Opinions wanted of my opnion, please.

[ARTJR338WM]

Buy first a little back ground on me. I own at present three dedicated 12ga slug guns: #1 is a Gunsmith modified Marlin 512 that has had it's action bedded, a trigger job, and the muzzle re-crowned. I have put at least 700 sabot slugs through it.

#2-is a NEF 920 Tracker in 12ga. I have fired around 150-175 sabot slugs out of it.

#3-is a first run Browning A-bolt slug hunter. The A-Bolt is my present gun of choice as my 512 has trigger issues. I havw put around 200 sabot slugs out of my A-Bolt. So I have a sizable amount of experience with dedicated slug guns.

Now for my opinion. About two months ago I went to my local Bass pro with money in pocket and plastic on stand buy with the intensions of buying at least one if not two of Savages bolt action slug guns. BP had all three Savage slug guns on sale, the 210F, the 212F both in 12ga, and the 220F in 20ga. I spent almost 40 minuets going over all three, and in the end bought none of them. Now for as to why.

To be brutaly honest the fit and finish of the two newer models was poor, and as a matter of fact I could have torn off the recoil pads on the 212 and the 220 if i wished to the pads were fited so poorly. And the stocks on both the 212 and the 220 had far more flex than I felt was acceptable. The bolts on the 212 and the 220 were extreamly rough sycling as well. The trigger on the 210 was poor enough that I no doubt would have to do a trigger job on it myself as I have done so on other Savages I own that are pre-accutigger models. What I found most diturbing was of the three the 210F had the best over all fit and finish, but I chose not to buy it as I already have enough 12ga slug guns and was thinking more about buying guns for my two sons once they get old enough to hunt. 20ga obviously has less recoil than a 12ga.

I was truely upset as my motivation for this purchase was driven by my last range visit prior to deer season. I was DBL checking my A-Bolts zero and two guys next to me were shooting 220Fs with Federal Barnes Tiped Expanders and were CONSISTANTLY shooting 100yrd three shot groups from 7/8" to a max of 1.25"!!! To say they earned my undivided attention (and even a little envy) would be a gross understaitment. My average 100yrd 3-shot group for my A-bolt with its favorite ammo is 1.5" consistantly, with a ocasional smaller group.

What I have grown to absolutely love about my A-Bolt is it always prints the same triagular 100yrd 1.5" 3-shot groups, group after group.

So I am hoping that the two models I handeld were exceptions to the rule and I do not feel I am being over critical as all three guns cost nearly or over $500.

So what do other 210, 212, and 220 owners think concerning over all fit and finish of their guns? Is what I experenced the norm or the exception possably due to Savage producing to fill a strong demand?

Let me know what you think.

Thanks,
Arthur.

 

[Yotekiller]

My brother bought a 220 this fall and I agree the bolt was rough but after cycling it for a while it became much smoother. I agree it is a poor stock however you could probably replace it. (not sure what would fit) His gun is very accurate, probably the most accurate shotgun I have seen.

 

[Greyfox]

The fit and finish on my 220 wasn't bad, but the pad was pretty flimsy. What made me feel a lot better was the sub 1" groups at 100 yards with Reminton Accutips and the 1.5" groups with Winchester Dou Bonds. This made it well worth the money. I never shot a slug gun that would do this The bolt did get smoother with use and I really like the weight and balance.

 

[Nosniborf]

I have a similar experience with my Savage 220F which I bought in October 2010. It ain't pretty, the bolt slides like you're trying to shove a corn cob up the tailpipe of a Yugo, and the stock is a ***.
But, once you get a Federal 3" Barnes tipped sabot slug into the chamber - look out Bambi! Accuracy on the range and in the field is amazing, and 200 yard shots are a real possibility.
Just don't figure on rapidly chambering another round for a second shot, but then you won't need to anyway. It may be only 20ga, but the Barnes Expanders will knock down a big buck just like a 12ga will, and probably better at longer ranges due to their better ballistic coefficient.
Just this week I was at Cabelas checking out the Browning 12ga A-bolt slug gun which is about twice the price of the Savage, it's very smooth and well balanced, and I'm thinking I would buy one in a minute if they developed a 20ga version that would equal the accuracy and range of the 220F.
So if anybody from Browning is reading this....