New Savage Axis II G accuracy help?

[AngryChameleon]

Hoping to get some weigh in on my recent purchase of a Savage Axis II G from Cabelas.

I bought the rifle last weekend, and have put about 500 rounds through it so far. My initial impression wasn't great, or anything near what I was expecting.

I'm consistently shooting large groups (4-6inch) groups at 75 yards, with just about every ammo I put in it. Some of the groups were a little better, but then I'd get a flyer that was way off. I'm no sniper, but grew up competition shooting as a kid, so I know when my alignment/breathing is off, or if i'm pulling shots. I'm aware that there's some work I could be doing to improve basic marksmanship, but it seems like there could be something wrong. I've pumped better groups with .308 or 5.56 at over 200, which is why i'm suspicious.

This is also my first brand new off the shelf rifle, so is there something I'm not thinking of? I'm running with a cheap bipod and a Cabelas branded 3-12x40 scope. I've been shooting at 12x.

I bought a bit of every kind of ammo to see what it likes the best, but it's still not "driving tacks" like I was hoping.

Any help would be appreciated!


Ammo I've shot
- CCI Stinger
- Federal Champoin
- Remington Golden Bullet
- Winchester Wildcat
- Remington Thunderbolt
- Remington Yellow Jacket

Ammo I'm going to pickup and pray
- CCI Blazer
- CCI Standard

 

[chappy]

try sk standard + or eley club. most of your listed ammo is not what i would consider accurate. the cci sv is usually good.
does your scope have ao? if not that may be a factor. try backing up to 50 yrds untill you have your ammo sorted out.

 

[grauhanen]

Although a lot can go wrong with .22LR at 75 yards, groups of four to six inches at that distance are not good. Start at 25 yards to save time and ammo. Use CCI SV, the best ammo on your list (edit: not on the list -- I misread it), or try to get entry level match ammo as chappy suggests. If your rifle is not shooting consistently under .5" at 25 yards with CCI SV then I would suspect a problem. Then try it out at 50 yards.

What scope are you using?

 

[silverfoxdj]

As said above start with CCI standard ...it is high quality and gives consistent results and then move to others like SK or top Eley to see what the gun likes

 

[buffdog]

.
Try backing the scope magnification off to about 9 x. The less expensive scopes tend to have some minor problems when used at maximum power. Adjust the focus for the clearest picture.

Bipods can create problems by putting pressure on the barrel. Most of these .22 rifles have a free floated barrel, so take a business card and run it down the barrel channel to see if it is binding at some spot. I have found that a lot of .22 rifles need a bit of clearance to shoot well, and others need a bit of pressure on the fore end. A short length of dowel or a steel socket with a wrap of sand paper can fix a tight spot on the stock.

I have also found that shooting off a bipod is not really the steadiest way to test a rifle. A cushioned rest or sand bags seem to be much better for me.

.

 

[awesomealvin]

^^ What buffdog said ^^

Does your cheap bipod include a canting feature? If not, try shooting without the bipod. The bipod can torque the front of the stock and make it touch the barrel. That was my experience with my B22. Never again would I buy a bipod without a canting feature.

Also you're shooting supersonic ammo ~1250ft/s, it transitions to subsonic at around 50-55 yards throwing the shots off. If you're shooting beyond 50-55 yards, try subsonic ammo ~1080 ft/s.

 

[mikeystew]

Federal champion is ok. Everything else you've shot is really just junk ammo though. Try CCI Standard, SK standard plus, RWS sport or eley club. That should give you a better idea what its capable of.

Still shooting bad I'd look at the action torque and make sure the barrel isn't rubbing, and inspect the crown and throat of the bore.

 

[chanman]

Even Blazer is just CCI's bulk ammo. You should give the minimags a try if you're looking for velocity

Federal champion is ok. Everything else you've shot is really just junk ammo though. Try CCI Standard, SK standard plus, RWS sport or eley club. That should give you a better idea what its capable of.

Still shooting bad I'd look at the action torque and make sure the barrel isn't rubbing, and inspect the crown and throat of the bore.

Well, the Stinger is pretty expensive, so I don't know if I'd call it junk ammo. It does look as though it's designed pretty specifically for varminting terminal effects over other considerations though

 

[mikeystew]

Well, the Stinger is pretty expensive, so I don't know if I'd call it junk ammo. It does look as though it's designed pretty specifically for varminting terminal effects over other considerations though

Yeah you're right it's not junk and it's not cheap. But it doesn't shoot accurately in anything I've owned. It is almost exclusively a close range varmint round, not a target shooting round.

 

[AngryChameleon]

Federal champion is ok. Everything else you've shot is really just junk ammo though. Try CCI Standard, SK standard plus, RWS sport or eley club. That should give you a better idea what its capable of.

Still shooting bad I'd look at the action torque and make sure the barrel isn't rubbing, and inspect the crown and throat of the bore.

I'll definitely look for some CCI Standard, although they didn't have any at Cabelas, CT, or my local gun shop. I'm going to try and tone it back to 25-50 yards to see what some of this ammo can do in the meantime! I appreciate the help from everyone.