Just bought a Savage 10FP .308...anything I need to know?

[BigBlueEyedDevil]

I won't be able to pick it up until a week from tuesday, but what should I know about
the gun? Any quirks? Any advice on rings, bases, scopes, bipod and other would be appreciated. Tyler

 

[steelhead]

The only "quirk" I ran into, with my 10FLP, was with the scope bases. When Savage went to the Accutrigger in the 10 series, they also changed the receiver from flat to rounded. At the time, Leupold hadn't updated their catalogs and I got the flat rear base instead of what I needed.

Other than that it has been reliable, accurate, and fault free.


Other advice?

Spend as much or more on a scope as you did the rifle. Don't waste the accuracy potential on a cheap scope. I've found Sightron to be one of the better quality/value brands out there (<$400 but as clear and sharp as a Leupold or Nikon YMMV). In the picture the Savage is wearing a Zeiss but I now have a Sightron on it.

I use a Harris Bi-pod. When getting a bi-pod, make sure it is long enough for prone firing. The smaller ones are great for benching but not shooting from the ground while prone.

 

[ocabj]

Get the Ken Farrell 1-piece base for $53 and change from Sharp Shooter Supply. Be sure to tell them if you have the round or flat receiver top.

Burris Signature Zee rings are the best low cost rings out there. The TPS rings are better and for $75 a set are great as far as quality and cost, but they're sold out as we speak (I've been waiting 2 months to get 2 sets of the low height steel rings).

I use the Harris Bipod BRM-S with Podloc on my Savage. It's the benchrest model, but I never use it on a bench. I only use it for prone. People argue that the 6"-9" variance doesn't give enough height, but it works for me. I like to stay low to the ground as possible. The only time you would want more height is if you were shooting in an area with high vegetation. But even then, you would opt for a different shooting stance or relocate to a different shooting position.

 

[Shalako]

My only helpful hint is to not torque the rear action screw too tight. Just snug it up and thats it. On one of my Savages, the action would not cock if the rear screw was over-torqued.

Also, both of my Savages get copper fouled something awful. If you see your groups expanding after 40 shots or so, get some Sweets 7.62 and follow the directions on the bottle. Like they say, don't leave the Sweets in longer than 10 minutes.

Enjoy your Savage!

 

[wintermute76]

I picked up a 10FP-LE1 standard. I went with the Ken Farrell 0 MOA one piece base, Burris Signature Zee rings, Harris S-BRM bipod and a Sightron SII 3-12x42 mildot scope.

Been a good setup so far, was shooting 1" groups at 200 yards off the bipod. Using Federal Gold Medal Match 155gr. Palma. haven't had a chance to try it with the FGMM 168MK yet.
Only complaint (and a fairly common one I guess) would be the factory stock, it feels a bit flimsy.

I'll also second the rear scope mount screw, it does hang out in space a bit, so I epoxy bedded my base to the rifle to support it.

So far so good, taking it out deer hunting this weekend. Using the Federal 165 gr Gameking. Those shot about 3/4 to 1" when I sighted it in.

 

[Detritus]

get all the oher gear that you want in line (scope, Bi-pod, etc) then shoot the rifle to get used to it, but be saving for a new stock. that POS "rubbermaid" stock (it's actually a baseline model from Bell & Carlson) WILL become a limitation with time. It's too flexible and some batches have proven to be prone to cracks along the mold line, just behind the tang.

save your pennies for a V/T (varmint/tactical) from SharpShooter, or if you REALLY wanna go all out go for one of the complete package setups of the A5-like SVT stock (costs as much as you probably spent on the base rifle)