The idea that so many above were so quick to accept this lack of quality control as "normal" is a bit disturbing to say the least.[/QUOTE]

That's because this has become "normal" to some extent in recent years. The last three Savages I've bought all looked like that. All are good shooters, around MOA at least. All are .308's, and two had chatter marks not quite that bad but still visible to the naked eye. The other one, a 10FP, looked identical to the photos in the OP. When you run a brass brush through it, the cleaning rod hums due to the vibration. Yet, it shoots very well, sub-moa out to 600 yds, which is the farthest I can shoot. I've shot .8-" groups at 300 yds with that barrel. It does foul a lot, no surprise there. But like most Savages, the fouling seems to help accuracy if anything. I still clean it after every 50-100 rounds with Wipe-Out. My point is that, while it may be unsightly, it's not necessarily going to make it a poor shooter. I'd give it a try before sending it back.