Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors 1899 CD or B

Picked up a rifle at the latest auction
Listed as a CD ?
the stock & fore wood shape suggest a CD
Not in mint condition by any means but has history a chip of the heel of the stock and a strip of white paint
around the Stock this indicates it was used by the Home Guard WW1 Also has a name stamped in the wood both
sides of the stock as done so the owner got their rifles back at the end of the war

I then took the fore wood off Numbered to the rifle took the butt plate off both the butt and plate numbered to the rifle
Has some stamps on the barrel and front of receiver
"Q" would the fore wood sling retaining screw be original

Now the reason I think it could be a 1899 B is the barrel address which is style 1
Murray suggest this style only went to Serial Number 38.000
It has the wrong rear sight which I feel is on backwards maybe for owners eye sight
the other reason is that the Barrel is 28"
So is it a 1899-B special order wood and barrel or a 1899-CD with a special order barrel




So good people your thoughts would be appreciated
Cheers Graham

Sweet!

An 1899CD could be ordered as an 1899CD, or it could be ordered as the base model (1899B in this case) with the same options that an 1899CD had. Yours has the options, and an 1899CD could be ordered with octagon barrel. Your serial number would be really close to the introduction of the 1899CD - 1905, which is usually thought of as starting at 54.001.

I'd call it a CD, or the equivalent. An octagon barrel 1899CD in 1905 cost $27, the eyelets/hooks/sling cost another $1.50.

Receiver

So either way Did they offer different barrel lenghts fo the CD as it dosn't state that in Murray's book
which i know is only a guide

In 1905 they catalogued only 26" barrels for the 1899B and 1899CD.

But everything could be modified for a price. $1/inch for longer, not sure what for shorter. $1? Free?

One other "Q" the barrel has no stamping on the left hand side or anywhere
the says Savage Hi-Pressure Steel Model 1899
Was this not done on Oct barrels or special order barrels

The "CD" was first listed in the 1905, #15 catalog. It was an unspecified 1899 rifle with a pistol grip and A3 style checkering, solid frame, standard walnut stock at a fixed listed price. You still had to specify what rifle configuration you wanted...round, octagon, 1/2&1/2, 22", 26" but with no difference in cost.

Take down and other options added to the cost. So was it a CD or a special order at that point?

Given that your rifle has a 28" extra cost barrel I would say it is a Special Order.

The hook-eyes are the type supplied by Savage. Were they on it when it left the factory...?

I think the rifle could be ordered with that tang and front sight with a Lyman #6 in the middle. The middle sight has been replaced (and backwards) with a Remington Model 12 which was not produced till after 1908.

That is quiet a find for down under. Congrat's.

It’s definitely a special order, I agree.

But is it a telegraph code Bait (1899B) with special order features, or telegraph code Peg (1899CD w/octagon barrel) with special features?

To me, it doesn’t matter. Ends up as the same gun.

Do you think a letter would shed anymore light on the subject

We know they sometimes wrote down the named grade in the ledgers. But we don’t know if they always wrote it in or sometimes put in the base model. It might have just been up to the guy recording it in the ledger that day.

In other words... definite maybe.

Sounds like the rifle
A lottery which ever way I go or look at it
Thanks Gentlemen

Interestingly the name stamped on the butt is
W.C.Keeley
Doing a births, Deaths & Marriages search here in New Zealand
turns up with no records
On Line it appears in Nebraska USA

That bad boy needs to come home!