Savage 99 Featherweight - What to look for?

Hi All,
I've been interested in picking up a Savage 99 Featherweight in .300 Savage but I'm getting confused as to what to look for in a rifle. There are a few on the auction sites but I don't know enough about them to know if there a fair price or not. Some have tang safeties, some have compasses in the buttstock, cracks, etc.. I'm just looking for a rifle in good shape. Can you give me some pointers as to what I should be / should not be looking for? Thanks!

Sounds as though you already got the basics.
Tang or lever safety is a personal preference thing for a shooter , lever safety is desireable for a collector.

Mike

The lever safeties indicate a 99F made prior to 1960, and those are usually considered to be the best quality.

If you're looking for a hunter grade, pick a price and condition you're happy with. They were all d&t'd for scopes, but didn't come with sling studs, recoil pads or compasses.. those are all add-ons and should drop the price. I don't mind the sling studs for a hunter, but I hate recoil pads and compasses.

I could probably PM you a few links to what I consider good hunters. Considering you want a 300 Savage, you should be able to find one for a decent price.

Thanks guys! I keep tabs on this forum to get as informed as I can about the Savage 99. I'm not a collector, I just have an urge to buy one of these and hunt Maine whitetails with it. I have a couple of Marlin's for that task but there's just something about the 99 that has me wanting one.. Calhoun sir, I would appreciate that info very much! Thanks again!

good choice... the F is a personal favorite...good luck!

Get a good 99EG made in the 40s and 50s or an F made in the 1950s.

Be sure you get one with underlever safety. brass rotor.

They are not cheap anymore btw but you can pick up a nice enough hunter for about $450 to $600 pretty easy, maybe less if you take your time and shop..I would try to pick one up at a gun show.

If your in the Western part of CT stop in the Autumn Gun Works in Goshen. Last week he had about five 99's for sale. Most of those are the older ones and go for $450 and up.

I prefer the Featherweights myself.

If you get up that way stop in The Armoury in New Preston. They have some nice guns as well. Both are open Friday and Saturday.

In Eastern CT Ron's Guns used to have good stuff but I have not been there for a while.

I hope I'm not stealing this thread, but....

I have an F in .300, but I want another one in .250Savage. But, I also want one with the faster twist to shoot the heaver bullets. Is there a way to ID the rifles with the faster twist without measuring it? Serial number range? manufacturing date?

Post 1,000,000 will have 1-10

Yep.. tang safety is another identifier for the 1 in 10 twist.

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what I should be / should not be looking for?

I'm a proponent of the pre-mil lever safety's. I've seen those tangs safes lock-up and break off. The quality is better on the pre-mils...much better. Get one w/a good bore.

Savage_99 - Thanks for the heads-up on those shops! Sounds like a road trip is in my future!

I just got back from that tour. Autumn has four 99's. Three seem to be EG types in 300S. They go from $495 thru $895.

Over at the Armoury they have a nicely refinished 99 takedown in 22HP for $895.

Here are pictures of the 99's I took today at Autumn. Sorry that they are not that clear.

[Linked Image]

308's are harder to get than 300's, 300's are always available,
like 22hp's

Thanks Savage_99 I'll be heading up there one of these weekends!

I was just there and they have a 99A in .358 Win. It looks new but has a mark or two on the wood. The lever is tied shut to keep it new I suppose.

Savage 99F's made in the 1950s were the cream that came to the top of the 99 line, be sure they have the lever safety and brass rotor except for the .284 that may have a aluminum rotor...They have 22" barrels and the short forend as opposed to the schneble.

In value they go mostly by caliber all things being equal, and in the following order by value:

1.284
2.358 Win.
3.250 Savage
4.300 Savage
5.308 WCF and 243 about equal

Ray is a little off... 243 easily command the same or more than a 250 and a 308 is certainly worth more than a 300...

Ray if you have any 243F that you want to trade even up for a 300F, please let me know...

CEJ1895... if you were looking for a really nice hunter... I thought this was a good deal for a nice package gun

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=137554547

The bedding of the forearm might have negative effect on "collector value" and it has sling swivels, but thats a nice scope and a great hunting rig for a reasonable price...the only thing that might scare me off was the "trigger job"

I think Calhoun is a big proponent of the M8 scope??

That was a great deal.

Scope alone is worth $175ish.

M8 is a great scope! I use either the M8 or the VX-3 2.5-8 on all my 99's.

300's are the most common F's and the 284 is only available in post mil rifles as the caliber itself wasn't available in any production rifle that I am aware of until 64.

I have a 300 shooter EG that I had trigger work done on. There was so much travel in the trigger I had to either fix it or get rid of it. I like the rifle though...hence the trigger job. Trigger job wouldn't scare me, some of these 99's left the factory with really bad triggers.

I take issue with the notion that the only worthy 99's are the older ones! Right off I admit that my experiance is very narrow.

I have only handled the older ones with the single exception of one in 38-55 that I shot with cast bullets. I just could not see scoping it and the butt plate was 'rifle' and hard steel. I sold it.

I have had a 99 with a tang safety and sn over a million since 1966. This has been my main woods gun for 43 years now. I admit the experiance is narrow. I also have another similar 99 in the same caliber .358.

This 99 has been perfect for me. I always considered it super reliable and I don't like to read that somehow because its 'new' that its bad.

To add here is a pic. of that 99F that I like so much with some other rifles.

[Linked Image]

its great that you had a good experience with a post-mil and I don't think anyone is really out and out saying the post-mil is a "bad" gun but I don't think that anyone can argue that the pre-mils are just better made... hand fitted, etc... there are always exceptions to the rule but the simple fact is that Savage HAD to make the post-mils cheaper to be competitive.

The market also bares this as it is clearly reflected in the price.

I also don't see in here where anyone stated that the pre-mil was the only gun worth owning... most are just of the opinion that the pre-mils are more collectible or more-reliable.

Lastly... not to be nit picky... but that gun that you have pictured is not an F...not the difference in checkering on the forearm and the monte carlo butt stock...

just so you know that is officially a model "DL" and assuming that is just a little dirt on the butt stock is a BEAUTIFUL gun with a ton of condition...rare to see a post mil with such nice lumber... and in 358 is probably extremely rare... it would likely fetch a good penny from a collector interested in collecting the full gambit of 99s including post mils. The few years that I have been collecting 99s... I have only seen a few DLs and almost all were in 243.

The gun was sold with sling swivels also though those don't see to match the picture in murrays...some one with more experience could probably tell you what was original...

NICE set of guns!!!

To all,

The pictured 99 has "---MODEL-99F---" stamped on the right side of the barrel over the chamber. This must be how I thought it is a 99F!

I paid $67 for it back then as a used gun.

The one to its right is also marked a 99F yet it has a regular stock. They are both close in sn, just over a million.

What is fitted better on an old 99? I had one that was like new, the 38-55, and I would take the tang safety over it.

Here it is again on the left with some other .358's.

[Linked Image]

again, beautiful guns... the one of the left is the DL and the right one is a traditional F... either way they are both great looking rifles in a rare caliber and I bet they are great deer and elk killers....
as a comparison there are a few 358 post mils Fs for sale right now... highest I saw was 1250... a like new 38-55 would probably go for $3k and could go way higher... but if you don't like it then its not worth much to you... beauty is in the eye of the beholder...

I think his F is an F with a monte carlo stock added.

Going by the checkering on the forearm and Murrays... it should be a DL (not sure if that was actually ever a factory designation or just something Murray came up with)... but I am no pro and will default to Jed and most of the other pros around here....

I'm no guru of the post mil rifles. I could be mistaken.

What was the bbl length advertised as on the DL's?

Savage 99, Those mannlichers chambered in 358 also? i see you also got a Ruger 77R in 358 . nice rifles all. I got a EG, F,E, Brush Gun and a early Griffin &Howe model 70 featherweight in 358, i kinda like the 358 also Don

Jed:

Believe the barrel length of the DL's was 22". If I'm mistaken I'm sure somebody will speak up.

Randy

Then you have more .358's than I do! I thought I had the most but I met a guy at a shop near here in CT who has 11!

In the photo of the rifles on the bench the top one is a 8-57, second 30-06, third the .358 99 and last a MS in .358.

The DL was supplied with 24" barrels.
Standard swivels, not quick detachable.

24" sounds correct. Thnx Joe.
Nice gathering of 358's in that picture. Good work.
I had 10 pre mil 358 F's all about new. Had all 5 calibers for the 50's era EG's also about new. Turned mine into a home.

Just measured the barrel on my 1964 .284 DL, 22"

Randy

Maybe they made them in 22 and 24?

All .284's that I have seen wore 22" barrels without the rear sight boss. Both my .308 and .358 DLs had Monte Carlo stocks with cut checkering, 24" barrels with rear sight boss, and marked 99M. Another thing to look for is the forearm on the F model is thinner and less rounded profile than on the DL.