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Load experience for .300 savage and .308 Norma magnum

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  • lalogger

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    I recently purchased a model 99 Savage in .300 savage caliber and a Husqvarna in .308 Norma Magnum and am wondering if anyone has any experience loading either or both as I have bought the brass and die sets for both. Looking for recommendations for accuracy loads?
     

    oyeme!

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    Although an older thread I will answer it with hopes it gets to the OP.

    I have loaded for the .300 Savage which in my opinion is a great deer cartridge and the Model 99 Savage the best of the lever actions. Ken Waters did a lot of load development back in the 70s-80s. He discovered that THE single best powder for the .300 Savage was 3031. I also found it to be the best powder with excellent accuracy and very good velocities.

    The short neck of the .300 Savage means you should stick to traditional bullet shapes not the real long boat tail designs that are in vogue now so you don't take up powder space with the bullet. Bullets like the Hornady Interlock, Sierra Spitzers, and Remington Pointed Soft Points are what this cartridge design dictates for best performance. Believe it or not, those traditional spitzer designs WILL kill deer just fine even though they don't have pretty colored plastic tips. Keep the bullet weight down and I always used 150 grain bullets with a flat base. They worked beautifully.

    Finally, keep the rear lock up of the Model 99 in mind when developing loads and do not try to push it too hard or you can develop headspace in that great old rifle action. No need to try and push it into something it is not intended, especially since you already have a Boomer with that .308 Norma Mag. That will also help reduce cases from stretching too much. Do your load development with no more than .5 grain increment increases as this is a low capacity case, and will build pressures quickly near max. Somewhere around 38 to 38.5 grains of 3031 will be a maximum with most 150 grain bullets of traditional flat base design. Be safe!

    I also reloaded a .300 Savage in a Model 99 that belonged to a friend of mine and that rifle would easily shoot inside 1.25 inch at 100 yards. EASILY, with many 3 shot groups inside 1 inch! I tried to buy that rifle but he would not sell it. I don't blame him. Good luck!
     

    Midnight son

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    Wow, I hope the OP has made progress with these super cool old school rifles and loads! I for one would love to see pics of the rifles (esp the husky!) and of the results obtained.
     

    SAWMAN

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    A buddy up in Maine hunts exclusively with a Savage Mod 99 chambered in 300Savage.
    He inherited the gun when a relative passed. Before that he was strictly a 308Win guy.
    He kills good sized deer about every year with the 99. Two years ago he killed a 240lb deer. That is scaled without anything in the chest cavity including heart,liver,lungs,and all intestines. So on the hoof the deer was close to 300lbs.
    He shoots some kind of 150gr. All his shots are <100yds with most being 50yds in the spruce and fir thickets.
    He is extremely happy with his 300Savage. --- SAWMAN
     

    boatbum101

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    300 Savage has a short neck so flat base bullets are the key . At the sedate velocity of this cartridge regular cup & core bullets are fine . Out of the 22" barrel on a Model 99 a 150 can be pushed to 2600fps , a 165 to 2500fps . 3031 , 4895 , 4064 , VVN-140 & RL 15 are good choices . Cases stretch can be reduced greatly by reducing loads slightly & by not setting case shoulder back any more than needed for easy chambering . Great rifle / chambering for the woods .

    308 Norma Mag pretty similar to 300 Win Mag performance wise . Because of higher MV I'd go with bonded or monolithic bullets . 4350 , 4831 , H1000 , Norma 204 or MRP are good choices for powders . Like the Win Mag case has a short neck so pick bullets accordingly , size cases so they headspace on case shoulder instead of belt .
     
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