Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles stevens bolt action rifles

am contemplating getting a stevens bolt action center fire; have known that these are actually savage rifles without all the frills; have read that they are good 'tool' guns; down and dirty and work well; looking at a 22-250 which is not new to me , but found I can buy this long arm for $265 new;

anyone have any input on if this is a good buy

It's a good buy..You can't go wrong and you can swap barrels/calibers if you have the time/money/inclination. I have one in .223 and it is an accurate hunting tool. I use the word tool b/c the stocks are ugly and there's nothing pretty about them but they are accurate and perform as advertised.

I bought a .270 early after they first came out and have really been impressed with the accuracy.
Very lightweight. Zero function problems to date.
I trimmed and sanded the stock, then repainted with Krylon.
Had the stock cut down and a quality Pachmayr pad added. (obviously not necessary with your 22-250).
My wife has since claimed the gun. We used it this year for 7 head of game in 7 shots.
Bought a .223 for myself and it shoots justs as I expected.

Long time Savage fan,
stumpy

care to rate the triggers on yours, stubby??

I picked up a used one in 7-08 for a couple hundred bucks, it is a MOA shooter, tweaked the trigger and got it down to maybe 3.5 lbs, sanded the stock and was my first Krylon Fusion paint job, came out pretty good, I bought a prefit Limbsaver pad as this little gun is light and the pad helped lengthen the stock for me and provide some comfort at the bench, mounted a 6X Tasco World Class Plus and this thing rocks for the $ invested, it stays on the 4 wheeler now, I was going to get one in .243 but I see Marlin is coming out with short actions in 09 called the XS7, I want to try one of them as they fit better and have an Accutrigger clone plus I have read good things about their accuracy

Never put a scale on it after tweaking it. It ain't the best trigger I have or the worst. But very good for hunting.
I like the safety, especially for a lefty like me. Three position is my favorite.

stu MP y

I thought about buying a 22-250 a couple of years ago and buying
a 250 Savage barrel from Midway and switching it out. But
as luck would have it, I found a Savage 110 in 250 Savage
and bought it instead. Now that Savage is offering 250s
in the Model 14 Classic, Im thinking about buying one of
those also. Still thinking about buying a Stevens in 308
and rebarreling to 358, when Midway offers that caliber again.

You can't beat them for the price. They may not look like much, but they are really good rifles. With a .308 or a .30-06, you could hunt anywhere in the country with it for years as your only rifle. I have a .223 and a .308, and I am happy with both of them.

-Mb

Dakota, the trigger is the old Savage trigger from before they went with the Accutrigger. They are user adjustable to a degree. The real secret to a good trigger pull is to replace the trigger spring with a lighter music wire and to adjust the overtravel. The music wire will give a 3# trigger usually. There is no sear engagement screw anymore, or you could get a really nice trigger.

I have extra wire if you are interested PM me.

Leon

dakota and stuMPy,

i've used some of the pre accutrigger savages... some had the trigger adjusted, but the safety became stiffer... on one rifle, the safety became unuseably stiff...

have you guys experienced this??

It's a good buy. Had one in 223 that shot as good or better than any 223 with a sporter barrel that I've owned with the exception of one Ruger Mark II. The Stevens also comes with a 1-9 twist so you can shoot a wider range of bullet weights. I got some info off a Savage web site on how to improve the trigger that helped it considerable. It's another rifle I wish I still had.

I wanted a 22-250 for years and when I saw the Stevens 200 in Wholesale sports cat. I asked the better 1/2 for one on my 40th birthday and she came thru.Bases and rings at less than $30 and an economy scope and the whole rig cost around $420 Can. and she shoots lights out and I have not had time to play with handloads.It is a great little toy to play with while the bigger rifles cool of between strings.I am hoping to load up some 53 gr TSX or a premium 55-60 gr bullet but the twist might not work on heavier bullets,but I will try some anyway.
I really like the rifle,its no Weatherby Mk V or Sako Deluxe but it does not have their price tag.For a $1000 bucks or so a guy could have 2-3 rifles to play around with and reload for. I like the idea of sticking a new tube on one.308 to 358 would be my first,dam I hate being a rifle loony( the wife really hates it)LOL

mw0248 why in the world would you even consider a 22-250????

Not trying to be a jerk or nothin but you said on another thread bullets from a 223 will tumble after 100 yards. Why do you think a 22-250 will be any better?

It's good for another hundred yards....

.... if you go with a fast twist -grin-.

Nope. No saftey issues yet.
That Stevens is my favorite loaner. Completely accurate, dependable and replaceable. I did have the stock shortened, which cost have as much as the rifle, but fits well with the thick Pachmayr pad.
I only paid $199 at Bass Pro when they first came out. That was a deal.

stumpy

I'd say get one, stick a Leupold scope and Mcmillan stock on it then start looking for barrels to make a switch barrel rifle.






Mike

Leon, Thanks for the offer, The rifle is in Montana at my girlfriends ranch so I wont be fiddling with it for a bit, but I will take it apart this spring and check out the light wire possibility. Thanks, Randy

Talleys too. Looks good to me.