I was looking through an old copy of "Complete Guide to Handloading" by Phil Sharpe and came across this statement:
Savage guns also are built to stand heavier pressures than normal. However, in 1933 a friend of the author acquired a Model 1899 .30/30 with a poor barrel and wrote Savage for a quotation on the fitting of a .250/3000 barrel to his action. The factory wrote him: “We do not care to subject some of our .30/30 receivers of early production to the increased breech pressure of .250/3000 cartridges, and for this reason we have constantly declined to convert rifles in this manner.” This is more a matter of policy than anything else. The present Model 1899 Savage rifles are being used with cartridges developing breech pressures of from 45,000 to 48,000 pounds per square inch. All barrels are proof tested with a pressure in excess of 55,000 pounds. In 1908, however, there was a change in the design of this model which is not generally known. At serial number about 90,000 the original square-shoulder locking lug at the rear end of the breech bolt was changed to the present oval design, which gave a much better distribution of the pressure.
I have a 1903 .25/35 I am loading for. I have been told that since the 99 action is strong enough for cartridges like the .308 it is safe to load the .25/35 to pressures higher than SAAMI specs. Based on this, (if true) and the probability that brass for lower pressure cartridges may not be as strong as for other cartridges, is seems prudent to stay within SAAMI pressure specs if you have an older rifle before the design change was made. That is what I have been doing and will continue to do. Just passing this along for consideration.
