I bought an Axis II XP (.223) a few weeks back mostly because the Savage MK II (.22lr bull barrel) I got last year I think is an amazing rifle (for the price). Although I think my Axis II will eventually become the rifle I was hoping for when I bought it, it did come with some issues which IMO make it much less of a value than the MK II I bought last year:

1. The stock - It's not a bad looking stock and the fit is pretty decent, but it flexes very easily and feels cheap. The stock for the smaller caliber MK II is more solid and rigid. I'm on the road to fixing this. Bought a Boyds thumbhole stock, which fixes the flex, and will do some tweaks to the stock so it fits me better.

2. Savage QC - When I went to remove the stock scope (in preparation for my new Vortex that arrives on Monday) I noticed something a bit off. The front ring was mounted in such a way that only a quarter of the ring was actually connected to the rifle! See illustration below.

3. The magazine - But my absolute biggest gripe with the Axis II is that darn magazine. I have no issues loading it (as others seem to have) but getting it to properly seat in the bottom of the receiver is difficult, and once in place it still seems to move. But even once I think I have it in place, rounds occasionally don't load properly. I hope to either buy a sled or make one, which I hope will fix this. If it doesn't is there anything a good gunsmith can do to fix the loading issues?