Bought some new guns

[Nyles]

Volley sights!


Distinct straight sided sight protectors on the Mk.I nosecaps. Also note the piling swivel omitted on post-WW1 SMLEs.


Windage adjustable Mk.I rear sights, calibrated for Mk.VII .303 ammo making it a MK.I***. The Mk.I series had the rear sight protectors on the rear handguard, instead of attached to the barrel as in the Mk.III. The Mk.III handguard and Mk.I barrel on this one leaving it without a protector.

[Nyles]

A couple of interesting pictures of Free State Army troops with Mk.I***s:


Third enlisted man from the left. Interesting to also note the officer wearing the old-style Irish Volunteers uniform with the tie and puttees and carrying two revolvers.


Kerry command, 1923. All three troops have Mk.I***s. Using P1907 bayonets and not the P1903 originally issued with the Mk.I series.

[funkychinaman]

Volley sights AND a magazine cut-off. Old school.

[Spartan198]

Very nice. Just think, for all you know, the very rifle you own could actually be in one of those pictures. Unlikely, I know, but it's still a cool possibility to consider.

I have an old well-used Ka-Bar MK1 that, for all I know, could have spilled blood in any number of conflicts.

[Nyles]

Yes, a very cool possibility! The odds actually aren't bad for a military rifle, either.

After the Irish Enfield I had every intention of not buying guns for awhile - I'm putting an addition on my house and staying in a friend's spare room during construction, so I can't afford to be spending money on guns for awhile (in the meantime I'm indulging my much less expensive interest in WW2 Commonwealth cap badges).

However, sometimes something comes up you just can't say no to. I went to work on Saturday ended up processing a two month backlog on used gun purchases, since the normal guy was away. Imagine my surprise when I found out he'd priced a very early Savage 1899B at $250! I certainly wasn't going to pass that out.

Sorry for the poor picture, but as I said I'm uprooted at the moment and only had my cell phone camera. There are two different serial number tables available for Savage 1895 / 1899 / 99 rifles, but this one is a very early 1899 by either, either 1901 or 1903 production. Based on the fact that it still has some model 1895 features on it, I'm guessing 1901 is correct. Unlike the pretty strict model differentiation on military firearms, older commercial firearms tend to have a much more gradual transition.

Being an 1899B it has the 26" heavy octagon barrel with the old-style crescent buttplate, exactly the configuration I've always wanted in a Savage. It's got the pre-WW2 style rotary magazine with brass cartridge counter, and is chambered in the original Savage .303 round - slightly more powerful than a .30-30, it originally used a .311 bullet (hence .303) down a .308 bore, under the theory that the higher pressures would increase muzzle velocity! It's in fairly rough shape - the butt has the typical cracks at the wrist (I've not seen many old 99s without them, and I see a lot of them in my job - it was a very popular firearm in Canada), and the forend has split at the tip and been cleaned up, losing the schnable in the process. But the metal is still all good, and the bore is decent, so it'll make a shooter!

[funkychinaman]

Are you putting in the addition to house more guns?

[Jcordell]

I like the Savage 99.I was twelve when my dad started teaching me how to shoot (1980). He was an Idaho State Trooper and among the firearms issued to him by ISP was the Savage 99C in .308. I fired that and at the time the recoil felt like the Hammer of Thor. Instead of the rotary magazine it had the detachable magazine. Fond memories.