Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors Help getting my 99F in .308 to shoot

Please help with any accuracy improving suggestions if you have them. I have inherited granddads Model 99F in .308 and it is not the best shooter in the world with factory ammo. It started at 3- 4 inch groups at 100 yards. I have glass bedded the forend which helped and cleaned 45 years of copper out of the barrel which cut groups in half - now about 2 inches at 100 yards. The barrel appears to be in great shape - no pitting. I guess all the copper fouling protected the bore.

Does anyone have a pet load for this rifle. I just put together some handloads - I thought I would reduce the pressure and see what it would do. I have not tried them yet but have 46 Gr BL-C(2) and 150 gr bullet for a try. In my initial shooting, the heavy 180's were less accurate than the 150 factory loads.

So far you have done everything right. I assume it is scoped. Correct? My pet load for my 99F in 300 Savage with 150 grain bullets is 40.5 grains of Accurate 2520, 150 Grain Hornardy Interlock boattail spitzer CCI large rifle benchmark primers. I can pull some data on 308 Win that have performed well in my bolt guns and provide latter. The 99F does not like hot loads. When you boost the pressure lever extraction pressure goes up and accuracy goes down. Stay away from the light magnums.

My 99c in .308 just loves varget with most bullet weights from 150- 180 grs,. If I recall I use 1 grain less then max listed in Hodgdons manual.I use cci LR primers. When I resize I do use a full length sizer die backed out !/2 turn , to avoid headspacing problems and seat the bullet .10 off the lands.

It was scoped with an very old Lyman 3X scope. I replaced it with a Bushnell for testing but it ruined the lines of the gun(which is in very good shape). Now it is scopeless and has the holes filled with plugs. If I can find a nice looking compact scope I will put it on. For now I will be doing future testing with Iron sights.

Well, the cleaning probably did more for the gun than bedding the fore end. But the bedding is done now, and Grandpa's heirloom is forever changed.

Be that as it may;

You were a tad skimpy on details as to the particulars of your testing. Table rest ? vice? sand bag? [if so, where was the bag] off hand? wind? weather? what factory load? which Bushnell? properly mounted?

You got a featherweight lever action white tail harvester. Not a Camp Perry sniper rifle. If your answer to above is "off hand", I'ld put it away as is.

Your well within M.O.W.

Two inch groups with irons is impressive! My favorite 308 Win loads are either 42 grains of Reloder 15 or IMR 4895 behind 150 grain Sierra BT SPTZ. Very accurate in my bolt guns 1/2 inch group. Finn Aagaard who use to write for Rifle liked 45 grains of Reloder 15 behind a 150 grain pill. I found that a little warm. Checking my data I also found that my 1955 99 F liked 41 grains of Reloder 15 behind 150 grain slugs also. Reloder 15 has become my favorite powder, very clean, very temperature stable, and very accurate. Good luck

I only wish the groups I shot were with Irons I would have been happy. I shot them while I had the scope on from a bench using sand bags for support. The irons are only recent. My philosophy is if you own a gun it should be a shooter first and formost. Being granddads means I will never get rid of it but I am more than happy to do whats needed to get it in good shooting shape. As far as changing an heirloom, other than the bedding which can't be seen without dis-assembly my tinkering is reversable.

If you can shoot better than 2" with irons on a consistant basis, then I shall bow at your feet. I would put a scope of at least 6 or 7x to do any serious accuracy testing. I do all of my testing with a old 10x weaver. It seems that you got all the copper out, now smooth it up with some Flitz metal polish, and it will cut your groups in half. 99s like to be shot with some or all of the metal of the receiver rested on the sand bags, with very minimal contact on the forearm ,maybe a little of your left hand to make yourself comfortable.Slow and steady on that long trigger travel ,and she'll be shootin 1/2 inch groups . Good luck, Mark.

If you love handloading, do so. I feel that most rifles will shoot well with factory stuff-start with Federal Premiums and work your way down. With a 99, it is all about confidence and trigger pull. Mine shoots well with Win. 150 grns. and Fed Prems. 165 grns- Feds shoot a little bit tighter, but My God the cost!

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> I get a little hesitant about putting my loading info on the internet, however I have been known to do so. When I start looking for a load in ANY caliber, I consult most of my many reloading manuals. I keep all of my old "Handloader" magazines and frequently consult my "Pet Loads" by Ken Waters. I read and read and read. THEN I experiment. My favorite manuals are the Lyman 44th and 45th editions. They are conservative but offer much info on pressures etc. My most used bullet in 30 cal. is a toss between the Hornady and Speer 150 grain and 165 grain round nose. The 165 grain round nose is no longer manufactured by either of those bullet makers. I have stockpiled the 165 grain so in my lifetime I won't run out. Speed (to a certain degree) in nice, but accuracy is the key. I differ from some in what I look for. My rifle does NOT have to be a tack driver (although that's really nice) but it DOES have to accomplish "practical hunting accuracy." It sounds like yours already does that!!!!! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Good luck. PM me if you would like me to pass on some of my load info. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

i've found that my rifles with two piece stocks are sensitive as to the point of contact with the sandbags i use; i rest my 99 just forward of the lever, on the receiver bottom, without any part of the forearm touching. that position has worked well with other levers and my old remington pump.

Am I reading it right when you say you are at 2 inches at 100 yards?

If you are not satisfied with that, then you are a better man than I.

Try this...46.0 grains of IMR 4895 with Speer's wonderful 130 grain hollowpoint. On deer, it is supposed to be a knockdown shot. I am getting 1.5 inches at 100 yards with a 2 3/4 power Redfield scope and a 22 inch barrel.

Best wishes,

rooster

Any one here load the .308 with 180 gr RN? If so, what's your receipe and what is your finished LOA?

thanx
RC

God......racking the grey matter hard. I took a couple of deer way back with Horny 180gr. RN I loaded over -don't quote me on this cuz this is like from deep in the memory banks- 46.5 grs of 4895 ????? - it was a load in the book nothing I cooked up on my own. Anyhow, they worked fine for me. But no worse or better than 150gr. I've used on Deer.

Back then our Deer and Bear seasons overlapped and I thought the 180's might be better on the Bears should one present him self.

However, OAL wasn't an issue for me at that time, was using a Winny 70 back then. There is a .300 savage load in 180gr. that fits the 99 action so I would think OAL of a .308 180gr. load shouldn't be an issue since the .308 99 actions (post '55) are longer by 1/4"

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> I'll give you a couple loads that I have used with great success on deer. I loaded 180 grain Hornady round nose, CCI large rifle primer, R-P brass, and 36.1 grains of IMR 3031, my OAL was 2.765" I have been using this load off and on since 1978. That is shot from a model 760 Rem. A load I use in my 99 Savage is this.Hornady 165 grain spire point, CCI large rifle primer, R-P cases,l, 42 grains of IMR 4064, and the OAL 2.770" These loads worked fine in my rifles however I do not suggest you use them as stated. Please reduce around 5% and work up to them. None are maximum loads but please don't just charge on. Thanks!! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I'll throw in my 2 cents worth here. You did the right thing by cleaning out the barrel. Let's talk about some other factors. Knowing the way I shoot, 2" groups with open sights at 100 yards would be a good accomplishment for me, but if you think that's not tight enough, that's your perogative. Keep in mind, that this is a deer gun, not target rifle. As for your testing while the scope was on-did you cover all the basics then? Were all the screws tight? Did you check the scope for parallax? Sometimes old scopes just won't hold point of impact real well. You said the first scope was a 3x. That's not a whole lot of magnification, even at 100 yards. It wouldn't be hard to see how the groups could have been a little on the big side. I shoot factory ammo out of my 99s, and I've tried a lot of different ammo to arrive at consistent accuracy. My 300 that I usually carry likes standard Remington 180 gr. loads better than all others. Keep working till you find one that satisfies you. As for the bedding job, I wouldn't have done it, but that's just me. The only thing that touches my dad's 300 is oil, and Hoppe's.

I also inherited a 99F (.300) some time ago. Had an old Weaver on it, and knock away mounts. I hunted with it for a season with this setup. I love the classic line of the rifle,
sans scope. At the range I was 3" mostly left, with iron sights
Having shot many deer, I realize this is good enough for
the type of hunting I do. The real bonus is the way this gun carries. I hate slings, but believe they are a necessary evil
when climbing Mts. in the dark. I think 2" is terrific!!!
As for me my 99f is my go to gun for deer. Even thinking of selling My Weatherby's, etc. that have really served me well!