Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors Model 340 with cut checkering, factory or not?

A buddy bought a Model 340 22 Hornet at a gun show a couple months ago and I just got to see it. It has cut checkering. I have seen some with impressed checkering and some with no checkering, but can't recall ever seeing one with cut checkering. To me, the checkering looks factory but I figured I'd ask the experts. If it is factory, would that indicate a date range of when the gun was made?

that is after market cut. the cutter had some expertise but failed on the over runs.

Agree.

He didn’t clean up the edges very well. Overruns make it look a bit amateurish, although pretty good overall.

DF

I have to disagree with those saying it's definitely aftermarket. The pattern and the quality (low) of the checkering matches other models from the late 40's ~ early 50's. From what I can tell from the low resolution of the photos the checkering quality is consistent with what I see on the post war Model 29-A pump 22's from 1948~1950.

The 340S was the version with checkering and it also had sling eyes, a No 175 peep sight, and a hooded ramp front sight, I see this one has a least one sling eye. This is from a 1950 catalog. Is there a date code on the gun?

I found one other with this pattern of checkering and it looks worse. auctions/items/4079175 Even the checkered versions of these were not a high end item.

I concur. Looks very similar to this shotgun of similar vintage.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/990936349

Looks like the stock checkering on a 342-S. I had a new one in .22 Hornet that I bought from Larry Racine in 2003 and sold to a collector from northern NY on this site in 2008, the nicest 340 series Savage that I've ever owned.

looks like checkering on a 23D.

+1
Looks factory to me

My 1959 110 has checkering just like that. I would post a pic but the rifle is in Florida and I’m not.

I have always been impressed with the stocks and bluing on the older Model 110s

It's after market. Nice job but repop

I went back and looked at the pictures again, I still don't se anything that really stands out to indicate it cannot be factory, what are you basing your assessment on?

Here are copies of some the pictures I used for comparison, some might be after market but I can't see any feature that stands out to help definitely determine that. I know the 29's are factory, I had a discussion several years ago about the poor quality of the factory checkering on the Model 29 pump 22's, they had standard checkering from the mid 1930's at least to 1949. I also think the 110's and the EG are too, the other are questionable, what are some opinions on No 1, No 6 & No 7? Especially No 1, since that's a rifle that is listed as having checkering as an option and No 6 & No 7 are not.









The 1949 catalog still had the Model 320 & 322, 1950 was the fist with the 340 and listed the checkering option but without a picture.

I have Sav 5's and a 7 that look just like #7 and a 23D with the same rounded corner at front of the grip cap of #6.

I don't have anything in the family of the 340 to compare to. But given the number of employees that did checkering and the variations I have seen in quality of checkering on 99's I wouldn't question any of the above unless it was the wrong pattern for the rifle.

Based on the few examples I could find most of the bolt actions have both bottom corners of the checkering pattern square instead of the front being rounded like on 99's and 29's. As I said above for the pictures I posted I can't say for sure if the checkering is factory or not except for the Model 29's, I have a number of those and checkering was standard. No 6 & 7 are also my guns but I can say for sure if they are factory, just that they look like they could be when compared to the 29's.

Look close at No 1 again, there is something I didn't mention about that picture since I thought it might influence opinions about it -

It's just the original posted picture rotated and mirrored with the exposure and color adjusted so the details would show up better for comparisons.

Thank you everyone for the replies.
My buddy finally got back to me with the date code, the gun was made in 1954. I didn't know anything other than 99's had a date code, so didn't look when he showed me the gun.
In answer to GeneB's question early in the thread, the gun doesn't have a hooded front sight and didn't have a #175 peep sight. Also, thank you for taking the time and posting all the pictures.
I thought the poor quality of the checkering looked like factory, but my main question was, were the patterns something Savage would have done. I can't ever recall seeing cut checkering on a 340 that looked like it might be factory. I've seen a few with amateur checkering applied, and have checkered a few for customers myself. I based my quality assessment from the fact I have made, checkered, repaired, refinished, etc. stocks for over 50 years and worked in a rebluing shop for 25. Because of that, I've handled a lot of guns up close, with a critical eye, and Savage isn't the only factory to commonly have poor quality checkering on base grades of guns.

Great post--lots to learn here, especially from the high quality pix. Bravo, all!

I have a 340 30-30. It’s checkered, has sling eyes, and a WFC 175. Going from memory I think Gene solved the “WFC” on the sight as initials for William F Cobb. Also around that same time someone posted or I found an advertisement detailing Savage offering a 340 “Deluxe”. The “Deluxe” features were the checkering, sight, sling eyes, and possibly hood.

I can post pics later if anyone is interested. Will look for the add.

Found this add. Hesitant to post the actual auction because it’s still live. Says it dates to 1951. The screen shot is blurry but at the end of the M 340 description it lists the features offered on a “340-S De Luxe”. Checkering being one of those features.