Re-chambering a 300 Savage to 308?

[LocoGringo]

Howdy fellas. I'd like your opinions on something. I know a guy who has a Savage model 99 chambered in 300 Savage that is in really good shape for $450. I like the idea and design of the rifle, but don't want to add another caliber to the collection...especially one that is difficult to find ammo for.

My question is can a 300 Savage barrel be re-chambered to .308 easily? I think the 2 calibers are similar, so it would seem possible, but there is also the aspect of disassembly of the rifle to remove the barrel and I don't know anything about that. Your ideas and opinions are welcome.

 

[newfalguy101]

It should be fairly easy, however, were it me I would trade it as is for a 99 in .308, or sell it outright and buy a 99 in .308.

If you decide to do the latter, drop me a PM and I will make you an offer.

 

[Jim Watson]

If it was made after .308 was regularly available in the 99, I THINK it could be rechambered. That would also eliminate its collector interest and reduce resale value.

If it was made before the action was lengthened for .308 etc, it CANNOT be converted.

 

[LocoGringo]

Good info so far. I guess to find out when it was made, I'm gonna have to get ahold of the serial number and ask Savage when it was made. Roughly when were the Model 99s lengthened to accomodate 308?

 

[Offfhand]

Leave it as is.

 

[4v50 Gary]

Buh bye collector value & What Jim Watson said.

 

[LocoGringo]

So there seems to be several collectors here who may believe it's a bad idea to rechamber the rifle for collector value. I understand that condition is (almost) everything in gun value...so what's this rifle worth assuming 98-100%? It's been a while since I've seen this particular rifle, so my memory is fuzzy on it's condition. I do remember having the impression it is in good shape, but not necessarily collector level. It looked like a good rifle to actually use.

 

[armedwalleye]

Value is all about vintage, condition, chambering and series. 99e, 99g, etc.
Once the serial and series is known, a quick inter web search will tell you what you need to know. I have the.308, dad has the 300, both are about 3x as accurate as they have any business being for that short lil barrel. DO NOT attempt trigger work on these. There's too fine a line between safe and unsafe. Most I've seen have a little harder pull but no creep and a clean break.

.300 is actually fairly easy to find, and unless you're gonna shoot a bunch, they're reasonably enough priced to hunt with.

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

While not cheap, I tried a couple of random ammunition vendors and had no problem finding .300 Savage. I'd pay the price for it in preference to rechambering. .308 Winchester also operates at a higher chamber pressure than .300 Savage.

 

[Scooter22]

Don't do it. A M99 in .300 Sav is as classic as you can get. There is large market out there for that combo. If you re chamber it you got a bubba special. A .308 isn't going to do anything different than the .300 in that rifle. If you really want a .308 sell yours and find a .308. If you do it the first thing most guys will say about that conversion is, "What a dope".:banghead:

 

[rcmodel]

I also doubt the older Savage 99 spool magazine in .300 Savage will feed .308 without a lot of hair pulling modification to the follower.

It could turn into a nightmare real easy if you mess up.

rc

 

[Kp321]

+1 on RC's comment on the magazine. He beat me to it, as usual. I'm in the leave it alone corner. 300 Savage is still available and a very good round. Just buy another set of dies and call it good.

 

[natman]

Leave it alone for the following reasons:

It will ruin the collectability of the the gun, which with an original 99 is worth thinking about.

When Savage went to 308 cartridges they beefed things up to handle the higher pressures. Don't convert an earlier rifle.

The spool magazine will require modification to feed a 308.

There's nothing wrong with the 300 Savage. Shoot it as is, or sell it to somebody who will appreciate it as is and buy a 99 in 308 if that's what you want.

 

[X-Rap]

For what you'd spend in smithing costs you could buy dies and a life time supply of brass for the 300.

 

[jmorris]

I agree with the "they are worth more than they are worth as is" crowd.

Anything can be done but with so many that want it as is sell it and get what you really want with the profit.

 

[LocoGringo]

Alright, so you guys have convinced me to not mess with it IF I decide to buy it. My buddy gave me the serial number and if it's correct and complete, it looks like the rifle was orginally made in 1936, so I doubt it can be converted anyway. It has a scope mount on it with an old Tasco scope, so I also doubt that is original, so collectibility is questionable. I've convinced him to let me have it in my possession so that I can do some more/better research to try to find out exactly what it is. This is kinda fun.

Thanks for all of the input and convincing me to not mess with it. That's why I asked rather than doing something foolish/ignorant. Anyone got any tips to look for specifically?

 

[rcmodel]

Tips to look for?

A drilled and tapped receiver on a pre-war Savage 99 with a Tasco scope on it?

That would indicate somebody else got a bad idea about what to do with it about a generation before you did!!

rc

 

[Zeke/PA]

Leave it alone!!
The .300 Savage ballistics are very close to the .308 stuff plus you have a proven deer taker with no additional expense.
If you reload, you can have a very accurate rifle to boot!

 

[FROGO207]

The 300 Savage can hold its own against the 308 FWIW. The ammo is available for a little bit more than 308 but there are lots less rifles chambered for it than the 308. If you reload then you can really improve it as well. I have a couple model 99's and an Arisaka that has been rebarreled to 300 SAV. The reloads I have developed in the bolt rifle are better than the 308 and run closer to the 30-06 at distances as well as accurate goes. FWIW I read in the past that if the 300 SAV had fed better in a full auto then that would have probably be the military round instead of the 308 here in the USA.

 

[Sav .250]

First let me say you have no idea what you have ! The Sav 99 has icon status.
They haven`t been made in a long time. A classic !

Read up on the Savage 99. Maybe you`ll learn something.

Why not sell it to somebody who will appreciate it ? Then buy a 308 cal or just look around for another Sav 99 in .308 cal. They are out there but extremely hard to come by. JMO.

 

[LocoGringo]

First let me say you have no idea what you have ! The Sav 99 has icon status.
They haven`t been made in a long time. A classic !

Read up on the Savage 99. Maybe you`ll learn something.

Why not sell it to somebody who will appreciate it ? Then buy a 308 cal or just look around for another Sav 99 in .308 cal. They are out there but extremely hard to come by. JMO.

I'm going to sound harsh here but your post came off on the smart*ss edge of inappropriate. Did you read and comprehend anything in the thread? You're partly right...I don't know, but I don't have either. That's why I'm asking here. A buddy has this rifle and I'm thinking about buying it.

I HAVE been reading a lot more and that is why I said IF I buy it, I won't mess with it in post #16.

Thanks, though, for your opinion.

 

[a98doc]

Magazine

The 99 magazine will not feed 308's and is to short and I have spoken to a gunsmith that made the mistake of trying to convert a 99 to 308.
It's easier to run 308 brass through a 300 Sav sizing die and load from there.
there is no diff from a 308 to a 300 at the other end of the barrel.
I have both I like both don't change it just enjoy it

 

[Garrobo]

If this was

a straight forward bolt action rifle I'd say go ahead and ruin it's collector value if you have some unlimited funds. Since it is a spool-fed rifle you might want to forget about it and sell the rifle and buy yourself a nice .308 Remington, Winchester, Ruger or Savage and be money ahead not to mention the nerves frayed by making this conversion work correctly and efficiently.

 

[Malamute]

I'm going to sound harsh here but your post came off on the smart*ss edge of inappropriate. Did you read and comprehend anything in the thread? You're partly right...I don't know, but I don't have either. That's why I'm asking here. A buddy has this rifle and I'm thinking about buying it.

I HAVE been reading a lot more and that is why I said IF I buy it, I won't mess with it in post #16.

Thanks, though, for your opinion.

People posting without reading the thread is rampant on forums. More common than not actually.

They just cant wait to express their opinion on something, even though the original question was resolved several posts, or pages, ago.

 

[HexHead]

Then buy a 308 cal or just look around for another Sav 99 in .308 cal. They are out there but extremely hard to come by.

I saw two in .308 at my LGS not long ago. One with the internal mag and one with the detachable one. They had a couple of others too.