Verdict is in: Nephew loves the rifle; trigger sucks

Put down a critter at about 250 yards with the stock package rifle and scope. Impressive shot. He hit the boiler room, but was a little behind where he'd aimed.
Said the trigger was HEAVY. Knew it at sight in, but figured out in the field it wouldn't be noticeable. It was.

Uncle Mark being a Savage guy was immediately asked about the trigger. Told them mine are much older, and not familiar with the Axis'. Also said I know a site where advice (and BS) is free and plentiful. :)

I'd replaced my factory 16's with a Rifle Basix many years ago, extremely pleased with it, and also perused the trigger spring mod on the site. Can't remember the author, but seemed easy enough. Chatter indicates accu-triggers currently aren't available.

My brother in law and nephew are casual hunters, the rifle comes out opening day of season, and is retired when tags are filled, so safety is of the utmost concern with a recommendation. They aren't opposed to a new trigger, but free (spring job) would be their preferred option.

Search here for the tuning options. Some folks clip about half a coil of spring at a time until they reach what they want. Others (me) replace the factory spring with a roll pin (crush fit) or a 10/24 screw in the hole and add a spring from a ball point pen. The one I did for a friend went down to 3.25# which suited my buddy. We could have gone lower, but I only had one spring that fit at the time and did not want to go too far. By removing the factory spring, he can always put it back if he ever needs factory service.

I replaced mine with a SAV-1 Rifle Basix. My thinking was that I could always put the factory trigger back in if I wanted to sell it. I love it with this trigger and don't know how you could lighten up the factory trigger and find it this good. I didn't mind the weight of the factory trigger so much as the creep and how it caught about 5 times before it would release. I have my Rifle Basix set to about 2.5 lbs and I love it. way better than my Accutrigger.

G

You can do a lot to help the trigger feel better simply by polishing the surfaces that rub together and shimming the side-to-side slop.

I did the spring replacement/shim down to 3.31 lbs from 5.51 lbs seemed the frugal thing. Might try a replacement someday but I've put a good 200 rounds down the pipe since the mods and am much happier with the rifle. I could have easily gone lighter but that seems like a safe zone @3lbs+ and my kids use it a lot so I didn't risk any less. There is some slight creep but with a little more work it can be improved. Just can't help think how far the cost of an aftermarket trigger could go towards a new barrel or the .308 Model 10 FCXP3 I know I need next.