Savage in 7-08

[Szumi]

Has anyone built a silhouette rifle in 7-08 recently? I'd like to plan a head to the time where my small bore scores improve enough that shooting high power is reasonable. I also need a decent rifle for northern Michigan whitetail at longer than swamp distances.

I'm mostly interested in rifles built on Savage actions. Their barrel nut system intrigues me with ideas of trying other chamberings.

Thanks,

Szumi

[Trent]

Szumi, is your question more about the 7-08 cartridge, or the Savage action? The 7-08 has a very very very proven track record and you will find tons of threads referring to it here in the HP forum.

The Savage following is still relatively small in silhouette. The Remington 700 is the most common action on the line. I have two Savages, one for silhouette and one for f-class. They are great rifles and are becoming a little more popular. I have heard a few comments about people wanting to try the Lady Hunter out for silhouette. It has a high cheekrest to accommodate the longer neck that ladies generally have. The stock looks well suited for silhouette.

[Jason]

The design of the Lady Hunter stock is great for silhouette. Unfortunately they only make it in the smaller size for ladies.

[Szumi]

I've pretty well settled on the 7-08 based on a number of considerations that likely have been hashed and rehashed before.

I saw that Lady Hunter a while back and was all charged up until I realized there wasn't a Gentleman Hunter version that would fit 6 foot tall manly me. If Savage would make one that fit the parameters of hunter class silhouette, I think they would have a good seller. I really like that stock design with the sloping comb.

As it is, I'll likely end up buying a rifle with a stock I throw away because their current offerings don't look like anything I want. The Boyds' Prairie Hunter stock looks like a possibility.

I still need to decipher the differences between Savage 10,11,12,14, 16, ect. I know if it is a 1xx it is a long action.

[Bigfoot]

Keep in mind that if you are sure the stock isn't the way to go for you that you may want to go the custom route. Evelin or Pharr or Steve Wooster can put you in something that will fit and function significantly better than a factory gun which you'll have to do a lot of aftermarket work with.

I did the math on the custom defiance rifle that Loren Peter built for me and based on all the options I came out a few dollars ahead than if I had just got a rem 700 and then customized it.

The advantage of a custom stock is your not compromising on anything. It's just an extension of you. Add to this having the trigger you want. The barrel you want and in my case having a single shot hunter rifle and I can honestly say I had absolutely no buyers remorse.

Just my $0.02 worth there. Ymmv.

[malinois]

I built a silhouette rifle on a savage action and love it.....and when its not shooting silhouettes I swap the barrel , put it in a diffrent stock and shoot something else with it. But if you have a remington action you can now do it to some degree with the new barrel nut set up that they offer for the 700 action after market except that its not as eazy as the savage...because on the savage you can also swap bolt heads and go to diffrent caliber classes on the remigton you would have to swap the boly body or have a spare extra complete bolt that has been fitted. as for the 7-08 its a great round for the game as are others in the 6.5mm family....260...6.5X47..and so on.

[Heavybarrell]

After reading this post, I went to Gunbroker.com. The Savage 11 Lady Hunter is a very nice looking rifle, High cheek piece, and comes in 7MM-08 and 6.5 Creedmore calibers for HP silhouette. The only downfall-20" barrels. I think I'm seeing a new project start to appear!

[Jerry G]

I would go with the 6.5...................... That should get the goo-roo fired up.

If the stock is a little short, add a piece on to fit you.

[Bigfoot]

I'm with Jerry 100% on going the 6.5 route. The bullet selection with higher bc's is going to result in better scores and less banging you around. I know we don't shoot off the bench in this game but knowing that my 6.5 could fare well in a br match gives me the confidence to concentrate on the fundamentals and not worry about bad shots being caused by anything other than me.

[Bob Mc Alice]

Umm..gentlemen. Apparently you missed the part about Szumi looking for a 7-08 Savage. He has stated that he has already chosen the 7-08 for good reasons. He wants the ability of taking big northern swamp bucks at longer ranges than normal. Plus, he has a great cartridge for silhouette rams, too. This will be a nice dual purpose rifle. Szumi, you done your homework well.

[Jerry G]

BOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What is a long range for a "northern swamp buck"? 150 yards? That would be 30-30 range.

[Bob Mc Alice]

Hey Littlefoot, go back to the original post and read it. He wants a HP silhouette gun and a deer rifle. The .30-30 is anemic and almost as old as you. The 7-08 is the answer to harvest the venison and steel.

[Jerry G]

You can "harvest"anything you want to with a 6.5. Chickens, pigs, turkey, rams, deer, elk, buffalo, anything you want. You don't need no stinkin 7