The bolt was a two-piece affair. The front piece, known as the bolt head, contained the single locking lug. The rear piece, or bolt handle, slipped part way into the tail of the front, and both parts were held together by a cross pin. Lockup was by the front lug mating with a mortise in the receiver and the bolt handle turning down into a notch at the rear of the receiver. The boltface was flat, recessed for the cartridge head, and contained a pivoting extractor and a spring-loaded plunger ejector. A pivoting safety lever was conveniently located on the right side of the receiver behind the bolt handle, and on later models, the bolt could be opened when the safety was applied, permitting safe unloading of the rifle.

Unlike most other centerfire, bolt-action, sporting rifles of the time, the Model 330 utilized a three-round detachable-box magazine made from stamped steel. It was held in place in front of the trigger guard by a spring-loaded catch. In keeping with its economic bona fides, the Model 330 contained a number of stamped-steel parts, including the trigger guard, barrel band, trigger mechanism, safety lever, magazine, magazine housing, and rear sight. The material and style of the stocks varied over the line's production life, but all had a pistol grip. Both walnut and beech were utilized over the years, and while some stocks were smooth, others had cut or impressed checkering on the grip and forearm.

The Model 330 was offered chambered for the popular .30-30 Winchester cartridge with a 22-inch barrel. It was quickly followed by the Models 322 and 325 that were chambered in .22 Hornet and .250 Savage (a.k.a. .250-3000), respectively. The Hornet chambering proved very popular, but the Model 325 was quickly abandoned when it was discovered that the bolt was not strong enough the for the high-pressure cartridge.

While never as popular as the lever-action competition, the Model 330 was a steady seller among those woods hunters who wanted an economical bolt-action rifle but who did not want, or require, a more powerful cartridge than the .30-30. For the same reason, the .22 Hornet Model 322 was popular with economy-minded varmint hunters, trappers, and farmers.

In 1950, Savage began marketing the rifles under the Savage name, calling them the Savage Model 340 and 342. The company offered variations of the popular rifle, including the Models 340S and 342S (both introduced in 1950), which featured better wood, cut checkering, a Lyman aperture rear sight, and quick-detach sling swivels. When a .222 Remington chambering was released in 1955, all rifles, regardless of the caliber, were referred to simply as the Model 340.

In 1962, the Model 340C carbine with a 20-inch barrel was offered, but poor sales led to it being dropped after only two years. In the 1970s, rifles chambered for the .223 Remington and .225 Winchester with 24-inch barrels were added to the line. The overall length of the Model 340 with a 22-inch barrel was 43.5 inches. Weight was 7.25 pounds. Magazine capacity was either three or four rounds depending on the chambering.

Savage also sold Model 340 rifles to Montgomery Ward (a.k.a. Wards), which marketed them under its own trade name as the Western Field Model 712.

With declining sales in the early 1980s, Savage redesigned the rifle, returning to the original no-frills concept. The Savage/Springfield Model 840 featured a plain, uncheckered, beech stock and a simple, stamped-steel rear sight. It was available in .223 Rem. and .30-30 Win. Production ceased in 1983, although rifles were assembled from parts on hand and carried in the catalog until 1985.