MDMOUNTAINEER
Glock, AR, Savage Junkie
Edit: After this long write-up I experienced a problem uploading the pics. Unfortunately I will have to do it later.
This is a long write-up, for which I make no apologies. Everyone has their "ultimate" gun and it's length is a testament to the joy I've experienced in finding mine.
I have a soft spot for heavy barrel bolt guns. That may actually be an understatement. Okay, it's definitely an understatement. I have an addiction to heavy barrel bolt guns bordering on pathologic. The only reason I say "bordering" is because it hasn't affected my willingness or ability to pay my bills. In any event, I have so many flavors of heavy barrel bolt guns by different manufacturers it isn't funny. But the search for the ultimate heavy barrel bolt gun has been a long time coming and I think I just found it.
Let's get something straight right now; I'm not an expert on long range shooting. I rarely shoot outside of 600 yards. I've never shot a formal match. I've never been a sniper. I've never attended formal training. I don't think that I'm some hotshot with a bolt gun. I have friends who personify all of the above. The one's who have spent trigger time overseas have helped me learn a great deal, but I know that my knowledge isn't anywhere close to the likes of some of the folks on here who are professional long range guys and I won't ever purport to be one of those guys.
What I do have is a whole lot of experience as a redneck tinkerer with many things bolt gun. I mentioned that I have several specimens, everything from 5r milspecs to 500 sps's and ADL's on the remington side, a FN SPR, and nearly every specimen offered by Savage arms.
I'm a Savage guy through and through. They had me long before the accu-trigger, but that addition put them over the top in my book. The 700 has a "gunsmith adjustable" trigger that a homesmith can obtain good results with, but I prefer the accu-trigger. In my experience factory Savages shoot better out of the box, especially the lower end economy models (like a standard 10FP vs a SPS). The difference probably isn't measurable. I have no hard data and this conclusion is way more subjective than objective because they both shoot well. Though most folks "in the know" on precision bolt guns will prefer the 700, it's hard to claim Savage makes a "bad" product anymore. A full house custom gun on a Surgeon action they are not. But an attainable, "economical" accurate rifle they are. At least in my opinion.
My love affair with Savage rifles started when I was a kid. I had a Marlin 336 in .35 Remington that I cut my teeth in the deer woods with. It's a great deer rifle don't get me wrong, but I longed for a 30-06 bolt gun like my dad's Savage 111 in 30-06. I could shoot that one at the range, but I couldn't ever carry it into the woods. In retrospect it wasn't anything special. Just a 111 with a hardwood stock and some Simmons scope variant. But it was big, and powerful, and to a 9 year old kid, it was the coolest thing with a trigger. By 13 I had my very own bolt action 30-06. A Remington 700 ADL with a black synthetic stock and a Tasco "World Class" 3-9x50 scope, that was so "world class" no one had bought the damn thing at my dads sporting goods store, so he gave it to me for the rifle. It mattered little. I sighted it in nearly twenty years ago and haven't put a round through it since. At the time I was into traditional archery and spent all my time afield with a flatbow I had made. Rifles were cool, but relegated to the range. Since it wasn't a heavy barrel model it didn't get any range time. Because it was a rifle and I was hunting exclusively with a bow, it didn't get any time afield.
When I turned 18 my first rifle purchase was a Remington 700 Sendero in .308 followed shortly by a Savage 12 FVSS in the same caliber. Back then they didn't have accu-triggers for the Savage so I bought a Timney. The Savage ended up at the range far more than the 700, probably because of the trigger, and because the Remington was so damn expensive I didn't want to scratch it up. Back in those days I was concerned with such frivolty. I ended up selling the Sendero because I never shot it and bought a .300 win mag Savage 112 FVSS, then one chambered in .223 and so on. Later I'd add 10 and 110FP's, and 12 VLP's as well as all the Remington flavors. They've all served me very well. I have some handsome rifles to be sure, but most are heavy with big bull barrels, huge optics, and chunky stocks made of fiberglass and aluminum with dangly bipods affixed. I've longed for the simplicity of that 111 Savage I remembered from my youth, with some features I've come to appreciate with experience.
.308 is my caliber. I have tons of brass, and components. I've spent countless hours tinkering with different bullets and loads. It's my favorite cartridge so my all purpose rifle had to be chambered in .308. I wanted open sights, but I also wanted a heavy barrel. Maybe not too heavy, but I didn't want a highly tapered thin profile barrel typically found on hunting rifles. I didn't want there to be a chance of stringing shots vertically in just a few rounds. After all, I may need to dispatch a colony of prarie dogs with it, or bust a gaggle of balloons at 500 yards. No, only a heavier than normal barrel would do. It had to be relatively light (factoring in a heavier barrel). With optics and a loaded mag I wanted a curb weight of less than 11 lbs. I've come to appreciate muzzle brakes for faster follow up shots and the ability to see my hits, so a threaded muzzle from the factory would be a bonus, but I'd be okay with sending it to a smith for threading.
Enter the 11 Hog Hunter from Savage. Stripped weight of 7.25# with a 20" "medium" contour barrel, FACTORY THREADED, and an accutrigger. The prospect was too juicy not to jump on it. They proved to be as elusive as they were intriguing. I wanted one so bad I was salivating, literally. It embodied all the features I never thought a manufacturer would assign to a single rifle. I HAD to have one so I commissioned my buddy Gary up at High Rock to find me a couple to tinker with. I would wait a few months. There would be highs and lows in the search until that magical call came. He was en route to pick up a couple to send my way (via FFL of course). And yes, I said "a couple". I had big plans. I had to redneck tinker. I had to find the perfect combination of accessories and additions. After all, this was going to be a dream gun of sorts for me. Not the prettiest, but certainly the most practical if all went well. And if it all worked out, I'd need a spare or two. Hell it took so long to get one in the first place. There isn't a chance this guy was going to fall in love with rifle and not have a couple of them.
The day finally arrived when I picked them up at the FFL. All the way to the shop I had myself convinced not to open the boxes until I got home. It was going to be a momentous occasion. One that I wanted to savor, in private, and languish in the possibilites of a dream about to be realized. All this may seem melodramatic. You're probably reading this thinking, "there is no way this guy is THAT excited about an ugly Savage rifle, with a plastic stock and a street price of less than $500". Well, you would be wrong. I really was and still am that excited about this rifle. I'm damn near writing a novel about it, something I've never done for any gun that I've owned. I broke down during the NICS check and snuck a peak. I carefully opened one of the boxes and slid the plastic bag sheathed conglomerate of steel and plastic into a vertical position. As I reached into the plastic that encapsulated the rifle I felt the tiniest of thud on the tip of my boot. Probably nothing I thought at first. Glancing down, I saw what appeared to be the rear leaf of a rifle sight. Though inaudible (I hope), I shrieked a bit. I just got my perfect rifle, and it's going to fall apart? Picking up the tiny portion of sight that represented a comparatively larger portion of my dream was a mix of disgust and melancholy. This thing was going to be a dud.
I completely unsheathed the contraption and took in the view. It was everything I wanted it to be minus the rear sight issue. Form met function and for this user the final product was beautiful in that utilitarian and frugal way that a fat redneck like me can really appreciate. I pondered over the rear sight mishap and realized that the ramp to which the rear leaf was supposed to be affixed was much too smooth and at too steep an angle for the set screw arrangement savage had designed. That could be remedied easy enough later. I put it all back the way I found it, signed the form, paid the fee, and headed home. Triumphant songs played in my head as I giggled like a school girl just a little at first. My wife didn't understand what I was so happy about, maybe you don't either. On either front, I could care less. I haven't been this excited about a gun since I was 12 and found a new Remington 870 under the Christmas tree.
IMPORTANT: Never attempt any home gunsmithing while under the influence of sleep deprivation and extended periods of driving. I would soon make that mistake.
I made it home feeling the fatigue of a long work week and some 5 hours on the road. The Hog Hunter couldn't wait. I had already contained myself for too long. I ripped it out of the box, grinning from ear to ear, the mad scientist within had to make his presence known. It simply couldn't wait until I was rested, the mission had to be complete. I looked it over more thoroughly now taking in every feature.
Let me tell you something about open sights; brass beads on a front sight stop me dead in my tracks. Something about brass beads and peep sights that make my heart skip a beat. Guess what the 11 Hog Hunter comes with? Yep, a brass bead on the front sight! I almost fell over in disbelief, it was a welcome surprise that somehow I had no prior knowledge of despite what I thought was some careful research. The sights are a high-profile arrangemnt with a simple wide v-notch aft and a large brass dot at the business end. Something I would envision on a dangerous game rifle, though I've never owned a dangerous game rifle per-se and I've never paid that much attention to the sights on the one's I've seen in passing. Easy to acquire, they aren't made for precision work, but for my needs their mere presence was just for insurance when all else fails. To that end they will serve me just fine.
The stock is the same old Savage stock that despite being junk could never be as bad as a hogue stock. To be honest, even though I refer to those factory Stocks as "junk", I've come to sort of like them. It's sorta like jello, not the best dessert but can be easily had and sometimes it's comforting in it's simplicity. The pillar bedding adequately floated the barrel. You could probably fit a stack of one dollar bills 20 deep in that space. I checked for forearm flex that is so typical of the low-end Savage stocks and often robs the rifle of some of it's accuracy when placed atop a bipod or an outstretched support hand. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the flex, though present, didn't easily nudge the barrel. The wrist is characteristically thin and length of pull just shy of 14" fit me fine. The tip of the forearm is subtly thicker than the forearm on my 111 in 30-06. I sort of like thin tapered forearms on hunting rifles, but that's difficult on a heavy barrel arrangement and something I'd learn to live with. By no means was this a beavertail arrangement like the stock 10FP's have, just a little thicker than the average Savage hunting rifle. Checkering is the standard attenuated diamond pattern that have graced hunting rifles for generations. Not pretty, but simple. The pea soup colored stock has grown on me a bit, like the mold it resembles, it'll do. The thin comb could be a problem with stiff recoil that the .308 will never subject it to. The comb does allow comfortable allignment with the open sights and with a low enough scope, would prove okay for the use of optics. Obligatory swivel studs are the Uncle Mikes variety instead of the molded version which is becoming popular with some manufacturers. I much prefer metal studs, of which this specimen has two, one fore and one aft. No need for a bipod on this rifle and a third stud would be unwelcome for this user.
The barrel is described as "medium" contour which is true in that it follows the contour of most tradtional varmint rifles though the taper is spread along the attenuated 20" axis of a shorter barrel. A thread protector is affixed at the muzzle where Savages recessed target crown finishes out the forward end. Where the barrel meets the action is where things get spiced up a bit. The oft reviled savage barrel nut with it's gaudy recessed purchase points has been eschewed for a sleeker, more tapered version. I like it. It blends the barrel quite handsomely with the action in a nouveau Savage way. The bolt is a matted oxide finished affair with the contemporary "tactical" oversized bolt knob that is easily manipulated. Cycling the bolt is smooth enough, not remarkable but certainly not bad. It glides in the raceway with minimal effort, not unlike any other Savage.
After checking for an empty chamber a few times the dry firing exercise showed the trigger to break cleanly with no takeup and no overtravel at 3.2 lbs. This is just about perfect for an "all purpose" setup where it will find it's way into the field nearly as much as the range. It will not be adjusted. The only thing I really hate about Savage rifles is the cheap plastic safety selector on their rifles. I hate it and this one is no exception.
Overall, the rifle shouldered nicely. The trigger felt exactly like I expected and desired. Overall, everything was just as anticipated with the singular exception being that the rear sight needed remedying. A scope had to be affixed and a muzzle brake attached to complete my simple upgrades to a rifle that was standing up to every measure I had required.
I use a hardwood 2x4 arrangement as a barrel clamp in conjunction with c-clamps for all my muzzle device work. I cut a channel between the two sections of 2x4 so that the circular void is spread evenly betweeen the two. The rifle is rested laterally on the table with the barrel nestled in the lower 2x4, then the upper 2x4 is placed and everything is cinched tight using c-clamps with the muzzle end protruding from the end of the table. In my haste I left the barreled action in the stock and proceeded to torque everything down for adding a Spikes Dynacomp of the .308 variety. Remember my disclaimer a few paragraphs above? Well it wasn't torqued quite enough and the barrel rotated just enough to catch the stern edge of the front ramp thereby tearing the front sight from the threads of the single machine screw that held the sight in place. I was devastated. I screwed up my new favorite rifle. Fortunately the only threads harmed were that of the screw.
I got the dynacomp on just fine after that. But with that mission complete, I now had to fix the open sights. The front being my fault and the rear being poorly designed, at least in the retention department. I found a screw with the proper diameter and thread pitch. I had to turn the head in a drill to fit the recess of the front sight because the screw is beneath the dovetailed blade of the front sight. After that was loctited in place I turned my attention to the rear sight. I roughed up the flat of the rear sight ramp with the tip of a tapered diamond file then I applied loctite to both the set screw and the superior portion of the rear sight base including the dovetail channels.
Next werethe base, rings, and scope. I had chosen an EGW aluminum base to offest the steel Leupold rings I've come to favor. This was a simple affair that took but a few mintutes to loctite and torque in place. Next was my least favorite endeavor of lapping the rings which went well enough, though I dislike doing it. Then I mounted a 4-12x mildot Nikon Prostaff. Proper eye relief placed the front bell roughly a quarter inch behind where the rear leaf was currently fixed. I hoped that rear sight adjustment would not interfere. I would learn that where it then sat, was spot on at 100 yards. This rifle will spend a lot of time being jostled around and generally being beat up. I wanted to see how durable the prostaff ends up being while hoping it proves sufficient for this use. Later iterations will likely have better glass as I experiment with other muzzle devices and eventually a can.
I shouldered the now complete rifle and it felt good. Really good. I cleaned the bore with solvent and wiped it clean. I was thoroughly exhausted at this point and finally went to sleep for the night. I'd have more work in the morning.
The next day I took her to the range. Some minor adjustments after bore-sighting had me grouping to point of aim in just a few shots. She was properly broken in by dispensing with the oft regaled, shoot then clean repetition for 20 rounds. I just shot it. The load I worked up was 41.2 of RL15 and a Federal Match Primer under a 165gr Hornady SST. After 60 rounds group size settled to .63 on average at 100 yards with a best of .501 at 100 yards and .748 at 200 yards (3 shot groups). I removed the scope and sighted in the irons at 100 yards, then replaced the scope to verify zero had not changed. It hadn't.
Whenever I'm going to use a rifle for hunting I always clean it after sighting in and trying the next day with a cold bore shot to make my tweaks. The first day had me shooting .75" high with a cold bore. I adjusted accordingly. The following two days netted 2 rounds dead center of the bullseye both times. This will be my hunting rig.
Because it's a new rifle I like to get an idea of how much the barrel copper fouls. So the initial cleaning netted very little blue and subsquent cleanings netted none. I'm confident the tooling marks arent worriesome even sans bore scope given the supporting evidence of no appreciable copper fouling after break in and the stellar groups I was able to achieve.
My impression after setup and shooting is markedly better than I had ever anticipated. This rifle simply shoots. I haven't had it over a chrono yet to see what kind of velocity loss I'm netting with a shorter barrel, but I'm not worried about it at this point. The forearm is narrow and you have to bury it deep in a front bag, or use a bipod to wring out the most accuracy. There is very little appreciable muzzle rise and recoil is almost non-existent which makes tracking your hits much faster, especially on reactive targets. I'm enthralled with this setup. It has surpassed my every expectation in every way. If I've convinced you to give one a go, good luck finding one. I hope it brings you as much joy as it has brought me.
This is a long write-up, for which I make no apologies. Everyone has their "ultimate" gun and it's length is a testament to the joy I've experienced in finding mine.
I have a soft spot for heavy barrel bolt guns. That may actually be an understatement. Okay, it's definitely an understatement. I have an addiction to heavy barrel bolt guns bordering on pathologic. The only reason I say "bordering" is because it hasn't affected my willingness or ability to pay my bills. In any event, I have so many flavors of heavy barrel bolt guns by different manufacturers it isn't funny. But the search for the ultimate heavy barrel bolt gun has been a long time coming and I think I just found it.
Let's get something straight right now; I'm not an expert on long range shooting. I rarely shoot outside of 600 yards. I've never shot a formal match. I've never been a sniper. I've never attended formal training. I don't think that I'm some hotshot with a bolt gun. I have friends who personify all of the above. The one's who have spent trigger time overseas have helped me learn a great deal, but I know that my knowledge isn't anywhere close to the likes of some of the folks on here who are professional long range guys and I won't ever purport to be one of those guys.
What I do have is a whole lot of experience as a redneck tinkerer with many things bolt gun. I mentioned that I have several specimens, everything from 5r milspecs to 500 sps's and ADL's on the remington side, a FN SPR, and nearly every specimen offered by Savage arms.
I'm a Savage guy through and through. They had me long before the accu-trigger, but that addition put them over the top in my book. The 700 has a "gunsmith adjustable" trigger that a homesmith can obtain good results with, but I prefer the accu-trigger. In my experience factory Savages shoot better out of the box, especially the lower end economy models (like a standard 10FP vs a SPS). The difference probably isn't measurable. I have no hard data and this conclusion is way more subjective than objective because they both shoot well. Though most folks "in the know" on precision bolt guns will prefer the 700, it's hard to claim Savage makes a "bad" product anymore. A full house custom gun on a Surgeon action they are not. But an attainable, "economical" accurate rifle they are. At least in my opinion.
My love affair with Savage rifles started when I was a kid. I had a Marlin 336 in .35 Remington that I cut my teeth in the deer woods with. It's a great deer rifle don't get me wrong, but I longed for a 30-06 bolt gun like my dad's Savage 111 in 30-06. I could shoot that one at the range, but I couldn't ever carry it into the woods. In retrospect it wasn't anything special. Just a 111 with a hardwood stock and some Simmons scope variant. But it was big, and powerful, and to a 9 year old kid, it was the coolest thing with a trigger. By 13 I had my very own bolt action 30-06. A Remington 700 ADL with a black synthetic stock and a Tasco "World Class" 3-9x50 scope, that was so "world class" no one had bought the damn thing at my dads sporting goods store, so he gave it to me for the rifle. It mattered little. I sighted it in nearly twenty years ago and haven't put a round through it since. At the time I was into traditional archery and spent all my time afield with a flatbow I had made. Rifles were cool, but relegated to the range. Since it wasn't a heavy barrel model it didn't get any range time. Because it was a rifle and I was hunting exclusively with a bow, it didn't get any time afield.
When I turned 18 my first rifle purchase was a Remington 700 Sendero in .308 followed shortly by a Savage 12 FVSS in the same caliber. Back then they didn't have accu-triggers for the Savage so I bought a Timney. The Savage ended up at the range far more than the 700, probably because of the trigger, and because the Remington was so damn expensive I didn't want to scratch it up. Back in those days I was concerned with such frivolty. I ended up selling the Sendero because I never shot it and bought a .300 win mag Savage 112 FVSS, then one chambered in .223 and so on. Later I'd add 10 and 110FP's, and 12 VLP's as well as all the Remington flavors. They've all served me very well. I have some handsome rifles to be sure, but most are heavy with big bull barrels, huge optics, and chunky stocks made of fiberglass and aluminum with dangly bipods affixed. I've longed for the simplicity of that 111 Savage I remembered from my youth, with some features I've come to appreciate with experience.
.308 is my caliber. I have tons of brass, and components. I've spent countless hours tinkering with different bullets and loads. It's my favorite cartridge so my all purpose rifle had to be chambered in .308. I wanted open sights, but I also wanted a heavy barrel. Maybe not too heavy, but I didn't want a highly tapered thin profile barrel typically found on hunting rifles. I didn't want there to be a chance of stringing shots vertically in just a few rounds. After all, I may need to dispatch a colony of prarie dogs with it, or bust a gaggle of balloons at 500 yards. No, only a heavier than normal barrel would do. It had to be relatively light (factoring in a heavier barrel). With optics and a loaded mag I wanted a curb weight of less than 11 lbs. I've come to appreciate muzzle brakes for faster follow up shots and the ability to see my hits, so a threaded muzzle from the factory would be a bonus, but I'd be okay with sending it to a smith for threading.
Enter the 11 Hog Hunter from Savage. Stripped weight of 7.25# with a 20" "medium" contour barrel, FACTORY THREADED, and an accutrigger. The prospect was too juicy not to jump on it. They proved to be as elusive as they were intriguing. I wanted one so bad I was salivating, literally. It embodied all the features I never thought a manufacturer would assign to a single rifle. I HAD to have one so I commissioned my buddy Gary up at High Rock to find me a couple to tinker with. I would wait a few months. There would be highs and lows in the search until that magical call came. He was en route to pick up a couple to send my way (via FFL of course). And yes, I said "a couple". I had big plans. I had to redneck tinker. I had to find the perfect combination of accessories and additions. After all, this was going to be a dream gun of sorts for me. Not the prettiest, but certainly the most practical if all went well. And if it all worked out, I'd need a spare or two. Hell it took so long to get one in the first place. There isn't a chance this guy was going to fall in love with rifle and not have a couple of them.
The day finally arrived when I picked them up at the FFL. All the way to the shop I had myself convinced not to open the boxes until I got home. It was going to be a momentous occasion. One that I wanted to savor, in private, and languish in the possibilites of a dream about to be realized. All this may seem melodramatic. You're probably reading this thinking, "there is no way this guy is THAT excited about an ugly Savage rifle, with a plastic stock and a street price of less than $500". Well, you would be wrong. I really was and still am that excited about this rifle. I'm damn near writing a novel about it, something I've never done for any gun that I've owned. I broke down during the NICS check and snuck a peak. I carefully opened one of the boxes and slid the plastic bag sheathed conglomerate of steel and plastic into a vertical position. As I reached into the plastic that encapsulated the rifle I felt the tiniest of thud on the tip of my boot. Probably nothing I thought at first. Glancing down, I saw what appeared to be the rear leaf of a rifle sight. Though inaudible (I hope), I shrieked a bit. I just got my perfect rifle, and it's going to fall apart? Picking up the tiny portion of sight that represented a comparatively larger portion of my dream was a mix of disgust and melancholy. This thing was going to be a dud.
I completely unsheathed the contraption and took in the view. It was everything I wanted it to be minus the rear sight issue. Form met function and for this user the final product was beautiful in that utilitarian and frugal way that a fat redneck like me can really appreciate. I pondered over the rear sight mishap and realized that the ramp to which the rear leaf was supposed to be affixed was much too smooth and at too steep an angle for the set screw arrangement savage had designed. That could be remedied easy enough later. I put it all back the way I found it, signed the form, paid the fee, and headed home. Triumphant songs played in my head as I giggled like a school girl just a little at first. My wife didn't understand what I was so happy about, maybe you don't either. On either front, I could care less. I haven't been this excited about a gun since I was 12 and found a new Remington 870 under the Christmas tree.
IMPORTANT: Never attempt any home gunsmithing while under the influence of sleep deprivation and extended periods of driving. I would soon make that mistake.
I made it home feeling the fatigue of a long work week and some 5 hours on the road. The Hog Hunter couldn't wait. I had already contained myself for too long. I ripped it out of the box, grinning from ear to ear, the mad scientist within had to make his presence known. It simply couldn't wait until I was rested, the mission had to be complete. I looked it over more thoroughly now taking in every feature.
Let me tell you something about open sights; brass beads on a front sight stop me dead in my tracks. Something about brass beads and peep sights that make my heart skip a beat. Guess what the 11 Hog Hunter comes with? Yep, a brass bead on the front sight! I almost fell over in disbelief, it was a welcome surprise that somehow I had no prior knowledge of despite what I thought was some careful research. The sights are a high-profile arrangemnt with a simple wide v-notch aft and a large brass dot at the business end. Something I would envision on a dangerous game rifle, though I've never owned a dangerous game rifle per-se and I've never paid that much attention to the sights on the one's I've seen in passing. Easy to acquire, they aren't made for precision work, but for my needs their mere presence was just for insurance when all else fails. To that end they will serve me just fine.
The stock is the same old Savage stock that despite being junk could never be as bad as a hogue stock. To be honest, even though I refer to those factory Stocks as "junk", I've come to sort of like them. It's sorta like jello, not the best dessert but can be easily had and sometimes it's comforting in it's simplicity. The pillar bedding adequately floated the barrel. You could probably fit a stack of one dollar bills 20 deep in that space. I checked for forearm flex that is so typical of the low-end Savage stocks and often robs the rifle of some of it's accuracy when placed atop a bipod or an outstretched support hand. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the flex, though present, didn't easily nudge the barrel. The wrist is characteristically thin and length of pull just shy of 14" fit me fine. The tip of the forearm is subtly thicker than the forearm on my 111 in 30-06. I sort of like thin tapered forearms on hunting rifles, but that's difficult on a heavy barrel arrangement and something I'd learn to live with. By no means was this a beavertail arrangement like the stock 10FP's have, just a little thicker than the average Savage hunting rifle. Checkering is the standard attenuated diamond pattern that have graced hunting rifles for generations. Not pretty, but simple. The pea soup colored stock has grown on me a bit, like the mold it resembles, it'll do. The thin comb could be a problem with stiff recoil that the .308 will never subject it to. The comb does allow comfortable allignment with the open sights and with a low enough scope, would prove okay for the use of optics. Obligatory swivel studs are the Uncle Mikes variety instead of the molded version which is becoming popular with some manufacturers. I much prefer metal studs, of which this specimen has two, one fore and one aft. No need for a bipod on this rifle and a third stud would be unwelcome for this user.
The barrel is described as "medium" contour which is true in that it follows the contour of most tradtional varmint rifles though the taper is spread along the attenuated 20" axis of a shorter barrel. A thread protector is affixed at the muzzle where Savages recessed target crown finishes out the forward end. Where the barrel meets the action is where things get spiced up a bit. The oft reviled savage barrel nut with it's gaudy recessed purchase points has been eschewed for a sleeker, more tapered version. I like it. It blends the barrel quite handsomely with the action in a nouveau Savage way. The bolt is a matted oxide finished affair with the contemporary "tactical" oversized bolt knob that is easily manipulated. Cycling the bolt is smooth enough, not remarkable but certainly not bad. It glides in the raceway with minimal effort, not unlike any other Savage.
After checking for an empty chamber a few times the dry firing exercise showed the trigger to break cleanly with no takeup and no overtravel at 3.2 lbs. This is just about perfect for an "all purpose" setup where it will find it's way into the field nearly as much as the range. It will not be adjusted. The only thing I really hate about Savage rifles is the cheap plastic safety selector on their rifles. I hate it and this one is no exception.
Overall, the rifle shouldered nicely. The trigger felt exactly like I expected and desired. Overall, everything was just as anticipated with the singular exception being that the rear sight needed remedying. A scope had to be affixed and a muzzle brake attached to complete my simple upgrades to a rifle that was standing up to every measure I had required.
I use a hardwood 2x4 arrangement as a barrel clamp in conjunction with c-clamps for all my muzzle device work. I cut a channel between the two sections of 2x4 so that the circular void is spread evenly betweeen the two. The rifle is rested laterally on the table with the barrel nestled in the lower 2x4, then the upper 2x4 is placed and everything is cinched tight using c-clamps with the muzzle end protruding from the end of the table. In my haste I left the barreled action in the stock and proceeded to torque everything down for adding a Spikes Dynacomp of the .308 variety. Remember my disclaimer a few paragraphs above? Well it wasn't torqued quite enough and the barrel rotated just enough to catch the stern edge of the front ramp thereby tearing the front sight from the threads of the single machine screw that held the sight in place. I was devastated. I screwed up my new favorite rifle. Fortunately the only threads harmed were that of the screw.
I got the dynacomp on just fine after that. But with that mission complete, I now had to fix the open sights. The front being my fault and the rear being poorly designed, at least in the retention department. I found a screw with the proper diameter and thread pitch. I had to turn the head in a drill to fit the recess of the front sight because the screw is beneath the dovetailed blade of the front sight. After that was loctited in place I turned my attention to the rear sight. I roughed up the flat of the rear sight ramp with the tip of a tapered diamond file then I applied loctite to both the set screw and the superior portion of the rear sight base including the dovetail channels.
Next werethe base, rings, and scope. I had chosen an EGW aluminum base to offest the steel Leupold rings I've come to favor. This was a simple affair that took but a few mintutes to loctite and torque in place. Next was my least favorite endeavor of lapping the rings which went well enough, though I dislike doing it. Then I mounted a 4-12x mildot Nikon Prostaff. Proper eye relief placed the front bell roughly a quarter inch behind where the rear leaf was currently fixed. I hoped that rear sight adjustment would not interfere. I would learn that where it then sat, was spot on at 100 yards. This rifle will spend a lot of time being jostled around and generally being beat up. I wanted to see how durable the prostaff ends up being while hoping it proves sufficient for this use. Later iterations will likely have better glass as I experiment with other muzzle devices and eventually a can.
I shouldered the now complete rifle and it felt good. Really good. I cleaned the bore with solvent and wiped it clean. I was thoroughly exhausted at this point and finally went to sleep for the night. I'd have more work in the morning.
The next day I took her to the range. Some minor adjustments after bore-sighting had me grouping to point of aim in just a few shots. She was properly broken in by dispensing with the oft regaled, shoot then clean repetition for 20 rounds. I just shot it. The load I worked up was 41.2 of RL15 and a Federal Match Primer under a 165gr Hornady SST. After 60 rounds group size settled to .63 on average at 100 yards with a best of .501 at 100 yards and .748 at 200 yards (3 shot groups). I removed the scope and sighted in the irons at 100 yards, then replaced the scope to verify zero had not changed. It hadn't.
Whenever I'm going to use a rifle for hunting I always clean it after sighting in and trying the next day with a cold bore shot to make my tweaks. The first day had me shooting .75" high with a cold bore. I adjusted accordingly. The following two days netted 2 rounds dead center of the bullseye both times. This will be my hunting rig.
Because it's a new rifle I like to get an idea of how much the barrel copper fouls. So the initial cleaning netted very little blue and subsquent cleanings netted none. I'm confident the tooling marks arent worriesome even sans bore scope given the supporting evidence of no appreciable copper fouling after break in and the stellar groups I was able to achieve.
My impression after setup and shooting is markedly better than I had ever anticipated. This rifle simply shoots. I haven't had it over a chrono yet to see what kind of velocity loss I'm netting with a shorter barrel, but I'm not worried about it at this point. The forearm is narrow and you have to bury it deep in a front bag, or use a bipod to wring out the most accuracy. There is very little appreciable muzzle rise and recoil is almost non-existent which makes tracking your hits much faster, especially on reactive targets. I'm enthralled with this setup. It has surpassed my every expectation in every way. If I've convinced you to give one a go, good luck finding one. I hope it brings you as much joy as it has brought me.
Last edited:
