First outing with the Savage 110FCP 338Lapua

[Big Dad]

Hello, Big Dad here new to this forum, and have been looking around the net for good reviews on the Savage 110 FCP HS 338 Lapua, as my wife just bought this beast for me for Christmas. What a total mind blower. I was and am still in shock. I pick it up in a few days and have been looking for optic's and reloading goodies that are up to par for my new present. Glad to here you are enjoying the 338. Keep up the good work.

 

[Greyfox]

Hello, Big Dad here new to this forum, and have been looking around the net for good reviews on the Savage 110 FCP HS 338 Lapua, as my wife just bought this beast for me for Christmas. What a total mind blower. I was and am still in shock. I pick it up in a few days and have been looking for optic's and reloading goodies that are up to par for my new present. Glad to here you are enjoying the 338. Keep up the good work.

Just got mine worked out snd shooting .25-.5 MOA at 2700 FPS using 300 Bergers, .025" off the lands, and 89.2 gr of Retumbo. I can get 2750 with 90.5 but accuracy is slightly less and can feel the difference on sizing the brass. Pressure appears OK but at the limit. I get 6 reloads out of zlapua brass before case head thinning with a noticeable ring at the base. My buddy has one as well and neither one of us could get consistent groups using 90 gr of H1000 with high pressure signs above 2700 FPS.I have a NF G7 50mm mounted. Had to lock tight the scope rail which loosened at 50 rounds and play with the bedding screws. Front 40#, rear 25#.also skim coated the bedding blocks. I have about 200 rounds through it and love it!

 

[dstewart51]

I lost track of how many rounds I've put through mine. More then 600, maybe 800? I have measured considerable throat erosion and have to adjust the seating depth each time I load new rounds. Base to Ogive is now 2.850" for .015" off the lands.

Ive also found it is easy to over pressure the Lapua brass. The webbing or solid portion around the flash hole will get hammered and expand slightly with each firing. This is the cause of the brass to stick after reloading it 3 or 4 times. Each time its over-pressured the solid webbing expands and that part of the brass is NOT re-sized in a FL die.

My favorite load is 89gr Retumbo, GM215M Primer, bump the shoulder back .0015" from fired length, trim to 2.715", size the neck for .002" neck tension, 300gr Scenars seated .015" off the lands. 2680fps and very accurate out to 1700 yards. Recorded many hits out to 1900 yards. Leaves a nice group at 1000 yards.

Anything more than 90gr of Retumbo or 92gr of N570 will beat the brass up and cause them to stick after 3 or 4 reloads. I just picked up some Reloaded 33 to try.

Took it out a few days ago with a buddy from Phoenix who has never taken his Remington 700 (308Win) out past 200 yards before. So to start him off we found a good setup at 945 yards. Using shooter my first shot was a miss, elevation looked good but splashed about foot to the right of the steel. Adjusted the scope .2 mils left and the second shot was a near center hit on my steel. I put about 20 more down range and only missed one (flyer? pulled it?).

The large lead splashes are from my 338Lapua, the small spots are from my friends 308.

Before,

Looking down range to the target 945 yards out,

After,


Calculated just shy of 2000ft lbs of energy at the plate for the 338LM. Each hit would case the 3'x3' 1/2" 180lb steel to swing about a foot. the 338LM hit with some serious authority down range. You can just see the edge of the shrapnel trench near the bottom right of the photo. Again, the large lead splashes are from my 338LM the small hits are from a 308Win.

 

[TraderJack]

Mmmmmm...mmmmm!
Thanks!

 

[4xforfun]

First and formost....great rig!!!!!!!

But, since no one brought it up, I guess I will take the heat for asking.

The "after the first shot, no copper was indicated on the patches" comment. If there was no copper on the patches, you used the wrong juice. I have NEVER broke in any tube, both custom and factory, that didn't have copper after the FIRST shot. ZERO. The last three Kriegers showed ALMOST zero after the second shot, and zero after the third, but a factory Savage???? I don't buy it. I would switch to Sweets, Warthog, or Barns copper cleaners and let sit for 15 min. after your regular cleaning. I LOVE BUTCHES BORE SHINE...but not to test for copper.

Just my .02.

It obviously didn't matter...looks like your hammer is a real shooter....copper or not!!!! I swore to myself that I would never again buy a "factory" gun again. You got me talking to myself....again!!

 

[dstewart51]

^ I cant recall that far back now, but I have well over 500 rounds though it and maybe as many as 800. After a typical day out in the desert Ill put though 30 to 40 down range. I sure does leave some copper behind and I swap between KG12 and Butches to clean it. Ive used Sweets in the past but prefer KG12 now.

 

[mwurman]

I just ordered this rifle yesterday to replace my aging Savage 116 BSS 300 Rem Ultra Mag! I'll still use the 116 but for my competition stuff, the 338 will be my new go to rifle...complete with the NightForce NSX 8-32x56 I already have Here's the old beaut:

Im looking forward to getting the new one setup and to the range!

So how hard was it to install that cheek rest? I assume you had to drill the stock?

 

[dstewart51]

Took 10 minuets, yep, drill the stock. The key is to drill it from each side and meet in the middle. That cheek rest was one the the best things I have done, cant imagine shooting that gun with out it now.

The 8-32x56 is great for 1000 yard comps but has a limited elevation range needed for longer shots. IMHO the higher powers really arent necessary. Even with the 5.5-22x56 out to 1935 yards I almost never find my self above 18 power. Most of the time around 1000-1200 yards Ill find my self in the 11-14 power range. Especially out in the desert with mirage. The greater field of view helps with spotting hits or misses as the 338LM will bounce off target with the firm recoil.

 

[mwurman]

Took 10 minuets, yep, drill the stock. The key is to drill it from each side and meet in the middle. That cheek rest was one the the best things I have done, cant imagine shooting that gun with out it now.

The 8-32x56 is great for 1000 yard comps but has a limited elevation range needed for longer shots. IMHO the higher powers really arent necessary. Even with the 5.5-22x56 out to 1935 yards I almost never find my self above 18 power. Most of the time around 1000-1200 yards Ill find my self in the 11-14 power range. Especially out in the desert with mirage. The greater field of view helps with spotting hits or misses as the 338LM will bounce off target with the firm recoil.

I completely agree on your assessment when it comes to scope power. The only reason I ended up with that particular one, is because I bought it second hand from a friend who's a gun dealer. Came in on a rifle from some other guy, and he decided to sell it stand alone. Its a year old. Picked it up for $1500. So even though that zoom is there, like you said, i'll probably never use half of it

Once the rifle comes in, i'll have to figure what height rings i'll need. I see you did away with the factory rail...I was looking at EGW rails as well for mine, already have a harris bipod for it. Its like being a little kid on Christmas again

 

[NorthernLights338]

my new FCPHS only a month old. around 100 rounds shot now. 300 berger OTMs

its my new favorite bolt gun. 338 lapua is a sensational round.
custom magpul forgrip is perfect.
vangaurd equalizer pro2 bipod, not sure i like it... its very springy


building a custom ackrylic cheek rest soon.
thanks for posting info on the FCP it helped me decide on it.

 

[zimeir]

 

[OkState Sniper]

How did you mount the second bolt for the Seekins sling rail?

 

[Dfizz90]

I mounted a bushnell elite tactical 4.5x30 on mine. First 3 shots with Norma 300 gr ah in one hole. Hit an 18" gong 9 times in a row at 1000 yards.....this thing flat shoots....could not be happier with my purchase. If you're looking for a working mans lapua, check this one out.

 

[Broken arrow]

I've had my FCP for a little over a year now. I find it a very good combination of accuracy and weight. The rifle is much more easy to carry in the field than the BA it replaced. Accuracy of both the FCP and the BA were both well under 0.5 MOA at 100.