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Are Savage Single shot target actions any good

What muddy72 said. What are you doing with the gun. I have a LRPV gun with a 223AI 8tw Criterion Match Grade. It shoots great, I have done nothing to the action. IMO that is what I would do, and what I did.

As for a tuned Remington, it will make a better setup with a Jewel trigger. The only thing with a Tuned Remington or Savage. The action is stiff with bolt lift and close, compaired to a custom action, and will not shoot as well.

But before get into any of this. First look into the cost of a build. The stock, barrel, smith work cost the same, the action in the only thing that changes, factory, mod factory, custom, and my pick, a used custom action gun, I have 2, a BAT and a Stiller Diamondback.

If you want a good gun at a low cost, the Savage with a custom barrel is a good way to go. But if you looking to make it shoot like a BAT, get a BAT.

Mark Schronce
 
I'm working on load development for mine and haven't really had the opportunity to go nuts with it yet but this was at 300 yards savage ftr 308. I think once I start neck sizing my new batch brass it's going to get better. I am by far no serious shooter, but this is what the rifle can do for a novice.
 

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My Savage builds worked well . After building a custom , savages were promptly sold . Bolt lift , and close always sucked .
Scope off target means eyes off flags or mirage ....... Buy once , cry once
 
sparky123321 said:
The Savage LRPV, BR, F/TR and Palma all use the Target Action and 6oz trigger. They are all Model 12's. There are even some repeaters out there.

I started competing F-T/R with my Savage 12 F-T/R .308, and I would highly recommended to anyone getting started. However, if I tried to adjust the Accu-Trigger to less than 14-oz or so, I would have had to recycle the bolt numerous times as the slightest bump would lock up the trigger. Still, at 14-oz it worked fine for me.

After about a year and several matches, I installed a Sharp Shooter Supply trigger myself, and after a bit of fiddling, was able to adjust to around 10 to 12-oz. The problem with the SSS trigger is not that if not properly adjusted and set too light it would lock up as the Accu-Trigger, but that it would slam fire. But once adjusted properly, it is great.

BTW, I obtained the finer details on how to change to the SSS trigger and how to adjust it from this very forum ;).

Nando
 
Are they any good? Absolutely. I have 2 target actions RBLP, with the target accutrigger. I'm very happy. My 6BR shoots in the .1's. Most accurate rifle I have ever owned. I had them T&T and are pretty darn smooth. I also have no problem with the trigger.
 
I have 2 LRPV's, one with SSS evo trigger and trued, one stock factory action and trigger. The difference between the operation of these actions and triggers, is the difference between day and night. On the SSS trued , the bolt lift is light and cycles smoothly, the trigger is set at 4oz and brakes cleanly. The stock action works ,but is stiff on bolt lift and not nearly as smooth to cycle. the trigger is set at 8oz and will operate with only an occasional lock up. The one I sent to SSS came back with the safety removed, the safety in a plastic bag. The only drag to this ,is the time it takes to get it done. I did get it back within 10 days of the promised date, but he's busy.
 
If you really want to see how good Savage actions are, come out to a Sacramento NBRSA club match. We have a bunch of shooters using Savage actions. You can judge for yourself how good they are!
 
I am thinking about buying a brand new Savage Target action. It is one of those single shot Right port right bolt large shank with the accutriger 6oz. Are the any good Or do you still need to true them up. Or should I just do another Rem. 700 and the have it trued. Any experience would be great.
Brian
I have 2 savage builds, one built of a savage target action and the other is a model 11 trophy hunter and both barreled with a 28" shilen select match barrel. The trophy hunter also got a precision ground lug and nut plus the light accutrigger spring replacement.. both rifles will drive through the same holes at 200 yards both are still sub now far beyond that.. I would venture to say they would compete with some of these ridiculously priced customs. At the range I goto (camp atterbury) military sharpshooters train there and were amazed when they saw what it could do and even more amazed when I showed them the word savage on the bolt. My point is I guess that there is not a damn thing wrong with savage, the barrel is where it's at.
 
I started with a Savage Target action in the box Part #18184. I must have gotten lucky as this one is very good. Bolt lift is half of any of my Rem 700's or XP's. The recoil lug that came with the action was ground and had the good nut like NSS sells. They are well worth the money.
 
I am thinking about buying a brand new Savage Target action. It is one of those single shot Right port right bolt large shank with the accutriger 6oz. Are the any good Or do you still need to true them up. Or should I just do another Rem. 700 and the have it trued. Any experience would be great.
Brian
Short answer: Yes, they're good and so is the trigger.

Long answer: First put things in perspective. Are you planning to win the World Championship in F-Class in the next few years? If so, get out your wallet and spend the big bucks for a fancy action if for no other reason than essentially all the winners are doing just that. Good equipment is certainly nice to have. Unfortunately, like most things in life, the really good stuff is expensive. At the really sharp point of any kind of competition, the winners show up with good/great equipment.

But if you're lower on the food chain, especially if you don't have a lot of extra money, the Savage Target action will do just fine.

I've got a couple of them and I regularly shoot against guys using guns costing three times as much as mine; four times if you count their really fancy scopes. I beat them on a regular basis and when I don't win, I have NEVER felt that I would have won if I had a "such-and-such" fancy action. Admittedly the matches I shoot are pretty far from World Championship matches, but I can tell you that plenty of my competitors take it quite seriously, as do I.

True, the Savage action doesn't look or feel like it's made like a fine watch. It's a bit on the rough side, but it also isn't very expensive. Want to save even more money? I bought one of the Savage guns with the target action; used but in the box and never fired. It had the older stock and I got a good deal on it. It was a Model 12 LRVP if I remember correctly. I took off the never-fired barrel and stock and sold them. I ended up with a target action and trigger for around $300. I added a good barrel and stock and had myself a fine rifle for not too much money.

My current project is to do the same thing with the ultra cheap Cabelas Savage Model 12 FV. It doesn't have a target action. It's a small shank with an Accutrigger which requires some fiddling and a spring change to duplicate the Target version of the Accutrigger, but that's easy enough. A barrel and stock swap will give me another nice target gun. I'm going with a top of the line Bartlein barrel on this one, partially because Cabelas had a sale on those rifles for $319 with a hundred dollar rebate. Once I sell the never-fired barrel, I'll have a suitable action and trigger for 75 bucks or less.

By the way, I have a replacement barrel for my Savage .223 F/TR gun arriving today. I'm gonna' remove the old barrel, put on the new one, and start load work up tomorrow. The ability to swap barrels myself means my gun will be out of service for less than a day. I don't have to wait for a gunsmith to put me on his 3 month waiting list.

Don't look for me at the World Championships, but you might find me at a local competition having lots of fun and winning my fair share of matches without breaking the bank.
 
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I have a model 12BVSS, the rifle shoots accurately but I’m not a fan of the blade in the trigger. I would really like it to be a regular trigger like my other rifles. I would like to try the Timney Savage replacement trigger. Does anyone have any experience with these, and would I also need to get the lightest spring for this model? Thanks.
 
I am thinking about buying a brand new Savage Target action. It is one of those single shot Right port right bolt large shank with the accutriger 6oz. Are the any good Or do you still need to true them up. Or should I just do another Rem. 700 and the have it trued. Any experience would be great.
Brian
something to keep in mind. the action you've described has 3.44" screw spacing. The stock options are extremely limited. Your only choices would be an HS Precision PSV121 or something from Sharp Shooter Supply.
 
What it came down to for me is the satisfaction and reward of having built the gun that is putting holes in very small groups down range. For me there's little pride in having bought someone else's hand me down, and if and when I got it shooting well, there's just not much satisfaction in that. But if I built that gun and then made it shoot well, that's a much bigger accomplishment.

IMOP, buy the action (I would if I could afford it) and build. Keep building and improving until it's shooting it's (your) best. Unless of course, the bottom line is to make it to the winners circle as quick as possible, cost being no object.

Please let us know which way you decide to go, and keep us up to date. Always good to know another barrel nut is just a shiny new Savage away.
 
Short answer: Yes, they're good and so is the trigger.

Long answer: First put things in perspective. Are you planning to win the World Championship in F-Class in the next few years? If so, get out your wallet and spend the big bucks for a fancy action if for no other reason than essentially all the winners are doing just that. Good equipment is certainly nice to have. Unfortunately, like most things in life, the really good stuff is expensive. At the really sharp point of any kind of competition, the winners show up with good/great equipment.

But if you're lower on the food chain, especially if you don't have a lot of extra money, the Savage Target action will do just fine.

I've got a couple of them and I regularly shoot against guys using guns costing three times as much as mine; four times if you count their really fancy scopes. I beat them on a regular basis and when I don't win, I have NEVER felt that I would have won if I had a "such-and-such" fancy action. Admittedly the matches I shoot are pretty far from World Championship matches, but I can tell you that plenty of my competitors take it quite seriously, as do I.

True, the Savage action doesn't look or feel like it's made like a fine watch. It's a bit on the rough side, but it also isn't very expensive. Want to save even more money? I bought one of the Savage guns with the target action; used but in the box and never fired. It had the older stock and I got a good deal on it. It was a Model 12 LRVP if I remember correctly. I took off the never-fired barrel and stock and sold them. I ended up with a target action and trigger for around $300. I added a good barrel and stock and had myself a fine rifle for not too much money.

My current project is to do the same thing with the ultra cheap Cabelas Savage Model 12 FV. It doesn't have a target action. It's a small shank with an Accutrigger which requires some fiddling and a spring change to duplicate the Target version of the Accutrigger, but that's easy enough. A barrel and stock swap will give me another nice target gun. I'm going with a top of the line Bartlein barrel on this one, partially because Cabelas had a sale on those rifles for $319 with a hundred dollar rebate. Once I sell the never-fired barrel, I'll have a suitable action and trigger for 75 bucks or less.

By the way, I have a replacement barrel for my Savage .223 F/TR gun arriving today. I'm gonna' remove the old barrel, put on the new one, and start load work up tomorrow. The ability to swap barrels myself means my gun will be out of service for less than a day. I don't have to wait for a gunsmith to put me on his 3 month waiting list.

Don't look for me at the World Championships, but you might find me at a local competition having lots of fun and winning my fair share of matches without breaking the bank.
I totally agree with all you have said. I am an avid Savage guy and have been for many years. I just put my second barrel on my 6mm Dasher and I spent $325 on a barrel, had it reamed with my reamer for $100 and had the barrel cerakoted for $100. $550 an I have a new gun that has my exact chamber as the last lazor.
 

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