Savage LRPV or custom?

[varminater]

Hi guys,

I'm new to this forum and would definitely consider myself an amateur compared to many, so don't go too hard on me!

I would like to acquire a long range precision varmint rifle and would like to stay in the 6mm cal. family somewhere between a 6br Norma and a 6xc.

I would like to stick with a Savage action for cost,,perceived quality?)and practicality. I really like the looks/feel of the Savage LRPV in 6br, and when I talked to a Service Dept. rep at Savage today, she told me they were going to be offering that model in 6br with a 4 round box mag and 1x8 twist-- something new this year. That sounds perfect, as whichever cartridge I'll use, I'm thinking the hornady 105gr A-Max might be the best long range bullet for me with good expansion properties for small to medium game like woodchucks and coyotes.

My question to everyone is this; should I just buy the LRPV in 6br and run with it,or buy the 6br and swap it out for a precision barrel in a caliber such as 6mm Dasher or 6xc or even 6br? what about picking up a Savage or Remington action/precision stock/ and barrel and let a gunsmith build it up?

I have been reading that the Savage barrels might be a little rough when compared to some of the better custom barrel makers and am not sure how serious of an issue this might be.

1000 yard shots will not be the rule for me, but I do want a rifle and cartridge with the inherant velocity and accuracy to make those shots possible. I would appreciate you guys opinions. If you can, give as many details as possible.

Thanks in advance, Bill

 

[tiny68]

Here my two cents and that's about all its worth. Get your LRPV repeater in the 6BR,comes with a 1:12 twist). Go ahead and start shooting. Get you a good set of 6BR dies and master reloading. Then place the order for your 6BRX from Shilen,$279 plus shipping from Jim Briggs at NSS but it is +22 weeks wait). The 6bRX will use the same dies as your 6BR so your out nothing but the barrel. Shoot that for a couple of years. Then if your in love with distance shooting and want more performance go with a custom action and recover 70-80% of your investment of the Savage. However be warned - once the Savage bug bits you and you learn how easy it is to swap barrels and how cheap you can pick up great quality barrel you will soon find yourself shooting half dozen calibers and you are running out of places to hide the new barrels from you wife.... oh sorry maybe that is just me.

Again that is just my 2cents, tiny

FYI - Third Generation Shooter Supply has two of these in stock and I bet you will be hard pressed to be their price. Less than $900.

 

[topwater225]

I have been debating that same thing. The question I have is does the LRPV feed without any issues? I definitely want a repeater and I don't want any feeding problems.

 

[tiny68]

Mine is the single shot so I can't help you out there. I haven't heard of any issues with the feeding.

tiny

 

[varminater]

tiny,

You were right. The savage LRPV 6br only comes in 12 twist--even this year. For that matter, could I buy it in any caliber new or used and simply change out barrel? Is there any kind of market for the removed barrel? Do you know any outlet that is or will be running any good deals on this gun?

I am assuming this would still be cheaper than buying action/stock/barrel separately. I definatley want an 8 twist regardless of what cartridge I decide on. All opinions appreciated.

 

[ChuckMiller]

I went a similiar route, bought the LRPV action, ordered a Shilen 30" 1-8 1" straight contour in 6BR .272nk and found a used LRPV stock, total came to 900.00. Pretty boring rifle with the 6BR recommended accuracy load with Varget. Who wants to fire 10 rounds out of a new rifle and be through with load workup, what a bummer.

 

[vlcakc]

Bought a Savage 6mmBR a couple of weeks ago. Had a choice of a left port single shot or a right port repeater, both 12 twist. Since it will be for PD's and paper punching I chose the single shot. The repeater has a center feed magazine with a block in the rear to shorten to 6mmBR length. Doubt there would be any feeding problems. Mounted a 6-20 Nikon Monarch with Warne bases and Burris rings. Warning! the screws that come with these bases are too long for the Savage large shank actions. The front screw will mess up the barrel threads and make the barrel difficult or impossible to remove.,Don't ask how I know this.) Grind the screws down until there is no interference. First group was with 70gr Sierra MK and AA2460 powder. Shot in a 20 mph cross wind @ 100 yds., no wind flags. Six shots in a group about 1/2 in. wide and 1/4 in high. Shot about 20 rounds total. Some copper fouling, but not too bad. Cleaned up with three doses of Montana Extreme, patches only, no brushing. Weather has been too cold and windy for further testing. More later. Vic

 

[varminater]

Thanks guys. I'm listening-- keep the comments coming.

 

[mpryne]

The best person to talk to would be Fred at sharp shooter supply in ohio. He can walk you through everything with a savage and also if you buy the action from him it will get trued and timed which will help on feel.

 

[varminater]

Well guys, I think I had my bubble popped this week.

I talked to a highly respected gunsmith in our area about buying the Savage LRPV rifle with the 4 shot magazine in 6br, getting a custom barrel for it and having the action trued and glass bedded. Although he was receptive about the idea, he did mention that the strength of a Savage action when milled out for a detachable mag would weaken the action and thus may affect the gun's accuracy when compared with it's equivalent in single shot. This does not settle well with me, as accuracy means more than anything to me in this particular project. I'm really not sure which avenue to take, but I do have a few options,listed below) that I would like to get more feedback from some of the more seasoned shooters here. Those options are:

1) Get the Savage LRPV single shot in 6br, buy a Pre made shilen or equivalent 1x8 barrel for it, and let Fred at Sharp Shooters Supply rebarrel and accurize it.

2) Get a short single shot custom action, say a Stiller, buy the other components and have a competent gunsmith put it together.

3) Buy a short Surgeon repeating action,very expensive)-- set up for the box magazine,which I would really like), buy the other components and have a competent gunsmith put it together.

For those of you who have seen or owned a Surgeon action, it has the integral scope rail which no doubt strengthens the action, but is it strong enough to compare with the inherent strength and accuracy given by some of the other custom single shot actions? Can I have my cake and eat too with the Surgeon action?

These are just some of my ideas, and am open to others. This will be my first custom or semi custom rifle that I've put together, and I really want to get it right the first time, even if it means spending more money than originally planned. I would still like a repeater, but not if it will be sacrificing any noticeable accuracy. What do you guys think? All comments appreciated!

 

[cwood3]

Varminter,

I'm a learner and by no means an authority on the subject, but I'll relate my experience thus far to you. I got interested in the 6BR. My son,16) and I wanted to get back into shooting again. Actually, he's never shot anything but my pistols. I wanted to build as much of this project on my own as I could, short of machine work. I bought a Savage Precision Target Action from Northlander and a 1:10 twist McGowen barrel as well. I ordered a Lee Six Modified Thumbhole stock from Bill Shehane and Devcon/Pillar bedded it myself. I bought a steel 1-pc Ken Farrell base along with steel Ken Farrel rings and topped it with a Weaver T-36,1/8" MOA dot). I bought 100 rounds of Lapua 90gr Scenar ammo and put it all together. We took it out to shoot and I did a rough bore sight. With 3 shots I had it dead center bull at 100 yards. I turned it over to my son, went through all the safety issues and techniques issues we had discussed beforehand. He shot a .6" group with rounds 4-8, all on center. He was stoked. So he shot 4 more 5-shot groups and managed one just under .25". ,I was then stoked, that's my boy!). I managed a 5-shot group just under .5". He smoked me. Since then we have shot a total of 100 rounds, all very small groups. I didn't true/time the action. It was factory ammo,yet Lapua, good stuff). I'm in the process of reloading those 100 rounds. Bottom line, I love that rifle, my first actual semi-build. Myself and my son are severely hooked. I said 'severely'. Right now I am putting together a 6PPC for him so he can shoot 100-300 score/group. A 10.5 # gun. I have a Stiller Cobra RBLP drop port, a Krieger 13.5" twist barrel, a Shehane African Obeche Baby Tracker, a Jewell trigger, a Weaver T-36. The funny thing is, I hope it shoots as good as my Savage! Yes, this build is gonna be more expensive, but I set out to do it that way. The topic of modified factory vs. full blown custom is pretty popular and I wanted to taste both worlds. So in the end, I have my Savage to play with and my son will have a race gun that he compete with with confidence. Decisions decisions....and I know I haven't helped or answered your question. ,Oh yea, I have a 30 BR or PPC in the works just for me, but it's a secret)

cwood3

 

[favload]

I own the LRPV 6BR repeater and have put over 800 rds through it. I bought it a year ago and love it. So does everyone else that shoots it. I have shot everything from the 65gr-90gr range. Mine likes 80 gr Berger Match and or 68gr Berger FB Match with around 30-31 gr of Varget. V-Max and Barnes X bullets shoot ok for hunting,.5 MOA)The gun has NEVER had a feeding problem and shoots between .2-.5" ALL day long in wind, rain -20F- 100F at 100yds. I have shot 2" groups at 350yds just playing around using a bipod. In short You CAN'T get more gun for the money!! I shoot for fun with guys with custom $5,000 rifles in all sizes and shapes at the end of the day I would call it a tie. Sometimes they out shoot me but most of the time they don't. I have put 10 shot groups into a dime sized target multiple times as fast as I can chamber rounds and shoot. They can't do that with their single shot BAT actions! Oh yea, the Bushnell 6500 4-30x,$800) on Buris Rings,$100) and a $50 Millett steel pic rail are alot cheaper than the $3,000 Zeiss scopes and Nightforce rings,$200) and basses,$200) on their guns too and they seem to get the job done just fine. Don't get me wrong I like em too but do you really need to pay for them to shoot bug holes? Not in this case! As far as the barrel goes on mine it fouls VERY LITTLE!! I can put 30 rounds through it and clean it out with 2 patches and no brushing. The quality and parts are a step above the regular Savage line.
There are a few things I have found out the hard way about the gun but the positives out weigh the negatives. It has a long free bore and you can't get the short bullets it shoots to touch the lands. However this has not seemed to effect accuracy. The target trigger likes to be a few turns on the heavy side or the trigger can "freeze up" if it's set too light.
The twist will not stabalize anything over 85grains that I have tried. This means no VLD heavy bullets for super long range. No current factory rounds can be bought this means reloading all the way. I am trying to fine tune my reloading to close the gaps.
With this said i would still buy another if I had to to it agian. I plan to shoot another 800 rounds through it and buy a pre fit barrel for it. Currently I can't see how one would improve it much for the money though. I like the single shot action too but I think having the ability to keep more bullets in your gun is a nice option.
hope this helps

 

[mysticplayer]

I have built a number of very accurate rifles based off mag fed Savage or Stevens actions. Some have used the barrel nut, others shouldered headspace.

If the barrel was of quality manf, the rifles shot superbly. How about 1/2 to 3/4" 5 rds groups at 300m?

I have never bought into the mag well opening cause accuracy issues. You would have to hang a mondo barrel without support to bend that action and why wouldn't you support that barrel anyways?

I started mucking about with Stevens when they first hit Canada a few years back. For the cost, couldn't resist.

I found they shot superbly and ran/functioned really well. I compared my results with those using top of the line custom actions/built rifles and found, my rifles shot as well as most and better then some.

I have sinced figured out how to do my own bolt timing and other tweaks to make the bolt easier to lift and operate. That is its biggest flaw. Now, it shoots great, easy to operate and I have lots of money left over to spend on components and optics.

I sincerely doubt I will ever build a rifle off a rem based custom action.

Jerry

PS if curious what I compete with, Gun of the Week #75 is my toy.