Savage Axis II accuracy issues

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KyleWoods

New member
Hi guys, having some issues with my father in law's Savage Axis II in 22-250. Got the gun last fall and zeroed it at 100 yards with 45 gr Winchester ammo (sold in a box of 40). Killed probably 10 groundhogs with it longest being 160 yards. Around the time he got that I bought a Savage 12 FCV in 204. Right off the bat I noticed the trigger pull between the two was dramatically different. I'd have to say mine is around 2 pounds while his was around 4 or 5. I adjusted the accu-trigger in his to its lowest setting. I torqued both action screws to 35 in-lb during reassembly. As a side note, even at the lowest setting it still isn't as light as my model 12's which I found odd because they have the same trigger don't they?

This spring I decided to zero the rifle at 200 yards and here is where my frustration starts. Both times I've gone out my groups look more like shotgun patterns (4+ inch at 200 yards). The first time I went out it was moderately windy so I chalked it up to the wind. Then tonight I went out again, calm night and same thing happened. I have a few culprits in mind but wanted to get your opinions.

1. The barrel is not centered in the stock, the stock touches the barrel the last two inches on the right side. I'm thinking this could be why I'm seeing horizontal stringing. I plan on taking the stock off and sanding the right side so the barrel is free floating.

2. As I'm squeezing the trigger I notice that the gun's POA moves down an 1-1.5". Because of this I find myself having to adjust the gun as I'm squeezing so that the crosshairs are on the bullseye when the gun goes off. I kind of noticed this when shooting at 100 yards but it is a lot more noticeable now that I'm at 200 yards, obviously. Could this be caused by the flimsy [beeep] stock as well?

3. My action screws are torqued wrong, putting the action in a bind?

4. The gun just doesn't like this ammo?

I should mention I'm shooting from a bipod and using a protektor rear bag. I've also checked and double checked that mounts and rings are tight.

From what I've seen and read this gun should be capable of MOA accuracy. Maybe I'm just spoiled from my 204's 1/2-3/4 MOA accuracy.
 
Try a 50gr v max. I've seen several 22-250 love that bullet. Package scope and rings junk them as mine lost zero often 3 shots and rings were junk too. Stock sucks so ditch bipod and put a front bag just kissing the front of the mag. Mine touches holes with a bag but all over with a pod.
 
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Forgot to mention I put a Mueller Eraticator 8.5-25x50 on it, used the rings that came with it. I have the same scope on my 204 and have had good results.
 
Shim and trim on the trigger. The rough long pull is causing that much POA deviation is never going to be conducive to accurate shooting. Not using a bi-pod is a Band-Aid fix to a bigger problem. Either bed and float the factory stock or, better yet, replace the stock entirely. You should be able to shoot the rifle how you want and not have to dance around the issues. Fix the issues as a whole versus quick fixes that do not address the entirety of the issue.

I would also swap in another known-good scope, just to eliminate that possibility.
 
Originally Posted By: pahntr760Shim and trim on the trigger. The rough long pull is causing that much POA deviation is never going to be conducive to accurate shooting. Not using a bi-pod is a Band-Aid fix to a bigger problem. Either bed and float the factory stock or, better yet, replace the stock entirely. You should be able to shoot the rifle how you want and not have to dance around the issues. Fix the issues as a whole versus quick fixes that do not address the entirety of the issue.

I would also swap in another known-good scope, just to eliminate that possibility.

Could you explain what you mean by shim and trim the trigger?

I have thought about just buying a Boyd's laminate stock, for starters they look a lot nicer, plus they are stiffer than that plastic crap.
 
Originally Posted By: KyleWoodsOriginally Posted By: pahntr760Shim and trim on the trigger. The rough long pull is causing that much POA deviation is never going to be conducive to accurate shooting. Not using a bi-pod is a Band-Aid fix to a bigger problem. Either bed and float the factory stock or, better yet, replace the stock entirely. You should be able to shoot the rifle how you want and not have to dance around the issues. Fix the issues as a whole versus quick fixes that do not address the entirety of the issue.

I would also swap in another known-good scope, just to eliminate that possibility.

Could you explain what you mean by shim and trim the trigger?

I have thought about just buying a Boyd's laminate stock, for starters they look a lot nicer, plus they are stiffer than that plastic crap.

Put a Boyds Prairie Hunter on mine and i love it. Really transforms the rifle.
 
First off: Ditch the bipod while trying to determine a rifle's accuracy capabilities (action and stock). It's just another external variable that can help screw things up. Shoot the rifle off good stable front and rear bags/rests that hold the rifle firmly in place but where the stock isn't flexed or stressed in any way to be on point of aim.

See how it does in that situation without the bipod before you start performing brain surgery on the rifle.

I'm not a Savage fan at all, so I have no idea how an action should be torqued for good accuracy. Normal bolt action torquing does not do it's best when both front and rear screws are torqued the same. Normal is to torque the front screw more than the rear (which should be snug but not as tight as the front screw). This issue is also dependent on how well the action lays in the factory stock. Check for rigidity of the action in the stock without the action screws. Does the barreled action flex/move considerably in the stock without the action screws or does it lay flat and fairly stable in the stock?

Is the scope good? Could it possibly have parallax at 200 yards that you may further contribute to by an inconsistent shooting technique (cheek weld, etc.)?

Are you shooting bullets that should perform well beyond 100 yards or are they possibly marginal at extended ranges in terms of barrel twist?

Just a few things to look at initially. After you figure out if the rifle is performing better or is still not shooting to your liking, then you can start eliminating issues. Trying to do this with the bipod in place is possibly like chasing your tail at this point. Is it the rifle or the bipod?

 
Originally Posted By: KyleWoodsOriginally Posted By: pahntr760Shim and trim on the trigger. The rough long pull is causing that much POA deviation is never going to be conducive to accurate shooting. Not using a bi-pod is a Band-Aid fix to a bigger problem. Either bed and float the factory stock or, better yet, replace the stock entirely. You should be able to shoot the rifle how you want and not have to dance around the issues. Fix the issues as a whole versus quick fixes that do not address the entirety of the issue.

I would also swap in another known-good scope, just to eliminate that possibility.

Could you explain what you mean by shim and trim the trigger?

I have thought about just buying a Boyd's laminate stock, for starters they look a lot nicer, plus they are stiffer than that plastic crap.

There are a few DIY trigger jobs around. Shimming the back of the trigger housing and modifying the pull spring are a couple of these techniques.
 
Own a couple of Axis rifles, a 223 (now a 6x45) and a Axis II 6.5 CM heavy barrel. Shooting from bench rest, had crosshair movement on my targets too. Simply put, the stock flexs. In my humble opinion, the culprit for the flex is the weak stock area where rear of trigger guard part mates to the stock. However you use a bipod and I wouldn't be surprised if the fore end of the stock flexs too.

Have a shooting buddy, another retired guy like me, who has bought at least 4 Axis rifles. Two things he does with a new Axis is: work on/adjust the trigger and puts a Boyd wood stock on it. Chuckle, then he'll probably put a better/heavier barrel on it.....he likes the Axis for its action to play with. Me, I'll tweek the trigger too to reduce its pull and then I'll cut out the receiver portion of the plastic stock, flatten its sides, and then build a wood stock around it. Geeeeee, I no longer have a flex problem and my cross hair doesn't move when I'm pulling the trigger.
 
" As a side note, even at the lowest setting it still isn't as light as my model 12's which I found odd because they have the same trigger don't they?"

Not quite the same trigger. With the heavy barrel Model 12, you can get the trigger down to 1lb. if I remember correctly, while on a regular barrel, 2 1/2lbs is as light as you can go.
 
I worked on this gun some tonight, and took a few pictures

This is a picture of the action sitting in the stock with no action screws in, as you can see it is propped up on the trigger group which is spring loaded. Is this normal? Aside from the trigger group holding up the back end, the action has a good fit in the stock, no rocking or any movement.


Pic of the action torqued down


The part with the arrow on it is what rests on the stock, causing the action to be propped up.


Here is the pic of the stock contacting the barrel


And the after pic after some dremel and sandpaper work


The barrel is now free floated, but I'm not sure it will be enough. I've got a question about action screw torquing. I've heard about everything as far as torque specs, 65 in-lb for both, 65 in the front just snug in the back, hand tight for both. There doesn't seem to be a consistent answer. What say you about this?

I ordered a target spring for the trigger, hopefully that helps to lighten it up some.

Thank you guys for the input and keep it coming, this is the first gun I've ever had the action out of the stock so I'm full of questions.
 
No expert here but my 250 (Rem 700) hated the white box Winchester 45 grain bullets. Shot all over the place. For factory rounds it likes the Hornady 50 grain vmax or 55 grain SP.
 
First, I will say I do not own a Savage Axis, but have a friend that owns an early .223 non Accutrigger that shoots absolutely lights out with basic factory 55gr factory ammo out to 300+ yards.
I had a guy set up next to me the other day at my range with an Axis II the other day. He let me shoot it. I had a few observations.
#1 The stock is absolute 1,000% garbage! It flexes all over the place. Especially in the barrel channel. It's worthless in my opinion. Forget the bipod. Use bags or a rest for accuracy testing. Get a Boyd's stock and that fixes the stock flexing issue issue.
#2 This guy's Axis II had a Weaver Kaspra 3-9x40mm scope and who knows what kind of rings.
To fix this, I would say get a decent scope and more importantly get some quality rings. I'm talking Warne Maxima permanent rings, Burris Sig Zee with the inserts. Rings like that It makes a huge difference, believe me. You will go out of your mind chasing accuracy with cheap rings. I have done it. Mueller optics are OK. I have owned several of them. In my opinion you can do better for about the same money, even a bit less in some cases. Take a look at the Vortex Diamondback line. Much clearer glass than the Mueller. Magnification does not make up for inferior glass in my opinion. That is a hard and expensive lesson that I have learned over the years.
At the very least I would say switch to some quality rings and make sure your bases are loctited and tightened down tight. A huge step up from that would be a 1 piece Picatinny base like the EGW one. You will have much more freedom to place your scope where it suits you better.
Also try some different ammo with different bullet weights. You might just stumble on something that will just shoot the lights out! If you do use only factory ammo do not settle for what the LGS or Walmart has for sale on their shelves. Order online. You will have a much better selection. Also I would suggest if you do not do it now, I would look into getting started in reloading. You will be glad you did..
Hope this helps! Good luck!

Robert
 
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Something you might want to check is the length of the rear action screw. A friend mine had an Axis in .22-250 that was driving him nuts. It wasn't grouping well and had a lot of vertical stringing. He brought it to me and I wrestled with it for two weeks before realizing that the screw was bottoming out before snugging the action down. That accounted for the vertical stringing. I took two full turns off the screw and accuracy settled in to sub-MOA. I had seen issues with Savage rifles and the front action screw being too long, but his was the first with the rear screw being the problem.
 
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