My Uncle Jerry hunted professionally and is the person who really got me into hunting and shooting. He hunted around the world and hunted extensively and professionally in Rhodesia (when there was such a place). Uncle Jerry gave me a lot of rifles. He had hundreds of rifles and dozens of shotguns. There are a few that I received for special occasions like birthdays that I will always keep. One day when I was a teen he gave me a rifle for no apparent reason. He said he didn't like it that much and therefore had never used it. It was a Savage 99 in 308 Win and it had a sling and a Weaver 1.5-5X scope with square ocular lens. I never liked that rifle either. First of all, it wasn't good enough for Uncle Jerry. Secondly, an old fellow in the neighborhood told me that 308 Win was no good for anything - he knew since he wounded a bunch of deer and had to shoot the snot out of others. After collecting dust for a few years the rifle came to mind. I needed money for a car to get to my first job. I sold that gun for $275. That was a mistake.
About 4 years ago I came to this forum. I read about the Savage 99 and I saw many posted photos. I started thinking about that rifle and how I never gave it a chance. When I got ready to move last year I became somewhat sentimental about a lot of items that were passed down to me from friends and relatives. I started a quest to replace that Savage 99, but the gun had to be just like the one I let get away. I looked everywhere and kept an open mind. The price didn't matter so long as the rifle matched the one I once had. I couldn't find one with the metal buttplate and the tang safety. I started a transaction for one with the lever safety. Fate intervened and the deal fell through. A few months later I saw the one I had been looking for. Even the wood is a dead ringer for a twin to the one I had. For all I know, it may be the same one since I found it in the approximate area that the guy I sold it to was from. He told me he sold it 10 years later but couldn't recall to whom. This rifle's owner did not know it's origins since he was not the original owner either.
A few bucks later I had the rifle back. I apologized to the rifle when I got it. It came with a scope but I gave that one away and replaced it with the closest thing to the Weaver that used to be there, a Burris 2-7 Compact. 20 something years later I had a Savage 99 again.
I told Uncle Jerry what I had done and he said "Good, its a great rifle but I just never used it. It would be perfect to take to Africa and shoot an Impala". That was it, I was on a mission to get familiar with that rifle, make it shoot right and kill an Impala with it. I bore sighted the scope and fired some Federal Fusion 165 grain ammo at 100 yards. Holly Cow! - a cloverleaf 3- shot group! I sighted it 2" high at 100 yards and memorized the trajectory out to 300 yards. I could not find the Fusion ammo when I took the rifle to Texas. I let Mr. Barlow, one of our Levergun Hunt winners, use the rifle to kill his Black Hawaiian Ram. I scrounged up some Hornady 165 grain Interlocks. Awesome, same exact point of impact as the Federal Fusions. Mr. Barlow arrives at the ranch, get out of the truck at the range straight from the front gate and proceeds to put 3 shot in the bullseye in a one inch group! Then he shoot the trophy ram he desired with little fanfare. Back at home I am driving RKrodle crazy shooting hundred of rounds every weekend on his range. 100 yards offhand at a lifesized Impala target and they're all in the kill zone. I move back to 150 yards - no problem. Run out of ammo but not before Brian and Brian came to RKrodles shoot and I chronographed some of the 308's before one Brian shot the others chronograph. I call Mike Rinoul at Grizzly Cartridge. "Mike here is my barrel length, twist, velocity I measured with the chrono, and Federal Fusion and Hornady Interlock print same hole on the target. What load can I use to duplicate it?" Here Ricky and I are cranking out hundreds of rounds of ammo every weekend and shooting away at the Impala targets. The weekend before the trip I am out of ammo again. Mike says "...don't worry I am bringing you some loaded ammo with Nosler Partitions for Africa".
I lend Omar the rifle in Africa since he doesn't own a rifle of his own. We try it at the range after flying across the globe. The PH says no shots on target. He is wrong, there is one hole 2" high above the bullseye, made by 3 shots. Omar proceeds to kill Gemsbok, Blesbok, Impala, Waterbuck and varmints. I am seeing a lot of Impala so I am waiting until I take everything else I want before switching to the Savage 99 from my 1886XL. Day four I grab the 99 out of the truck and high tail it after some red hartebeest but it was not to be on that day. The last day we are packed to leave. The bus is in camp to take us back to the airport. We just finished shooting Eland and that took longer than anticipated. We literally have one hour left. The PH recommends a ground blind overlooking a waterhole. I take the 99 and apologize for not toting it around more in Africa. We walk a few hundred yards toward the ground blind. The PH whispers the bad news that we will only have 15 or 20 minutes to sit in the blind. About 100 yards short of the blind the PH stops and points. I don't see anything. "A raaaammmmm" he says. I look harder. Oh - not right here, 200 yards out just under the brush. Please stay there, I am thinking to myself. I wrap the sling around my arm, find the reticle and take off the safety. "This one's for you Uncle Jerry" , I say out loud. Boom! Where is it?, I'm wondering. "It dropped straight down" says the PH excitedly. I kiss the rifle and go to my Impala. There was a little spot on the shoulder that I aimed for. There is a little hole right in the center of that spot. The Nosler Partition exited the opposite shoulder and expanded to about the size of a dime. My Savage 99 and I had taken the Impala that was so important to me. Hurry up! We have to leave. The PH takes two photos on his camera of the Impala, the Savage 99 and I. I did not see the photo until one minute before I started writing this post when I received it by e-mail from Africa. It was worth waiting for. So was the rifle.
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!Congrats on the Impala and the Rifle 
!You made your Uncle proud. 
