22,24 or 26 inch barrel?

[yobuck]

Why not consider selling the Pontiac, i mean .270, and building one gun you can do it all with?
With all the bullets to choose from a 6.5 might be a better choice than owning two guns.
And you would have more money to work with for doing it right. Then if you decide later you need another
bigger gun, there would be lots of good choices there also. Compare a 280 to your 270 including bullet selection.
Like the Pontiac, the world really dosent need a .270.
As for barrel legnth, i think a 24" would suffice for a 243. Id personaly go 26" on the others, except for magnums where id start at 28" depending on cartridge.
If your going to be carrying the gun around hunting, the longer barrels can become a pita. But a 26" as a rule works fine for that.

[Stork]

While 1000 yard milk jugs with a $400 rifle and factory ammo is definitely possible it will prove to be quite difficult to do consistently. Hand loaded ammo is almost a must and probably more important yet is quality glass to get you there. Have you considered the 6.5 Creedmoor for your intended purpose? Reason being is that high quality match grade ammo at decent cost is available and the extra BC of the 6.5 will sure come in handy on the longer shots especially if shooting a core loct .243. They are great bullets but not what I would choose for paper punching at any distance. The 6.5 is easy on the shoulder and not any more expensive to feed than the .243

This is what I would do if I were you.
1. Rifle in 6.5 creed
2. Replace your stock with a nice Boyd's laminate and have it bedded & floated.
3. Quality optic - Leupold, Sightron, Nikon or something similar with good glass and turrets.
4. Buy a few boxes of ammo to get you started.
5. Begin Reloading, take it slow, buy a manual and read carefully.
6. Practice and have fun.

Turbo,
From what I'm gleaning from your posts, you're just starting down this path. I would suggest close attention be paid to what stomp just suggested. He's dead on with his suggestions of bore size, optics, caliber, and reasoning.

1. Factory 6.5 Creedmore ammo is very accurate.
2. As you shoot the factory ammo, you'll be accumulating good brass.
3. There have never been any old rifles factory chambered for the creed. Therefore it can be safely loaded to higher pressures.
4. I absolutely love the 243 caliber, I've owned many in the last 40 years of shooting & loading. That being said, the creed will do everything the 243 will plus give you availability of much higher ballistic coefficient bullets when you're ready to try for the 1000 yard range. And no I don't own a creed, I decided on a 260 but would have been pleased with either.
5. Good glass is unbelievably important. I'd rather have a $1500 scope on a $200 rifle than the reverse. Buy good glass. Rifles can & will come & go. Good glass never leaves my possession. I did a twilight test 35 years ago with Weaver, Baush & Lomb, Redfield and Leupold. The Leu was the last one I tested before dark thirty, it was like someone had switched on the lights. Got rid of the others & have run straight Leupolds since. The only other brand that I've personally looked through that could replace my Leu's is Nightforce. Although I've heard really good things about both Vortex & Sightron also, just never had the chance to use them out in the prairie dog towns.
6. Good stocks and proper bedding are also very important. Think about it in a building context. If your foundation is sub par, everything you put on top of it is for naught.
7. Reloading can be as simple as getting one of the old Lee "Whack a mole" sets, to Dillon progressives, arbor presses and hand dies. I've used about every type out there, and they all have there place. The important thing is to read and ask questions, lots and lots of questions. There's no such thing as a stupid question when it comes to assembling something that's going to explode 6" in front of your face. When it comes to loading information, try to keep in mind that the internet is a blessing & a curse. 50% of the info out there is good solid data, the other 50% isn't and much of the time you have no idea which half you're dipping into. When in doubt go onto the powder manufacturer's web site & look at what they recommend.
8. Keep a log book. Every shot should teach you something. Note the wind, temp, sky conditions, distance, group size, case used, powder, primer, bullet, seating depth. The list goes on. I have a lot or really good targets that I neglected to note that info on. At this point they're pretty much useless, don't rely on memory.

FWIW
Al

[Russmerle]

Stork recommended everything I would but probably accidentally slipped on not mentioning the rings. Make sure you get good solid quality rings. They don't have to cost $200 either... The only aluminum rings I have are the weaver six bolt tactical rings. For the price they are good on my .308 and haven't slipped. Please invest in an adjustable torque screwdriver (5-60/65 inch pounds or so) and follow manufacturer torque recommendations so you don't ruin a new set of rings with over torque.

Most bases and rings I have are steel. I like the added weight, sturdiness and the bases can be notched or grooved and reblued if the scope bell gets in the way... i did it to a night force mount and you would think it was designed that way. plus it made me feel like a did something productive, like not having to buy taller rings ;)

[yobuck]

Now where in hell did i put that log book? lol

[Turbolung]

Interesting thought on building on the 270..but its an old Stevens model and was kind of an inheritance..fam rifle kinda deal. I like the 243 cause its always a readily available cartridge. Part of the desire to relaod to reduce ammo cost so o can shoot as much as I wanna without feeling like I set a dollar on fire every time I pull the trigger lol but also for the ability to be in control of my ammo supply. With whats going on these days, that's important to me. Feel free to read into that, its important to me. I also desire to do it for the reason brother Foxx mentioned. I had never thought of the satisfaction of taking a deer with a bullet I built, but really like that. I am totally on board with quality rings and mounts and use a one piece mount dang near every time, and if not, its top shelf mounts and rings. Leopold is by far my favorite scope and agree with every word you said about them. Oh, your right about the HB Russ..learned that today at the gun shop. Looks like I'm going to have to settle a little or I will end up holding out until the whole thing bits a back burner to other things lol im OK with that cause I know any Savage rifle is gonna get me very close to my goal and I can always change the barrel and stock later. You Fellers are top notch and I greatly appreciate you sharing your wisdom with me..too bad none of ta live in KY. Couldn't get any better than to be able to shoot with the likes of y'all lol

[rfd12fv]

imho, it's very hard to beat the .243win for most everything - accuracy, hunting varmints/deer/hogs, a fine long range round, plus it's easy to get ammo and loading components. barrel length won't matter all that much. a heavy barrel might be nice to have.

[yobuck]

Interesting thought on building on the 270..but its an old Stevens model and was kind of an inheritance..fam rifle kinda deal. I like the 243 cause its always a readily available cartridge. Part of the desire to relaod to reduce ammo cost so o can shoot as much as I wanna without feeling like I set a dollar on fire every time I pull the trigger lol but also for the ability to be in control of my ammo supply. With whats going on these days, that's important to me. Feel free to read into that, its important to me. I also desire to do it for the reason brother Foxx mentioned. I had never thought of the satisfaction of taking a deer with a bullet I built, but really like that. I am totally on board with quality rings and mounts and use a one piece mount dang near every time, and if not, its top shelf mounts and rings. Leopold is by far my favorite scope and agree with every word you said about them. Oh, your right about the HB Russ..learned that today at the gun shop. Looks like I'm going to have to settle a little or I will end up holding out until the whole thing bits a back burner to other things lol im OK with that cause I know any Savage rifle is gonna get me very close to my goal and I can always change the barrel and stock later. You Fellers are top notch and I greatly appreciate you sharing your wisdom with me..too bad none of ta live in KY. Couldn't get any better than to be able to shoot with the likes of y'all lol

Look at it as your only (borrowing) the action. You can always put it back just the way it was if you keep the old parts.
Another good option would be a 6.5x06 which would even allow you to use all the 270 brass youve been saving.

[Russmerle]

Yobuck has a good point... Savages are like Legos for adults; the Chevy "small block" of the gun world. All you need is an action, barrel, torque wrench and headspace gauges and its back to original... I watched a group of fellers adjust rifle headspace from their Reese hitch lol

[yobuck]

Yobuck has a good point... Savages are like Legos for adults; the Chevy "small block" of the gun world. All you need is an action, barrel, torque wrench and headspace gauges and its back to original... I watched a group of fellers adjust rifle headspace from their Reese hitch lol

A golf bag full of barrels, one action, and a couple tools and your ready for anything. lol Well almost.