Savage 110 Build

UKMan

UKMan

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Minuteman
Apr 30, 2024
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#1
Have always wanted a .308 precision rifle for hobby use/ringing steel.

A friend of mine has always liked savage model 110. They always seem to just shoot well for him and same with me when I shoot them. Bolt throw doesn’t bother me at all. He just purchase a 350 legend trail hunter for deer season $480 plus the $50 rebate they were running. For the price the quality seems really nice.

My question would a 110 build be worth it today? Trying to keep this budget minded which is around $1-1300ish (not including optic which I already have).

Possible build:
-Savage 110 trail Hunter .308 $500
-26” Criterion barrel + upgraded recoil lug and nut $400
-EGW rail $50
-Upgraded tactical bolt handle $20
-Upgraded target spring for accu trigger $10
-MDT field stock or watch MDT like a hawk during Black Friday for an XRS on sale. $300-5

I will throw this at the bottom, not interested in a Howa or Bergara and I already own a Tikka before those recommendations come out.

Thoughts?
 
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#3
UKMan said:
Have always wanted a .308 precision rifle for hobby use/ringing steel.

A friend of mine has always liked savage model 110. They always seem to just shoot well for him and same with me when I shoot them. Bolt throw doesn’t bother me at all. He just purchase a 350 legend trail hunter for deer season $480 plus the $50 rebate they were running. For the price the quality seems really nice.

My question would a 110 build be worth it today? Trying to keep this budget minded which is around $1-1300ish (not including optic which I already have).

Possible build:
-Savage 110 trail Hunter .308 $500
-26” Criterion barrel + upgraded recoil lug and nut $400
-EGW rail $50
-Upgraded tactical bolt handle $20
-Upgraded target spring for accu trigger $10
-MDT field stock or watch MDT like a hawk during Black Friday for an XRS on sale. $300-5

I will throw this at the bottom, not interested in a Howa or Bergara and I already own a Tikka before those recommendations come out.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Then you know that the Tikka is superior to the Savage.
Save the money and upgrade the Tikka or the optic on the Tikka
Or a new barrel & Barrel Swap tools for the Tikka and do barrel changes at home.
I've got a couple Savage 10 / 12 LRP and I just don't see the reason to put any money in one when I have better rifles.
Sorry, not sorry.
 
#4
I have a Savage 110FP in 300wm that is stupid accurate I used mainly for hunting.
For the price range you suggested I would personally look elsewhere and think you would get alot more bang for your buck.
I am probably one of the few around here that still likes savage rifles but there are so many better options available now than there were at the time I bought mine.
One of the glaring omissions you left off of your price list is tooling cost.
Barrel vice, barrel nut wrench, go-no go guages etc.
 
#5
CaptNemo said:
Then you know that the Tikka is superior to the Savage.
Save the money and upgrade the Tikka or the optic on the Tikka
Or a new barrel & Barrel Swap tools for the Tikka and do barrel changes at home.
I've got a couple Savage 10 / 12 LRP and I just don't see the reason to put any money in one when I have better rifles.
Sorry, not sorry.
Click to expand...

I wouldn’t say Tikka is superior at all just different. My RPR out shoots my tikka all day long but I still love my Tikka. Just a different stroke. Thanks for the input
 
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#6
XLR308 said:
I have a Savage 110FP in 300wm that is stupid accurate I used mainly for hunting.
For the price range you suggested I would personally look elsewhere and think you would get alot more bang for your buck.
I am probably one of the few around here that still likes savage rifles but there are so many better options available now than there were at the time I bought mine.
One of the glaring omissions you left off of your price list is tooling cost.
Barrel vice, barrel nut wrench, go-no go guages etc.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply, I still like them as well. They are the original “do it yourself” option in my book with so many parts out there. My gun smith said he will do the first replacement for me so I can watch and learn and then yes I would need to buy the appropriate tools for future changes. Still looking around at the moment just wanted to see what the thoughts are.
 
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#9
XLR308 said:
I have a Savage 110FP in 300wm that is stupid accurate I used mainly for hunting.
For the price range you suggested I would personally look elsewhere and think you would get alot more bang for your buck.
I am probably one of the few around here that still likes savage rifles but there are so many better options available now than there were at the time I bought mine.
One of the glaring omissions you left off of your price list is tooling cost.
Barrel vice, barrel nut wrench, go-no go guages etc.
Click to expand...
I’m one of those few who still like Savage. My 110 will with the right reload will shoot down in the .3’s it’s consistently about .625 and will half that on a good day. Would I buy another money pit that my current one is, not a chance but I turned a decent shooter into a good shooter.
 
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#10
Mine shoots real well
20240813_172434.jpg
 
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#13
UKMan said:
Thanks for the reply, I still like them as well. They are the original “do it yourself” option in my book with so many parts out there. My gun smith said he will do the first replacement for me so I can watch and learn and then yes I would need to buy the appropriate tools for future changes. Still looking around at the moment just wanted to see what the thoughts are.
Click to expand...
Since you said you already have a Smith you use another possibility is have him do a shouldered barrel and document the headspace dimensions for your action.
Then you could just get prefits from him so long as you don't change anything that could cause headspace variation.
Just a thought, but the PVA SOLUS BA suggestion would be my preffered route personally.
That and there are many stock/chassis options out there new or used since it's a rem700 clone.
Minor clearance may be needed for the trigger hanger but not an big deal, I had to do it for my Kelbly actions.
 
#14
You’d have to be nuts to intentionally buy a savage to pull apart for a build. Aero just had the Solus rifles for a little over $1K. Plenty of other better ways to spend your money than building on a savage action with known issues.
 
#20
UKMan said:
Have always wanted a .308 precision rifle for hobby use/ringing steel.
Click to expand...
So...I'm wondering what you mean by "precision"- what level of accuracy are you seeking?
Own a few Savages, I'm not particularly put off by the lousy bolt throw and rough "feel" to the bolt cycling. That said, I believe the most important component to a rifle's accuracy is the barrel- so I tend to use top tier (as a smith, I shoulder them instead of using a nut just because I prefer the aesthetics).

Not knocking Criterion, I've owned/still own a couple of rifles with them but they're a bit less accurate than some others in my own experience. For a couple of hundred bucks more, you could get a prefit Krieger. Again, depends how close to "precision" you're trying to get. JMO YMMV.
 
#21
Mine started out as a 110 tactical. Put it in the Oryx chassis. Bought the 4-20x50 Tract. It served me well in my club F Class matches. With my kidney cancer surgeries I haven’t been able to shoot any matches the last 2 seasons. My last was a 10 round 1000 yard small training session where I shot a 94-2X.
24” barrel 185 gr. Berger Hybrid target over 42.8 gr of Varget. At 2660FPS. I don’t recall the load specifics. I think that’s pretty close to the load. H4895 has been working very well for me, too. Same charge weight is a little bit faster. 2680 give or take a few FPS. My data books are actually at work.
 
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#22
.5-.75 moa is just fine by me. I shoot that with my RPR with Hornady American Gunner so I would expect any other gun in my safe that I view as a “precision” rifle to do the same.

Wannashootit said:
So...I'm wondering what you mean by "precision"- what level of accuracy are you seeking?
Own a few Savages, I'm not particularly put off by the lousy bolt throw and rough "feel" to the bolt cycling. That said, I believe the most important component to a rifle's accuracy is the barrel- so I tend to use top tier (as a smith, I shoulder them instead of using a nut just because I prefer the aesthetics).

Not knocking Criterion, I've owned/still own a couple of rifles with them but they're a bit less accurate than some others in my own experience. For a couple of hundred bucks more, you could get a prefit Krieger. Again, depends how close to "precision" you're trying to get. JMO YMMV.
Click to expand...
 
#23
Appreciate it! Another range close by has F class matches so the .308 might turn into that. Those matches sure look fun

MojoNixon said:
Mine started out as a 110 tactical. Put it in the Oryx chassis. Bought the 4-20x50 Tract. It served me well in my club F Class matches. With my kidney cancer surgeries I haven’t been able to shoot any matches the last 2 seasons. My last was a 10 round 1000 yard small training session where I shot a 94-2X.
24” barrel 185 gr. Berger Hybrid target over 42.8 gr of Varget. At 2660FPS. I don’t recall the load specifics. I think that’s pretty close to the load. H4895 has been working very well for me, too. Same charge weight is a little bit faster. 2680 give or take a few FPS. My data books are actually at work.
Click to expand...
 
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#24
they can shoot fine, but it probably won't last as long as a custom action like origin and it certainly won't feel as nice as the origin.
slow down, buy an American rifle Coup de grace action and save up for a barrel and stock.
 
#25
Speed isn’t an issue I don’t do anything fast that involves spending money on hobbies. Just looking into things

Cody S said:
they can shoot fine, but it probably won't last as long as a custom action like origin and it certainly won't feel as nice as the origin.
slow down, buy an American rifle Coup de grace action and save up for a barrel and stock.
Click to expand...
 
#26
if you want to shoot tiny groups, spend more on the barrel/chamber. it really does seem to be that simple.
I liked my last model 10... for 399$ in 6.5 creedmoor it was very fun.
 
#27
Cody S said:
if you want to shoot tiny groups, spend more on the barrel/chamber. it really does seem to be that simple.
I liked my last model 10... for 399$ in 6.5 creedmoor it was very fun.
Click to expand...

My RPR shoots .5-.75 all day long with factory ammo so in my eyes anything around that is a winner in my book. Not competing just a hobby for me. Would be fun to see how well a cheaper build could shoot
 
#28
UKMan said:
Good looking set! Did you buy the actions separate and then build?
Click to expand...
No.
The front 2 are 10BA’s the second one was rebarreled after 4,800 rounds.
The third from the front is a factory 110BA in 338 Lapua Magnum.
The rear one is a 12FV Cabela’s model in 6.5 Creedmoor which was put in an MDT LSS GEN 2 chassis from their Black Friday Sale.
 
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#29
I'm definitely not a gun snob, as I've owned 4-5 savages that I started out with. With a good barrel, the mechanical accuracy potential is there(to a certain point, no one runs a savage in br). What you buy with a custom action is a square, smoother bolt, smoother feeding, extraction, and ejection, and usually benefit of shouldered prefit. I don't have any savages left, I've just moved on. They did shoot good and I always defended that.....then I bought an AE MK3, and the savage felt like a joke. I'm sure the cost difference will pop up quick in savage fans heads, but when you pencil in parts for a savage to help accuracy, shootability,, and feeding, you aren't real far away. Couple hundred for a decent, reliable trigger, hundred bucks for trued lug and nut and extraction kit, 350 for barrel, and 500-1200 for chassis, plus whatever the savage cost originally. Let's be honest, I bought some nicer factory savages thinking they'd be good out of the box. They still needed more so out comes the cash.

I don't think anyone says a savage can't shoot small groups, they can, but its like comparing a ratted out 74 Vega with a shoehorned 383 stroker vs a brand new corvette zr1 or whatever it's called. Sure the Vega is straight line quick, possibly faster than the vetted, but after that the Vega falls way behind on every regard.
 
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#30
6brshooter said:
I'm definitely not a gun snob, as I've owned 4-5 savages that I started out with. With a good barrel, the mechanical accuracy potential is there(to a certain point, no one runs a savage in br). What you buy with a custom action is a square, smoother bolt, smoother feeding, extraction, and ejection, and usually benefit of shouldered prefit. I don't have any savages left, I've just moved on. They did shoot good and I always defended that.....then I bought an AE MK3, and the savage felt like a joke. I'm sure the cost difference will pop up quick in savage fans heads, but when you pencil in parts for a savage to help accuracy, shootability,, and feeding, you aren't real far away. Couple hundred for a decent, reliable trigger, hundred bucks for trued lug and nut and extraction kit, 350 for barrel, and 500-1200 for chassis, plus whatever the savage cost originally. Let's be honest, I bought some nicer factory savages thinking they'd be good out of the box. They still needed more so out comes the cash.

I don't think anyone says a savage can't shoot small groups, they can, but its like comparing a ratted out 74 Vega with a shoehorned 383 stroker vs a brand new corvette zr1 or whatever it's called. Sure the Vega is straight line quick, possibly faster than the vetted, but after that the Vega falls way behind on every regard.
Click to expand...
That all makes sense just trying to find the point of dimensioning returns for me. For people that compete for money I totally get spending the money to get the best but I like to shoot in my back yard or at the range hitting steel. I am looking at a possible Zermatt Origin Action since it also takes savage small shank barrels (better for multi use for me). That action would most be my top end of budget. I do not feel the need to spend a ridiculous amount of money to shoot .5 moa groups when my RPR already shoots under MOA with factory loads. Have always had good luck with savages and the main issues that people complain about (feeding and extraction) can all be fixed pretty cheap *if there is a problem. I am not sold on the Aero action yet but that may be due to the fact that I have never been a fan of the AR products the produce. That may just be a me problem but it is what it is.
 
#31
UKMan said:
That all makes sense just trying to find the point of dimensioning returns for me. For people that compete for money I totally get spending the money to get the best but I like to shoot in my back yard or at the range hitting steel. I am looking at a possible Zermatt Origin Action since it also takes savage small shank barrels (better for multi use for me). That action would most be my top end of budget. I do not feel the need to spend a ridiculous amount of money to shoot .5 moa groups when my RPR already shoots under MOA with factory loads. Have always had good luck with savages and the main issues that people complain about (feeding and extraction) can all be fixed pretty cheap *if there is a problem. I am not sold on the Aero action yet but that may be due to the fact that I have never been a fan of the AR products the produce. That may just be a me problem but it is what it is.
Click to expand...

An Origin is a much better route and you’re not pissing money away with one.

If all you want to do is shoot .5moa groups you could put a Proof SS prefit on you RPR and accomplish your goal for $500.
 
#32
redneckbmxer24 said:
An Origin is a much better route and you’re not pissing money away with one.

If all you want to do is shoot .5moa groups you could put a Proof SS prefit on you RPR and accomplish your goal for $500.
Click to expand...
Like all of us I want another gun to mess around with lol My RPR shoots to good to mess with it, when I eventually shoot out the 6.5cm barrel on it that is the route I will take but for now it will stay stock.
 
#33
UKMan said:
Have always wanted a .308 precision rifle for hobby use/ringing steel.

A friend of mine has always liked savage model 110. They always seem to just shoot well for him and same with me when I shoot them. Bolt throw doesn’t bother me at all. He just purchase a 350 legend trail hunter for deer season $480 plus the $50 rebate they were running. For the price the quality seems really nice.

My question would a 110 build be worth it today? Trying to keep this budget minded which is around $1-1300ish (not including optic which I already have).

Possible build:
-Savage 110 trail Hunter .308 $500
-26” Criterion barrel + upgraded recoil lug and nut $400
-EGW rail $50
-Upgraded tactical bolt handle $20
-Upgraded target spring for accu trigger $10
-MDT field stock or watch MDT like a hawk during Black Friday for an XRS on sale. $300-5

I will throw this at the bottom, not interested in a Howa or Bergara and I already own a Tikka before those recommendations come out.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...
Don't need to buy the whole rifle, this has a tact bolt already and pic rail, make sure you select the short action .308 option, only 500 bones.
 
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#38
redneckbmxer24 said:
The origin is the better action. It’s smoother and you can get any bolt head you want to swap.
Click to expand...
We'll agree to disagree. My sample of 1 aero is smooth and pretty light lift for a 60°. No coc issue with a bix and proper top sear. You've got me on bolthead, so far just 308 and mag boltheads. I've had 3 origins, just never keep them. Between fixing coc to make bolt close smoother and the floppy feel when bolt is fully retracted....idk. The origin is a solid action and better vetted at this point, so there's that.
 
#40
I started with 110 Tactical and built up over time, similar to what you are suggesting. Probably 2-3 years. Some of those features already came on the 110 Tact. Got a MDT chassis on BF sale for 40% regular. Probably on most rifles, over time with you change out enough pieces that really only the action will remain. So if you are happy with the action and like a project gun, seems like a good plan. Re-sale value may be a consideration but I tend to keep my firearms, so that isn't a big factor for me.
 
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#41
longrange772 said:
How do you like the 22 Creed round?
Click to expand...
Great cartridge, like the rest of the creeds. I started with a criterion 7tw savage prefit on a nuke 2.0, settled on 90gr bergers@3230 and it's a Lazer. 95gr smk were sometimes landing sideways and gave up on them. Biggest issue with 22 creed is when you try to run the heaviest bullets, you need 7-6.5 tw. At 22 creed speeds, there's not many bullets that can handle the rpm(325k+). Sure you can derate it and run slower, but then a 22gt or 22br will run the slower 22creed node and have better case fill%. The 2nd 22 creed is an 8tw barreled solus action from PVA. It shoots great and runs 75eldm@3450. Throat wear will dictate if those speeds are sustainable through the 1k-ish barrel life.
20240327_130724.jpg
20240224_124330.jpg
 
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