Savaged Again!

[thermaler]

Well, some of you probably are familiar with my trials and tribulations in my "...big mistake" thread.

After spending hours trying to get through to Savage all of last week, I finally got through to somebody to have a talk about stocks. They verified that a newer shorter stock was now being produced for the Axis series as I had received on my 308.

Try as I might, I couldn't get any sympathy for a replacement stock, so ended up ordering a new one.

Keep in mind this was after a lengthy discussion about all the problems I had with my flexie-tupperware stock--and so when I was making the order I specifically and clearly requested the newer, shorter stock, to which the customer service person confirmed and assured me she was writing down on the in-house processing order.

Imagine my chagrin, when unwrapping the package today, that I had instead been sent the older, longer style stock.

This inconsistency in both product and service is too much for me, and my brief affair with Savage rifles will end here. I intend on reinforcing and cammo painting this stock much as I did the other one, but will likely be getting rid of both the 270 and 308 after I get them to reliably shoot well.

[fgw_in_fla]

Ya know therm, I forgot to mention something to you....

Last week when you had trouble getting the stock / action screws out, that same week I bought a new Edge so I could put together a 7mm-08 for an extra hunting rifle. I take home this brand new Edge, set up my barrel changing tools & proceed.

I can't get the action screws to back out.

I tried several times & figured worst case, I break 'em. So, last time & I give it a good hard shove & FINALLY.... They loosen up. I notice the forward screw is held in by less than a full turn & it's hard to turn like the threads are binding. The rear screw, same thing.

Moving on, I start to remove the barrel. The amount of pressure I had to put on the barrel nut wrench was a pucker factor of 9.2...... It unscrewed hard the whole way off.

Suddenly I notice something a little unusual. A closed look & I see some foreign material in the threads. An even closer look & it looks like the micro pellets used for steel sand blasting. I don't recall the name of the process but it similar to glass beading. tiny little steel pellets all stuck throughout the threads. Action screws included.

It added an extra 2 hours to a simple barrel change since they were now ground into the barrel / action threads from unscrewing the old barrel.

The first thing I thought about was your situation. The second thing I thought - did Savage close up their QC dept?

After finding that, I looked over the complete action. The quality sucked compared to an Edge I have that's a year old. Is this a sign of things to come. Lousy, second rate quality from a company we've all grown to trust & love?

Sometimes, just sometimes I get so aggravated over things like that I consider changing brands.....

Sometimes.

Stay well.

Frank in FLa

[thermaler]

If I had to guess--maybe some kind of screw locktiting was done on the barrel nut? But I think the inherent design flaw is that the plastic stock simply moves around too much--dragging the barrel alignment and screw torquing along with it. The other thought that occurs to me is that for the "big bangers"--anything bigger than 308--maybe the locktiting--if that's what it is--is a cheapo attempt at reducing the movement problems by more rigidly affixing the receiver/stock alignment. Lastly, if you bought from a gun shop--well, in my book all bets are off--even when they say it is brand-new and untouched there's no telling what the weapon has been through unless you are there when the gunn is actually delivered, : )

I think that any firearms manufacturer that crosses the "consumer mass-market" line does so at it's own peril if they can't bring a basic level of quality and service along with it. Simply saying "you get what you pay for" doesn't cut it--these are deadly serious weapons and it's not worth short term profits to release inconsistent things like this on the market.

[thomae]

It has happened, according to a couple of other posts on this forum (Caveat: I have no personal experience) that some rifles have bluing salt residue (correction thanks to Bajabill. post #17) who jogged my memory) in the barrel threads of Savage barrels.
That said, however, with an action wrench, a barrel nut wrench, and a carpeted concrete floor, I have had no problem removing any barrel to date.

[fgw_in_fla]

thomae - mine was a real booger to get apart. This is my 6th barrel change out & it's the 1st time I've found that "stuff" in the threads. I've change barrels on a few new, a few old & this is a first. I had to wire wheel all that trash out of the threads.
A 20 min. job went into 2 hrs.

it really suck moose snot.

Gotta eat - later

Frank in Fla

[big honkin jeep]

I knew this kind of thing was gonna happen with the new economy offerings. Savage worked hard to fix their image and now they're gonna screw it up like big green did with the 710s and 770s not to mention the SPS.

Thermaler don't let the Edge/Axis QC problems deter you from enjoying the Savage brand. If I hadn't already owned some tack driving 110-116s I'd have sworn off of them after my first Edge experience as it was a rifle suitable for shooting a barn but only from the inside. I'm amazed some claim to get corvette performance form a chevette. Me I'll just stick to buying what works. and works well. The 10/110 series are awesome and can be picked up for for a song.Find you a pawn shop beater or pick one off the used rack and make it a project. These are the rifles responsible for most of the the rampant Savageaholicism around here.
Good luck BHJ

[bobfortier]

I had trouble removing the barrel from my Axis. In my opinion, the residu can get on the thread because there is a gap under for the recoil lug, with exposed thread. The nut is jammed on my old barrel, I had to get a new nut.

But I really like my Axis, just got another in 30-06. My shoulder is ready for a recoil massage tomorrow afternoon.

The walnut stock should help

[vegas steve]

forget the axis altogether and just stick with the higher end savages as they are good quality.the axis series will soon be phased out after constant negative feedback keeps pouring in. i bet the stevens 200 series willcome back to take its place.

[sharpshooter]

Do you guys really think Savage made these rifles just for you tinkerers to tear apart? :)

[thermaler]

The stock order thing really bothers me cause--even though I can fix it--they sent me exactly what the parts and service person promised me they wouldn't. "fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me."

[M.O.A.]

forget the axis altogether and just stick with the higher end savages as they are good quality.the axis series will soon be phased out after constant negative feedback keeps pouring in. i bet the stevens 200 series willcome back to take its place.

The Stevens never went anywhere

[M.O.A.]

I really can't believe that anyone can buy a high-power rifle for under $300 bucks that shoots less than 2" and complain about its fit and finih really guys you bought the bottom of the line did you think you where going the get a cooper for $300 bucks not going to happen sorry

[bobfortier]

Do you guys really think Savage made these rifles just for you tinkerers to tear apart? :)

No, but they are the perfect gun to learn how to swap barrels, triggers, and so on.

[thermaler]

I really can't believe that anyone can buy a high-power rifle for under $300 bucks that shoots less than 2" and complain about its fit and finih really guys you bought the bottom of the line did you think you where going the get a cooper for $300 bucks not going to happen sorry
Well, I kinda get where you coming from--but the simple truth is releasing upon the market massive quantities of weapons which have known issues is never a good idea--regardless of perceived price point value. And in my opinion the parts order foul-up has nothing to do with "price-point" value. When someone buys a firearm they rightfully expect that there is a baseline reliable functionality as described in the owner's manual and the company's advertising.

This is a bit like Boeing selling a cheap airliner which "may or may not crash" but, hey, you get what you pay for.

Now, I happen to like the Axis action--as most of the people here seem to--and that's probably why we are so frustrated with the rest of the package. If it were simply a price-point issue, then Savage would be smart to offer a rigid stock upgrade.

[vegas steve]

The Stevens never went anywhere

i was told that the stevens 200 series was discontinued in favor of the axis line.

[nsaqam]

The Axis line is a big step in the WRONG direction for Savage.

There are a ton of cheap bolt rifles out there already and Savage needs to be moving upmarket rather than downmarket.

Bring back the brass rotor 99 and a modernized version of the 1920. Keep the Stevens line as the low priced Savage.

[bajabill]

I had a savage barrel that was really hard to debarrel, was suggested that the residue was blueing salts.

http://www.savageshooters.com/showthread.php?9467-Has-anyone-broken-a-barrel-nut-wrench&p=110174#post110174

Shipping difficulties are certainly troublesome for the person impacted, but be careful if you are suggesting an entire product line should be avoided due to this isolated incident. It happened, sure, its a data point... I had an issue with the parts department, they handled it, I got what I wanted and actually feel very fortunate that I was able to obtain the part. I bought an aftermarket 375hh barrel without the muzzlebrake, they found one for me. I dont think they offer the combination anymore and they had to look deep into the shelves to find the correct pieces. True, before sending the parts someone did not confirm they fit. But, do I think that was the same person who makes all of the Savage Axis guns - no. Does it suggest the entire operation has procedural issues, who knows, its possible, but who could make that determination confidently with the information known.

[thermaler]

I had a savage barrel that was really hard to debarrel, was suggested that the residue was blueing salts.

http://www.savageshooters.com/showthread.php?9467-Has-anyone-broken-a-barrel-nut-wrench&p=110174#post110174

Shipping difficulties are certainly troublesome for the person impacted, but be careful if you are suggesting an entire product line should be avoided due to this isolated incident. It happened, sure, its a data point... I had an issue with the parts department, they handled it, I got what I wanted and actually feel very fortunate that I was able to obtain the part. I bought an aftermarket 375hh barrel without the muzzlebrake, they found one for me. I dont think they offer the combination anymore and they had to look deep into the shelves to find the correct pieces. True, before sending the parts someone did not confirm they fit. But, do I think that was the same person who makes all of the Savage Axis guns - no. Does it suggest the entire operation has procedural issues, who knows, its possible, but who could make that determination confidently with the information known.

Naw--I wouldn't have bought TWO of them to begin with if it weren't for Savage's fine reputation to begin with. Remember, I said I was an inexperienced newbie--so I simply walked into a store and bought the things.

In my case it may be pure coincidence, but I've simply had repeated bad luck with the purchases and trying to get parts. It's not the first time I've had issues with a firearm purchase from a manufacturer--but the kind of response and service I get from a manufacturer is a big deal to me. I'm just giving my honest opinions about what I feel about these guns based on my experiences--not that everyone is going to get bad results and should stay away from them. I learned a lot from this experience and am ready to move on--my goal is not to slander Savage's reputation publicly because I'm pissed off--be clear about that.

[big honkin jeep]

As I have pointed out repeatedly it happened to big green. Just try to sell a Remington 710 or 770. Their crappy reputation precedes them in the firearms world and you cant sell one unless you're willing to take a beating. I frequent several other firearms forums and believe me the Axis and Edge rifles reputation among many customers is quickly turning into a dud. The gun rag reviews and smiling all the way to the bank gunwriters are being replaced by sour faced customers who don't mind telling of their dis satisfactory experiences. If these are first time rifle buyers, or a dad who shoots a nice trusty old stick and buys a rifle for his kid, you can bet they wont spend another dime on a product that has let them down or they feel is inferior. Rather than upgrading they will move to another brand.
It's just my opinion but I don't think this lineup with its cheesy stock(I have never complained about factory synthetics before but this one is bad) ,weirdo recoil lug( when I first took it out of the stock I thought it was broken) crappy trigger and questionable out of the box accuracy, will last especially when sharing a price point comparable to the Marlin X7 lineup or a couple of other economy offerings.
I assure you Thermaler is not alone and fortunately seems to know his way around the basics of a rifle.
If I hadn't been addicted long ago and exposed to the 10/110 series and their out of the box capability, I assure you that my experience with 2 Edge rifles would have been my last with this brand.

You do not get a second chance to make a first impression

[nsaqam]

Good post BHJ!