Thread: .22high power Savage

Originally Posted by SmokeyJason

Yes a savage 99 is on my radar, but how many firearms can one own and still enjoy using them all.

I have not found this boundary..

Originally Posted by Jhon

Geeze its not often you hear the 99 called "agricultural". On the contrary, they seem to get more bouquets if not reverence than brick bats. Depends what your fancy is I guess...

I always found them ugly and ungainly looking. Of course I am shallow, silly as a horse, and swayed by appearances. I had use of one in .308 for a while, and the rear lock up was sort of clunky to me. I would like to have one of the old ones Pre WW1 style with the graceful schnabel, set up for open sights. I actually had some spare money a couple of weeks ago and was in teh local gunshop and they had another Savage99 in .308 there, in top condition. I thought about it. And then I thought that thing is still as ugly as before. One of the late versions with the dumb cheap stock on it.

I've got 3 or 4 Savage 1899s and 99s in 22 HP, most are takedown.

They might look agricultural to some, but they are way better engineered than other lever actions of the time.
At least you can shoot pointed bullets!

Pity we can't get the "proper projectiles" to you. Still hoping someone in NZ has one and needs projectiles.

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

Pity we can't get the "proper projectiles" to you. Still hoping someone in NZ has one and needs projectiles.

I managed to get a few hundred of them recently - more than I could ever use

I’m not saying they’re not a good thing and a high point of engineering and innovation at the time. But not for me.

If you go to the deliverables, a heavy for calibre .22 projectiles at 2800 fps, there are now a lot of ways to do it in more accurate platforms. I was always focused on the deliverables.

I did buy a 99 in .300 sav about 15 years ago. Rotary mag, with round counter, schnabel forend. The trigger, and dimensions of comb when using a scope were not for me.


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People own and use these old firearms because they have a sense of history , and they like older guns.

Not everyone does this , but those who do have my whole-hearted approval.

From what I remember the 22 high power did really well. Was it just performing like a modern 223 with the same weight pill or were the bullets different

They used a 70 grain soft point, semi round nose looking thing. It was quite popular in its day. Same as a .223 with a 70 grainer really. But the bullets in those days would not have been as good as we have today.
It would have been a perfectly good whitetail deer round, and it was popular enough in the 1930's that some Uk deer properties used them exclusively instead of the 7mm and .303 for a while.

Quite famously a Reverend Caldwell (?) in China shot a tiger with one which Savage used in their advertising. (But he only shot the one in the photo.)

WDM Bell the elephant hunter once shot a herd of 23 cape buffalo with a .22 Hipower (this one probably a Savage lever) for meat for a local African village that was starving. He noted he used 27 shots. He lung shot them all and they all milled around and then expired.

.22high power Savage
222
223

Same, same.

The reality is they all do the same job, sooo, don't understand why people bother.
But, if that's what turns u on, great, go for it.

I'll stick with my 223, no hassles getting cheap components. I guess I'm pragmatic.

Matt Grant mentions this fine round in the book "sharpshooter" which was arguably ahead of its time and gave many of us a glimpse that we could do better,rifle accuracy wise. His comments ran along lines of..it was great on lighter animals but not so flash on big solid stuff. Nothing much has changed. And indeed using a speer semi point 70 grn .224 pill at 2700-2800 from a .223. Is almost identical to using a 70 grn Speers semi point.228 projectiles from the savage.... It's splitting hairs over four thousandths of an inch diameter.

The why it turned me on.... Handled a beautiful 99 as impressionable teen. My father used one many years ago and always spoke highly of it...and I have soft spot for a rimmed round.

I had one many years ago , sold it cheep as I didn't use it much . It came with 1/2 doz small inserts so you could fire .22 lr in it .
It had belonged to an old uncle that used it to put down injured stock .

Originally Posted by Oldbloke

.22high power Savage
222
223

Same, same.

The reality is they all do the same job, sooo, don't understand why people bother.
But, if that's what turns u on, great, go for it.

I'll stick with my 223, no hassles getting cheap components. I guess I'm pragmatic.

Thats why I have the .223 and not the .22 Hipower...

But if I was pragmatic I probably wouldnt have just bought a flintlock... I couldnt really tell you why. It's not like its going to make me more successful. But, if it gets you out enjoying yourself more than otherwise, then really maybe it would....

Originally Posted by BillyDixon

Thats why I have the .223 and not the .22 Hipower...

But if I was pragmatic I probably wouldnt have just bought a flintlock... I couldnt really tell you why. It's not like its going to make me more successful. But, if it gets you out enjoying yourself more than otherwise, then really maybe it would....

Guilty, I have a muzzleloader myself.