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PopRyan
04-23-2014, 10:32 PM
I've had my wife's Grandfather's pump action Savage in the closet now for about 20 years and think it's time to identify a little about it before it gets handed down to my kid's/grandkid's/etc.
Barrel markings on the octagonal barrel are as follows:
Manufactured By Savage Arms Co, Utica, NY U.S.A.
Patented December 25, 1906. Others Pending
Markings on rear sight:
Savage Arms Co
Patent Applied For
Marking just behind rear sight:
Model 1914
22 S,L @ LR
Serial number in front of trigger guard:
9720
It has the metal butt stock with SAVAGE and the Indian Head on it.
The difference I see from other pictures I've seen on line are the trigger, sights, large screw head on the side and tube strap are NOT gold/brass. It's in very nice shape except for needing a good internal cleaning. Any ideas or history you can share?

Sav22
04-24-2014, 02:20 PM
It's an early Model 1914, possibly first year production, numbers started at 1000 and information on one in the 2200 range show it shipped early March of 1914. The butt plate sounds like the early style - is it smooth with the logo in the center (early), or grooved with the logo on the toe? Besides two different butt plates there were at least two different bolts, two different carriers and two different magazine designs used in these, the number on yours is about the middle of my records where some of these changed so it could have a mix of old & new design parts.

The stock attachment on these is a very poor design and almost 100% of the examples I see have some cracking on the bottom of the stock where it meets the action. If I saw one of these without a least some hair line cracking I would suspect the stock was not original!

The picture you saw of the Gold/brass parts were probably the one that went through James Julia Auction, or one that was asked about on another forum, Gold trim was an option and I have only seen those two examples that had it, it's a very rare option.

The patent is for the Model 1903 (clip magazine fed) which much of the design is based on, there were two additional patents that got granted later that had to do with the tube feed; later guns will also have those dates stamped on the barrel.

The windage adjustable rear sight was a new design from about 1914 and seems to have been the standard sight on the 1914 for all of it's production and may have been introduced with the 1914. Later versions of this sight will have a patent date.

These were designed and produced before the introduction of Hi-Speed ammunition and should only be shot with standard velocity ammunition.

There are warehouse records for these and the gun could be lettered through the Savage Historian for $25~$30, that would get you the date it went to the warehouse, the date it was shipped and almost always where it was shipped.