It's not a bad plan at all. The factory sporter barrel cut short might seem a bit "whippy", but aside from that it should shoot well. You could also look in the marketplace here and find a used factory heavy barrel and cut that for not a ton of cash.

Depending on the stock, there is a good amount of wood to take off and reconfigure for a heavier barrel when the time comes.

Quote Originally Posted by daddyusmaximus View Post
Thing of beauty. Guys, these are some wicked looking rifles here. I'm planning on doing the same thing to my first Savage, an Axis my wife bought for me. Going with a Boyd's Heritage stock to pay homage to the fancy hunting rifles I used to lust after as a young one, but with the short barrel and muzzle break for a can. Not sure it will look as sexy with the lightweight barrel, but I want to see what the factory barrel can do before I drop money on a new one. If it don't shoot well, it'll get a fatter tube anyway. Thanks for the inspiration.