Good Day,
I am meeting a gentleman Saturday to do a transactoin in which I will be hopefully coming home with a premil 99 in .308 As this will be my first 99, what should I be looking at with respect to condition, verifying original wood, etc.? I am a greenhorn with these firearms.
Also, I know .308s come in 'F' models and are stamped as such but what other models would this caliber come in a 9XXXXX vintage please and how can I determine which this one is?
Thanks Much

The F will have F stamped on the barrel and a 22" bbl.

The EG will have a schnobel forearm and 24" bbl.

The R will have a rounded semi-beavertail forearm and a 24" bbl.

Most likely be an F as they're the most common pre-mil 308's, anything else and consider yourself lucky to find it.

Tips for used rifle "buyers" would be a good sticky. Not so much on identification, but CONDITION. On the Marlin Owner's site, there is a sticky with some generic, basic advice. http://www.marlinowners.com/forums/index.php/topic,52558.0.html

You could also go to the "Misc good Info" in the stickies above and "back into" some tips by reading some of the Savage 99 problems and their correction.

I'm a stickler on bore condition, so when I go out to take a look at one for sale, I always just happen to have a bore light, cleaning rod and bore cleaner with me.

Pls give us a report on the outcome of your 99 look-see.

The infamous tang crack on the top of the stock where it joins the receiver is the first thing I look for.

A few things in addition to those mentioned (I use for all guns)
1) Stripped screws in wood or metal--stripped wood is an easy fix, metal screws--not so much. If anything is loose, bring a screwdriver and ask you can check. I've seen screw heads broken off from the shank and just hanging in there. This can get expensive if it's a scope mount screw that needs to have the old shank take out or be re-tapped.
3) Lever guns--check for lever droop--does the lever meet firmly at the tang, or does it droop so there is a gap? Again, some guns are easy to fix, some, not so much.
4) Shims that shouldn't be there
5) Holes that shouldn't be there in wood or metal.
6) Check for matching serial numbers on forearm, stock and metal--but ASK first (if this is even a concern for a shooter)
7) Buggered screw heads--might not tell you much but if Bubba worked on it on the back porch with a butter knife it might give you a heads up of other things look amiss on the gun.
8) Does the safety work?
9) Any welds or brazing on the lever or tangs, that might have been touched up with blue? We all get old and broken sometime, but still nice to know. A fix is a fix but if it was fixed well you might not even see it at first pass.

None of these would be deal killers, but just might help you make a better decision, or save you a few bucks.

Might be nice to take some .308 shell casings with you to see if the magazine spring works (also the ejector).