Savage to AICS Bottom Metal

7

7ECA

CGN frequent flyer
EE Expired
Rating - 100%
10   0   0
Location
Lower Mainland
First posted this in the gun smithing section, but I figure this would be a more regularly viewed area by those whom have made or considered this sort of conversion...

Looking for reviews/advice and possibly product recommendations from folks who have purchased aftermarket AICS compatible bottom metal for Savage rifles. Specifically the Model 10 series of rifles.

I've got one of the Cabela's special Model 10s - the 10T-SR. It is a short actioned rifle, with the dreaded bottom bolt release. Before anyone says it, I'm not interested in going to a chassis at this time as I have a very nice Boyd's laminate stock on the rifle and prefer wood stocks over metal chassis.

With that out of the way, besides going to a chassis what options are out there for converting from Savage magazines/bottom metal to AICS?

I've only been able to find Pacific Tool and Gauge out of Oregon in my searches thus far, are there any other companies selling this sort of product? The PTG bottom metal looks promising, albeit pricey - but their action screw spacing might be a bit off. Boyd's lists the spacing as 4-7/16" or 4.4375" - which is a drop in fit for the rifle, whereas PTG's closest spec is 4.423 - close, but is it close enough?

www.pacifictoolandgauge.com/savage-bottom-metal/9137-sa-savage-stealth-dbm.html

Has anyone used the PTG bottom metal? Are there other options out there? Do any site sponsors carry these sorts of products?
 
I'm aware of the atlasworxs bottom metal, but their product page says for top-bolt-release only. Available from CoreTac Solutions in Canada.
(google for the relevant webpages).
 
I bought a PTG bottom metal, but it would have required a LOT of work to fit. I gave up on it as a bad deal and boit a chassis. I wouldn't recommend the PTG option.
 
The bottom bolt release is going to be difficult to deal with. I have the same gun and just opted for an oryx chassis. I know that doesn't help, but i did look at accurate mag but they only offer top bolt release
 
BioPace said:
I bought a PTG bottom metal, but it would have required a LOT of work to fit. I gave up on it as a bad deal and boit a chassis. I wouldn't recommend the PTG option.
Click to expand...

Was the issue with fit, due to the action screw spacing being off; or was it related to needing a lot of inletting work? The price is off-putting, if there's a decent chance it won't work...

Thanks for the comments thus far, I'll keep digging.
 
Another question for those who have made the conversion; if you have a bottom bolt release, have you found any solution that works? Modifying a top bolt release metal, or some other system?

For those who are using bottom metal for top bolt release rifles, can anyone provide some photos of the metal components themselves - and possibly some dimensions as well? Bit of an ask, but I'm wondering if there's a way to get around the bottom bolt release by reusing the Savage trigger guard which includes part of the bolt release with the magazine well...
 
Anyone out there have experience with AICS bottom metal for short action Savage rifles?

Looking for solutions, possibly involving two part bottom metal in which one could potentially substitute the OEM trigger guard with bolt release...
 
I'm thinking of going with the Atlasworxs DBM for Savage rifles with a 4.4" spacing. One piece setup, looks to have a large enough opening to use external means to operate the bolt release, and the price is easily the most reasonable amongst all the options on the market.

Has anyone with any rifle, but hopefully those owners of Savage rifles can chime in, had the opportunity to use an Atlasworxs DBM?
 
Well, I'm going to backtrack on my recommendation for Atlasworxs DBMs for Savage Model 10 series rifles. I bought two of them, with a future .223 rifle in mind, and the bloody thing will not work. I took the specs off of the Atlasworxs website, and measured for my receiver - it'll work. I then got the footprint from Altasworxs (via email) and measured everything up - it'll work, with only a little bit of fitting here and there; nothing too substantial.

Got the DBMs yesterday, and spent two hours fiddling away at a Boyds laminate stock to make it work - no dice. I did get the DBM to fit in the stock well enough, but things weren't perfect so I stopped for the night intended to take another run at it today. Well, today came around and the thing just is not going to work. Decided to just take the stock off entirely and check things right off of the receiver - no good. The action screw spacing is not compatible - even after measuring things/comparing the spec. from the site. Now, I will say one thing about the DBM it does appear to be quite well made and nicely finished - it has this nifty little offset bushing for the front action screw to make it compatible with two marginally different spacings of action screws; but not mine, apparently.

So, I'm miffed that this has happened after all the BS of ordering and getting it shipped from Australia - and getting nicked for duty/taxes by the CBSA. I'll wait and see what Atlasworxs has to say, if they refuse a refund then I'll be posting them on the EE. Someone will be able to use them on a Savage 10 series rifle.
 
That's disappointing to read; I had plans to utilize the Atlasworks unit as well. I have had their bottom metal on a couple of Tikkas and was completely satisfied with the quality and function.

I've always liked Savage, but their constantly-changing model designations and design details have become really off-putting in recent years. Just too many different feed systems and magazine styles and mag/bolt releases and hole spacings, and it seems as though the changes are simply introduced randomly into the line, so you end up with a plethora of transitional rifles that really don't work with anything other than what they came out of the box with. I've had a few instances of "Yes, that will absolutely work..." that absolutely didn't work. Getting really leery of the brand now.
 
It's odd that it won't work, in the sense that I had no problem what so ever purchasing an aftermarket stock for this Model 10 (which fit, other than the barrel channel needing to be opened up) but the DBM is not going to work.

It may be a case in which the Cabela's 10T-SR is just a little different versus any other Model 10/11/12 - but that still doesn't explain how the stock fits the action screws with zero adjustment...

Luckily, the fitting that I did end up doing to make the DBM drop in was fairly minimal (opening up the mag well, and some work to get it to sit more flush around the front action screw) so that it did not affect the OEM Savage metal at all. Actually, it's a good excuse to grab a little JB Weld and put a touch of bedding in.

I still haven't heard anything back from Atlasworxs as to how they want to proceed (I'm of the opinion that this qualifies for a refund), and I've given them a "deadline" of Monday morning to respond. I hope it doesn't come to having to get my credit card company involved.

For what it's worth, the DBM is really well made and I'm impressed with the quality of the finish for what is one of the cheaper options on the market.
 
Accurate mag makes DBM for side bolt release, it's the factory option.
Try really hard to find a CDI dbm, they have closed up shop recently but if someone has them in stock they make one that works with the bottom bolt release.
I have one on my 223 and couldn't be happier. I do think with minimal work a standard side bolt release dbm could be made to work as well.
The CDI bottom release version has an elongated hole where the trigger enters the trigger guard, and it came with a tiny aluminum tab that you press onto the end of the factory tab for the bottom release. (I added some jb weld too) It sits flush with the stock line in the trigger guard and can easily be manipulated when required to remove the bolt.
I think the work could be done to a standard dbm as well. However I haven't tried it
 
I was in the same boat with a Savage scout I owned. Bought the one for $550 on a Tenda sale but wanted AICS mags....In the end I found it cost too much so I sold it and bought a Mossberg scout w/ AICS mags I lost about $50 between selling it and buying the mossberg on a heavy discounted black friday sale.
 
I've heard back from Atlasworxs, they're offering a full refund I just have to ship the DBMs back to Australia to get it (no surprise there). So, it'll probably cost about $25 of the refund, oh well. Better than a kick in the head, as they say.

I ordered direct from the manufacturer, because the price was cheaper (including shipping, and getting nicked by customs) than ordering from a more local distributor. Of course, now it's not quite as good a deal shipping them back - but that would have been the same story had I ordered from a distributor (of course, the distributor could have also told me to pound sand...).

For the time being, I'm going to forgo the AICS quest. Maybe someone can convince a company like MDT to start making DBMs. We can only dream, right?
 
Do you have a factory 10 rd mag? I have one and it functions well but for only taking 9 rds. I'm still waffling over regularly shooting PRS so ACIS compatible bottom metal makes sense as the cost of 3-4 of the Savage mags is about the same as the DBM that's available, but remove PRS from future plans and the single Savage ten round will be fine for my needs. The longer I live with my factory stock, and the minor mods I've made, the happier I am with it.
 
Good that Atlasworx accepted a refund.

There is a way to request a refund of import duties and taxes paid for items returned - see https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/import/courier/crp-prio-eng.html - you may be able to get some money back.

I bought a MDT LSS gen2 chassis during the Nov 2019 black friday sale. I find the bottom bolt release and the offset washer (to accomodate two screw spacings) annoying. I've thought of attaching some captured button that slides in the bottom-bolt-release slot that can actuate the release lever, just haven't gotten around to it. Savage seems to be starting to do things a tiny bit more consistently, starting with naming everything a 110; now they just need to make everything top-bolt-release and AICS (and they already do this for some models, e.g. the tactical) or sell their bottom metal as an OEM part.
 
Savage started to switch to the bottom bolt release a number of years ago, having used only the top/side release up to that point; if anything, they are moving away from rather than towards the side release. Why? It must cost .0037 cents less per rifle this way.

Calling them all model 110 is maybe consistent with other manufacturers, but the older method of designating a short action with a 2-digit model name, while using 3-digit names for long actions, actually made a lot of sense. If you buy a Win70, Rem700, Ruger77, etc. it's important to ascertain whether it's a short or long action, whereas the old Savage system left no doubt. Either way, this is a pretty minor thing...

The wonderful Savage barrel nut couldn't be left alone; it always had radial grooves that allowed a good grip with a simple wrench that allowed a DIY guy to easily switch barrels on his workbench...assuming he had the correct wrench, since there were at least two different ones. Now, it's a smooth ring that is difficult to install or remove without marring the finish. Great improvement. I assume that they do this in an effort to make the gun look a bit more refined, but all it does is increase the PITA factor for the DIY enthusiast.

Never mind the magazines that have a release button mounted on the mag, versus the slightly different ones where the release button is part of the bottom metal...or that wonderful phase they went through that had a mag release button mounted dead center on the side of the stock. Center-feed...stagger feed...assorted receiver-screw spacings... If you really think they are consistent, try ordering a Boyd's stock for a Savage; despite Boyd's excellent information system and the effort they put into determining exactly what the specs of your particular gun are...it's still a miracle that any of them fit.
 
Last edited:
redshooter said:
Do you have a factory 10 rd mag? I have one and it functions well but for only taking 9 rds.
Click to expand...

I do, actually I have two - long story on that one, suffice it to say the second was a warranty item from Savage due to a broken follower spring. They sent a brand new mag, instead of a replacement spring. Decided to order a replacement spring earlier this year to get the second magazine back in action, and Savage comp'd the spring as shipping to Canada was more expensive than the spring. Savage customer service is excellent.

Oh, and both 10 round magazines are indeed really only 9 round magazines in practice.

zombee said:
Good that Atlasworx accepted a refund.

There is a way to request a refund of import duties and taxes paid for items returned - see https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/import/courier/crp-prio-eng.html - you may be able to get some money back.

I bought a MDT LSS gen2 chassis during the Nov 2019 black friday sale. I find the bottom bolt release and the offset washer (to accomodate two screw spacings) annoying. I've thought of attaching some captured button that slides in the bottom-bolt-release slot that can actuate the release lever, just haven't gotten around to it. Savage seems to be starting to do things a tiny bit more consistently, starting with naming everything a 110; now they just need to make everything top-bolt-release and AICS (and they already do this for some models, e.g. the tactical) or sell their bottom metal as an OEM part.
Click to expand...

Indeed, and as long as they get to Australia safely that shouldn't be an issue...

I'm thinking of buying another identical rifle to the one I have, but instead in .223. I don't believe Savage makes larger capacity magazines in .223, though - so I may end up looking into AICS DBMs again when the time comes. For the time being, I'm just not particularly enamoured with chassis/metal stocks. Wood is good. I bought a Boyd's stock for this rifle, and the screw spacing was dead on - and I did confirm it's measurements as well. The only fitting needed, was opening up the barrel channel.

As for the CBSA refund, I guess I should have kept the paperwork. Oh well, I'll remember that for the "next" time. :slap:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom