Also sounds as though it's something that's being loaded way hotter than the design limits. I've got a gun safe full of shooter 99's, and the only one that had hard to extract cases was a post-1960 clip model in 243 with an after market barrel. I still think the chamber was off or just too small.

And maybe the case stretching is something more relegated to those weaker actions you mention, because I've never experienced it (and almost all my 99s are pre-1955), and it's not something I ever remember coming up for discussion in the Savage Collectors Forum on this site. Though we have talked multiple times about early receivers cracking from being rechambered to hotter cartridges. And the regulars there own easily 5000+ 1899's and 99's between them. Maybe it does happen on a bubba'd rifle, or the rare factory one with sub-standard metal.. just never seen or heard of it. Could be that Rick Jamison heard it from others, who'd heard it from others, who'd said it because it was obvious that ANY rear locking bolt will have case stretching.


Here's a 1900 rifle that was rebarreled into 250-3000, a bad idea, but it shoots little, tiny groups and it's factory engraved and it's a family heirloom, so I'll keep it. One of the first 1500 Savage 1899's made, so the action should be as "springy" and "strechy" as they come. Even though it's shooting cartridges up to pressures of 45,000 CUP rather than the 34,000 CUP that the 303 Savage was designed for, I've never yet had a hard to extract cartridge - much less a case head separation.

Works quite well on antelope.

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