lightweight aftermarket stocks for Savage rifles

[TauPhi111]

I know this has been discussed in a thread some time ago, and probably several times before that, but since so many new companies come and go through the years, I like to take census of this periodically because there could be new products out there and I own several savage rifles.

I've decided that for the 2019 hunting season that the money I was planning to spend on a Kimber or Barrett Fieldcraft rifle would be better spent elsewhere in my hunting budget, as I have plenty of perfectly good hunting rifles. However, I still don't have one that I would call "light" and easy to pack into the mountains after elk, mule deer, etc. What I'm thinking now is to take my short barreled bear gun, develop a flatter shooting load for it, put a better optic on it, and lighten it up a bit. Just about all of that weight reduction has to come from the stock, because nothing else can really be done to the gun, but the stock has a lot of weight to lose. Right now it sports a Boyd's Classic laminate stock, which they say is about 2.8 lbs... i.e. too damn heavy. I've taken survey of all the stock makers I can think of, and here is what I came up with

Bell and Carlson/Hogue/Choate - too heavy
McMillian - prohibitively expensive. May as well buy the new rifle!
Manners - no Savage inlet. Expensive
Grayboe - no Savage inlet
Wildcat Composite - no savage inlet
L.A.W. - no Savage inlet
HS Precision - too heavy
Brown Precision - too expensive

Looks like the only options out there for light weight and under 400 bucks is MPI and Stockade. Stockade seems to be the way to go in affordability if I get their DIY option, which I'm perfectly comfortable with. Are there any other options out there that I don't know about?

 

[Formidilosus]

Been there and done that multiple times. Unless there is an extreme sentimental attachment to the Savage, you be far ahead to sell it and then buy a Tikka T3 Lite.


Better action, better barrel, better trigger, better stock.

 

[Apollo117]

Form is right. I've had a Savage Lightweight Hunter for 3 years, and now a Tikka T3 Superlite for 4 months. I wish I got the Tikka a long time ago. I still like the Savage, but the quality is nowhere near the Tikka.

If you're dead set on the Savage, I think your only two options are the Stockade or a model 11 or 111 Savage LWH take off stock.

 

[Wapiti1]

Those are it as far as I know. You can lighten a B&C stock if you mill out the forearm and get them down to 2lbs. There is a lot of weight in the aluminum bar they have in the forearm. I mill out most of that aluminum. The forearm is still plenty stiff without it.

Jeremy

 

[chindits]

Well old wood stocks are easy to be had from numrich. If you have basic woodworking skills and a router, it’s no problem making a sub 2 lb wooden stock from a $50-90 purchase. I think I got my wife’s stock to 27 oz and I like the feel of wood much better. Now that action isn’t light but she’s strong enough to carry 7lbs.

I own a tikka 3x and while the action is smooth I don’t sit around cycling the action for pleasure. My savages and model 70 hold their own in accuracy with 1990 technology and an extra pound in the hand.

 

[FURMAN]

If you are wanting light weight with a good quality stock Savage is not the way you want to go. Savages are great rifles especially if you like to tinker but building a light weight Savage is problematic. The other part of this is looking at your list you mention McMillan and Manners as expensive. Lightweight and cheap do not go in the same sentence. Stockade stocks are not lightweight. Kevin makes a great stock but they are not light. I would suggest selling a rifle and buying a Savage lightweight hunter or a Tikka SL.

 

[robtattoo]

I think pretty much everyone's hit the nail on the head. You can go light, you can go cheap, you can have fine quality.
Pick two.
The LWH is one my most favoritest rifles, but the reason it's hundreds of dollars cheaper than any other rifle in it's weight class is largely down to the stock. I don't know anyone that won't tell you that it's garbage. Even died-in-the-wool fans like me.
You're only really real option would be to look for one of the hen's teeth like model 11 LWH wood stocks. It's only 2oz heavier than the model 16 Tupperware & much stiffer. IF you can find one, expect to pay about $200 though

 

[chindits]

As long as they’re accurate, quality is in the eye of the beholder. I sold my McMillan and stockade with no loss in accuracy to a glass bedded factory birch stock. You could buy a fair amount of ammunition for that edge technology.

 

[huntsman22]

quality isn't in the beholding OP's eye. Dollar signs are......

 

[TauPhi111]

Been there and done that multiple times. Unless there is an extreme sentimental attachment to the Savage, you be far ahead to sell it and then buy a Tikka T3 Lite.

Better action, better barrel, better trigger, better stock.

Thanks for all the suggestions from everyone. I know a lightweight savage is kind of a pipe dream. I might not have made it clear in my OP, but the idea is NOT to buy a new rifle, since my hunting budget is looking a bit tight for the next year or two. I'm just trying to lighten up one of my hunting rifles that I have no intention of selling. I have a Shilen barrel and Timney trigger in this savage, so other than weight, I doubt the Tikka is really that much better. This is my primary bear gun. It's a 358 Win, which isn't the ideal mountain cartridge either, but it's the lightest I have for elk so I'm just trying to get it as light as I can.

As for the other stocks, I do realize light+quality=$$$, but as far as their prices go, there are other stocks out there in that weight class for several hundred dollars cheaper, but they're all for other actions, and I wanted to know if anyone made a similarly priced stock for a Savage action.

 

[TauPhi111]

If you are wanting light weight with a good quality stock Savage is not the way you want to go. Savages are great rifles especially if you like to tinker but building a light weight Savage is problematic. The other part of this is looking at your list you mention McMillan and Manners as expensive. Lightweight and cheap do not go in the same sentence. Stockade stocks are not lightweight. Kevin makes a great stock but they are not light. I would suggest selling a rifle and buying a Savage lightweight hunter or a Tikka SL.

How heavy to the Stockade sporter stocks generally run? I sent him an email but I haven't heard back yet.

 

[TauPhi111]

Well old wood stocks are easy to be had from numrich. If you have basic woodworking skills and a router, it’s no problem making a sub 2 lb wooden stock from a $50-90 purchase. I think I got my wife’s stock to 27 oz and I like the feel of wood much better. Now that action isn’t light but she’s strong enough to carry 7lbs.

I own a tikka 3x and while the action is smooth I don’t sit around cycling the action for pleasure. My savages and model 70 hold their own in accuracy with 1990 technology and an extra pound in the hand.

I have been strongly considering this option. I have been looking for a deal on a wood stock that will fit my gun on Armslist and Gunbroker, but I haven't found one yet. I haven't checked numrich yet though. I've glass and pillar bedded several wood stock guns and they have all turned out very accurate thus far.

 

[FURMAN]

How heavy to the Stockade sporter stocks generally run? I sent him an email but I haven't heard back yet.

It’s been a long time since I had mine but I want to say 2.5-3lbs. I would say closer to 2.5 lbs.


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[TauPhi111]

It’s been a long time since I had mine but I want to say 2.5-3lbs. I would say closer to 2.5 lbs.


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Ah damn, really? That's barely lighter than the one on there now. Back to the drawing board I guess. I am gonna look for one of those wood stocks.

 

[DangerRanger]

I started one of the last threads on this, I wanted so badly to figure out a way to build a lightweight mountain rifle from my 12fv. I have since sold the rifle. The wood stock idea might be worth a shot though.

 

[Apollo117]

It’s been a long time since I had mine but I want to say 2.5-3lbs. I would say closer to 2.5 lbs.


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Checked Stockade website. They've got the Rollover Cheek Thumbhole stock listed at 28 to 32 ounces. It doesn't say if that's finished weight or weight without fill, etc.

I can't find a weight for any of the other stocks on the website.

I've never owned a Stockade, so I can't speak to the accuracy of the listed weight. However, since these are made to order I imagine there may be ways to customize a stock during production. E.g. shorten forend or mill away unnecessary material.

 

[TauPhi111]

I started one of the last threads on this, I wanted so badly to figure out a way to build a lightweight mountain rifle from my 12fv. I have since sold the rifle. The wood stock idea might be worth a shot though.

I remember that thread. I did some thinking on it today, and I think I'm just going to go to town in the wood shop on the Boyds that is on there now. My goal is to not spend a ton of money but also have a little lighter rifle to hunt the mountains with for the next couple years until I buy a proper mountain rifle and do some other financial stuff. I plan on dropping some serious cash on a mountain rifle when I do, so I'm trying to be frugal now. I'm thinking either a Barrett Fieldcraft, Kimber, or maybe even a Q Fix. On the Boyds I'll sand off the finish, rasp down the cheek piece, trim the fore end a bit and recontour it, route out the inside of the fore end a little, hollow out the butt and maybe shorted up the LOP a half inch or so. If I can get it under 2 lbs I'll be happy. Then I'll pillar and glass bed it and refinish or paint the whole stock. Probably add some stippling on the grip areas too.

 

[JFK]

I got a factory savage wood stock below 2 pounds. Route out the fore end under the barrel, slightly shorten fore end and hollow out the butt stock. Believe it was right around 1.8lbs when I was done. Could have got it lighter by not using a limb saver grind to fit as those are pretty heavy. Once the wood working was done I sealed the entire stock with clear spray poly urethane, then did matte Olive with black webbing. The stock is a factory savage stock made of beech wood. It was a take off from a rifle I bought and haven’t used it yet except for a test fit but it turned out very nice.

If your rifle is a late model or current production then savage will sell you one direct. They have great customer service and will help you ensure fit as well.

 

[tarheelpwr]

How heavy to the Stockade sporter stocks generally run? I sent him an email but I haven't heard back yet.

Call Kevin. He’ll answer and talk your ear off. I spoke with him and he was entertaining the idea of drilling his inner frame for a personal project to see how light he could get it. I gave up waiting for him. He also seems to miss his delivery dates by months if not years.

Check out the Choate factory sporter stock. It’s for a stagger feed action, but that can easily be used for CF if you bed the mag box. They come in under 2#, but may have been discontinued.

Here’s what you’re after if you can find it.

https://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/stock-parts/rifle-stocks/savage-arms-110-stock-sporter-prod72423.aspx