Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors What happened to Jed?

Too much information guys

Let's keep our eye on the ball and get back to the Savages.

Randy

Guys,I can say this about records,if permitted, I am a Winchester guy,I like them,but I want a couple of nice clean,real,original Savages 99's to go along with the early American hunting rifles I collect.
Many years ago the records for Model 70's,21's and a lot of lever guns got gone.Some say a fire,lost,flood and aliens,who knows,but they are gone.The market has allowed fakes to enter and many people have lost lot's of money.You must trust the seller. I'll say it again records are important to collecting and with that, the keeper must be a person of integrity and honest intentions.
I have read and studied every 99 I get my hands on,so far only own one RS,looking at an EG,then I'll find a take-down. Records are important. I'll get off my soap-box now....

rifle, Your not on a soap box with the ideas that records should stay with a person of integrity. I rather like them that way than with some Jack that would smile in you face.

As the Loggah has already alluded, you really should meet the man who was hand picked to be the keeper of the records by the former Savage historian Roe Clark.

And as he stated if you've had met John at any of the Savagefests you would know him to be a man of integrity. Also, you would be impressed with his knowledge of the inner workings Savage organization over the years. As a new comer to the world of 99s, I was delighted meet JTC and to listen in on the conversations he held with other collectors who have decades of experience in the Savage arena. Again my thanks to Jed and family for hosting some of the early gatherings. I got an eye full and education I'm still mining these years later.

Anyway, what we pay for a historical letter is a pittance compared to other collectors like the Winchester or the Parker boys.

John, if you're out there, my hats off to you SIR! (I'll get that cheque into the mail for that SRC. )

OK, let's find a way to delete every post on this thread, EXCEPT 3. The one that brought this to light, Loggah's, and yours. You 3 speak volumes. Thanks for coming through with some eloquence. Now, with that said, IF this is true, those that are involved should make themselves known!!! This will be my last post on this particular thread. Very well said, Bert.

Jed, yes, I was part of the group. No one was trying to buy and publish the records. No one has a problem with JC having the records or the way he is using them. He is a great guy and we are all lucky that he ended up with them.

There are two issues that we were trying to accomplish. One was to preserve the information in the log books. There are only the original log books. If something happens to them we have nothing!

Secondly, it would be nice to have some limited access to determine quantities produced, when models started and stopped, etc. Questions that can only be determined by a lot of man hours of tedious work. I think some of this was done at one time on the 1895's and the pistols.

There is technology available that allows the coping of books that does not require a person to turn the pages. Pages are photographed and digitized for computer use. Jed, as you know the data is not always legible or even easy to determine what it says. It would still require review and lots of hours to put it in spreadsheet form. But once it is digitized there would be a backup to the original logs and an easier way to find info with less damage to the log books, which are not in the best shape. The company is close to JC but having the work done is very expensive. All the group was offering was financing that would have allowed the coping for limited access to the information for research. No one wanted to publish the log books. No one wanted to cut JC out of his business of supplying info on individual Savage firearms. The group was only concerned about the preservation of the information and being allowed to do some limited research.

For some of us it is very frustrating to be limited to what we can find one firearm at a time when data could be made available for research. And the thought that there is no backup to what is left of the original data is scary.

Jed, if you or JC thought the group wanted to publish the logs or take money out of JC's pocket you are in error.

It's really none of my business, but preservation should be looked into while it is still a possibility. I'm sure we all have firearms that there are few, if any, records for. The Broomhandle Mauser comes to mind....

I'm not trying to make anyone mad-I just thought I would chime in. We miss you Jed, you gotta come back!

Are the documents JC's property?

If so, shouldn't he decide what backup is appropriate?

Yes, that is why the idea was presented to him.

I never doubted that there was more to this story than the portrayed band of thugs hassling a little old man.

Thanks for clearing that up Rick, and thanks for attempting backup, it makes sense.

Anyone that has a business and no backup is playing with fire. I learned that lesson the hard way in 2004 when my office burned and my backups were faulty.
And an old adage can be adapted...Even a mouse has a backup plan!

Brian

So who has access to do some limited research and if you have the info who says it will be limited? These looks contain info such as ship dates and addresses remember this was of a time a person could call and order what they desired no nicks check or ffl needed I would think many special order guns were sent this way and the info is in the books point is once you know where a rifle was sent and to whom it becomes a sort of path that some collectors may use to find "special rifles". The current system works. One rifle at a time can be very suspenseful and I'm sure the books are not 100% accurate.
I have no idea how much it may cost to have the records saved maybe the per letter fee should be raised a bit to cover such a project. Information is good but in the wrong hands could be very bad.

I am certainly not going to pass judgement on anyone here... and I won't... but maybe a solution that all would be happy with...

Rick,

Write the book... we have all been practically begging you for several years.... my guess is that JC would be more open to allowing you to see the records for a few days / weeks under a limited agreement for research for your book. Mike McIntosh did this when he wrote his book on Fox records, though this was in the time of Roe Clark but my guess is that if you thanked him in the book and added a page advertising for him he might allow it. The book would do nothing but increase the collectibility of Savage and likely increase the letter request. This would also put the finding in the public hand that would make all of us here happy.

You might be able to convince those that were willing to fund the record scanning project to fund the book and then make a written agreement to use some % of proceeds from the book to fund a project to scan and save the factory records for JC. I also believe that JC has an ethic requirement to do what he can to save the records to the best of his ability before they degrade any further.

My guess is that all here, including Jed, would support a real effort to publish this book. I don't have much to offer but would certianly do what I could. my guess is that Ron T, Rory, Steve, Blair, Loggah, etc, etc etc would all be willing to provide information and pictures, I certainly don't have the right to speak for these ppl but BELIEVE they would all help.

Bowers was able to produce a VERY nice book on Savage pistol which are not nearly as collectable as the 99s. If I had the records, stats, and general knowledge that you have, I would give it serious consideration.

Personally, I would pay as much as $100-150 maybe more for a very nice Savage 99 book that was hard bound and had many nice color pics. There are many other collector books that sell for that much or more... heck the Parker Story book sells for over $300.

Just an idea... I recognize its an amazing amount of work...

To easy.......

Make it all worthless, put the original in a firearms museum and blast a copy all over the net.

I've seen it more times than I can remember. Grandma's side, Grandpa's side, pop's side, Mom's side, the old lady works at a retirement home with countless stories. Everyones got an angle, makes me sick.
Coping the orginal is cool but I still see the angle, way too many times. Never would I put this in the hands of people of this forum. I have seen too much greed,want and envy in my short time here.
Make it a see all and stow the first copy.
Good luck mr. C.

This whole thing was done to undermind the effort for a Savage

collectors association to be formed as a holder of the records

and to have John Callahan as director. The idea of buying the

records for a Savage collectors was suggested to John quite

some time ago. At that time he was not ready to move forward

as he had also been approached by other historical record keepers

to transfer all records to them. The question of security and

protection of the records being in the hands of a collectors

assoc. was heavy on his mind. He worried some might think

they should have special access because of their standing in the

assoc. A thought that may have come true. There is more to this

than has been said here. If Mr.Callahan wants people to know,

I will leave it to him or maybe Jed (because I am sure he

knows) to tell you. This is the way I see it!!!!!!!!

Doug

PS. This may seal where the records will go as Savage

collectors we will all get ????

I guess I'll start collecting J.C. Higgens then......

Bunch of damn low life buzzards on here , those records are JTCs private property and shouldn't even be a topic of discussion in this way.

Mike

Take it easy. I don't think anyone but those involved should be saying anything definate. I always try to treat other people with respect on here-I even shy away from some jokes because I don't know how they will be interpreted.