250 Savage:
The 250 Savage was introduced by Savage in 1914 as the 250-3000 Savage. It was capable of achieving 3,000 feet per second using an 87 grain, 25 caliber bullet.
Years later the 3,000 was dropped and it became known simply as the 250 Savage.
The original designer was Charles Newton who had sold his cartridge rights to Savage.
Mr. Newton had designed the 250 Savage to be loaded with a 100 grain bullet with a velocity of 2,800 feet per second, which he claimed had the best accuracy and killing power of the cartridge.
The 250 Savage is a dual purpose cartridge. It can be used for varmints sending a 75 grain bullet out the muzzle at 3,200 fps., or it can be used as a big game cartridge sending 100 grain bullets out the muzzle at speeds of 2,800 fps.
It has sufficient power out to the 200 yard mark for deer sized game animals.
This center fire rifle cartridge has been chambered over the years in several different rifle action types with different rifling twist rates in the barrels. They range from the original Savage model 99 lever action with a 1 in 14″ twist to Savage model 110 with a 1 in 10″ twist.
The 250 Savage with the accuracy, power, and effectiveness it offers downrange recoils very little to the shooter’s shoulder and is highly recommended for youth and recoil conscious shooters.
If ever the case was to be made for a highly accurate and effective light weight youth rifle hunting cartridge, the 250 Savage would be the best choice of all currently manufactured rifle cartridges.
250 Savage Ballistics:
This 250 Savage ballistics chart shows 100 grain Hornady Interlock Soft Point:
| Muzzle | 100 YDS | 200 YDS | 300 YDS | |
| Velocity (FPS) | 2800 | 2542 | 2299 | 2069 |
| Energy (FT/LB) | 1741 | 1435 | 1173 | 950 |
| Drop (Inch) | / | +2.2 | 0 | -8.9 |
This 250 Savage ballistics chart shows 100 grain Remington Core Lokt:
| Muzzle | 100 YDS | 200 YDS | 300 YDS | |
| Velocity (FPS) | 2820 | 2504 | 2210 | 1935 |
| Energy (FT/LB) | 1766 | 1392 | 1084 | 831 |
| Drop (Inch) | / | +2 | 0 | -9.1 |
Barrel Specifications.
Common Barrel Twist Rate – 1/14 – 1/12 – 1/10
Bore Groove Diameter – .257″
250 Savage Reloading Specifications.
Bullet Diameter – .257″
Maximum Case Length – 1.912″
Trimmed Case Length – 1.902″
Primer Size – Large Rifle
250 Savage Loading Data Hints.
It responds well to faster burning powders such as i.m.r. 3031, 4064, and 4320.
When reloading for the 250 Savage cartridge, it is a good idea to check the rifling twist rate as this will have a big effect on accuracy.
1 in 14″ twist will give excellent accuracy with the lighter bullets available and the 1 in 10″ twist does its best with the heavier bullets available.
Check out our rifle ballistics chart for several more calibers.
