Savage Model 42 (Takedown)

The History of Savage Arms

Savage Arms was founded in 1894 by Arthur Savage in Utica, New York. Arthur Savage held two important patents at the time: a patent for a repeating rifle with a single-column magazine lever-action rifle, which he acquired in 1891, and a patent for a hammerless lever-action design. That paved the way for Savage’s quick rise to success.

The company’s first breakthrough came in 1895 when it introduced Model 1895 – the first hammerless lever-action rifle on the market. It was modeled after Model 1892, an earlier design that never saw production due to losing a bid for a US Army contract. Model 1895, however, won the contract for New York National Guard, but it was soon canceled due to getting caught in a contemporary political climate.

Savage continued investing efforts into the production of military-grade weapons. It was named one of the two finalists in the US Army trials for a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol, and it lost only to the now-famous Colt M1911. Savage used the gained experience to produce high-quality pocket pistols, though, which resulted in the introduction of Model 1907, 1915, and 1917.

During World War I, Savage was merged with the Driggs-Seabury Ordnance company. The joint company focused all its efforts on the production of Lewis machine guns and heavy equipment for war purposes. 

Between the two wars, Savage decided to expand its business inside the USA. In 1920 it bought Stevens Arms of Chicopee, followed by A.H. Fox Gun Co. of Philadelphia and Davis-Warner Arms and CrescentArms Co. of Norwich in 1930. Success followed and in 1939 Savage introduced the Model 24 combination gun which sold over a million copies.

When World War II commenced, though, Savage was once again ready to answer the call of duty. It focused all its resources on war efforts, producing a staggering number of weapons. It already signed a contract with Auto Ordinance Co. in 1938 to manufacture the famous .45 caliber Thompson submachine gun, and most of these submachine guns that were used in WWII were produced by none other than Savage. The company was also contracted by the US government in 1940 to produce .30 and .50 caliber Browning machine guns. On top of that, Savage manufactured one of the most mass-produced bolt-action rifles of WWII, the British No. 4 Lee–Enfield. A record of 1.2 million Lee-Enfield rifles was produced by Savage during the time of war.

Production dialed down after the war, though. In 1946, Savage closed its facilities in Utica and moved all its operations to the Stevens manufacturing premises. Even though the Model 110 was introduced in 1958, which remains one of the company’s most successful rifles to this date, Savage started to experience some issues. In 1960 all production was moved to the current location of Westfield, Massachusetts, and what followed was a series of different ownerships over the company. Savage gradually ran into serious financial problems and in 1988 the company declared bankruptcy.

The company had to cut back on its manufacturing costs to the point where it even stopped producing short-action configurations of its most successful model, the aforementioned Model 110. It wasn’t until 1995 when Savage returned to private ownership led by Ronald Coburn who sort of rejuvenated the whole company.

In 2002 Savage introduced and patented AccuTrigger – a safe and user-adjustable trigger that soon became a success. The following year, in 2003, the company was named Manufacturer of the Year by the Shooting Industry Academy of Excellence, further reaffirming Savage’s distinction. Four years later, on May 15, 2007, Savage 93R17 BTVS has been named the best rifle in the Best of the Best presentation by Shooting Times, Sporting Gun, and Shooting Gazette magazines.

In 2013 Savage once again changed ownership. It was acquired by Orbital ATK for 315 million dollars, and it was later handed over to Vista Outdoor which later sold it for $170 million in 2019 to a group of private investors led by Savage’s management.

The company also had its logo changed in the middle of the 2010s when it decided to retire its old logo that presumably featured Chief Lame Deer, a native-American tribesman leader. The latter supposedly approached Arthur Savage in 1919 to purchase rifles for his tribe. In exchange for a discount, Lame Deer agreed to a deal. According to the deal, Savage was allowed to use Lame Deer’s face for promotional purposes. Many doubt the authenticity of this story, however, and Savage itself removed it from its official website as well.

Savage (Model) 42 Takedown Rifle Review

Figure 1: Savage 42 Takedown in .22LR/.410 (Source: Savage Arms)

The Savage 42 Takedown rifle is a modern remake of the popular Savage 24. It is available in both a regular and "Compact" version, with the Compact version being intended for smaller-framed shooters.

The rifle features a standard trigger that ensures a reliable and easily anticipated shooting experience. The action of the Savage 42 Takedown is broken by pressing a lever in front of the trigger guard, which allows the gun to be loaded. Once loaded, the shooter can actuate the hammer and manually select which firing pin will be struck. This gives the shooter greater control and flexibility over the gun, allowing them to choose the best firing pin for the situation at hand.

It also has a cross-bolt safety slide that acts as a traditional safety catch when the hammer is cocked. This added safety feature ensures that the rifle can be safely carried and handled without the risk of accidental discharge.

Savage 42 Takedown’s receiver and barrel are made of carbon steel. The combo barrel is 508 millimeters long (20”) and is capable of firing .22 LR caliber rounds from the top barrel and .410 bore shotgun shells from the bottom.

It comes equipped with an adjustable iron sight that can be replaced with a different scope mounting solution. The rifle also has a durable synthetic stock and matte-black metalwork, giving it a sleek and modern appearance. On top of that, the buttstock is equipped with a rubber recoil pad for added comfort during shooting.

One of the standout features of the Savage 42 Takedown is its easy takedown mechanism. With a simple push of a button, the rifle can be quickly disassembled into two parts for easy transport and storage. This makes it an excellent choice for anyone looking for a versatile and portable firearm. A bug-out bag is also included.

Overall, the Savage 42 Takedown rifle is a well-designed and versatile firearm that is perfect for anyone looking for a compact and portable rimfire-shotgun combination rifle. Its easy-to-use action, comfortable rubber recoil pad, and added safety features make it an excellent choice for hunters, shooters, and anyone else looking for a reliable and versatile weapon. Whether you're looking for a "truck gun" to keep in your vehicle, or a hunting rifle, the Savage 42 Takedown is a great choice.

Savage 42 Takedown Calibers

Savage 42 Takedown’s top barrel is rifled and the bottom one is smoothbore. The gun can be chambered for:

• .22 LR and .410 shells

• .22 Magnum and .410 shells

Savage 42 Takedown Variants

The Savage 42 Takedown combination gun is available in two additional variants.

• Savage 42 Takedown Compact

• Savage Model 42*

* Savage Model 42 was the “original” version of this gun, but the obvious advantages of the Takedown variant became popular to the point where the non-takedown “original” version became obsolete.

Savage 42 Takedown comes with adjustable iron sights, but the receiver is drilled and tapped, so the pre-equipped front sight can be replaced with a different scope mounting solution.

Figure 2: The receiver of Savage Model 42 with the pre-installed adjustable rear sight which can be replaced by a Picatinny rail (Source: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.all4shooters.com%2Fen%2Fshooting%2Fshotguns%2Fsavagearms-model42-combi)

Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Savage 42 Takedown

Rifles That Have One-Piece Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Savage 42 Takedown

The necessary condition for rifles to have one-piece scope mounts interchangeable is that the mounting surfaces of these rifles match in every dimension

42 Takedown’s receiver is drilled and tapped for a simple and short scope-mounting solution which is unique to the rifle.

We, unfortunately, aren’t aware of any rifles that would have one-piece scope mounts interchangeable with Savage 42 Takedown.

Rifles That Have Two-Piece Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Savage 42 Takedown

For rifles to have two-piece scope mounts interchangeable, their scope mounting surfaces must match in every dimension except the middle dimension between the front and rear holes.

Since Savage 42 Takedown has only two holes drilled, the mounting of “traditional” two-piece scope mounts is not even possible.

This is why we aren’t aware of any rifles that would have two-piece scope mounts interchangeable with Savage 42 Takedown.

In case you happen to have any additional information regarding the interchangeability of scope mounts between the Savage 42 Takedown and any other rifle, we kindly ask you to contact us at info@optics-trade.eu. We will gladly expand our database accordingly.

Best Scope Mounts for Savage 42 Takedown

Picatinny Rail for Savage 42 Takedown

The first step, and in our opinion also the best step towards finding suitable scope mounts for Savage 42 Takedown, is replacing the pre-equipped adjustable sight with this EGW Picatinny rail for Savage 42 Takedown.

It was made specifically for the Savage 42 and greatly expands the scope mounting possibilities of the gun.

Check out EGW Savage 42 Picatinny Rail

From there on, you can choose from many Weaver and Picatinny Rings in our offer.

Fixed Scope Mounts for Savage 42 Takedown.

Once you’ve installed the EGW Picatinny Rail, you can install these Warne Maxima Vertical-Split Fixed Rings. They are a great choice for a fixed scope-mounting solution and come with a 10-year warranty:

Order Warne Maxima Vertical-Split Fixed Rings

Help Us Build Our Riflescope Mounts Database

If you happen to own this or any other rifle, we would appreciate it if you could help us expand our database by sending us some photos of the rifle receiver (the bare mounting surface of the rifle without the mounts installed). For your help, our company offers a fair return in terms of practical rewards.

Please send us an email for more information. You can contact us here: info@optics-trade.eu