itgoesboom
member
My wife wanted to get me something nice as a present for getting my first solo in a helicopter, so she got me this Savage MK II BV in .22lr. Picked it up a couple weeks ago, and have brought it out to the range a few times now, and put a few different rounds through it.
The Rifle
The rifle is a heavy barreled bolt action in .22lr, with a laminate stock, and the accu-trigger. The rifle came with Weaver mounts already installed, ready for the scope and rings. The barrel is heavy, but isn't as heavy as some out there. The barrel is floated up until it steps up to a larger diameter, so a pretty significant distance.
I am going to have to save up for an appropriate scope, so, I installed my one extra scope that I have laying around - a Mueller 2-7x32 which has now been on three rifles of mine. While not an ideal choice for a target .22lr, since it's top magnification is 7X, and the reticule is a dot that is 1MOA, and the parallax is set for 100 yards, it's what I have laying around, and it will get me through for a bit. The scope is mounted in a set of Weaver high rings.
Back to the rifle, I cleaned and inspected the rifle. The recessed target crown looked even, and the rifles fit and finish is excellent. The trigger breaks cleanly, and is pretty light, although I don't have a way to measure it's pull. It could stand to be dropped a bit, but it's pretty good to start with.
The action was a little tight to work at first, but is loosening up nicely, and is quick to operate.
At the range.
Initial sight in was done at 50 yards, and I brought only two types of ammo to the range with me, Federal Champion bulk pack, and Federal American Eagle HPs. I didn't expect much out of either of these, being cheap bulk ammo, but I figured it was enough to get a basic sight in, and see how the rifle would do.
I must admit, I was very surprised by the American Eagle! Average group size was .8" at 50 yards for 5-shots, with the smallest being .564" and the largest being .962". Not too shabby, especially with the type of scope being used.
Unfortunatly, the Federal Champion didn't group nearly as well. I only did 2 5-shot groups, and one ten shot group, and instead focused on the American Eagle instead. The first group measured 1.820", the second .777", and the ten shot group was 1.78" with 8 of the 10 going under 1". So, some promise, but it just didn't work out in the end.
Some kind soul had left a box of Winchester Expert at the range, so I tried 5-rounds, and realized why they left them.
I didn't bother even measuring the group, it looked more like a shotgun pattern to be honest.
Going out a second time, I shot some more of the same, and added some other Federal bulk pack ammo. Results were pretty much the same. Both Fed. bulk packs were inconsistant, some tight groups, but mostly over 1". The American Eagle shot wonderfully again, averaging .58" for 3 5-shot groups, with the smallest being .431", and the largest .856". Interestingly, the shooting conditions this day were the toughest, with the sun in my eyes, the targets backlit, and a fair wind from the right, but I still managed to group pretty well.
Since I had depleted my stores of American Eagle, I picked up a few more boxes, plus one box of American Eagle 40gr Solids, and headed back out to the range.
This time, I fired 19 5-shot groups, and averaged .754" overall, with the 38gr HP American Eagle loads. I had three groups were I went over 1", due to called flyers. Without those three groups, my average would have been .673". The best group of the day was .533", and the worst 1.282".
The 40gr AE ended up being not nearly as accurate. It would put 4 rounds into a group you could cover with a dime, then throw the 5th round high almost 2 inches away. The first time this happened I thought I shot at the wrong target for one of the shots, since the location on the second target was identical to the location of the holes in the first target. After a few more groups, I realized that it really was throwing them that far away!
Another gentleman at the range gave me 10 rounds of CCI Mini-mags, and I ran thow through as well. First group was .850", and second was .655". Not bad, but not as good as the 38gr AE, and at a much higher cost.
Groups: (38gr. AE)
Overall, I am pretty happy with the rifle. Considering that my reticule covers 1/2" at 50 yards, and the parallax issue, coupled with low magnification, I am very happy to be getting the groups that I am with the rifle, especially with such cheap ammo.
Once I figured out the aiming point for 100 yards with my reticule, I am having no problem punching small bits of range debris and rocks and such at 100 yards.
On the positive side, I am seeing some very good accuracy, and the rifle is very easy to shoot. Low recoil, a good trigger, and I can shoot very fast and not worry about over heating the barrel. The heavy barrel doesn't heat up very quick at all, and really helps to keep what little muzzle flip .22lr puts out down. Shooting at range debris and rocks at 100 yards I can watch my shots hit, which was a huge help figuring out my hold over at 100 yards. The stock is nice, and the trigger breaks cleanly.
I only have had one failure to feed, which was caused by accidentally moving the bolt forward a bit prior to fully seating the magazine, so it wasn't the rifle's fault. No failures to extract or fire.
For negatives, I don't have many complaints. I would have liked the trigger to be lighter, and this one didn't come with the tool that the manual says is needed (and provided). I don't like the trigger guard, which is plastic. It also would have been nice if the rifle would have come with 2 magazines, rather than the single magazine.
So overall, I can recommend this rifle if someone wants an fairly inexpensive (<$250) accurate, .22lr target rifle. So far it seems a good value for the money.
The Rifle
The rifle is a heavy barreled bolt action in .22lr, with a laminate stock, and the accu-trigger. The rifle came with Weaver mounts already installed, ready for the scope and rings. The barrel is heavy, but isn't as heavy as some out there. The barrel is floated up until it steps up to a larger diameter, so a pretty significant distance.
I am going to have to save up for an appropriate scope, so, I installed my one extra scope that I have laying around - a Mueller 2-7x32 which has now been on three rifles of mine. While not an ideal choice for a target .22lr, since it's top magnification is 7X, and the reticule is a dot that is 1MOA, and the parallax is set for 100 yards, it's what I have laying around, and it will get me through for a bit. The scope is mounted in a set of Weaver high rings.
Back to the rifle, I cleaned and inspected the rifle. The recessed target crown looked even, and the rifles fit and finish is excellent. The trigger breaks cleanly, and is pretty light, although I don't have a way to measure it's pull. It could stand to be dropped a bit, but it's pretty good to start with.
The action was a little tight to work at first, but is loosening up nicely, and is quick to operate.
At the range.
Initial sight in was done at 50 yards, and I brought only two types of ammo to the range with me, Federal Champion bulk pack, and Federal American Eagle HPs. I didn't expect much out of either of these, being cheap bulk ammo, but I figured it was enough to get a basic sight in, and see how the rifle would do.
I must admit, I was very surprised by the American Eagle! Average group size was .8" at 50 yards for 5-shots, with the smallest being .564" and the largest being .962". Not too shabby, especially with the type of scope being used.
Unfortunatly, the Federal Champion didn't group nearly as well. I only did 2 5-shot groups, and one ten shot group, and instead focused on the American Eagle instead. The first group measured 1.820", the second .777", and the ten shot group was 1.78" with 8 of the 10 going under 1". So, some promise, but it just didn't work out in the end.
Some kind soul had left a box of Winchester Expert at the range, so I tried 5-rounds, and realized why they left them.
I didn't bother even measuring the group, it looked more like a shotgun pattern to be honest. Going out a second time, I shot some more of the same, and added some other Federal bulk pack ammo. Results were pretty much the same. Both Fed. bulk packs were inconsistant, some tight groups, but mostly over 1". The American Eagle shot wonderfully again, averaging .58" for 3 5-shot groups, with the smallest being .431", and the largest .856". Interestingly, the shooting conditions this day were the toughest, with the sun in my eyes, the targets backlit, and a fair wind from the right, but I still managed to group pretty well.
Since I had depleted my stores of American Eagle, I picked up a few more boxes, plus one box of American Eagle 40gr Solids, and headed back out to the range.
This time, I fired 19 5-shot groups, and averaged .754" overall, with the 38gr HP American Eagle loads. I had three groups were I went over 1", due to called flyers. Without those three groups, my average would have been .673". The best group of the day was .533", and the worst 1.282".
The 40gr AE ended up being not nearly as accurate. It would put 4 rounds into a group you could cover with a dime, then throw the 5th round high almost 2 inches away. The first time this happened I thought I shot at the wrong target for one of the shots, since the location on the second target was identical to the location of the holes in the first target. After a few more groups, I realized that it really was throwing them that far away!
Another gentleman at the range gave me 10 rounds of CCI Mini-mags, and I ran thow through as well. First group was .850", and second was .655". Not bad, but not as good as the 38gr AE, and at a much higher cost.
Groups: (38gr. AE)
Overall, I am pretty happy with the rifle. Considering that my reticule covers 1/2" at 50 yards, and the parallax issue, coupled with low magnification, I am very happy to be getting the groups that I am with the rifle, especially with such cheap ammo.
Once I figured out the aiming point for 100 yards with my reticule, I am having no problem punching small bits of range debris and rocks and such at 100 yards.
On the positive side, I am seeing some very good accuracy, and the rifle is very easy to shoot. Low recoil, a good trigger, and I can shoot very fast and not worry about over heating the barrel. The heavy barrel doesn't heat up very quick at all, and really helps to keep what little muzzle flip .22lr puts out down. Shooting at range debris and rocks at 100 yards I can watch my shots hit, which was a huge help figuring out my hold over at 100 yards. The stock is nice, and the trigger breaks cleanly.
I only have had one failure to feed, which was caused by accidentally moving the bolt forward a bit prior to fully seating the magazine, so it wasn't the rifle's fault. No failures to extract or fire.
For negatives, I don't have many complaints. I would have liked the trigger to be lighter, and this one didn't come with the tool that the manual says is needed (and provided). I don't like the trigger guard, which is plastic. It also would have been nice if the rifle would have come with 2 magazines, rather than the single magazine.
So overall, I can recommend this rifle if someone wants an fairly inexpensive (<$250) accurate, .22lr target rifle. So far it seems a good value for the money.
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