Savage 340 Throat

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  • Last Post 10 April 2009
Antietamgw posted this 06 April 2009

I found a Savage 340 the other day, pretty nice for a pawn shop gun with a great bore a minimal bumps and bruises on the walnut stock. I decided to make a throat slug and was surprised at what I found. Sure doesn't look like my lever gun throats! What do I do with this? I'm thinking set the barrel back and get a new clean throat. What do you folks think?

Keep your plowshare and your sword. Know how and when to use them.

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Ed Harris posted this 06 April 2009

Antietamgw wrote: I found a Savage 340 the other day, pretty nice for a pawn shop gun with a great bore a minimal bumps and bruises on the walnut stock. I decided to make a throat slug and was surprised at what I found. Sure doesn't look like my lever gun throats! What do I do with this? I'm thinking set the barrel back and get a new clean throat. What do you folks think?

http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h232/Antietamgw/Caspian/?action=view&current=Picture027.jpg>http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h232/Antietamgw/Caspian/?action=view&current=Picture027.jpg  Looks to me like #314299 and 21 grs., of RL-7!

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Antietamgw posted this 06 April 2009

I used a 311290 to make the slug and it chambered tight with the base of the bullet just above the shoulder.I just got the mold and was hoping to use it or 311299 with the noses bumped flat for a heavy .30-30 bullet.  Actually my concern was that sharp transition from .315 to ..312, thought it might be a source of trouble. I generally shoot ACWW. The neck is .332 which limits me a little in size and still have neck clearance. My marlins run closer to .336 neck.  I was just surprised to see this as my leverguns seem to have a sharp taper right off the case neck. I've got to measure some case neck thicknesses and see what size bullet I can use. Is this an unusual .30-30 throat? Marlin chambers are the only .30-30 throats I recall making a slug of.

Keep your plowshare and your sword. Know how and when to use them.

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Ed Harris posted this 06 April 2009

Antietamgw wrote: The neck is .332 which limits me a little in size and still have neck clearance. My marlins run closer to .336 neck...Is this an unusual .30-30 throat? Marlin chambers are the only .30-30 throats I recall making a slug of. The .332 neck is close to minimum.  The large ball seat and long throat are common in Savage and H&Rs I've cast.   Do no harm as long as bullets fit.   Max. bullet with unturned neck is .310, if you turn necks to 0.010 you could use .312, but cases won't last long.  Better to run a .30 M1 Carbine or .32 H&R Mag. reamer into the neck to open it up to .337-.339 or so, then you can run .314 bullets no problem. 

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Antietamgw posted this 06 April 2009

Thank you Ed. That neck is even tighter than my Bullberry .30-30. Was wondering which way to go. Obviously, I'll shoot it first as is. It will need some bedding work - barreled action looks like a rocking horse in the wood without guard or barrel band screw holding it. I stripped it and a Rem 700 “bowling alley finish” stock the other day and will get the wood bedded, bumps and bruises straightened out and refinished before I use it.  Your suggestion to open the neck a bit occurred to me, the idea of using my 32 H&R reamer did not.  I'd been talking myself into a .30-30 reamer. My original thinking was set the barrel back far enough to clean up the .315 area, order a reamer with a close neck - .334 maybe, a .312 ball seat and 1degree leade. Then again, if it shoots plinking loads well and heavier hunting loads acceptably, I could just leave it alone and enjoy it!

Keep your plowshare and your sword. Know how and when to use them.

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Ed Harris posted this 06 April 2009

If you already have the H&R Mag. reamer, opening the neck is a no-brainer.  Much cheaper than ordering a custom .30-30 reamer and setting the barrel back.  With the neck re-cut bullets for the .303 British will work just fine with the throat you've got. You'll have sort of a .30-30 “Little Krag." Seating bullets out longer will increase powder capacity somewhat if you want to try a caseful of one of the slower burners. 

I had good luck with 38 grs. of W760 with LBT 200-gr. GC in my Remington 788.  Should reduce to 34 grs. or so in the Savage for about 1800.  Factory hunting loads which will work through the magazine should still work OK for hunting purposes.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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runfiverun posted this 06 April 2009

try a loverin design. with the slight taper they fit well, and can be pushed as hard as you want. they also feed from the magazine. iirc one of my best loads is 37-39 gr h-414. a compressed load.

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Antietamgw posted this 08 April 2009

I've got to measure the .32 chamber I cut with that reamer and make a pilot bushing - I just don't recall what size that reamer cut. That sounds like the best best. I like the Little Krag idea and have bumped flat noses on 311299 and shot them in my Marlins a little.  The only loverin type mold I have is a single cavity 311466 or 67. It may be a U mold as it drops .309 as I recall. I've used it in a contender carbine in .30-30 and it does fine. Thanks for all the good ideas and advice!

Keep your plowshare and your sword. Know how and when to use them.

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argie1891 posted this 09 April 2009

I have had a lot of fun with savage 340 rifles in 30/30. i bought 3 of them over the last 5 years. all were beaters. The first one has been completly refinished and i gave it to my grand son in alaska. the rifle along with a set of lee dies, lee press and dipper for a case full of 4350 powder. i chose 4350 as it is slow enough that he cant get into real trouble if he screws up. The second one went to one of my sons who saw the one my grand son got and the third i kept for myself. great little rifles. cheap,easy to feed, and while not match winners they will still bring home the meat or cluster well on a paper target. joe gifford aka argie1891

if you think you have it figured out then you just dont understand

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Antietamgw posted this 09 April 2009

This is my first 340 and I'm looking forwward to working with it. I built a .30-30 and .35 Rem on '95 Mauser actions years back but traded both for some forgotten idea I was chasing at the time. I like beaters, especially reliable ones! Savage did seem to put together some pretty decent low cost rifles over the years. I've really enjoyed my Savage 23's.

Keep your plowshare and your sword. Know how and when to use them.

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NoDakJak posted this 10 April 2009

I lucked into a Stevens 325 several months ago. It was made from 1946 thru 1949 and then morphed into the Savage 340. The main difference is the rear sight and the Stevens, Mannlicher Spoon Bolt Handle. This latest blizzard has left five foot drifts between the house and the shop and a couple feet of snow on the range. The temps are supposed to jump into the forties and fifties and I ope to get onto the range late next week. The first bullet that I intend to try is Lyman 311413. Following that will be a Modern Bond duo. This mold casts two different weights of the same bullet./ The first is a 170 grain spitzer with a plain base. The second is a shortened, 150 grain version of the same bullet. This bullet has a very thin driving band and has been a failure in my tests up to now. I intend to try a load with drier lint as a case filler/buffer. This has worked well in the 25-20 and I have hopes for the 30-30. After that comes the RCBS 150fn and then several Lee boolits. Lotta fun ahead. Neil

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