Savage 12 Bench rest for short range

B

Bob Kingsbury

New member
I really think Savage is missing something in their line up. At no real additional
cost, They Model 12 with the low profile stock could be brought out with a flat
bottom stock in 223--6BR--30BR. This would be a great start for many who would
like to compete in short range score and even group. There is a market for this
and Without a doubt it would be a good selling gun. Just change the program in
the stock profile machine and shorten the barrels.
 
beeing a savage fan myself that does sound like a good idea. How ever i buought a savage right bolt, left port target action and built one myself. With a McMillan edge stock, and a Hart barrel i was able to complete the rifle for roughly $1600. That was with having Hart's smith tune the action, mount the barrel, and bed the stock. I'm willing to bet you could use a Shelin, drop in barrel for savage, and do most of the fitting your self for a few hundered less. it would be hard for Savage to meet that price and quality, and pull a profit. Granted for a beginging shooter beeing able to go to the loacal gun shop and order one from a cataloge and have it that week would help, rather than wait the many months it takes to build a custom.

I would love to see it happen, my local club has a factory class, and it would be nice to see the guys with coopers get a run for thier money.
 
I talked with one of the folks @ Savage a little while back about the 12 BR guns... given that their engineers and such aren't competitive shooters themselves, they don't have a lot to go on as far as what a particular discipline needs and wants. While I would think that something a fuzz lighter than the LRPV with a shorter, slow twist barrel would be about right... there may be a limit to how many different variants of the Target Action guns they want to make. One time when suggesting some changes involving the 12 Palma and 12 F/TR rifles, they looked at us and said that if it doubled the sales of the TA guns, it still wouldn't be a blip on the radar of the sales of the hunting guns - which is where the money is.

That said... if you could find someone willing to bank roll a run of say, 500 rifles, they'd probably make whatever you want. I have in my hands a 10 Precision Carbine that has a fluted barrel threaded for a suppressor that is very much not a catalog item, but AccuSport (one of the larger wholesale distributors) purchased a special run of them (actually, I guess they've re-ordered that special run several times as it sells better than the regular model) and sells them thru their customers (local gun stores). If it proved popular enough, they might add it to the regular catalog - thats why they now offer the .260 Rem in a number of models - it was one of the most popular 'custom shop' requests.

Like I said, I think a LRPV in the HS stock w/ a 22" barrel in .223 Rem or 6BR and a slow twist would be a good 'starter' gun for say, factory VFS. The 26" barreled version probably wouldn't make weight without some surgery - I have a 12 LRP (basically a re-vamped LRPV repeater w/ a 26" barrel) and it weighs right @ 13lbs 8 oz with a Weaver T24 on it, nothing else.
 
williev18 said:
beeing a savage fan myself that does sound like a good idea. How ever i buought a savage right bolt, left port target action and built one myself. With a McMillan edge stock, and a Hart barrel i was able to complete the rifle for roughly $1600. That was with having Hart's smith tune the action, mount the barrel, and bed the stock. I'm willing to bet you could use a Shelin, drop in barrel for savage, and do most of the fitting your self for a few hundered less. it would be hard for Savage to meet that price and quality, and pull a profit. Granted for a beginging shooter beeing able to go to the loacal gun shop and order one from a cataloge and have it that week would help, rather than wait the many months it takes to build a custom.

I would love to see it happen, my local club has a factory class, and it would be nice to see the guys with coopers get a run for thier money.
Click to expand...

Did you order your edge stock direct from McMillan? I've been thinking about doing the same with my rifle.
 
I have had this conversation with the head of marketing at Savage.
There main motivation is sales. Hunting guns are their bread and butter, the tactical stuff is another nitch market. The problem is the short range BR market is a very small market. Savage developed the 12BR for long range, and the reason why was because others was using Savage in this fashion.

At our 2 local club matches Savage's dominate the factory class. (Most of them are LRPV in 223) There is a couple of Savages that are fairly competitive in the open or unlimited class as well. (NBRSA heavy vamint gun rules.) A Savage shares a similar tang to a remington 700, and if you buy an un-inletted stock it can be inletted for a Savage.
Here is picture of mine it has several barrels from a Krieger 14 twist 6PPC to a Douglass 17 twist 30BR. It has been tuned by Sharp Shooters Supply, and has their Evolution trigger that breaks at 2oz every time. The gun shoots good and is very competitive. (Weighs in at 10.3 lbs)
HPIM1571.jpg

I dont think it shoots too bad. (All 5 shot 100 yard groups.)
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5shot100yardgroupinthehigh1s.jpg
 
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yeah the stock came direct from McMillan all inletted for my action. I called them and in about ten minutes they had me set upp with the stock and color combo i wanted. It took about 3 months to recieve the stock, but it fit very well and only needed a very thin layer of bedding epoxy to finish the fit. Start by looking at thier web site for pricing and color options.
 
What I was trying to point out in my original post was this. With minor changes and hardly any change in cost, the Savage 12
low profile could be competitive out of the box in VFS. This could put many new shooters on the line. Shortening the barrels
and flattening the forearm is not going to limit profits or cause a money crunch. On the contrary, doing that, much like the
12 F/tr they actually bolster success and increase hunting rifle sales. Making it available in a 30BR would place them squarely
on the map and a welcome addition.
 
As far as modifing the gun, I doubt it will ever happen. The stocks are made in Italy, and designed by people that do not shoot any competition. They would have to make major changes to change the stock.(In my opinion I am with you, the stock sits too high.) To change how the stock is made would require a totaly new patteren, and would disrupt production. When they make these stocks they make a few hundred at a time. Cutting the barrel down would be no problem.

Last, the ONLY way Savage would chamber a caliber is if a ammo manufactor made the round, and mass produced it for the public consumer. (It was hard to sell them to chamber the 6mmBR, and the 6x284.) The 30BR is a bit of labor intensive round, and it is a wildcat, let alone sometimes it can be hard to find bulets for it as well. Savage would also have to retool, and make a button to cut a 17 twist barrel. To sell Savage they would like to have at least sales in the thousands. Lets face it this is an advanced round, that few reloaders are willing to venture in.

Like I have said I have talked to them on several occasions and so far they have no intrest in doing such.
 
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