My dad has a savage 99 308 that he bought new 35-40 years ago. It still looks good and he loves it but it's getting tired and no long groups well. I would love to fix it up for him but I don't know were to start and what's possible. Your thought and ideas please.

Take a look at the rifling and if it is no longer crisp, and is sort of rounded and washed out looking, then you might consider a rebarrel.

Not a big huge job, plus you could make it into a 250-3000 or just keep the original caliber of 300 Savage.

It would probably cost you about $400 or so for a well done job.
Sort of costly but I can't really think of a whole lot of other things you could do.

-Spencer

Take off the butt plate and tighten the stock screw. Put a scope on that you know is good. Tighten the forend screw and get a different brand of ammo. Leave the caliber alone as the .308 is the best one.

If that does not work then do the crown over or have a smith do all of these things for you.

What kind of scope is on the rifle now? Fathers day is in June.

I would start by cleaning it with "Wipe Out" until I got clean patches...If it shot at one time then that is the likely problem, copper build up in the bore...since it is a lever gun folks tend to clean from the bore crown and ruin the crown, if could need a new crown...

Glass bedding, properly done on a 99 can make a world of difference, the butt juncture and forend need to be glassed....sometimes screw tension in the forend will make a drastic change.

I doubt that the bore is shot out on a .308, that takes an awful lot of shooting and few folks shoot lever actions that much........

Make sure everything is tight, butt stock, forend snug, scope rings and bases...be sure scope is in working order.

These things can be corrected but only by a process of elemantion...