Savage Axis Review.
 

I've seen alot of people asking questions about the Savage axis, because its a fairly new gun there doesnt seem to be alot of reviews on them so I thought I'd review the one I just bought.

I bought the Axis because I wanted a gun that I could leave in my service truck for shooting wolves. It needed to be cheap and it needed to be durable. I bought an Axis in .223 with a scope included for about $350 and after a few weeks these are my thoughts on it.

The good:
First and formost this thing is way more acurate than I expected! I'm shooting the absolute cheapest bulk amo I can find and this thing will still shoot 1.5" groups at 200 yards pretty consistantly. I hate to say it but my cheap "truck gun" is actualy probably the most acurate rifle I own. I'm not crazy about the way the stock looks but I like the way it feels better than the standard Savage stock. The gun is well ballanced and seems rugged enough to survive many years behind the seat of an oilfield truck. The scope isnt great but its good enough for my needs.

The mehhh...
The trigger is pretty bad. Its not any worse than most factory triggers I've had though and a little better than some. I think its probably one of the uglyest guns on the market, but thats a matter of taste. The saftey was almost a deal breaker for me, its big and its plastic and its ugly. It does its job but untill I actualy shot the thing I had a few second thoughts because I hated the safety so much. The ejection port is pretty small, not as small as a Tika t3 but trying to load a .223 shell directly into the chamber is still pretty awkward.

Conclusion..
In all this gun is entirely good enough to handle many years of use and abuse, it is about as good as anything else on the market that is being sold as a "budget rifle". Its better than lots of them and is way cheaper than almost all of them. Although the Axis is a good gun at an even better price its biggest downfall is that you have to compare it to the other Savage models which are very good as well and IMO the Axis' steepest competition. The Stevens 200 and Savage 111 are better guns IMO. The Stevens doesnt have a clip and it didnt come in a package deal which would have made it enough more money by the time I got a scope on it that I went with the Axis. I seriously concidered getting a Savage 111 package which was only 100 bucks more but the smallest caliber it came in was .243 and I realy wanted a .223. I'm realy happy with my Axis but if I was buying a bigger calliber I would have deffinatly went with the 111, the Stevens is also probably a little better quality as well but all 3 guns are close enough that the choice would realy come down to individual preferance.

I bought the axis in a 30-06 and I love it. Its light enough to pack through the bush, I find it very accurate and even the action is fairly smooth. I like the looks of them but I got the one with the camo pattern. As for recoil I don't find it to bad. I will be buying another one in either the 223 or 22-250. and will be buying the wife one in a 25-06.
In my opinion if your on a budget this is the way to go. The way I look at is the deer don't care how much you spent on the rifle.

Andy

What is the scope that they are packaged with?

A bushnell banner I believe.

Andy

I was thinking about a package in the 30-06 so may have to hav a closer look at it. Thanks for the review and info.

I don't want to start any wars but my old man just bought a cooper .270 and put a leupold vx3 on it and my little brothers axis .270 package are equally accurate! i didn't believe it till I shot both last week! The axis was 1/10 the price and damn it shoots!:)

When I was at the range a few days ago a lady had one in 7-08. She graciously let me try it out. Very nice and easy to shoot. I was curious about these as they make them in youth size and young shooters can be rough on guns. The weight was feather weight and all controls seemed the right size for youths. The safety was big and the mag release was easy to use. I wondered about the life of one of these as it seemed fairly plastic. I guess for the money one can't go wrong... or maybe.

I'll dig this thread up in awhile and give an update on how the Axis is holding up. Its going to take a fair amount of punishment year round and will be a good indication of how they hold up. Like I said I think some of Savages other budget guns are better built enough to be better value despite costing slightly more, depending on what your looking for.

My Edge/Axis in 30'06 has a number of issues. I wouldn't recommend them to anyone. I love my Savage 111 though.

Is yours the edge or the axis?

Andy

I picked up an axis package in .270 about 2 months ago. I've sighted it in and took it sheep hunting last week. No luck with the sheep, but the rifle is light and easy to carry - especially backpacking up a mountain for four days straight. One thing I noticed is that if you put a bi-pod on it then it will greatly throw the gun of balance (front heavy) because the stock is hollow. I don't think there is a better set-up for the price. The scope is pretty basic, but it works fine up to 200 yds. I will likely be replacing it but I'm in no rush.

i got the axis package in 223 and mine shoots the cheap ammo within minute of coyote to 400 yards. the trigger is on the heavy side no doubt but for its intended purpose i have been very happy with mine. A great value for a coyote gun that dont break the bank.

gilly

Most guns shoot cheap ammo well because they are usually moderate loads, not trying to push the envelope.

I have one too
 

It really shoots, so I didn't like the trigger at all, I wish I had an accu trigger, but you can't retro fit one. Thanks to advice I have got here a new trigger is coming in the mail, I'll let you know how it all goes, they say it is easy to install, we'll see.

I bought a Millett tactical scope and I can't wait to get the new trigger.

The coyotes will love it!

I'll agree with that, as well I think it is easyer to manifacture simple bullet designs more consistantly than the more complicated designs often used in premium amo. However I've found that bulk amo is often less acurate, my suspicion is that the powder charge is not as carefully monitered or QC checks are not done as often on bulk amo. Even with bulk pack amo mine shoots impressively well.

I bought this rifle chambered in the 25-06 a couple weeks ago. Just a heads up, the felt recoil on this rifle is considerably more then on the exact same rifle chambered in .308 I bought for my father. It packs quite a kick surprisingly. But other then the usual trigger complaints, I love it! 309 + GST at wholesale... can't beat that!

The scope is a Banner.

The scope is absolutely not a banner!!!!'

I own this Rifle I really like it , nice and light Scope came off instantly , only bad thing I have to say is that the mounts were loose when I got them took a little tightening . But shes good to go and is now grouping 5 shots and a quarter covers the grouping at 150 yards off a bench rest . I got the 308 . The one thing I also found is that rifle sure does not like the Federal ammo . So I went back to old faithful Hornady Custom . Im very happy with my new rifle .

"The scope on it is absolutely not a Banner!"


The scope on mine is a bushnell, the exact same bushnell that comes on a 111 package although both guns also come with a simmons scope sometimes too. I had thought that my scope was a banner, since you seem to know that its not could you tell us how you know that and possibly what the scope actualy is if it isnt a banner? As well it would be helpfull if you elaborated on what kind of problems you had with your Axis. I'm not saying your wrong but blurting out single sentance posts with no explanation on your opinion isnt very helpfull.

The scope is a Bushnell sharpshooter. You can tell because of the American style fixed focus ocular piece. Also, banners are shaped differently and say banner in gold letters around the objective end. The Bushnell sharpshooter is not sold retail. Its a crappy, crappy oem only product.

My edge had a misaligned barrel/receiver which meant that in order to get the rifle to bore sight at 100 yards the elevation had to be absolutely maxed and they let it leave the factory like that.

I fixed it by shimming the rear base and lapping the rings to that angle but the crappy aluminum base screw stripped in the process.

All in all, the savage 111 is vastly superior craftsmanship and design. It has an adjustable trigger which I brought down to about 2-3lbs. Adjustable with one turn of a screw and a few drop/slam fire tests.

It has no plastic working parts like the magazine release.

The recoil pad is easily replaceable with aftermarket options unlike the bizarrely installed Axis' recoil pad.

Each caliber in the 111/11 is manufactured for rather than having a universal magazine, stock, receiver, etc as it is on the Axis.

That's why the trigger guard is separate from the stock on the axis, to adjust the size of the mag well. Why would anyone want such a huge bolt throw and receiver and scope base muting length for something like a 223 or 308? It completely defeats the purpose.

Even if I ignore the problems with my specific gun, the axis cuts just a few too many corners to reach rock bottom dollar. The 111 seems to be the perfect compromise between cost and quality while still maintaining a certain minimum level of the latter. The Axis crosses the line from 'simply designed, good value' to 'cheap'.

Does that answer your question?


Note, on my Axis, I upgraded the scope to a banner and on my 111 to a Elite 3200 using Burris Z-Rings.

Also, Simmons was bought by Bushnell before the Axis made it to market so no Axis has ever shipped with a Simmons. Some of the older 111 packages have, though. Absolutely no current ones do.

Here's a link to the Bushnell sharpshooter. It's OEM cost is less than $20.

http://www.opticsplanet.com/reviews/...sh-763943.html

i picked up the 111 in 30-06
so far so good, haven't harvested any animals with it, but its definitely grouping good, even with cheap ammo

Thanks, that is some good info there. I completely agree with you on the 111 vs Axis comparison myself. My reasons for choosing it over the 111 and stevens 200 I already outlined. So far mine has been good enough that I dont regret it but other than my particular situation I cant think of any good reason not to get a 111 instead.

I bought a .308 edge and it came with a simmons scope I believe they are the 8 point! When i got mine every one on the shelf had simmons on them! Also If you have any problems with these guns you can send them back to ontario and instead of fixing them they usually send you a new 1 in the first year! :)

lol

Not calling you out or anything but that is simply extreme accuracy! It does that consistently with a 6lb trigger and factory ammo???? If the quarter covers 5 holes at 150yards that would translate to around 1/4 MOA...

Really? Okay, maybe the first run had Simmons then. Bushnell bought Simmons around the same time the Edge came out. I remember an interview with one of the Edge designers who said that they would be sold with Bushnell since Simmons was recently acquired. I'm betting not too many got out the door with Simmons on them.

Mine was a first run one and it had a Bushnell on it.

Guns and ammo july 2010 issue has a really good review and write up about these rifles! That is the reason i bought mine and yes I upgraded the scope! I put a bushnell 3200 4-12 on my .308 and she is deadly accurate!

That is not the scope on my rifle sir. Sorry to disagree...

What is not the scope on your rifle? You just quoted me saying it's NOT a banner.

Did you mean to address my post where I said it's a sharpshooter?

Because it is.

Here, Look at Cabelas website. You can see clear as day it's a sharpshooter.
http://www.cabelas.ca/index.cfm?page...=1952&ID=26841

Unless maybe they changed it in the last week or something...

Does your scope have big white BUSHNELL letters on the ocular (eye) piece? If so, it's a sharpshooter.

If not, describe it or post a picture. There are only so many Bushnell scopes in production. I'll tell you what it is (hint: it's a sharpshooter) ;)