The .250-3000 Savage (also known as the .250 Savage) is a
rifle
A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...
cartridge created by
Charles Newton in 1915. It was designed to be used in the
Savage Model 99 hammerless
lever action rifle. The name comes from its original manufacturer,
Savage Arms
Savage Arms is an American gunmaker based in Westfield, Massachusetts, with operations in Canada. Savage makes a variety of rimfire and centerfire rifles, as well as Stevens single-shot rifles and shotguns. The company is best known for the Mo ...
, and the fact that the original load achieved a 3,000 ft/s (910 m/s) velocity with an 87 grain (5.6 g) bullet.
[The .250-3000 Savage]
by Chuck Hawks
Background
Charles Newton designed the 250-3000 Savage case to fit the popular
Savage Model 99 lever-action
The toggle-link action used in the iconic Winchester Model 1873 rifle, one of the most famous lever-action firearms
Lever-action is a type of action for repeating firearms that uses a manually operated cocking handle located around the trigge ...
rifle. To facilitate
handloading
Handloading, or reloading, is the practice of making firearm cartridges by assembling the individual components (case, primer, propellant, and projectile), rather than purchasing mass-assembled, factory-loaded ammunition.
The term ''handl ...
, casing geometry was based on
.30-06 Springfield
The .30-06 Springfield cartridge (pronounced "thirty- aught-six" ), 7.62×63mm in metric notation, and called the .30 Gov't '06 by Winchester, was introduced to the United States Army in 1906 and later standardized; it remained in military use ...
, albeit shortened. Newton recommended loading 100 grain (6.5 g) bullets at 2800 ft/s (850 m/s); but Savage Arms reduced bullet weight to obtain a velocity of 3,000 ft/s (910 m/s), making it the first American cartridge capable of that velocity. Achieving that velocity may have been the reason for the choice of the light-for-caliber 87-grain (5.6 g) bullet.
Newton questioned if the publicity advantages of velocity compensated for reduced penetration of the lighter bullet in larger game animals.
[Towsley, Bruce M. '' American Rifleman'' (July 2011) pp.54-57]
The cartridge has a pressure limit of 45,000
CUP set by
SAAMI. It lacks the power of the bigger
.25-06 Remington but provides less noise and less recoil. Performance is very close to the
.257 Roberts. Arguably it is a better overall cartridge for hunting than the more popular
.30-30, but in recent years has lost ground to the .257 Roberts and flatter-shooting 6mm cartridges such as the
.243 Winchester.
Currently, there are very few new firearms being made in .250 Savage. It is an excellent cartridge with moderate recoil for hunting small game on up to deer-sized game.
Variants
Some
varmint hunters use the improved version of this cartridge, known as the .250 Ackley, .250 Improved or .250 Ackley Improved as a dual-purpose intermediate-range cartridge. The .250 Ackley is the same basic cartridge with a steeper shoulder and with the sides blown-out or straightened to increase powder space.
[The .250-3000 Ackley Improved]
by Chuck Hawks This provides a velocity improvement of more than 250 ft/s (76.2 m/s) over standard factory loads.
See also
*
.25-06 Remington
*
List of rifle cartridges
List of rifle cartridges, by primer type, calibre and name.
File:Cartridge Sample 2.jpg, 350px, From left to right: 1 .17 HM2,2 .17 HMR, 2.5 .17 wsm, 3 .22LR, 4 .22 WMR, 5 .17/23 SMc, 6 5mm/35 SMc, 7 .22 Hornet, 8 .223 Remington, 9 .223 ...
*
Table of handgun and rifle cartridges
References
External links
* https://www.rifleshootermag.com/editorial/250-300-savage-history/454661
* https://www.americanrifleman.org/content/the-little-savage-250-3000
{{DEFAULTSORT:250 Savage
Pistol and rifle cartridges
Savage Arms