Goes against what we know.

As far as we can tell, the Savage 1895's and 1899's always had a .308" bore, but at least some of the early cartridges were .311". Prevailing thought is that Arthur Savage went for slightly oversized bullets in order to generate a bit more pressure and velocity.

Here, maybe you'll believe Townsend Whelen. grin

Townsend Whelen : The American Rifle (1918)

Quote
.303 Savage Cartridge
...
The bullets average .311 inch in diameter and the Savage barrels average about .308 inches. The Savage rifles for the 303 Savage cartridge and also for the 30-30 Winchester cartridge are bored and rifled exactly alike; that is, to a standard .308 inch grove measurement, but are of course chambered differently.

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