What did the 300 Savage do?

WhelanLad

WhelanLad

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Hellooo, just curious as to what the 300 Savages claim to fame was mostly?
were it common to use 180gr loads back in its day or mostly the 150?

used for Elk or just mostly Deer?

is this one a lever chambering ? or it was created for something else?

thanks
 
The .300 savage was developed to meet .30/06 velocities in a short case for the model 99 lever. There are bolt actions that were chambered in .300 sav but, there were far more levers. Imho, 150's are perfect for deer sized game at medium ranges. 180's are too slow for my liking and they drop like a stone.
 
I know a retired guide who worked for decades in BC's Chilcotin region who said the 300 Savage was the most effective moose cartridge he saw in use by his hunters. He said the 270 Winchester was the worst for wounding, mostly because hunters thought it could do more than it was capable.
 
I've used a few over the years , never on anything larger than deer though . All in all , it's a great cartridge . An old friend of the family , now long gone , had a pre-war 99 in 300 Savage . Over the years I saw that man drop about 5 ? elk and 9 or 10 Moose . All were one shot kills and nothing went far after being shot . If I remember correctly ( iffy ) he used 180 gr bullets on everything . I doubt he shot anything over 150 yards , but he was an experienced hunter and woodsman and a great game shot , he got close and didn't take a shot until it was practical . Something we should all do , regardless of cartridge .
 
MD said:
I know a retired guide who worked for decades in BC's Chilcotin region who said the 300 Savage was the most effective moose cartridge he saw in use by his hunters. He said the 270 Winchester was the worst for wounding, mostly because hunters thought it could do more than it was capable.
Click to expand...

The .270 had that reputation because a lot of hunters used cup and core 130’s at high velocity, with a good 150 or 160 the .270 changes its personality drastically.

The 300 Savage is equal to the .308 or close enough no game would know the difference
 
In the north lots of moose, caribou and bears have been taken with the .300 and still are, but it's less common than it once was obviously. Savage 99's are still popular, generally with the older guys, as are other lever actions.
I've only used one once years ago for a bear but I can't remember the bullet weight.
 
The 300 Savage was a great cartridge in it's day and still is for that matter. The 308 over shadowed it and more so when Savage began chambering the 99 for 308 in the 50's. Don't under estimate the 300 Savage it's a decent cartridge for a good many critters.
 
It’s close enough to the 308 to use it for the same purposes. I don’t see any reason to own one over a 308 though. Unless a rifke you like happens to be chambered in it, or it’s a nostalgia thing.
 
i used one in my years of guiding and it worked great on the few bears and barrenground caribous that i met. it saved my bacon a few times and will be the last rifle to leave the home if something is happening to gun ownership in canada ...
 
I have owned a couple of 300 Savage chambered rifles in the past. One was a Remington 722.

the other a 700 Classic. [obviously both bolt actions] I shot a number of deer and Black bear with them,
one a very solid Blackie that hung at 280 lbs, dressed with hide & head removed.

One moose with a 165 Partition, chased by Reloder 15, about 160 yards, one shot, dead moose.
It is a quite effective little round, that has accounted for a fair bit of game. Dave.
 
My dad used a 300 sav, it was his main gun for decades. I remember seeing him shoot grouse with it as he knew that gun well. I got a pic of him with a nice tom cougar that he used it on. I met a fella in northern BC that almost despised any "new" style caliber like the 7 rem mag. He used the 300 sav for elk, moose and deer.
 
There's an interesting hunting story our there with a Savage 99 in 300 from the late 1940s or early 1950s one American hunter.
Was said he hired a guide out of Barrow or Baffin Island for a polar bear hunt. The guide got him close to one and the hunter took a shot. It just wounded/angered the bear whom now charged the hunter. Credit given he stood his ground finally killing the bear, it was almost at his feet. The rifle magazine now empty.
 
If the .308 Winchester had not been invented the .300 Savage would still be popular... it was very accurate too.
 
WhelanLad said:
Hellooo, just curious as to what the 300 Savages claim to fame was mostly?
were it common to use 180gr loads back in its day or mostly the 150?

used for Elk or just mostly Deer?

is this one a lever chambering ? or it was created for something else?

thanks
Click to expand...

It was originally pushed as achieving 30-06 velocities in a handy lever gun. Which it did at the time, 30-06 velocities being not very fast at the time. As mentioned, when the military was looking for a more efficient 30-06, they used the 30 Savage as the base for the 308. I've had my step dad's for many years, used it on mostly moose. A few deer and bears. It works fine. - dan
 
My uncle still uses a 99 in 300savage, 180gr bullets, for whitetails. And likely has been using this combo since before I was alive.

The ammo isn't cheap to find around here, although it's usually at canadian tire so at least it's available.
 
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