New old guy with a used Axis

Last year I gave my Grandson my old Coyote rifle. I thought it would be as easy as going to the Local LGS to get a replacement.
But after a summer of riots, Covid, an election that went against us, etc..... Any rifle was hard to get and anything in 223 was non existent! Everyone was out of stock, I put my name on several lists but by the time they came in the price had doubled!
So I settled on a like new Axis.

My hope is I can get it to shoot well with 36 gr Barnes Varmint Grenades. They are lead free [ required here in CA] and I have a good supply of them.
I have a 1 in 12" Handi Rifle, and a 1 in 12" AR that both shoot them. I won't know what the barrel twist is on the Axis till its delivered late this week.
I'm going to be adding a wood laminate stock, I want it to shoot well off of sticks, a varmint rest, prone or with a hasty sling. I think the sticks and sling will put too much pressure on the plastic stock. I have another plastic stock on a 6.5x55 Mauser but the material seems much denser. A tight sling won't pull that fore end out of line at all. But the Axis I can bend easy enough by hand.
Do any of you have any experience with Boyds AT 1 or Feather weight thumbhole stocks? Any problems shooting them in prone, or standing positions? Any problems shooting them from the bench?

Any way I can't wait to get back out there! The Coyotes have missed me! DR

Welcome from colorful Colorado. And good questions as I have a new in box Axis manufactured in 2012 that I am considering carving my own stock for it as the plastic just seems cheap and flimsy.
I've got a beautiful piece of spalted maple, an awesome chunk of twisted maple and some wavy grained walnut. Now just trying to figure out which will look the best.
Or should I use a piece for the 1963 built 110 and which one? So many choices!

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The only problem I see is the flimsy stock if it is one of the first ones. They say if it is supported too far on the fore end it can distort, touch the barrel and affect accuracy. I am not positive about this but I think Savage changed the stock on the later ones. I bought mine in September and although the stock is fairly flexible, it is nowhere near as bad as I had been led to believe. The trigger was also much better than what everyone says too but maybe I just got lucky. It isn't great from the factory but I got it working very well now with just a spring change. Mine shoots between .3 MOA and .7 MOA as a rule. I am sure the bigger groups are my fault and the very small ones are me getting lucky. I think it is probably about a consistent .5 MOA gun with a better shooter

Welcome to the FORUM

The new ones are 1:9.

https://www.savageshooters.com/conte...t-Rate-History

Did you special order that AR barrel?

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Originally Posted by prdatr

The new ones are 1:9.

https://www.savageshooters.com/conte...t-Rate-History

Did you special order that AR barrel?

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I did not special order the barrel. I bought the upper and lower receivers and the furniture, the rest was built from parts. I have a friend that builds them. I have never fallen in love with the AR but everybody needs at least one! It has a short barrel and is LOUD! I think it will get converted to 9mm and be kept as a PC carbine. That should make it more fun to shoot!
The Axis is an Axis 1 [ pre Accuetrigger] It doesn't look like it had been shot much at all. But that doesn't tell me how long it had sat in someone's safe. The stock feels flexible [ Tupperware like] I have an other plastic stock on a Mauser that feels stable. Because of the brush I hunt in I shoot a lot from sitting and standing positions. I use a hasty sling to help steady the rifle. The Mauser's stock has never been pulled out of line by the sling But I have a feeling that the side pull on Savages stock will pull the stock in contact with the barrel. But I'll know for sure on Sat when I can get it out of CA's 10 day jail!
The Barnes unleaded bullets look to be about the same length as a 55 gr FMJ so hopefully they will shoot no matter what twist they go in. And if they don't I'll find another bullet that will. DR

Mr Sneerdly, I would be ecstatic with .5 MOA! I'll be happy with 1". I got the rifle home today, And the stock at the tip can be pushed to contact the barrel with one finger. Shooting off of sticks or with a sling for support is not going to add anything. On the good side the trigger is not horrible [ 5 lbs ish] No side play, not much creep. So a return spring and an over travel stop may be all it needs. [ trigger wise]
Boyds is back ordered on the two stocks I like. Feather Weight Thumbhole or the Thumbhole AT 1. The only reason I hesitate on the Featherweight is trying to make a shot left handed will be difficult. But I like its look and feel. [ I have one thats close on a 22 Marlin.] DR

I have a Pro Varmint on mine. I shoot mostly from a bench or bipod so it works well enough. If I were to get another it would be the AT1 just because I like adjustable cheek pieces. I even cut into the stock on my 12BVSS to make one.

Yes, the plastic stock on the older Axis rifles was like a pool noodle toy. Didn't take much pressure at all for it to touch the barrel. Before I changed stocks I opened up the barrel channel and was careful to not apply too much pressure to the front. I'd set the bench rest so it was under the barrel nut (right in front of the magazine).

Until you can get a stock you can 'fix' the plastic one. Get a steel or aluminum rod and inlet it into the fore end. Secure with bedding compound of choice. If you want to keep it light then use a thick wall Al tube.

Thanks Charlie, I may go with the AT1 because I could shoot it left handed if the shot presented itself. If the rain clears up I'll get out and shoot some today. And see how far I can push the stock. I'm pretty sure a sling is not going to work out but shooting sticks placed close to the mag? I'm willing to try. If nothing else I'll have a baseline from before any improvements. I'll also try several positions for a front rest. That will probably tell me the most about the stock.

YW. Good luck with it.

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Originally Posted by dangerranger

Mr Sneerdly, I would be ecstatic with .5 MOA! I'll be happy with 1". I got the rifle home today, And the stock at the tip can be pushed to contact the barrel with one finger. Shooting off of sticks or with a sling for support is not going to add anything. On the good side the trigger is not horrible [ 5 lbs ish] No side play, not much creep. So a return spring and an over travel stop may be all it needs. [ trigger wise]
Boyds is back ordered on the two stocks I like. Feather Weight Thumbhole or the Thumbhole AT 1. The only reason I hesitate on the Featherweight is trying to make a shot left handed will be difficult. But I like its look and feel. [ I have one thats close on a 22 Marlin.] DR

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You might consider putting something in the fore end of the stock to stiffen it. I put Rockite in mine and it helped. Some go so far as to put some small aluminum or fiberglass rods lengthwise in the stock to stiffen it also but I don't think this is really needed. On the trigger, if you can find a varmint spring for the 110 models it makes a huge difference. On the 110s they say it goes to 1 1/2# but I guess the Axis trigger is made a little differently and mine is below 1#. I've never really had a high dollar trigger to compare it to but it is plenty good enough for me and an improvement over what came. I think it is a waste of money to spend extra on the Axis II just to get the trigger since it is still too heavy on the lowest setting and needs work to make it what I consider acceptable..

I got a chance to shoot it today! And I am very happy! The wind was blowing, and the 100 yard line was a mud hole, but I made the best of it.
i shot a few groups to zero the scope, and these two were the last I shot

https://lh3.google.com/pw/ACtC-3dN7S...-no?authuser=0

These measured .080 and .073 [ just over and just under 3/4"!] This was with off the shelf Rem 55 gr FMJ ammo. These were shot at 95 yards to keep me out of the mud. Not bad 5 round groups.
I think I'm really going to like this gun.
I did set the front rest just ahead of the mag. I tried one group with the front rest out on the forend and it strung them vertical and off to the 2:00. So a new stock is going to be the first improvement! [ and I like the look and feel of wood].
If I can do this with off the shelf ammo, and less than ideal conditions, I'm going to like this one! DR

Congratulations. Now you know why so many of us like our Axis rifles.

That's an excellent start. I am sure you can do even better with high quality handloads and more familiarity of the rifle. I think they are a great rifle for the money.

I have to say I am really happy with it so far. It does have some quirks. It has the longest bolt throw of any short action I have used. And it has not ever come completely clean. When I cleaned before shooting it , I never did get a clean patch from the barrel. No matter how much scrubbing I still come back with carbon fouling. After shooting I cleaned till I got no traces of copper and left it at that. Still if I run a wet patch down the barrel and let it set a few min. the next patch will come out black. Without a bore scope I'm guessing it has a rough spot somewhere down bore.

But if it doesn't hurt the way it shoots I'm just going to be happy and keep shooting it! DR

I think if you used a bore scope you'd see it has rough spots all the way down the bore :)

FYI, all Axis are long actions. They just change the magazines and bottom plate for shorter rounds. If you look at the back of the magazine you'll find a blocked off section. One of the 'fudges' so short rounds will cycle.

I got a chance to shoot some more with the Axis. With its preferred Rem 55 gr FMG's it still shot 3/4 "or so. But when I switched to the Barnes 36 gr Varmint Grenades over TAC powder the Groups opened to 1 1/4 and 1 1/2". This is a proven load in a Handi Rifle. But the Savage did not like it. I'll try pushing them a little faster before trying other powders and see what that does.
I need to find a lead free bullet and load, Has anyone had success with lead free bullets in the Savage axis? Thanks DR

I wonder if yours has a real long throat like mine does. Mine doesn't seem to like the light bullets but it is a ridiculous distance to the lands with them. I don't think getting them extremely close is as important as I once thought but with the short, light bullets it is really a huge distance away.

I don't know how long the throat is, but lead free bullets seem to need more bullet jump to get them started than lead based. In some of my larger guns 50 to 80 thousands is not over doing it. It seemed like a lot at first but after I got used to it....
I do need to find a Lead Free load that will work in this gun, So I'll play with this and see if I can do better, Try a faster powder, and then try other bullets. I'll find something that works. DR

Very pleased with my .223 Axis using 69gr BTHP over Varget