Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors Savage Sporter 23AA

I just picked this neat little .22 up yesterday at the local gunshow. Have been wanting an old solid blue steel and walnut bolt .22lr bolt gun for my son and I for a while.

I would like to know how old it is and any comments or suggestions any of you have about this model. It came with a tip-off rail and a crummy 7/8 scope, which I have removed. Also, it came with 2 magazines, one fits flush, the other unmarked one is a little longer. They both hold five rounds. SN#138531

what make of scope was it?

You bought the best of the 23's (23AA) and in excellent condition. Production date would be around 1937.

The magazine pictured with the "S" is a reproduction (reported to be made on the original tooling). The longer 5 rd. mag is from the 60's(?) and was used in another model that reguired a slightly longer magazine. Both should work fine.

Since your rifle has been D&T'ed (front holes are not factory) and you have the base (lucked out!)I would mount a good 1" rimfire scope (Weaver R2.5-7x28, etc.) on it and go shooting!

I was raised with one of those; my older brother has it now. Ours came from my grandfather in about 1949; he had had it since about 1935 and it was in excellent condition with three clips and an added Lyman peep sight and sling. We killed a truckload of ground squirrels and jackrabbits and crows and tin cans with it over the years.

Yours looks in equally good shape; hang onto those clips, they are hard to find and expensive and the "aftermarket" ones often don't work very well.

We used almost exclusively Winchester 37 gr. hollowpoints in ours; the gun eats them just fine and they kill varmints great. (Any other ammo we fired in my Remington 510 single shot).

I always appreciated the "overbuilt" feel of this rifle and the excellent workmanship all 23s, regardless of caliber, seem to have. (I've had all of them over the years, only kept a cherry, very late 23B .25-20).

It's a SAVAGE: well designed to serve ordinary people extraordinarily well. Enjoy!

It was a weaver D4, pretty dim and blurry.

Thanks for the information, I will probably get a pair of 1" rings and mount a decent 4x on it, (I think a good K4 would look right), not a fan of the tip-off rail, but I would probably have a hard time finding a weaver base to fit the holes.

You are probably okay with a K4 but I would stick with a good 1" rimfire scope that is set for 50 yards vs. a centerfire scope that is set for 100 yds or more.

+1 what Rick said. Another option, although it might seem spendy, would be to have a K4 set up for 50-75 yards. Ironsight works on them IIRC. They bought out the stock of repair parts from Frank when he decided to retire (Weaver Scope Repair Service).

Nice find! I look for these at all gun shows, etc... . As Mesa says the "overbuilt" feel is great. Have not run across one worth consideration yet.

When I was young one of the 2 guns we had was a .22 (Eastern Arms IIRC). It had no mag and we took off the peep. It was also "overbuilt" and beat up. Real good shooting gun even though it's entire life was spent abused. Not sure what ever happened to it, would like to have it back. The Savage 23's remind me of it's feel and I wonder if it was actually made by them.

BTW, the other gun was a 12 gauge single shot. It might have been "Eastern Arms". Full choke with duck tape holding the forearm. Those 2 took many squirrels, etc... in my youth .

Matt:

Here's a picture of mine and for what its worth, I also have a Kimber Model 82 and this Savage is everybid as accurate as the Kimber. Nice gun that Model 23AA.

Elwood

That is a beauty. I really like the coloration of the wood.

"That is a beauty. I really like the coloration of the wood."

++++++++1

Neat checkering; scope is well-proportioned to the rifle too. Outstanding rig!

Elwood,
That one is pretty! Like the checkering, the Weaver scope and looks like old Redfield mounts. I'd like to have mine set up like that.

Matt:

You have a fine looking rifle and I suspect it will be a shooter. Give the bore a good cleaning and get after it. It's fortunate that it came with a scope base. I agree with earlier suggestions, get a nice "smallish" scope that will fit the look of the rifle and you'll have a nice rig.

I've had my Model 23AA on here before...It came from a older gentleman that once worked for Winchester and I figured he got someone there to do a little work on it. I wish it had a better trigger but that's about all I'd change.

Elwood

Elwood's looks to have a Weaver K2.5 or K3 mounted. There are plenty out there and they can be refurbished if need be. I'm sure Elwood will come back and let us know which it is. Another avenue is the Weaver J4 or J2.5 with a 3/4 inch body. Still a good scope for a small bore rifle even if only 3/4 inch.

If you have to get a "modern" (I mean new) scope for it, look at a Weaver V3 or the Burris "Ridgeline" compact 4X. They approximate the small, straight tube scopes of the past. I have the V3 on several Savage smallbores and like it at 2X for small game at "woods" (here that means chaparral and rocky canyons) ranges. Very quick.

I really like the look of Elwoods 23!

Also, Leupold is now making the straight tubed, fixed 3x M8 again if you really want to drop some change on a nice scope.

Yeah..Skidrow's right, mine has a K3 on it. And it had a K3 on it when I got it but not this one. Right after I got it, a friend and I had some guns out and when we finished he said, " I have some really good stuff to clean a scope" and proceeded to spray my K3. Stuff was suppose to be some kind of "super-duper" lens cleaner (made by Ziess I think) or some such. Anyway...after he sprayed it, I wiped it off and looked down the scope and it was one oily mess...inside. The seal on the old scope wasn't too good and that stuff (whatever it was) went right in and attached itself to the inside of the lens. Can't remember what I did with that scope....might have sent it for repair/cleaning or traded it. Anyway, watch what you spray on these old scopes.

Elwood

Matt:

Back to your rifle....I've seen several Model 23AAs and yours is about as clean and straight as any I've laid eyes on. The metal and wood both are in great shape. Mine has been messed with and yours hasen't. You have a fine piece there and I hope you let us know how it shoots.

Under-rated fine old 22's...they are.

Elwood