No problem with short actions at all. Generally more lightweight, which is great on a elk rifle. There's still the 7-08 and the .308. Those are fine elk cartridges with the right bullets all the way to 400 yards. The short mags will get you even more.

Aftermarket barrels for Savage are easy to find. You'll have a hard time finding a lightweight stock. McMillan, Manners, and Stockade are some of the few options. If I ever try to really squeeze accuracy out of my model 16 I'll put it in a Stockade.