question on re barrel of a model 99c savage

NB.nagantsniper

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a friend owns a savage model 99c the barrel is now shot out ..........he has owned this for over 20+ years .

any idea how tough it is to rebarrel the 99 action is .

any idea on were to buy a new or even used but shootable barrel ? it was in and he would like to stay as a 308 .

all info most welcomed.
 
A bit more work than most bolt actions...The barrel is threaded, chambered and headspaced correctly and the taper needs to match the forend, the attaching 'stud' needs to be attached to the barrel in the correct place, extractor relief needs to be cut. Sights need to be installed...

Used pull off barrels still need to be indexed so the extractor cut is correct and the sights up... and headspaced correctly... sometimes refitting a used barrel can be more work than installing a blank. Any time the barrel has to be set back, the forend attaching stud will no longer be in the correct place...
 
308 isn't hard on barrels. They start to wear out at 5000 rounds. Are you sure its shot out and not just fouled really bad?

Probably a combination or wear and rust and a worn out crown... wear can be seen at under 1000 rounds, it doesn't start at 5000 rounds...
 
as far as im told rifling is now non existant near muzzle and at 1/2 pint in the barrel............worked fine then this season tumbling bullets no accuacy at all.

ive not seen bore yet...........owner is just an average joe, best info i can provide at this point.
 
OP - Your post said he owned the rifle for 20 odd years. Say 25 years. Has he been firing 40 rounds per year - 2 boxes of shells per year - if so, it just got to the first 1,000 rounds that it has fired. So, if no rifling visible in places - likely a combination of corrosion products and possibly fouling. You probably want to ask about the quantity of shells fired per year, and then to see what he has set up for bore cleaning - or not - may not be needing to change out that barrel ...
 
I have seen many hunting rifles worn out from the muzzle back... due to allowing dust and debris and moisture to enter the muzzle and stay in the barrel and then fire rounds through it... it's like sand blasting the bore and the rust sets in... and often a lever action is cleaned from the muzzle with no care to the crown...

In this particular case I would bet an improvement in accuracy could be had by cutting about an inch off the muzzle and crowning ... plus a decent cleaning of the barrel.

Other wise have the barrel bored larger and re rifled and chambered to 358 Winchester by a barrel maker who does that sort of thing... or simply buy a new rifle...
 
If it really is pooched have it re-bored to .358Win Ron Smith /Winbourn AB or Bob Jury /Red Deer AB
 
I read somewhere Ron made mention that Savage 99 barrels were very hard metal to re-bore like Sakos and BRNO's .
 
Ron Smith did a .308 to .358W rebore on a 99 for me several years ago ... not his favorite job for sure, but it turned out very well. The barrel was also shortened by an inch or so. I have an accurate rifle that will outlast me by many many years. You are correct about the potential for the hard steel to cause difficulty, and thus the hesitancy on the part of some smiths to tackle that work.
 
Rebarreling a 99 using a new commercial blank would cost way more than replacement cost of the rifle.
Compared with something like a Remington 700, Winchester 70 or Mauser 98, the job is significantly more complicated. And therefore more costly.
A rebore might be cost effective, if you can find someone to do it.
 
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