Upgrade Barrel on MPA-Savage or buy a MPA Pro

[dominicandemon]

Trying to decide if I should upgrade my current rifle which is a Savage 10 / MPA Lite Chassis (left handed) or just buy the MPA Pro. I want to shoot 6.5 Creedmoor (already have a ton of ammo and reloading components for 6.5cm) but I also want a "custom" action higher end rifle.

Cost:
Barrel is around $420
Tools are around $100($28 for the wrench, $60 for the action wrench)
Small shank and Nut are around $60
Total is around $600 (plus I am sure I will need to buy something else)

The MPA Pro option seems perfect and impossible to beat. Action, barrel, trigger and MPA extras are well over 3k plus gunsmith work with a proven set of components.

I may keep my current Savage 10 / MPA Lite and shoot it for years to come, but I don't think dropping $600 into a non "custom" action is a good idea.

Last option is to wait till I fined nice left handed stuff but even then, I think it will be had to compete with the MPA Pro.

 

[ACW39]

Get the MPA pro. You won’t regret it. Speaking from experience on both rifles. Well kinda, I use a Savage 110 as one of my hunting guns and the MPA BA for competitions.

Have you considered a custom action, barrel, and trigger combo slapped into the MPA lite chassis. I don’t think that’s a bad decision either.

I think you’ll enjoy the MPA rifle if you decide to go that route. All in all it’s great and unless your heart is set on a specific combo to throw into the chassis I don’t think you would be disappointed in what MPA will provide.

Plus, like you said you will still have the savage in the MPA lite chassis to use for whatever else your heart desires. Only concern I can see as a factor is what you plan to do as far as glass goes. As a new rifle in addition to your current one would most likely mean new glass on one of them. Just trying to think of everything If you’re having to stay within a budget. Also, having another rifle is always a good thing!

 

[dominicandemon]

Get the MPA pro. You won’t regret it. Speaking from experience on both rifles. Well kinda, I use a Savage 110 as one of my hunting guns and the MPA BA for competitions.

Have you considered a custom action, barrel, and trigger combo slapped into the MPA lite chassis. I don’t think that’s a bad decision either.

I think you’ll enjoy the MPA rifle if you decide to go that route. All in all it’s great and unless your heart is set on a specific combo to throw into the chassis I don’t think you would be disappointed in what MPA will provide.

Plus, like you said you will still have the savage in the MPA lite chassis to use for whatever else your heart desires. Only concern I can see as a factor is what you plan to do as far as glass goes. As a new rifle in addition to your current one would most likely mean new glass on one of them. Just trying to think of everything If you’re having to stay within a budget. Also, having another rifle is always a good thing!

Great feedback.

Glass - I have a pair of Bushnell DMR II and HMDR II.

I would consider a custom action, barrel and trigger combo, but that doesn't seem to exist for Savage.

 

[ACW39]

Good point about there not being many savage style custom options. They’re out there but not sure I would want to go that route over the MPA pro just due to the hassle. Again, unless you’re just absolutely in love with the savage style action. If you are companies like Northland Shooters Supply offer blueprinted and trued actions. Shilen I think has options for savages or maybe that was stiller. I think Bighorn does as well, but won’t take a savage barrel if I remember correctly. I’m sure there’s others but the hassle isn’t worth it in my opinion.

If it were me I would just buy the MPA pro and keep the savage. U already have the glass so thats no issues. The jump from the savage to the MPA will be light years. The action will be very smooth and the 60 degree throw will be a nice touch that will make follow up shots easy. Both trigger options are good. But I like the Diamond personally. Their Muzzle brake is great as well in helping manage recoil and keeping your glass on target all the way through the shot. I think the jump from the savage to the MPA will make you very happy.

 

[Flightmurse]

For a factory action the savage is really remarkable that they can bring in such an accurate rifle for so little cost. I started my precision rifle journey on savages and I learned so much from them. When you start looking at putting high end barrels in them, it is very much a souped up Honda Civic. Yes, they are fast and can put up decent numbers, but in the end they are still a civic.

The features that you get when upgrading to a custom action are more in the build quality and refined function. I would highly look into going this route. I actually had all of the parts sitting on the bench to rebarrel a savage, but ended up just going custom action and have no regrets.

 

[Vodoun daVinci]

I'm gonna re barrel my Savage 10 in 6.5 when it's time. It's not yet (ever) let me down and shoots better than I can. I can only imagine how nice it'd be with a serious barrel/custom barrel and I will not have to reinvent the wheel and start over with chassis and such. In the OP's position, I'm not sure what I'd do.

I am perhaps not sophisticated enough to need a fancier rifle.

VooDoo

 

[dominicandemon]

I'm gonna re barrel my Savage 10 in 6.5 when it's time. It's not yet (ever) let me down and shoots better than I can. I can only imagine how nice it'd be with a serious barrel/custom barrel and I will not have to reinvent the wheel and start over with chassis and such. In the OP's position, I'm not sure what I'd do.


View attachment 7428932

I am perhaps not sophisticated enough to need a fancier rifle.

VooDoo

Savage 10/308 is probably more rifle than 99% most us need...
I may give the Savage one more try before ordering new rifle, but not sure I will drop any money in to it.

 

[loveha]

Having taken an older Savage 10 in 7mm-08, and done everything you can to it, in the end, it's still just a Savage.
The only thing that was original when I got done, was the action. The entire bolt assembly and trigger was changed out, then everything was lapped and polished and Cerakoted. You can polish a turd as they say, but it's still just a turd, but it's my shiny turd. That shoots 300WSM at 1/2" MOA, with a decent bolt lift I might add, but you still know your lifting the bolt on a Savage.

I also happen to have an MPA BA 6.5CM. That I just finally started to shoot further out than 100. I went out at 250 with the plate, and shot .6 MOA not even trying with just some Hornady AG.

I don't really know where the fuck I'm going with this post, other than a Savage is just a Savage. They are good for putting meat in the freezer. I built mine to do just that, except what started out as just a rebarrel in 7mm-08, turned into a dumb idea that I don't regret. Any fud can buy a Savage, stick a scope on it, sight in on a pie plate, and know it's going to go bang on game day. It will never compare to a custom action though.

Savage now wears a Leupold VX-5HD 3-15x44 with the HTMR reticle. More in line with what I will do with the rifle.

 

[dominicandemon]

Having taken an older Savage 10 in 7mm-08, and done everything you can to it, in the end, it's still just a Savage.
The only thing that was original when I got done, was the action. The entire bolt assembly and trigger was changed out, then everything was lapped and polished and Cerakoted. You can polish a turd as they say, but it's still just a turd, but it's my shiny turd. That shoots 300WSM at 1/2" MOA, with a decent bolt lift I might add, but you still know your lifting the bolt on a Savage.

I also happen to have an MPA BA 6.5CM. That I just finally started to shoot further out than 100. I went out at 250 with the plate, and shot .6 MOA not even trying with just some Hornady AG.

I don't really know where the fuck I'm going with this post, other than a Savage is just a Savage. They are good for putting meat in the freezer. I built mine to do just that, except what started out as just a rebarrel in 7mm-08, turned into a dumb idea that I don't regret. Any fud can buy a Savage, stick a scope on it, sight in on a pie plate, and know it's going to go bang on game day. It will never compare to a custom action though.

Savage now wears a Leupold VX-5HD 3-15x44 with the HTMR reticle. More in line with what I will do with the rifle.
View attachment 7429619
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Yeap Great feedback.

 

[dominicandemon]

For a factory action the savage is really remarkable that they can bring in such an accurate rifle for so little cost. I started my precision rifle journey on savages and I learned so much from them. When you start looking at putting high end barrels in them, it is very much a souped up Honda Civic. Yes, they are fast and can put up decent numbers, but in the end they are still a civic.

The features that you get when upgrading to a custom action are more in the build quality and refined function. I would highly look into going this route. I actually had all of the parts sitting on the bench to rebarrel a savage, but ended up just going custom action and have no regrets.

Exactly what I think I am going to do, thanks for the Feedback.

 

[ACW39]

Do you mind telling what your primary goal for the rifle is? Just for fun, hunting, competition, or some mixture of all of the above. To what distances is the rifle primarily be used in? I also ask do you feel like you have maximized the full potential of the savage? Or does it have weak points that are limitations that hold you from being able to do what you want with it. I say that bc I would agree that if you’re primarily using it to hunt, have fun at the range and maybe have fun at the occasional match and your happy with its performance, then stick with it until you feel like you need to jump onto the next thing.

If you plan on extending your range, getting the absolute best groupings, or become a dedicated long range match shooter then the savage will eventually have limitations that something like a MPA will not have.

 

[dominicandemon]

Do you mind telling what your primary goal for the rifle is? Just for fun, hunting, competition, or some mixture of all of the above. To what distances is the rifle primarily be used in? I also ask do you feel like you have maximized the full potential of the savage? Or does it have weak points that are limitations that hold you from being able to do what you want with it. I say that bc I would agree that if you’re primarily using it to hunt, have fun at the range and maybe have fun at the occasional match and your happy with its performance, then stick with it until you feel like you need to jump onto the next thing.

If you plan on extending your range, getting the absolute best groupings, or become a dedicated long range match shooter then the savage will eventually have limitations that something like a MPA will not have.

Great questions and thanks to the feedback and discussion I can answer them all (which I should be able to before dropping $2,500) on a new rifle.

• Want (not need) a "cloned" action rifle.
• Want (not need) to shoot 6.5 Creedmoor.
• Do not want to drop any money into the Savage and will continue to shoot unless I get a crazy offer on it
• The price of the MPA Pro is very attractive, hard to beat and even cheaper than buying the parts and putting them together yourself.
• The value of the MPA Pro is again very attractive and can't ever see myself dropping more than the $2500 on a bolt action (left handed)
• The purpose will be range fun, start at 100 yards and move my way up to 1k yards.

The Savage is a great rifle, but I have been drooling over Rem 700 clones ever since I learned about them.

 

[loveha]

If I was buying my rifle over again, I would get this instead.

Nucleus Gen2 Rifle

www.americanrifle.com

Nothing wrong with the MPA though.

Edit-NVM, forgot about the left hand thing.

 

[dominicandemon]

If I was buying my rifle over again, I would get this instead.

Nucleus Gen2 Rifle

www.americanrifle.com

Nothing wrong with the MPA though.

Edit-NVM, forgot about the left hand thing.

Damn yeah that's nice.
The left handed aspect makes it more complicated but also rifles like the Nucleus Gen2 and the MPA Pro is why I don't want to put any money in to my current rifle.

 

[ACW39]

I understand the want to stay with the caliber that you’ve already got the reloading stuff for, and it’s obviously a very capable caliber for what you’re wanting to do with it. Being primarily a range rifle gives you a lot of versatility when choosing what fits your needs as there aren’t really any limitations when doing so, just preference.

I think w a budget of 2500 and the fact that you’re already familiar with the MPA chassis and obviously like it, that the move to the MPA pro would be a comfortable upgrade. There are other good options out there of course, but I think if your happy with the performance of the MPA chassis and it’s form and function appeals to you, then it’s a good move to go ahead and see how a complete MPA rifle shoots. I can’t say I’ve experienced a rifle that for the money range can out perform my 6.5 MPA BA and appeal to me in a way that would make me want it over my MPA. I may be biased though. Best of luck in your decision and I hope whichever way you decide to go that you get a tac driver and are able to enjoy the rifle.

 

[BuckeyePrecision]

I have gone the exact route you are talking. I poured money into my Savage when i first got started and it shot great, but ultimately after several issues over a 2 year period of shooting local matches, i finally gave up and went to a custom action. The factory AccuTrigger failed during a match (two others shooting savages had the exact same issue that season), I replaced it with another factory trigger, it failed again the next season. I just put a Elftmann in it, but have not run it that much since. The ejector broke a couple of times along with some other smaller issues. Ultimately I decided my barrel was still good, so I ordered a Bighorn Origin action and put together my own custom. Two years and probably twice as many rounds through it as my Savage and never a problem.

That said, I never fully gave up on the Savage and still have it around with a factory take off as a backup/loaner because it still shoots great.

All that to say if you think you are going to do any high volume of shooting, upgrading is a good idea.

 

[hereinaz]

Every Savage shooter who does a decent amount of shooting, a match here or there, and wants to improve the quality and feel, has NEVER regretted getting a custom/semicustom rifle.

We mostly still have nostalgia for our accurate Savages, and fondness for its quirkiness and what we learned. We may even have a tack driver laying around.

There are guys who never upgrade, and the Savage fills the role perfectly. They aren't unhappy or any less than us snobs. After all, truth is the Savage once tweaked a little is a very good gun. Maybe even a few go back to only Savage, but that number is small.

So, if you stick with the Savage, you could be happy.

But, if you do get a custom/semicustom you will be happy.

Problem might be if you keep chasing the next great rifle. But, that isn't cause you first had a Savage.

There are quite a few of the $2000 to $2500 options like MPA, Badrock, ARC, etc. You can even build one for about that price with Bighorn, Mack Bros Evo, a used Nucleus, or other clone actions.

The MPA is a budget Curtis, I think. So factor that in. Do you want those features?

I say don't be afraid of eating a little on the sale of your Savage. You can watch the PX for a clone stuff where the guy selling is eating some too. I have bought and sold, experimenting and probably ended up out only my shipping over the long run.

At this point, I have sold all my Savage rifles. I have played with all sorts of actions, cartridges, scopes, etc. and have picked one action, one scope, one reticle, one trigger, and permanent stocks for my two personal rifles.

I still play a little bit with a rifle here and there for fun, but not my main rifles or scopes.

More info to filter from a prior Savage guy.

 

[dominicandemon]

Every Savage shooter who does a decent amount of shooting, a match here or there, and wants to improve the quality and feel, has NEVER regretted getting a custom/semicustom rifle.

We mostly still have nostalgia for our accurate Savages, and fondness for its quirkiness and what we learned. We may even have a tack driver laying around.

There are guys who never upgrade, and the Savage fills the role perfectly. They aren't unhappy or any less than us snobs. After all, truth is the Savage once tweaked a little is a very good gun. Maybe even a few go back to only Savage, but that number is small.

So, if you stick with the Savage, you could be happy.

But, if you do get a custom/semicustom you will be happy.

Problem might be if you keep chasing the next great rifle. But, that isn't cause you first had a Savage.

There are quite a few of the $2000 to $2500 options like MPA, Badrock, ARC, etc. You can even build one for about that price with Bighorn, Mack Bros Evo, a used Nucleus, or other clone actions.

The MPA is a budget Curtis, I think. So factor that in. Do you want those features?

I say don't be afraid of eating a little on the sale of your Savage. You can watch the PX for a clone stuff where the guy selling is eating some too. I have bought and sold, experimenting and probably ended up out only my shipping over the long run.

At this point, I have sold all my Savage rifles. I have played with all sorts of actions, cartridges, scopes, etc. and have picked one action, one scope, one reticle, one trigger, and permanent stocks for my two personal rifles.

I still play a little bit with a rifle here and there for fun, but not my main rifles or scopes.

More info to filter from a prior Savage guy.

Great feedback.. I have very little into my Savage/MPA.. If I get a decent offer on it, I will sell it.

 

[dominicandemon]

currently in possession of 3 MPA guns. still have fnh a5 spr. had ruger p r. MPA cals 223wylde,6.5 creed and 308. the ruger as entry level with steiner t 5 scope was not always consistent. sold it and picked up the 6.5 BA. topped with steiner m7xi 4-28-56. Holy shit what a difference. after about 300 fun rounds through it i am working on load development. currently w/o load development 3/4 moa @300yds. 5rds inside 6" ring qualifies for 400 yds up. yay. that rifle prompted the purchase of the other two. testimony awesome predictable rifles in the hands of a guy who has less than 3000 rds fired lifetime. was big into hand guns. however rifle shooting and reloading give me some rewarding moments. the folks at MPA were helpful with simple questions so i dont anticipate issues in the future. happy shooting.

I have an RPR and a Savage/MPA for sale. I did enjoy the RPR on Friday (10/2/2020) and I am wondering if I really need a left handed rifle as I am so used to right hand rifles. Thanks for the feedback... still deciding.