Savage Arms 301: A Top-Selling Single Shot

by
posted on July 22, 2020
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
savage-301.jpg

The Savage 301 was the third-most-popular single-shot shotgun in sales for 2019, according to the list compiled by Gunbroker.com. The annual rankings are determined by volume of sales through retailers using the website’s services.

Versions currently available from Savage include the 26-inch barreled standard model and the Compact, which comes with a 22-inch barrel. The latter is available chambered for 20-gauge and .410 bore. The former digests the same, but also adds a 12 gauge option.

Both are rugged and reliable break-action firearms that come with black, synthetic stocks. A removable modified choke tube is installed, and aftermarket Winchoke style versions fit the barrels. Recoil pads cushion the blow and both guns have a manual hammer-blocking safety. MSRP, regardless of model or size of the chamber is $181.

Physically the guns are quite different, though. The standard version, regardless of shotshell chambering, has an overall length of 41 inches. The Compact lives up to its label by measuring in at 36.

Length of pull on the Compact is 12.8 inches and weight is 5.4 and 4.6 pounds for the 20-gauge and .410 bore, respectively. Length of pull on the standard model comes in at 13.8 inches and they tip the scales (as bore diameter increases) at 4.6, 5.9 and 5.85 pounds.

All the barrels and receivers are made from carbon steel and have a businesslike, matte-black finish. The shotguns chamber up to 3-inch shotshells and come with a two-position safety, which adds to the compact’s versatility when mentoring an inexperienced shooter.

Stevens—a brand of Savage Arms—makes a nearly identical version also called the 301, although it offers models in a variety of popular camouflage patterns. In 2018 Gunbroker.com listed the Savage/Stevens 301 as a single entity, and they still took a distance sixth place the category. Results this year indicate the popularity of the Savage model has increased significantly.

 

Latest

Google Ai Logo
Google Ai Logo

AI Summaries Reducing Firearm-Related Web Traffic, Sharing Incorrect Information

"[T]here are increasing concerns about how frequently AI systems invent false information—AKA hallucinations—with error rates in some tests reaching as high as 79 percent.”

Preview: Rite In The Rain 25 Meter M16A2/M4 Zeroing Targets

Precipitation and humidity can render a standard paper target unusable in only seconds, which is what makes Rite In The Rain’s line of weatherproof targets such a godsend for outdoor shooters.

Smith & Wesson Model 1854 Now Available In .30-30 Win.

Smith & Wesson expanded its Model 1854 series of lever-action rifles with several .30-30 Win.-chambered variants, just in time for deer season.

Preview: Making The Enfield Pattern 1853 Rifle-Musket

In Making The Enfield Pattern 1853 Rifle-Musket, author Peter Smithurst details the tools and processes used to produce this historically significant firearm.

Gun Of The Week: Charter Arms Double Dog

For this Gun Of The Week episode, we’re on the range with a convertible wheelgun from Charter Arms, and it’s one that goes from .357 Mag to 9 mm Luger quickly and easily. Welcome to the Double Dog.

The Armed Citizen® Oct. 17, 2025

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.