For those just joining us today to read about the Savage Model 12 LRP Bolt Action Rifle, take a moment and look back at recent articles introducing the Savage Model 12 and the Leupold VX-3i Scope I am testing. This will aid in a full picture of the testing we are doing. This is a competitive target rifle that can shoot 600 to 1000 yards in a NRA competitive shoot… and win.

It was the first time that I took the Savage Model 12 Long Range Precision Rifle to the Nashua 600 yard range just a few days ago. It was with all the seriousness of a Competitive shooter that I came to shoot at Thursday practice.

Planning included significant research into the Rifle itself, the scope used, the bullet,powder, seating die and Cartridge Overall Length. Read earlier articles.

The day was very breezy with a shifting 11 to 12 o’clock wind that peaked at 20 mph and averaged around 10 mph. Yes some would say that was easy with wind blowing at me, the wind was blowing “mostly” at me but on occasion swirled right to left unpredictably. Temperature was about 60 degrees and humidity low. I was on time to shoot but was partnered with someone who was not shooting F class and was shooting first. That meant I was headed to the shooting pits to pull targets for him first and I got to shoot later. The target above represents 2 shooters, I have studied the target before I shot and confident of my shot groups. What appears evident is that shooting close to a bullseye is not a 10, it is a 9. I shot lots of 9’s with some in the 10 and one or 2 in the X ring. At 100 yard this rifle is sub-MOA all day long, so to have a 10 inch spread seems way off until you include wind. Matter of fact it was a very tight group but needed more skill to click left a 1/4 (1.5 inches) and maybe down 1/4 Minute to center over the 10 ring. Burning powder at the range will help that. What was so satisfying is the work I did with my rear sand bag height. It was as perfect as I could want. The crosshairs could be adjusted with a little rear pressure to hold steady on the X ring. Each shot was comfortable to shoot with light recoil due to the 12 pounds of the rifle and scope. I calculated a 15 minute correction from 100 yards to shoot 600 yards with my JBM Software. My first shot was a 9. Nice! I was very impressed with the Leupold VX3i 6.5×20 50mm scope. It is an improved version with an easily turned power dial. As I was in the Pit first I got to see what other shooters were doing. Honestly I did extremely well but there were a few hot shot shooters that I did not see shoot. Those folks are my real competition and my own best self. I was pleased with my partner and his speed of marking and putting up my target. I was done first of 12 shooters.

So at 100 yards I grouped sub MOA less than 1 inch at 100 yards. My best 3 shot group is less than 0.25 inches but my 600 yard range leader says I need more speed than 2600 fps to buck the wind so I may give some MOA accuracy to get some speed to the target. That is a work in progress. As you can see below the Savage is a BIG barreled Rifle and without the scope it is a hefty 11 pounds. Three pounds or more than a big game rifle. Its primary task is Competitive Shooting at long range such as F Class. The rifle can be used when hunting from a stand or blind with a monopod, bipod or tripod but there are better lighter rifles for that. See the Savage article on the Model 11/111 I took to North Carolina for deer hunting.

Lower right is sight in 3 rounds to get on an orange square. Upper left is group 1, lower left is group 2.  I realized at that moment that my cheek weld could be better and perhaps part of the problem. Then I shot three rounds for group number three at 0.235 inches. So the take away was that a good cheek weld with this scope was vital and it paid off.

Hunting rifles are not designed to shoot 20 rounds in 15 minutes and keep the barrel cool and on target for long range accuracy, they are designed to kill game in the first few shots. So if you have a hankering for competition like i do then it is a great rifle. I have two more competitions this summer with this rifle so we shall see what I can do. The competitive path will surely make me a better long range shot while hunting. More to come…

Good Shooting!

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