Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Savage sold

I'm one of the guys that would buy a Savage 99 no problem, and while I'm in my 40's, I'd be willing to drive the wife's Lexus to Cablea's and buy it if they had one. I admit though, I think the Savage 99 fans are getting on up in age, but I think a limited edition of say 2500 rifles would do excellent. The problem is tooling up to only make 2500 rifles a year. If they did one caliber a year, I think it would be great and the cost would be prohibitive so it isn't going to happen. I have a couple Savage rifles, long with a 99, but the competition is killing them and the market has shifted to AR's. I work with several contractors here in the office that are big into guns. I'm the only one that owns a gun that even has a wooden stock. The other guys are into AR's and pistols only. I get asked all the time why I need so many hunting rifles, then I flip the cards on them and ask why they need multiple AR's of different barrel lengths all in 5.56. I have ordered some AR parts to build a couple AR's when I return home soon, but I'm the only one that owns something other than 5.56 or .300 BLK.

Until video games make guns like the Savage 99 cool to new gun owners, they aren't ever going to be big sellers. Face it, video games are probably bringing more new shooters to the shooting sports, but they are all going AR or pistols, not hunting style rifles.

Maybe if they ran Joe Kidd night and day for a month it might stir up some interest (only flick I recall featuring a 99, or maybe it's an 1895). Probably just increase the demand for broomhandles instead.

As I remarked in another thread on this, someone bought the Ithaca name and started making new 37s with a LOT of investment in CNC, but they cost at least twice what a decent used one brings, and I've spoken to a total of one guy who owned one, and I've never seen one in a store. I get the impression that a lot of their sales are for rifled deer guns, home defense shotguns, and a repro of the old trench gun that's marketed by another company. They've managed to stay afloat, but I suspect there's a much larger market for pump shotguns than lever action rifles that don't have any cowboy connection.

There also is, or was, an oufit that was selling spruced-up original 99s, but haven't seen them in a while either. If they're still around, you can add that to the pile of reasons against bringing out a new one.

All Savage needs to do is get with a Japanese video game company and come up with a hero in a popular game that kicks butt with a 99......maybe killing Zombies or Terrorists. Every teenage boy will want their Dad to buy one.

Cannot agree on the Savage patents being worth anything or going anywhere. Which of them was not based on someone else's patent?

The Accu-Trigger is not as good as the old 10/110 trigger, frankly.

+1 Look at how long it took Remington to convert all Marlin designs for CNC machining.

I almost almost bought a lightweight storm. I watched a video on bolt disassembly and said NFW.

Vista needs to sell Weaver to someone who can bring it back to life.

There's a whole lot more than CAS shooters buying pistol caliber leverguns lately. And I did say hunting leverguns aren't a hot item.

Source please.

as kinda been posted already 6.5 Creedmoor, 284 win.,243 win,22-250 and a 7mm 08 , 22 inch barrel, dress up a Savage 99 a little too, retail it for $1500.00 i would stock a few to sell and buy some 99`s for myself my older ones i don`t want to use them much.maybe some of those cowboy cartridges too that some use in the slug zone > it can be done ! Browning sells BLR levers for less than $1500.00 retail. and don`t forget that Savage 24 over/under could make them a few bucks too ?

I read somewhere that when Ron Coburn took over Savage, they were losing money on every product line that they sold to the tune of $25M per year. Coburn judged that the 110 series was the only product line with enough profit margin potential to pull Savage out of its financial hole, which he succeeded in doing, at least for awhile.

i have wondered if Ruger's investment casting technology would be a good way to make the 99 action and minimize machining.

I think that a stainless/synthetic Model 24 would open a market niche for itself. I think that a stainless/synthetic Model 24 in 223 over 20 gauge with screw-in chokes and some means by which to regulate the rifle barrel would be close to a perfect truck/survival rifle in most of the contiguous 48 States. I have a 24F in 223 over 20 gauge that works pretty well, but the stock's comb is too low for shooting with a scope.

In all of the 30 years that I've hunted in Nebraska, I have yet to come across another hunter carrying a Savage 99. I've seen plenty of 110s and 340s, but no 99s.

Get real about making a new 99.

If it was machined like the Cabot 1911's,
Out of the best forged steel available today.
Fitted with an incognito Bartlien, and shot 3/4 moa,
At $1300, it would flop. At any price, it would flop,
either by demand , or profit per.


The old collector [bleep] would call them post-whatever,
And probably push the cost of the old ones higher.

The guys who should be impressed, would laugh a wood and gluing, 2-piece stocks,
And that big ugly lever swing.

An American classic, it's done.

They could definitely sell some, but, it's about selling them after initial production
costs were recouped. Ain't gonna happen.

Make them from castings, no old guys.
Foreign made, no old guys.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ BINGO ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


Please don't get me wrong. I like, appreciate, and admire the Savage 99. Period.

I totally agree with D.buck.

Overall, how many would pay $ 1300.00 for a new 'well made' 99 ? Some, sure ! but not nearly enuff to justify all that's involved.


Jerry

What about Charles Bronson in Death Hunt

An episode or two of Longmire also. The Ferg loved them.

I agree that the Savage 99 isn't viable as a regular production rifle in 2019, but I think that it might be viable as a limited edition annual classic if someone could make the numbers work.

Every American firearms manufacturer over 50 years old has gone through hard financial times and those with viable products have survived. Ron Coburn used the 110 series to pull Savage out of bankruptcy 30 years ago, but failed to develop another successful firearm to be carry the Company forward when the 110 series ran out of steam. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think that Savage has a single competitive product.

Darwin says that the strong will survive and the weak with cease to exist, Savage looks pretty weak to me and I wouldn't be surprised if it ceased to exist within the next five years.

If I ever watched Death Hunt, I've forgotten it. I do recall the Longmire episode.

BTW, good as the Longmire tv show was, the books are much, much better. I tried to pace myself, but still burned through them all in short order, and have the next one pre-ordered. Unlike the Montalbano books however, I went all e-book to save space, except for a single hardcover for display. Truly great stuff.

It's been eluded to already by previous poster: the majority of today's buyers are shooters, not hunters.

A lot more people have access to the shooting sports than hunting access. I believe that's what driving the firearm market, imho. If it isn't tactical or AR, good luck! Just look at something like PRS, 3-gun, or another popular shooting sport, gun companies will have hard time surviving if they're not willing to adapt to market demand.

They abandoned the 99 a long time ago.

The other levers kept being built, they would need decades to catch up.

Stick a fork in it.



It's done.

Not to beat a horse that died over 20 years ago, but was in my local gun-pushing emporium a couple days ago. On the used rack was a 99EG in good condition, with no extra holes or stock-cracks, chambered for the .300 Savage. The price was $515.

Considered buying it, but deals like that come up pretty often around here.

Coburn used the 110 to save Savage.
He rode that horse to victory in a battle.
But, he didn't strategize winning the war.
Fixing that whole crude, ugly design should
have been the #1 priority the instant it could be justified.

They have done it. But no one thinks of the smooth nut,
hidden bolt stop, svelte nice walnut stocked rifles when the think Savage.

They built those crude-ass, shop project, slightly rounded 4x4 stocked abominations,
for so long, nobody thinks of Savage when they want a nice gun. And no one wants
to pay for a nice one. Don't matter if it shoots great. Don't matter if it looks nice.

It's a Savage.

Shame, really.