another savage smokeless post

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FARMTOFIELD

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So im fixing to bite the bullet on one. Let me hear the ins and outs, dos and donts. A good starter hunting load. I don't plan on any long range until i get it all worked out. I reload and weighing charges is not a problem. From what ive been reading the AA powder and 300 gr. Bullets are about norm. Im tired of the nastiness of blackpowder
 
Good luck with yours.. I bought one and am having a time getting it to shoot.I've shot it over 70 times,have tried 5 different sabots,6 different bullets,and 4 different powders and have only found 1 load to shoot under 1.5inchs at 100 yds..Everything else has shot around 3 or 4 inches..Im to the point to where Im thinking of selling it and buying a TC muzzleloader.If your close I have some accurate Arms 5744 that your more than welcome to try. If I don't get rid of mine,im seriously thinking of sending it back to Savage,im fed up with it.May just get a Pac Nor replacement barrel..
 
cecil30-30 said:
Good luck with yours.. I bought one and am having a time getting it to shoot.I've shot it over 70 times,have tried 5 different sabots,6 different bullets,and 4 different powders and have only found 1 load to shoot under 1.5inchs at 100 yds..Everything else has shot around 3 or 4 inches..Im to the point to where Im thinking of selling it and buying a TC muzzleloader.If your close I have some accurate Arms 5744 that your more than welcome to try. If I don't get rid of mine,im seriously thinking of sending it back to Savage,im fed up with it.May just get a Pac Nor replacement barrel..
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you may want to have a gunsmith look at your crown
 
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East TN Hunter said:
Allow the gun to cool COMPLETELY between shots.
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Just curious as to why on God's green earth anyone would want a rifle that they had to let cool completely between shots to get it to shoot?
 
quigleysharps4570 said:
East TN Hunter said:
Allow the gun to cool COMPLETELY between shots.
Click to expand...

Just curious as to why on God's green earth anyone would want a rifle that they had to let cool completely between shots to get it to shoot?
Click to expand...
I dont let mine cool down.. I load,shoot,load,shoot,load,shoot.. no issues with a hot barrel here..
 
quigleysharps4570 said:
East TN Hunter said:
Allow the gun to cool COMPLETELY between shots.
Click to expand...

Just curious as to why on God's green earth anyone would want a rifle that they had to let cool completely between shots to get it to shoot?
Click to expand...

Are you kidding? Doesnt sound like you have invested much time with any.weapon. when a barrel gets hot on any weapon, it doesnt matter if its smokeless, blackpowder, or centerfire. Accuracy is going to degrade.
 
Savage guarantees this gun to shoot 1.5" at 100 yards and if it don't then you can send it into them and they will shoot it on their bench. If it don't shoot they will replace the barrel and shoot it again. If it don't shoot they will replace whatever they need to just to get it to shoot. How do I know this? I had my barrel replaced for free by Savage. Now it shoots better than 1" at 100.

I am currently shooting 43gr 4759 and a Barnes Original 300gr bullet in a Harvester Black Crush Rib sabot. Have shot this set up in 90 deg heat and -12 deg and have never had a misfire. Very accurate in my gun.

Another cheaper and plenty great combo is a Hornady XTP 300 gr or 250 gr bullet in a Red Crush Rib sabot and Accurate 5744 powder. Follow the manual powder measurements.

Don't go for max loads right off the bat. Start at the min and go up.

There are a few things that need to be verified on a Savage. Some common ones are the scope base screws to make sure they are not bottoming out. The other is front edge of scope base to make sure it's not touching the lock nut.

Yes, you need to allow the barrel to cool between shots. The heat generated will soften the sabot and your groups will suck if you don't. Many a Savage has been sold because the owner refused to follow this simple rule. Fire the shot, wait about 5 min in decent weather and 10 or more in hot weather. Keep it out of the sun if you can. If hunting, reload and don't worry. I've shot 3 deer in one go round without a bad shot in cooler weather.
 
The load I have pretty well settled on is a 300gr. Barnes Origional bullet, orange MMP sabot, and 44gr of AA5744. It has shot pretty good and is great on the terminal end.
 
Notes on accuracy:

1) Get a tight fitting bullet/sabot combo for you barrel. You want ~40-50 lbs pressure to seat the bullet. Luke sells sample packs:

http://smokelessmz.com/index.html

2) If the barrel gets above ~92F, plastic sabots cannot handle the pressure generated by smokeless powders and you will start to get fliers.

3) Savages are 1.5 MOA guns. If you are only going to be happy with sub MOA, you may want to consider starting with an after market barrel.
 
What kind of bullets come with the gun? And what kind of primers do yall prefer, im guessing federal 209a based on my 10 ga handload experience?
 
I use federal 209A primers.

I hunted last year with the 250 XTPs and shot 2 animals. Good terminal performance. I get 1.5" groups with 250 XTPs/supplied short black sabots/45g AA5744.
 
I use 209a federal.
when I first got it I was shooting aa5744 43gns with barnes 300exp's using sabots that came with the exp's. Had great results. Also tried 300sst's w/ aa5744 44gns and black mmp's. Was able to go in on a group bulk buy of N120 and have found 60gns w/ 300exp's to be sub moa. And when I hunt open fields 58gns N120 and 300sst's is the way to fly also sub 1" groups.I tried the 250 xtp's & sst's but always seemed to get better accuracy w/ 300's.
 
East TN Hunter said:
I use federal 209A primers.

I hunted last year with the 250 XTPs and shot 2 animals. Good terminal performance. I get 1.5" groups with 250 XTPs/supplied short black sabots/45g AA5744.
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I think i would rather shoot 300 gr. Because i dont have the opportunity at much over 150 yds
 
I have a syn stock and it is pretty flimsy. But the gun shoots pretty well if you allow it to cool between shots, as has been stated. I get best performance using the 5744, orange MMP sabots, and .458 300gr hornady, but have had success with the 300gr SST (or variant) and the black long sabot. My barrel must be a bit tight though, as the latter combo is VERY hard for me to load if I use the tighter sabot, and the looser sabots that I bought from MMP don't hold up well, leading to keyholing.

Like you, I didn't buy it for a long rnage shooter, but to avoid the nasty cleanup and rusting of BP or substitutes. Also, it is cheaper to shoot in the long run.
 
Rockhound said:
Do you guys shoot yalls at the end of the day to unload even if you are hunting the next day
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Heck no! There is no need. I leave mine loaded all season if I don't shoot, just remove the cap.
 
I have never shot at a deer with a hot muzzleloader barrel but you never know when one might jump out at the shooting range and I cant get to the woods fast enough before my barrel cools off. He is telling you right about the barrel cooling off so it does not melt the sabot before you shoot I shoot 10 gr n110 with 60gr 4198 250sst black sabot and nothing compares NOTHING Ive owned t/cs and i would never go back even to the knight that a thought i loved
 
In my cva i was shooting! 150 gr. Of 777 and a 250 gr. Powerbelt. If the scope i had on it held up do you think it will hold up on the smokeless?
 
Andy S. said:
Rockhound said:
If the scope i had on it held up do you think it will hold up on the smokeless?
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If it is anything like mine it will. My Savage barely has any recoil at all.
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Good its a swift scope and i really like it. Im gonna clean my cva real good and put it up as a spare
 

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