Bore Diameter

Hello, fellow Savage owners! I have had a rekindled desire to pull out my first high power rifle from the gun safe. My desire revolves around using it to do some predator hunting here in central Iowa. I jumped right on to the reloading bench and into working up a load for this task when I realized, I have a lot to learn!! One question I have for this forum of experience is; What is the actual bore diameter of my 340E 22 Hornet? With as much as I could find in the web I believe my rifle was bored to .224 but know there was a switch from .223 somewhere around the time my rifle was built.

Thank you for any information you can provide!

Sincerely, James Winnett, aka Camohead

Only thing I can tell you is to slug your bore. Get a pure lead ball of 23 calibre and push it through your bore with wooden dowel. Have a soft pillow for the ball to fall out on and then measure the lands and grooves on the ball. That will give your bore size. Keeping in mine that lands and grooves are the opposite in the bore to what is in the ball. Be sure to use pure lead as tinned lead is harder to push.

The .222 Remington is always .224" nominal groove diameter, no matter who made the rifle. The .223" number goes back to the 1930s when wildcatters were rechambering .22 rimfire barrels for centerfire numbers like .22 Hornet, .22 Lovell, .22 Baby Niedner, etc. That practice was pretty much over and done with by 1950, when the .222 made its' appearance. Factories that turned out the 220 Swift, 219 Zipper, etc., were cutting to .224", and that became the standard for centerfire .22s. Bullet makers continued to make .223 bullets to serve all those pre-war guns for many years. I think Sierra still does. Use any bullets you like. Mine likes a 55 grain weight best.