How do the basic bolt action rifle makers rank?

I am sure that "top rifle instructors" like gun profesionals such as Vickers and Hawkes have their OPINIONS on what is best. They seem to change everytime the sponsers change. I do not buy that Savages are always stopped on the line in your classes by failures or we would hear more about this. Being this is the first timw I have ever heard this I call shinanagins. So go on and promote your guy who builds 3K rifles but that was not the question.
Edited after viewing your profile. Now it is clear why you would bash a brand working for a custom builder that would have an interest in a factory rifle that shoots side by side with your customs.

When my son bought his rifle bout 5 years ago he did extensive research, looked and handled tons of guns and ended up buying a Ruger Hawkeye in .308. Take it for what's it worth. I know there are lots of Ruger haters out there, can't figure out why.

Orkan
Its also hard to take a guy seriously when he is bashing on one site and promoting on another. This is your post on the Hide.

"Yeah, so many places to go with this. Best? or best for the money?

AI would have to be my pick for "best" factory gun.

For best for the money... its hard to beat savage 10FP or remington 700 SPS."

The Winchester Model 70 is a classic right? Still made? Also, who makes Winchesters now, thought they got bought up?

Click to expand...

I recently acquired a new FN Winchester Model 70 Featherweight made in SC. I posted my comments and pics here. I am more than pleased with this rifle!

When I was searching for a good hunting rifle back in 2010, I settled on a Savage. I couldn't get the thing to shoot straight to save my life. Only gun I ever sold.

If you ask a professional fisherman what is the best bass boat I bet they would answer with whatever comapny sponsors them and I bet precision shooters will do the same. Ask Tiger Woods who makes the best golf ball. Not to question their integrity but it's like asking a politician a question. They BETTER say the name of whatever company is paying them. Hey my wife is the most beautiful woman in the world!
I have hunted with a Savage Model 110 in 30-06 for the past 10 years or so and have NEVER had a misfire, FTE, or any other mechanical issue so I have a hard time believing that you see issues every time someone brings one to the range.
There are several -$500 rifles out there and I think Savage is the best.
For the $500-$900 or so rifle I prefer Winchester as far as new guns are concerned.
I use my rifles for hunting and I want a gun that comes out of the box to my liking. The accu-trigger makes the Savage tops in that regard with the guns I have shot.

ford8nr said:

I know there are lots of Ruger haters out there, can't figure out why.

Click to expand...

Probably because their QC is poor. They start with a solid design but the execution of their manufacturing is hit and miss. If you get one that isn't fouled up, they can be a great buy, but if you get one with a canted front sight, a safety you can't push with a firing grip, a mile of creep in the trigger, CRF that doesn't, scope rings that don't line up true, incompletely threaded ring components that prohibit assembly, or a barrel that walks the POI significantly during heating, it was not a good buy at all.

I almost bought a new Ruger Magnum in 458 Lott until I worked the action and found the bolt wobbled enough that during the forward push it could and would catch on a square sharp edge in the reciever that would completely prohibit forward movement. Mechanical interference, not just binding. Foward pressure on the bolt handle had to then be relaxed, the bolt wiggled, and then pushed forward. And this is on a serious dangerous game rifle. It is (was) Ruger's flagship rifle.

I already mentioned the feed issues on my .416 Ruger.

I still have 3 Hawkeyes out of many that I bought, and 2 were fine enough rifles for the money. I agree they are a robust and solid design. But between some of the manufacturing problems I have found on some of mine, and problems I have seen on rifles that I have handled in stores, it is easy to find a reason to look to Winchester or some other manfacturer.

I don't know much of their center-fire line, but a CZ 452 I used to have was the most accurate .22 lr I have ever had, and its quality seemed infinitely better than Remington, Marlin.

Based on my experience with the 452, I'm going to check out CZ center-fires to see what I think when I'm next looking for a bolt gun.

I'd bet if you asked who had sucky x brand rifles EVERY BRAND would have a list of people posting. I've had people tell me how bad 10/22's are 'out of the box' then look sad and stupid when my stock 10/22 Target out shoots what their favorite rifle is.

Anyone considering a savage needs to put in a call to any of the top precision rifle schools in the country... and ask them if they would recommend a savage to anyone.
__________________
Greg Dykstra - Primal Rights, Inc. - 605-554-1911 - [email protected] - www.primalrights.com
Authorized Dealer For: Desert Tactical Arms, Premier Reticles, TAB Gear, Crossbreed Holsters, Ares Gear, etc.

Click to expand...

I love how people like to talk crap on Savage as a budget rifle. I mean get real. For hunting purposes it is more than accurate enough. I have had a savage 11 in 308 for 3 years. It shoots factory ammo in 1" groups all day from the bench at 200 yards. This is pretty good for a basic cheap rifle.

I have no problem with Savage. But I was in a big store looking over new dBm models 110 s not the axis. And they had a plastic mag with a plastic latch on the mag. I couldn't recommend a rifle with this setup to someone. But that's about it.

I prefer Sako

breakingcontact said:

I just had Sako recommended to me at my LGS.

I was handling a Howa which felt very good to me but there was a Sako as well.

Click to expand...

Well Mercedes is to Hyundai what Sako is to Howa. They play on completely different fields.

Tikka, which is made by Sako is closer to Howa in price and performance.

The cheaper Sako rifles are generally over $1000.

mnhntr said:

I do not buy that Savages are always stopped on the line in your classes by failures or we would hear more about this. Being this is the first timw I have ever heard this I call shinanagins.

Click to expand...

Then I must be lying, in order to push a subversive agenda. Thank you for being so forward.

mnhntr said:

Orkan
Its also hard to take a guy seriously when he is bashing on one site and promoting on another. This is your post on the Hide.
"Yeah, so many places to go with this. Best? or best for the money?
AI would have to be my pick for "best" factory gun.
For best for the money... its hard to beat savage 10FP or remington 700 SPS."

Click to expand...

What was the date of that post? Things change, as experiences change. Secondarily, I often tried to give savage a break back then... as their stuff was a new and exciting. They were listening to the tactical shooting community, and coming to the table with products aimed at us tactical shooters, so I was willing to give them a chance. If I'm to be persecuted for learning they were not to withstand scrutiny and changing my opinion based on first hand experiences, I'm fine with that. Sling as much mud as you think will stick. Find others to help sling mud with you. Shouldn't be hard.

Tikka T3 stainless : "This bad boy will change your life."

What was the date of that post? Things change, as experiences change. Secondarily, I often tried to give savage a break back then... as their stuff was a new and exciting. They were listening to the tactical shooting community, and coming to the table with products aimed at us tactical shooters, so I was willing to give them a chance. If I'm to be persecuted for learning they were not to withstand scrutiny and changing my opinion based on first hand experiences, I'm fine with that. Sling as much mud as you think will stick. Find others to help sling mud with you. Shouldn't be hard.

Click to expand...

I am not slinging mud just pointing out that you are bashing a brand on one sight then recomending them on another while working for a company the makes rifles. Seems pretty obvious you would have a bias or agenda. If it is truely due to a change of opinion or whatever fine but don't make some generalization and not provide the facts. I have never seen anyone talk about failures of Savage rifles at any events or classes except on your post. How many Savages have you personally seen fail? And what are the problems? What type of classes are these?

mnhntr said:

I am not slinging mud just pointing out that you are bashing a brand on one sight then recomending them on another while working for a company the makes rifles. Seems pretty obvious you would have a bias or agenda. If it is truely due to a change of opinion or whatever fine but don't make some generalization and not provide the facts. I have never seen anyone talk about failures of Savage rifles at any events or classes except on your post. How many Savages have you personally seen fail? And what are the problems? What type of classes are these?

Click to expand...

I have no intention of discussing something in detail with someone openly claiming I have no integrity. Openly stating I have an agenda, and am providing false information for financial gain isn't slinging mud? Interesting take on things you have there.

Secondly, I do not work for a company that makes rifles.

Thirdly, the post you referenced was from January 2010. Over three years ago. Kind of a lot can happen in three years, don't ya think? Matter of fact, it only took me about 2 years or less for me to see savage rifles poop out on the firing line.

Fourth, we stock, sell, and advocate savage rimfires. The brand bias you speak of... how does that work exactly?

Fifth, something tells me that I'll have a difficult time convincing someone that is in the market for a bone-stock rifle in the $500-1000 range, to buy a $5000 DTA, or our cheapest traditional rifle package @ $2500. (w/optics)

I guess since this is the first you've heard of it, and the fact that it's coming from a liar with no integrity and an agenda to push, you probably shouldn't give it much weight. After all, three years ago that person can be quoted as saying a rem700 sps and savage would be hard to beat for the money.

Matter of fact, I wouldn't give anything I say the slightest bit of consideration, were I in your position, seeing things as you are.

BreakingContact, instead of getting a bunch of internet opinions, I suggest you go to a very large gunstore and hold each one. The feel and natural point of aim is an important factor. Then read up on the pros and cons of the few you have narrowed it down to. Me, I prefer rifles with a monte carlo stock over the traditional american styles. Sako's are awesum, but you also have to pay for them. For a lower end rifle, I enjoy Weatherby Vanguards. Enjoy the shopping part of it, and take your time.

What caliber are you looking at?

I agree with jmr40. Never owned Kimber or Sako but have handled them, they are well made. I've owned Winchester, Remington and Savage.

Winchester is my first pick. Very accurate right out of the box, well made and nice features like the 3 position safety and free floated barrels.

Remington is OK but they cut to many corners. Their stocks are junk and triggers horrible. The last one I owned shot great once I changed the stock and trigger.

Savage is a decent gun but I've had trouble with the 2 I've owned. The 10fp I had was very accurate but wouldn't feed the next round reliably 30% of the time. My second Savage would string the shots as the barrel warmed up. After 6 months I gave up and sold it.

My preference in bolt action sporters is for the features I want, value and quality.

Some of the economy rifles lack features that I demand in a rifle. I want control round feeding and a three position safety that holds the firing pin. Not just a push feed gun with a trigger safety.

I use the first M70 that I got new in 1957. It was a 243 Varmint model with the SS heavy barrel. I wore that barrel out and now there is a Winchester .220 Swift barrel on it.

I have old M70's, Savage 99's, single shots and my pet of the last few years is a custom on a mauser. I like Kimbers as well and in fact all of my SS/Syn rifles are Montanas. Some of my most accurate sporters are WSM Montanas.

The last new CF rifle I got was a M70 7mm WSM when they came out. I sold it as it did not shoot all that well.

Browning A-Bolt

I do not see Browning mentioned and one poster rated it last among all manufacturers. I'd like to ask fellow THRers what don't you like about Browning? Specifically I am looking at the A-Bolt series. Are they reliable? Accurately? Good Quality? I know they tend to be on the higher end price wise, but I want to make sure if there are any issues besides price.

You don't say what you want or how much you want to spend. So as a basic get the most for your money go with a Savage based on the 110/111 action. Not the Axis. You can get them dolled up or basic with a synthetic stock. Great trigger, accurate and inexpensive. A used one is 300.00 or so. Sure you can get the "other" names and pay more but the Savage are just as good and accurate out to normal hunting ranges.

Browning is made in Japan, if that means anything to you. I prefer an American-made firearm, if I can afford it.

So is the Weatherby Vanguard, by the way.