Why are factory savage rifles accurate?

[ronsatspokane]

I can’t tell you the number of targets my factory gun has shot me in the 3-5” range. Ive never had this gun out of the stock nor adjusted the trigger. It’s honest to god just a factory savage model 12 LRP in a 6.5 creed right out of the box. minus some stock tape and a mag sled. I truly believe the floating bolt heads are what helps them. You’re starting to see some custom actions going to them.

I had that same rifle. I bought it used at a pawn shop along with 2 boxes of Hornady match ammo. One with 130 and one with 140 grain bullets. Had no idea how many rounds it had down it. Took it to the range and shot the best groups I'd shot out of any rifle I'd ever owned. Either box would shoot 1/2 MOA groups off sandbags and no rear bag. That got me started down a very expensive path. I shot that gun in F Class for a couple years and did reasonably well with it while upgrading rests and rear bags along the way. When it started going off I figured I had 3500 rounds down it. Swapped to a prefit Criterian and kept going for another year. Eventually I got a bore scope and when I looked at that original barrel I discovered that it was fire cracked nearly a 1/3 of the way down. It was way past shot out but many would still consider it an accurate barrel. It went from 1/4 to 1/2 MOA in the beginning (with a good rest and rear bag) to 3/4 to 1 MOA when I retired it.

But then I got into customs and my wallet has been drained every since.

Also had a Savage 12 BVSS in 223 with a 9 twist barrel. That would shoot 73 grain Bergers (after very little load development) into 1/4 MOA groups. Used it for midrange F Class (600 yards) for a while but felt the need for a heavier twist and heavier bullets. Never ended up with a better shooting gun.

Should have kept both of those rifles.

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

They're generally a good bet to shoot very well for a factory rifle. There are bad ones and there are some exceptional ones. That said, if given the choice, I like the Tikkas better but both are pretty safe bets to give way better than average accuracy for a factory rifle.

 

[Old Navy]

1100ish now. And 1000. I shoot competitive benchrest. Attached are my 10 match score and groups from the 2022 season. Feel free to look on the GBA website for the shoot off results and you can find some more targets in this range along with some targets that aren’t so much brag worthy. Also take a look the achievements page and you’ll find my attached records that the gun has shot at 600 and 1000. I believe I hold the majority of them. And the others I don’t hold, we’re still shot by LRP’s.

If you are up to 1100 on your barrel and it is still competitive you have a lot better than the average Savage. It is real easy to do your own pre-fits.

 

[Jvance513]

If you are up to 1100 on your barrel and it is still competitive you have a lot better than the average Savage. It is real easy to do your own pre-fits.

It certainly is easy to do them, that’s the glory of the barrel nut. But as my barrel being “better than the average” savage barrel, that statement just tells me you know nothing about any of the savage model 12s. I would put their 6BR benchrest up against most custom guns at 600 yards. And I can’t tell you how many times my LRP has made my own wheeler guns looks like crap. Sometimes it’s hard to accept that a 1200 dollar off the shelf rifle will hang with my 8000+ dollar custom guns lol. But it happens sometimes. Not every time, but sometimes.

 

[Topstrap]

Every time I hear the ill-informed start on one of their "junk Savage" rants I just dig up this thread and smile. Then I ask if they want to look down the barrel which is rougher than a corn cob. Then I ask to see their World Record. Randy uses Savages for all his longrange guns including his ELR pistols.

An NRA Shooting Sports Journal | Randy Wise Stuns With 2,158-Yard Shot, Sets New ELR World Record

Using a (mostly) factory Savage rifle, Wise went three for three from a cold bore at 2,158 yards. His record-setting load included Lapua brass and Berger 300-grain hybrid bullets.

www.ssusa.org

Topstrap

 

[Old Navy]

It certainly is easy to do them, that’s the glory of the barrel nut. But as my barrel being “better than the average” savage barrel, that statement just tells me you know nothing about any of the savage model 12s. I would put their 6BR benchrest up against most custom guns at 600 yards. And I can’t tell you how many times my LRP has made my own wheeler guns looks like crap. Sometimes it’s hard to accept that a 1200 dollar off the shelf rifle will hang with my 8000+ dollar custom guns lol. But it happens sometimes. Not every time, but sometimes.

Talk about condescending! I have three Model 12s. Have shot them for over six years now. First was 6.5X284 Benchrest. Trashed at 650 rounds. Seems they predrilled the chamber too far before chambering. Had a .012" step in in the neck. Shot great right up to that point. The second was a 6BR Benchrest. It went over 1200. Shot great. Both were a bitch to clean. Third one is RBLP. All have been re-barreled to after market. All are machined so true I can I can swap scopes around all three of them and be on the target @100 yards. I know as much about Savages as the next guy. Have a nice day.

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

If you change the barrel to an aftermarket/custom barrel is it a Savage anymore? This applies to any brand rifle.

 

[Fuj]

4 digit serial number Mod 99 300 Savage, family rifle. With a box
of original Winchester 150gr Silver Tips from the 70's, Its a one MOA
rifle. Remington Core Locts never ever shot better then a minute and
a half but about 30 deer never knew the difference.....

 

[Old Navy]

It certainly is easy to do them, that’s the glory of the barrel nut. But as my barrel being “better than the average” savage barrel, that statement just tells me you know nothing about any of the savage model 12s. I would put their 6BR benchrest up against most custom guns at 600 yards. And I can’t tell you how many times my LRP has made my own wheeler guns looks like crap. Sometimes it’s hard to accept that a 1200 dollar off the shelf rifle will hang with my 8000+ dollar custom guns lol. But it happens sometimes. Not every time, but sometimes.

If you change the barrel to an aftermarket/custom barrel is it a Savage anymore? This applies to any brand rifle.

Mine are. Maybe they wouldn't be in FTR. Someone here can answer that.

 

[Dgd6mm]

I guess some are diamonds and some are stones.

 

[Infrequent Shooter]

found this article on ID of Savage 10 and 110 series rifles. the best one I have seen on IDs.

How to Know Which Savage Model 110 You Have - Optics Trade Blog

Is your Savage Model 110 Flat-Back or Round-Back? This plays a major role in deciding which scope mounts to get, and here is why ...

www.optics-trade.eu

 

[BoydAllen]

What do you mean zero headspace and the barrels being hand straightened?

When they put the barrels on the receivers, they use a tool called a swing gauge. It goes in like a bolt with a headspace gauge attached. The gauge part is .002 shorter than a GO gauge. The effect of tightening the nut, which the factory does quite tight, is to stretch the chamber a bit and the result is a very uniform minimum headspace. Contrast this with a fancy 700 a friend got some years, make that decades ago. It was stainless, with a fluted varmint barrel, in an HS Precision stock. The bolt would close on a NOGO gauge. Fancy looking rifle, fairly expensive, it should have never left the factory that way.

Added Later: The great video farther down in this thread shows that the gauging procedure has changed. What I wrote came from a conversation with a retired Savage engineer, but that was many years ago. Watch the video. It is one of the best factory tours I have seen.

This reminds me of another time that a friend, who owned a gun shop, ordering ad receiving a fancy model 70 Winchester, one with the long extractor, premium walnut stock and high gloss blue job. You could see some brass on the bolt face indicating that it had been test fired. There was just one problem, it was a smooth bore. Nice shiny very smooth bore, with not a sign of any rifling.

 

[Infrequent Shooter]

Mine are. Maybe they wouldn't be in FTR. Someone here can answer that.

I had that same rifle. I bought it used at a pawn shop along with 2 boxes of Hornady match ammo. One with 130 and one with 140 grain bullets. Had no idea how many rounds it had down it. Took it to the range and shot the best groups I'd shot out of any rifle I'd ever owned. Either box would shoot 1/2 MOA groups off sandbags and no rear bag. That got me started down a very expensive path. I shot that gun in F Class for a couple years and did reasonably well with it while upgrading rests and rear bags along the way. When it started going off I figured I had 3500 rounds down it. Swapped to a prefit Criterian and kept going for another year. Eventually I got a bore scope and when I looked at that original barrel I discovered that it was fire cracked nearly a 1/3 of the way down. It was way past shot out but many would still consider it an accurate barrel. It went from 1/4 to 1/2 MOA in the beginning (with a good rest and rear bag) to 3/4 to 1 MOA when I retired it.

But then I got into customs and my wallet has been drained every since.

Also had a Savage 12 BVSS in 223 with a 9 twist barrel. That would shoot 73 grain Bergers (after very little load development) into 1/4 MOA groups. Used it for midrange F Class (600 yards) for a while but felt the need for a heavier twist and heavier bullets. Never ended up with a better shooting gun.

Should have kept both of those rifles.

was your bvss single shot? is that what the ss stands for?

 

[ronsatspokane]

was your bvss single shot? is that what the ss stands for?

yes it was.

 

[pdog06]

was your bvss single shot? is that what the ss stands for?

The SS just stands for stainless. The single shot ones are actually a BVSS-S.

Nice rifles. Wish I still had mine

 

[markT]

Head space / go no go shown.

 

[jdh47]

Cutting the barrels to length then performing all operations on them saves material but can lead to problems. All makers do it to save material. Check the muzzle end of any new rifle of any maker with plus/minus pin gages or deltronic pins and you will find that some of them have a bell at the muzzle end.

 

[LHSmith]

People always talk about how accurate factory savages usually are out of the box, despite the bores looking truly terrible.


Does anyone one know what Savage does right that tends to make them so accurate so often?

This is what is known as a "false premise". IME it is only because once in a while you get one that is decent. It certainly isn't due to their barrel quality. Heck not too long ago they would use an apparatus to straighten them- can you spell "inherent stress"

 

[FNSafari]

In the end, it all depends on how you define "accuracy" of a rifle. If you are shooting at deer at 100-200 yards a true 2" group at 100 is more than adequate. If you are shooting at 4-foot diameter metal plates at 500 it probably still is.

 

[mauser284]

It is a happy accident!

Everything about Savage 110 and all it's offspring is about building a rifle as cheaply as possible and still having a decent product.

The flaoting bolt head and the barrel nut system make up for a lot of design and manufacturing sins!

People have crapped on the barrel nut and the floating bolt head for decades myself included I am sure. Today you can find custom actions tactical over priced actions with floating bolt heads being sold as a positive thing and using Savage barrel tennon diemension and barrel nut for Savage Prefit barrels again as a positive thing!