of the box !here in new york state 2005 deer season will be the first ever rifle season since 1950 , and i hope to have my 99 on duty i have seen that just the rear peep being a marbles goes for 125.00 on ebay when they have em , however with the .303 at 50.00 bucks a box it costs 2.00 a shot plus .i have the dies for the brass and some brass but thats all i have found i need all the rest ? press? scale ? powder? bullets ? primers and so on and on if i could find a guy that would reload my shells or teach me how to do my own id be set ? but where do i start thats how i got to this site >> timmo58>>
The following is a compilation of my observations in collecting Savage 99s sporadically over the last 25 years. This is not a definitive or authoritative history. After all, given a production run length of over 80 years, there are lots of variations and such.
The first Savage 99's were rated for black powder only and chambered for black powder rounds (e.g. 38-55). Those made after a certain point in time (early 20th century) were rated for smokeless powder, but only in low-pressure rounds like the 303 Savage and 30-30. Octagon barrels were popular in the early runs, but I've not seen any made after, say, WWI that had an octagonal barrel.
There was a takedown model that was popular for a while between WWI and WWII, but it appears to have been mostly chambered for the low pressure rounds. Savage introduced a few high pressure rounds like 300 Savage and 250-3000 prior to WWII, and most surviving pre-war examples are of these chamberings. You'll occasionally find a take-down in 300 Savage, but not often.
In the late 50's, Savage jumped on the 308-family bandwagon and (with supposedly minor alterations to the receiver dimensions to improve the stength of the action) began offering 308 and 243 chamberings. Somewhere in the 50's, they started drilling-n-tapping all of the receivers for scope mounts at the factory.
In 1961 (right around the one million serial number mark) they redesigned the action to move the safety from the pistol grip/trigger to the top tang, and to simplify the production and assembly of the FCG. Early post-61 units retained the brass rotary shell holder that was one of the 99 trademarks, but by the mid/late 60's Savage appeared to have changed the rotary from brass over to aluminum. I've heard that the production of the 99 was halted for a while in the 70's, but they were reintroduced in the early 80's with a drop magazine in place of the rotary magazine (again, to make it cheaper to produce).
As best I've been able to tell, the following are the Savage 99 models:
I have never found a reliable corrolation between model nomenclature and the stock design, i.e. whether the rifle was a straight-grip or pistol-grip and/or round forearm or schnabel forearm. For example, I've had a Model A that was a straight grip and another that was a pistol grip, and they were not all that far apart in serial number. Earlier models *mostly* had schnabel forearms and most all of the post-'61 versions that I've seen have had rounded forearms, but that's certainly not a hard-n-fast rule.
The single biggest issues to look for in any old Savage 99 is barrel pitting and stock cracks in the top of the wrist behind the receiver's top tang. For whatever reason, almost every Model F I've ever seen (even those made in the late '60's) has had a pretty badly pitted barrel. Having said that, I've got four of them right now and they all shoot MOA with pits and all. The other issue, stock cracking, is a very real issue that is a function of the receiver design. Like most two-piece stocks, the majority of the recoil force is jammed into a fairly small area where the top tang mates with the buttstock. This concentration of stress leads to cracked stocks.
Be aware that there are NO MORE PARTS for these old rifles outside of replacement stocks from folks like Boyds. If something steel on the rifle breaks, the only option is to fix it by cannibalizing parts from another rifle. Since the current Savage coporate entity is NOT the same Savage that produced these rifles, you cannot go back to Savage for any technical or parts assistance.
Still - they're neat rifles. Everybody should have at least one.
The first Savage 99's were rated for black powder only and chambered for black powder rounds (e.g. 38-55). Those made after a certain point in time (early 20th century) were rated for smokeless powder, but only in low-pressure rounds like the 303 Savage and 30-30. Octagon barrels were popular in the early runs, but I've not seen any made after, say, WWI that had an octagonal barrel.
There was a takedown model that was popular for a while between WWI and WWII, but it appears to have been mostly chambered for the low pressure rounds. Savage introduced a few high pressure rounds like 300 Savage and 250-3000 prior to WWII, and most surviving pre-war examples are of these chamberings. You'll occasionally find a take-down in 300 Savage, but not often.
In the late 50's, Savage jumped on the 308-family bandwagon and (with supposedly minor alterations to the receiver dimensions to improve the stength of the action) began offering 308 and 243 chamberings. Somewhere in the 50's, they started drilling-n-tapping all of the receivers for scope mounts at the factory.
In 1961 (right around the one million serial number mark) they redesigned the action to move the safety from the pistol grip/trigger to the top tang, and to simplify the production and assembly of the FCG. Early post-61 units retained the brass rotary shell holder that was one of the 99 trademarks, but by the mid/late 60's Savage appeared to have changed the rotary from brass over to aluminum. I've heard that the production of the 99 was halted for a while in the 70's, but they were reintroduced in the early 80's with a drop magazine in place of the rotary magazine (again, to make it cheaper to produce).
As best I've been able to tell, the following are the Savage 99 models:
- Model A - seems to be the standard model with standard weight barrel; barrel length varies by chambering
- Model C - I've only seen these in the Series A re-introduced version - standard weight barrel with drop magazine
- Model E - 'economy' version, all post-61 as best I can tell - missing the round counter port in the left receiver wall and with birch or maple stocks instead of walnut; otherwise identical to Model A.
- Model EG - Dunno
- Model F - the 'featherweight' model - thin barrel, at least a full pound lighter than the Model A
- Others - there are additional model variants that have Monte carlo stocks and other such discriminators, but I'm just not all that versed in them because they're not all that common.
I have never found a reliable corrolation between model nomenclature and the stock design, i.e. whether the rifle was a straight-grip or pistol-grip and/or round forearm or schnabel forearm. For example, I've had a Model A that was a straight grip and another that was a pistol grip, and they were not all that far apart in serial number. Earlier models *mostly* had schnabel forearms and most all of the post-'61 versions that I've seen have had rounded forearms, but that's certainly not a hard-n-fast rule.
The single biggest issues to look for in any old Savage 99 is barrel pitting and stock cracks in the top of the wrist behind the receiver's top tang. For whatever reason, almost every Model F I've ever seen (even those made in the late '60's) has had a pretty badly pitted barrel. Having said that, I've got four of them right now and they all shoot MOA with pits and all. The other issue, stock cracking, is a very real issue that is a function of the receiver design. Like most two-piece stocks, the majority of the recoil force is jammed into a fairly small area where the top tang mates with the buttstock. This concentration of stress leads to cracked stocks.
Be aware that there are NO MORE PARTS for these old rifles outside of replacement stocks from folks like Boyds. If something steel on the rifle breaks, the only option is to fix it by cannibalizing parts from another rifle. Since the current Savage coporate entity is NOT the same Savage that produced these rifles, you cannot go back to Savage for any technical or parts assistance.
Still - they're neat rifles. Everybody should have at least one.
If it's a Model C (drop magazine Series A), than it's an average buy. If it's a Model E, it's a slightly-better-than-average buy. If it's a Model F or Model A, it's starting to look like a really good buy and you should jump on it if it interests you.
Check the bore and check the stock for cracks.
Check the bore and check the stock for cracks.
They have a 10 month layaway, so I might jump on it. Though they need to cut the Zip-Tie on the lever so I can check the bore. How well do these guns shoot??? (Assuming good condition.)
Edit: Does anyone have serial number ranges or other info to identify what Model 99 it is? (A, B, etc) Savage doesn't have any historical records that I can access.
Edit: Does anyone have serial number ranges or other info to identify what Model 99 it is? (A, B, etc) Savage doesn't have any historical records that I can access.
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Every Savage 99 I've ever owned was either a MOA shooter or just off MOA performance with a multitude of factory ammo. Dunno why, but they just SHOOT.
You can tell the model of the Savage 99 by reading the receiver's barrel ring - it'll be stamped on the ring right next to the front scope mount. Sometimes it just says Savage 99, in which case you can tell if it's a Model A or Model F by the barrel contour - if the rear sight dovetail is flush with the barrel contour then it's a Model A and if the rear sight dovetail is sitting in a raised band, it's a (much mo' coveted) Model F.
You can tell the model of the Savage 99 by reading the receiver's barrel ring - it'll be stamped on the ring right next to the front scope mount. Sometimes it just says Savage 99, in which case you can tell if it's a Model A or Model F by the barrel contour - if the rear sight dovetail is flush with the barrel contour then it's a Model A and if the rear sight dovetail is sitting in a raised band, it's a (much mo' coveted) Model F.
Mike Irwin
Staff
Older Savages were not marked with a model number.
That changed in the 1950s when the receiver was redesigned to take the more powerful .308 family of cartridges.
That changed in the 1950s when the receiver was redesigned to take the more powerful .308 family of cartridges.
How well do they shoot?
Crosshair, The 99 has a reputation for being an accurate gun, and the ones I have would confirm that. I have two 99s, a take-down model in .250-3000 Savage from 1921 and a like-new 99 from 1967 in .300 Savage. The older one has iron sights and shoots 3 inches at 100 yards, which is about the best I can do anymore with irons. I think if it had a scope or I had younger eyes, it would group much better, but I'm not about to have it tapped for a scope.
The .300 Savage has a nice Weaver 3x9 on it, which appears to date to about the time the gun was new. Without me trying very hard it shoots 1-inch groups at 100 yards, and will do better. The last time I sighted it in, it (and I) was on a hot streak, and all the guy who was spotting for me could say was, "Wow!" I should have measuured the groups and saved the target, but it was late afternoon and opening day was the next day!
Crosshair, The 99 has a reputation for being an accurate gun, and the ones I have would confirm that. I have two 99s, a take-down model in .250-3000 Savage from 1921 and a like-new 99 from 1967 in .300 Savage. The older one has iron sights and shoots 3 inches at 100 yards, which is about the best I can do anymore with irons. I think if it had a scope or I had younger eyes, it would group much better, but I'm not about to have it tapped for a scope.
The .300 Savage has a nice Weaver 3x9 on it, which appears to date to about the time the gun was new. Without me trying very hard it shoots 1-inch groups at 100 yards, and will do better. The last time I sighted it in, it (and I) was on a hot streak, and all the guy who was spotting for me could say was, "Wow!" I should have measuured the groups and saved the target, but it was late afternoon and opening day was the next day!
I've got two;
A 1950's era 99EG 300savage with a 24" barrel and a late 70's DL series A 308 with a monte stock that I bought with it's original by-the-first-owner Kollmorgan-bearcat 2 3/4 power scope!
The 300 is all original except for that someone put an aftermarket sight in place of the original one. It came to me for 200 dollars, due to a cracked wrist. I was able to repair her to near new wood, and I defy you to find the repair. Still shoots like a dream though, and loaded with 165 grain leads, it damn near shoots thru the same hole.
The in 308 shoots as well as my Remmie 700 in 308.
the kicker too is that the round counters work on both guns.
Get that gun, DO NOT let it get away.
Years ago, when a hunter said he used a 300, it was automatically known it was a 99
For more info than you will ever need on Savage, try THIS SITE
A 1950's era 99EG 300savage with a 24" barrel and a late 70's DL series A 308 with a monte stock that I bought with it's original by-the-first-owner Kollmorgan-bearcat 2 3/4 power scope!
The 300 is all original except for that someone put an aftermarket sight in place of the original one. It came to me for 200 dollars, due to a cracked wrist. I was able to repair her to near new wood, and I defy you to find the repair. Still shoots like a dream though, and loaded with 165 grain leads, it damn near shoots thru the same hole.
The in 308 shoots as well as my Remmie 700 in 308.
the kicker too is that the round counters work on both guns.
Get that gun, DO NOT let it get away.
Years ago, when a hunter said he used a 300, it was automatically known it was a 99
For more info than you will ever need on Savage, try THIS SITE
Mike Irwin
Staff
The 1950s and 1960s were a period of transition for Savage as the gun was redesigned for the .308 family of cartridges.
I, too, have seen guns from that period that have not been marked with a model designation -- it seems to have been phased in over a period of time on the various models.
"the kicker too is that the round counters work on both guns."
I'd hope that it would work. The way the magazine carrier is designed, if the round counter is working, the magazine isn't working. The numbers are engraved right on the carrier extension.
My 99EG dates to 1936, and it keeps fine count.
I, too, have seen guns from that period that have not been marked with a model designation -- it seems to have been phased in over a period of time on the various models.
"the kicker too is that the round counters work on both guns."
I'd hope that it would work. The way the magazine carrier is designed, if the round counter is working, the magazine isn't working. The numbers are engraved right on the carrier extension.
My 99EG dates to 1936, and it keeps fine count.
I have an old 1919 .303 perch belly octagon carbine with a tang sight and it is my favorite nostalgia hunter. My first series take down .250-3000 MODEL has the fitted (later) .410 barrel and is cased, I have but don't shoot it anymore as it is prolly worth $2000 !!! My 1958 .308 F is like new, with a Lyman AllAmerican 2.5x scope it does shoot about 1.5 MOA at 100 yards with winchester silvertip 150 grain factory loads, of which I have 8 boxes left from the 70's and it is my favorite deer gun which is all it does besides maybe 10 rounds for sighting in once a year, most years. I sold my 1974(I think) .358 like a big dummy!
I still have my 1970 model 1895 .308 commemorative , which used to be my favorite 99 for hunting before I got the 1958 model F about 15 years ago!
Did I mention I like 99s?
I still have my 1970 model 1895 .308 commemorative , which used to be my favorite 99 for hunting before I got the 1958 model F about 15 years ago!
Did I mention I like 99s?
