Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors Newbie: Introduction

Hello everyone,

I've heard of this forum quite a bit, and stalked around here several times when I had some questions but never decided to join until now.

A little about me, I've currently have two 99's that have been passed down to me. The first (right in the picture) is a 250-3000 that was bought by my great-grandmother (who loved deer hunting) back in the early 50's. Serial number dates production in 1937. I'll have to do more research as to what model it is, but I plan on fully restoring this one. I'll have to get a new rear stock as the opposite side from the picture has some very deep gouges. My best guess what sometime in it's life it was rubbed against a guardrail climbing up her deer stand. Hopefully I can get an original stock that has the original buttpad as this one was cut at some point. I also plan on getting Stith mounts and an old Norman Ford "Texan" scope. I missed one yesterday on eBay in the last 30 seconds by 50 cents.

The other is my current deer rifle. I also don't know the model, but it's a .300 Savage dated in 1953. It's in great shape compared to the .250 and shoots as well as any other modern rifles I own.


Thanks again for letting on here, I'm sure I'm going to be learning a ton!
Mike

I think you have an early and a late model R. You will learn alot from the guys on here. Nice rifles!

Well sines your grandma's rifle is drilled and tapped , my thought is to use the existing holes and love it. Left as is you can think of her every time in the field!
Both R's Very nice.

Welcome to the forum.

That 250-3000 is a pre-war R. Not all that common. There are no original butt pads on pre war R's. Should be a steel shotgun butt plate. It will not be easy finding an original replacement, unless you can find a donor gun. Might want to consider having somebody make you one.

2 nice rifles.

Welcome aboard, Joe.

Two great hunting rifles. Your early rifle in 250-3000 is a rare one, very hard to find pre-war 99R's in 250.

Welcome to the Fire! Id not touch Grams gun, maybe get a better scope and hunt it! 87 grain Speer Hot core bullets will be your Hunting Bullet for the 250, of the stpck short Id just get a slip on pad, rember your Grandmother put them marks on the gun.

Great guns you have there. There's just something about those pre WW2 M99R's that makes my heart go pitter patter. Thanks for posting those pics, you gave me my Savage fix for the night.

I've got that exact set up sitting beside me, was planning on keeping it but.........

+1

Not sure which would be the last to go my 250 pre war "R" or my 300 pre war "R' Wish my grandmother had passed mine on to me. GW
"

If your ever interested in selling, I'd buy the set. Seeing what they go for, I'll cringe seeing the price but it keeps me from hunting forever for the pieces.

Welcome to the forums!

What he said. Factory drilled 99s have the makers mark stamp on the left side of front bridge of the receiver so it isn't covered over by the base of the scope mount. Your post-war 99R should look like this. Non factory drilled 99s have the makers mark stamped in the center of the front receiver bridge - which is where it is hiding under the front of the scope base of your pre-war 99R. As said above, you might as well leave the Redfield base and rings on the pre-war rifle. Stith mounts can be spendy and there's no shame in owning an honestly done post-factory drilled 99. I'm sure your great grandmother did it with all good intentions. Welcome aboard the good ship "Savage."

Welcome to the forum, and a great post! Grannie's rifle is perfect just like it is. The only thing I'd even consider doing to it would be to replace the scope with a 4x Leupold.

Thanks for all of the positive comments guys! I'm still going to try to restore the .250-3000. While the Redfield base and (can't remember) what scope have been on the gun for a while, I've seen picture of my grandma with a different scope setup (looks like a straight tube like the Texan or Alaskan) so they are not originally what she put on the gun. Unfortunately, those pictures have been lost to time and I don't know who ended up with them. I know that my grandma and grandfather used them some when my great-grandmother passed, and I bagged my first deer with it, so I'm sure somewhere along the lines it was again reconfigured. I'd like to take it back to original 1950's era. I'll look into finding another uncut R buttstock and keep this one on the side. I'm still not sure if she cut it down or not. She was a very "rough and tumble" individual (I've got 80's videos of her racing her Farmall tractor) so I doubt she would have had a problem with the recoil. It's true that it's already drilled and tapped, I'll have to look into plug screws, or possibly having them silver soldered shut as I will have it reblued anyway.

My family has always been into repairing/restoring vintage items so it doesn't pain me to change it from the way it's been. Heck, she might even be proud that I'm going to restore it. My .300 Sav on the other hand will stay the way it is. It's too good of a hog gun for me to change anything!

Pic is of my first deer I bagged with the .250 a decade ago.

For the love of Pete, don't reblue!. The finish looks good as it is and you will never find anyone who will match it. Plug the holes with screws and change the butt stock if you must but don't touch the finish. You will like yourself much better a few years down the road for not having done it.

From the standpoint of being a collector I say please don't redo it. David

The gun has already seen the drill and the saw. I don't have any problem him doin whatever he wants to it.

Grandma might like it better after a boob job and tummy tuck anyway. And what's wrong with Stith and a Texan on that gun? It will be still be his grandmothers gun, just the way he wants it.

Better than dropping a pristine specimen on a pile of rocks IMO.

This is the way I saw it. Most of the collector value is gone anyway as far as I'm aware due to it being drilled already. Met Doug Turnbull couple of years back and loved some of the pieces he showed me. Could have it re-blued and the lever case hardened again as all of the coloring is gone. I'd still have to decide what I wanted to do with the stock. I don't plan on shooting it much anyway, I've got other guns for fun. This would be more to make sure I can show my own kids the beauty in old firearms and pass it down to the 4th generation.

I don't know. I definitely want to restore some old 99 to pass down, but none would be as sentimental as passing something down that's been in the family for over half a century...

I would need to go compare some rifles to know, but is the pre-war R heavier than an EG of the same era so that an EG stock wouldn't be "right"?? If so, bet you could find a 1950's R stock a lot quicker than a pre-war stock. If you could slim it down to pre-war R proportions and preserve the checkering in the process it might be something to think about. You've got both R's right there maybe you could check it out. Finding a pre-war R buttstock seems like it would take a while.

Just a thought since it's all buggered up anyhow.