honest opinions on stevens 200

bailebr3

bailebr3

New member
i am looking into a stevens 200 in 223. they are going for $320.00 at a local shop. i am new to the stevens/savage line. so what makes the stevens cheaper? are they decent guns? i want one b/c i cant convince my wife why i need to spend 500 to 600 bucks on a rifle for coyotes:) but i can get away with customizing a rifle a little at a time, so are there aftermarket stocks etc.? any help or opinion welcome.

thanks guys
 
the stevens rifles are great rifles! mine in .22-250 is amazing! they are very light and shoot great! i love them! i think the only major difference in the stevens and svage is the accu-trigger. the stevens dont have it. but the stevens is the best rifle for the money in my opinion
 
There's tons of stuff out there for them. You can find most anything for them. They're basically a Savage model 10.

Nothing wrong with them except the flimsy stock. I have one and it shoots better than it should.

I just read on another forum that Academy sports is running a deal on the Remington SPS for just over $300. For basically the same money, I'd opt for the Remington 700 action everytime FWIW.
 
Kudos to Savage for coming out with a shooter friendly trigger when all the other companies were lawyer proofing their's, but, having said that, I don't care for the Accutrigger. And yes, I have one.

It just doesn't feel right to me.

The Stevens I've got adjusted down nice. Not benchrest nice, but a nice hunting weight for sure.

If I wanted it any better, I'd slap a new trigger in it.

I'll make it official: Stevens 200...King of the cheaper than dirt rifles!
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i looked at academy and couldnt find the rifle for the price? maybe our store is out. i have a rem. 870 that i mainly use for calling but now i have got some land that i could take shots out to 300 to 400 yards( if i wanted to). so thats why i wanted a good rifle but a cheaper one, that i could always customize along the way.
 
I think they're the best of the cheap guns. Like duckdog said, it's based on a Savage model 10. I like the fact that my 22-250 is a 1-12" twist barrel which shoots the 55 and 60 grain plastic tipped bullets better than my Tikka T3 which has a 1-14" twist. My trigger adjusted down to 4 pounds and I did a little honing to the sear to get it real crisp. I don't like a light trigger when hunting with gloves on so 4 pounds is just fine for me.
 
what bullets are everyone shooting with their stevens .223. All I have shot is cheap ones and they won't site in too well
 
I realy like the simplicity of the Savage/Stevens. I have them in 223, 22-204, 24/25-204(two barrels) and a 22-250/250-3000 (again two barrels). All have proved to be very accurate.

AWS
 
well i found a thumbhole stock on stockys! i think i can get away with this:) whats a decent scope for calling...3x9x40 max!
 
Built my 7mm-08, my .260 and my .204 all on Stevens actions. Put Timneys in the 7/08 & the .260 & figured I'd just try tweeking the .204 (factory Stevens trigger)came out VERY close to the Timneys. Spend a little time with it and you won't be disappointed with the Stevens. If your on a "budget" build. Look into the Bushnell Banner scopes. I have them on 4 different rifles & never had a problem with em. Good luck & take lots of progress pictures!
 
My savage mod 11 .223(non-accu-trigger), which is probably the "new" stevens 200 absolutely loves a 52gr a-max over 28.0gr of accurate 2520 powder with a cci primer. 100yrds 3 shot groups are cutting holes. I wouldn't buy the "package gun" again, as the scope is a p.o.s.
 
Okay you wanted an honest opinion and here you go. First off, I have two Stevens 200's. I wouldn't have more than one if I didn't like them. One is a .243 and the other a .223. The trigger on the .223 adjusted down just fine and is a great trigger. The trigger on the .243 did not adjust down far enough and was still quite heavy turned all the way down. So I bought a Sharp Shooters Supply aftermarket trigger and installed it...problem solved, but still was a $100.00 fix. I have adjusted quite a few Stevens 200 triggers, and just like my experience with my two rifles, sometimes you get a good one and sometimes you don't. Kind of a crap shoot there. All of the 200's that I have shot grouped well with a decent trigger pull weight. I have only talked with two friends that had Stevens 200's that wouldn't shoot accurately. One thing there is not getting around though is they have a really cheap (read crappy) synthetic stock. It is flimsy at best. This can easily be replaced with an aftermarket stock. Still, its another $150.00 to $500.00+ fix depending on what brand you buy. So yes, the Stevens is a pretty good gun for the money, but to get it fine tuned it could cost an additional few hundred bucks. One other thing to consider is they have a lousy resale value. But if you can live with the stock and your trigger will adjust down to an acceptable pull weight you just might get away on the cheap. If you don't ever plan on selling it then the resale value is a non-issue as well. They are cheap to get into and fun to trick-out as money permits. Then again I like doing that kind of stuff, therefore I will likely buy a couple more before I'm done. I'm thinking a 25.06 and a 22-250 just might have to join the stable.
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I been reading review's on the so called cheep guns for a few months now. I am planning to purchase the Marlin XS in 243win.

I really wanted to go with a 22-250, in Stevens. But, I kept reading this over an over, as on this thread, wimpy stocks and tough triggers. 200. to 250. make over, might as well buy a Savage to begin with. You can do what ever you want, it's still a 300. gun.

Rumor has it, Marlin is suppose to come out with the smaller cal.s, but has not yet. We are a shotgun only state for deer hunting. This is why I never paid much attention to the 243.

After doing even more reading on that cal., bullet weights start at 55gr. an go right up the ladder.

I don't think I've read a bad review on the XS or the XL series guns. Very accurate, decent adj. trigger and a semi solid stock. For 13 bucks, you can have a camo GUN TAPE job.

What else could you ask for in a cheep gun? This is just my own opinion based on the reviews I've read.
 
I spent $30.00 on a trigger job and cut my barrel off to 18 in. and had it crowned, $10.00. I cut the barrel cause I wanted it shorter, not cause it needed it. It shoots 55gr. V-max into a ragged hole till you get tired of shooting. Stock is a POS, it works for me! Academy has them for $229. as we speak. You can't even buy a Savage action for that. JMO
 
I have one in 223, cool thing about them is they have 1/9 twist barrels so you are able to shoot bullets up to 70 gr. the trigger can be adjusted,fairly easy to get 4lbs or better I stopped at 4 pounds for ease of use with gloves. the stock is fairly easy to stiffin up too. drill out the ribs in the fore end insert a carbon arrow shaft full lenght and epoxy in place. sand down all the mold seam ridges and repaint. My rifle shoots all loads that I have tried at 1" or better this has been 45 gr to 70 gr bullets factory and reloads. It really seems to like the 70 gr speer bullets,ihave used this for coyotes,hogs,and deer with great success.
 
Ive got the stevens 22-250, and its a great gun. mine is very accurate. I can put a group of three all within a square inch. In my opinion its the best gun for the money!!
 
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