Savage 308 axis

Well it comes down to what kind of hunting you do. For whitetails in the northeast I wanted a lever action brush gun that could perform double duty and reach out an touch somthing out past 100 yards If I had to. I ended up purchasing a Henry Long Ranger in 308 and have been extremely pleased.

I have never regretted buying a higher end gun, I have regretted almost all of the lower end stuff I've bought.

If you can only afford something inexpensive there are several good options, Savage Axis etc, if you can afford to get into a Tikka T3 I would look hard at that option.

FNAR

The Tikka T3 is a good rifle. I've had two, and still have one. Think they have the same barrels the Sakos do. The one thing I dont like about them is they have a two piece bolt and a plastic shroud and trigger guard. Lots of after market parts that will allow you to fix the plastic problem though.

Savages are good rifles too. I read somewhere that they have the strongest safest action out there ?

What is intended use / goal and is there a budget?

Most factory rifles will shoot 2 to 3 inches at 100 yards out of the box, even with modest priced scopes. You may get lucky and get one that shoots lights out, but If not, you can then modify / trick it up, to do better.......like 1 inch a 100 yards. That means some skilled labor and more investment, but doable.

If you want to do better than that, the price starts getting busy in a hurry. If you have the mans, custom jobs can be had that if you can shoot will print 5 shot groups at 100 yards that you can cover with your thumbnail.......or smaller. If your goal is to be able to plink beer cans (or smaller) at 1/4 mile, you will want one of those.

If I were to buy one off the shelf tomorrow , I’d lean towards Bergara. I also have a CZ 550 .308, and it is a tack driver. Hobbie , Larry’s Trading Post in West OC has both these brands, I’d recommend a visit to his shop and handle them. He also carries Tikka, but I’m not familiar with those.

A recommendation. A lot of rifle manufacturers are putting lightweight models on the market. For rugged mountain hunting, I see the advantage. But for deer hunting in our area I prefer a heavy rifle, long barrel heavy stock, for a solid feel and less recoil. Less recoil means you can stay on target and watch impact through the scope. Also, once you make your decision, don’t skimp on your optic! Top it with a nice scope.

Ride over to Snow Hill shoot a few of my rifles if you’d like, more than welcome.

John

in a 308 I like the Ruger SFAR for a semi auto and the Mossberg Patriot predator for a bolt gun , the stock is a little cheap but it hits the points I liked and seems to work well.

the mossberh patriot predator has
picatiny rail for optics mount
threaded muzzle
over sized bolt knob
decent weight 8 pounds 2 ounces ready to hunt without ammo.
5 round magazines that are readily available
I use a Midway AR stoner muzzle brake , almost no recoil with that brake watch the target hit through the scope
I put a Hornady cheek riser bag on it


there are a lot of good bolt action rifles , just need to ask what is your goal , is weight something , is rounds , is bolt , pic rail , threaded muzzle.

these were things on my list.

I have a Savage 110 "Tactical" .308, basically a bull barrel. I bought it in 1996 and haven't looked back. I load a 125 grain round (used to be Sierra but now its Nosler) behind some IMR 3031. Moves out supposedly around 2900 fps and plenty of power for anything in my state outside of elk and lion in the Black Hills. I've bought a number of boxes of W&W "plain white" 147 grain FMJ and was pleasantly surprised that what I had sighted in at 100 yards with the 125s works as well with the 147 FMJ. My rifles are pretty "utilitarian", not overly pampered in any way...

negative on the .308, get 6.5 creedmore....

Henry long ranger you can get it in both 308 or 6.5 creedmore.

Are you even allowed to own guns in Maryland? You're awfully close to DC!!.
I bought a 110 in 1980. Still works fine. I did have to learn how to adjust the firing pin in the bolt.

I have a Mod 7 in 308. Stainless 20 inch barrel. Good little whitetail rifle. Don’t care for the tactical stuff.

Yes, Arthur Savage. He is also credited with inventing the radial tire.


Somebody recommended Sako. Sako and Tikka are made by the same company and have a lot in common. Tikka is the economy version of the Sako. I would like to have a Sako but already have more rifles than I can justify. If they would chamber it in the 7mm PRC I might buy one anyway. BTW it is made in a .308.

.308 is a good choice if you are just going to hunt deer. I have one in a Ruger M77 and my favorite is my Winchester model 100. A lot of good brands out there. Buy what you can afford.

All guns these days have good barrels. Good actions and adjustable triggers makes a difference. throw in an adjustable stock SAVAGE

Can some of you elaborate on the “just deer hunting”, is that about all the .308 is good for?

I’m looking to do a little more than just deer hunt with it.

308 will do anything you want...
Unless you go plum crazy...lol

Excellent, no chance of me going plum crazy.