.303 Savage
Encyclopedia
The .303 Savage is a rimmed, .30 caliber rifle
cartridge
developed by the Savage Arms Company in 1894 which was designed as a short action cartridge for their popular Savage Model 99
hammerless lever action rifle. The cartridge was designed for smokeless gunpowder at a time when black-powder cartridges were still popular. The .303 Savage round was ballistically superior to the .30-30 Winchester
, but only marginally. The .303 Savage remained popular through the 1930s.
rifles because of their tubular magazines. However, the pointed-tip bullets gave it a ballistic advantage over other traditional lever-action cartridges such as the .30-30.
brass cases can be formed into .303 Savage dimensions as well.
The .220 Swift
cartridge can be made into a passable .303 Savage cartridge, as they are very close in most dimensions, and after forming the .220 Swift is easily cut to proper length.
cartridge are not interchangeable with each other. Neither the bullet diameter nor the cartridge dimensions are compatible. Attempting to use .303 Savage ammunition in a firearm chambered for .303 British (or .303 British cartridges in a .303 Savage weapon) is guaranteed to have serious consequences. Such attempts will severely damage the firearm and possibly injure the user.
In the UK the .303 savage was called the 301 Savage to avoid confusion.
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
cartridge
Cartridge (firearms)
A cartridge, also called a round, packages the bullet, gunpowder and primer into a single metallic case precisely made to fit the firing chamber of a firearm. The primer is a small charge of impact-sensitive chemical that may be located at the center of the case head or at its rim . Electrically...
developed by the Savage Arms Company in 1894 which was designed as a short action cartridge for their popular Savage Model 99
Savage Model 99
The Model 99, and its predecessor models 1895 and 1899, are a series of lever action rifles created by the Savage Arms Company in Utica, New York.-History:...
hammerless lever action rifle. The cartridge was designed for smokeless gunpowder at a time when black-powder cartridges were still popular. The .303 Savage round was ballistically superior to the .30-30 Winchester
.30-30 Winchester
The .30-30 Winchester/.30 Winchester Center Fire/7.62×51mmR cartridge was first marketed in early 1895 for the Winchester Model 1894 lever-action rifle. The .30-30 , as it is most commonly known, was the USA's first small-bore, sporting rifle cartridge designed for smokeless powder. The .30-30 is...
, but only marginally. The .303 Savage remained popular through the 1930s.
History
Savage Arms created the .303 Savage as part of an unsuccessful attempt at creating a cartridge for the military. Although the cartridge was never popular with the military, it did become a popular round for civilian hunters. Being a pointed-tip rimmed cartridge, it worked well in the Model 99 rifles that Savage produced because of their rotary magazine. However it wasn't as successful in other lever-actionLever-action
Lever-action is a type of firearm action which uses a lever located around the trigger guard area, to load fresh cartridges into the chamber of the barrel when the lever is worked. Most lever-action firearms are rifles, but lever-action shotguns and a few pistols have also been made...
rifles because of their tubular magazines. However, the pointed-tip bullets gave it a ballistic advantage over other traditional lever-action cartridges such as the .30-30.
Reloading
The .303 Savage has a small, but loyal fraternity of shooters who reload this cartridge. While major ammunition manufacturers have long since halted production of ammo, dedicated followers can procure loaded ammunition and brass cases through smaller enterprises. The brass cases can be formed from other more popular cases, most notable the .303 British service round. .30-40 Krag.30-40 Krag
The .30-40 Krag was a cartridge developed in the early 1890s to provide the U.S. armed forces with a smokeless powder cartridge suited for use with modern small-bore repeating rifles to be selected in the 1892 small arm trials...
brass cases can be formed into .303 Savage dimensions as well.
The .220 Swift
.220 Swift
The .220 Swift is a semi-rimmed rifle cartridge developed by Winchester and introduced in 1935. It was the first factory loaded rifle cartridge with a muzzle velocity of over...
cartridge can be made into a passable .303 Savage cartridge, as they are very close in most dimensions, and after forming the .220 Swift is easily cut to proper length.
Non-compatibility with .303 British
As with any firearm, it is essential to use the correct type of ammunition. The .303 Savage and the .303 British.303 British
.303 British, or 7.7x56mmR, is a .311 inch calibre rifle and machine gun cartridge first developed in Britain as a blackpowder round put into service in December 1888 for the Lee-Metford rifle, later adapted to use smokeless powders...
cartridge are not interchangeable with each other. Neither the bullet diameter nor the cartridge dimensions are compatible. Attempting to use .303 Savage ammunition in a firearm chambered for .303 British (or .303 British cartridges in a .303 Savage weapon) is guaranteed to have serious consequences. Such attempts will severely damage the firearm and possibly injure the user.
In the UK the .303 savage was called the 301 Savage to avoid confusion.