Savage 110 Bolt-Action Rifle
At first glance, these simple bolt-action rifles designed by Nicholas Brewer back in 1958 may go unnoticed amongst all the competition lined up beside them at your local gun store. That’s okay though. The Model 110 never had to rely on a flashy appearance or anything extraordinary to distinguish it from the competition. The Savage 110 bolt-action rifle was built to be economical, and has consistently sold well, despite the earlier guns underwhelming appearance. So, it would seem that the concept of affordability over style worked, and the 110 has now been up on that gun store shelf longer then most of the bolt-action rifles alongside of it. The signature Savage rifle has even surpassed the famous Winchester Model 70 as the longest continuously produced American made bolt-action.
Although, the early rifles were slapped onto cheap wooden stocks and had horrible triggers, they were still good guns for the money overall. The premier price tag was a mere $109.95, which even back then was not bad for a brand new bolt-action. Savage helped it grab further attention by making it the first bolt-action rifle to offer a left-handed model.
Most guns built for economical purposes come and go, so why is the 110 still around? The key to its longevity lies in Savage’s commitment to keep the Model 110 in production even when they abandoned all else. They kept manufacturing cost low, and have been able to provide an affordable precision shooter that people wanted to buy. However, that cheaply made concept would have been fruitless had the action not actually been built to withstand real life abuse. Luckily it had! Beginning with its sturdy receiver, which is machined from a single piece of seamless steel tubing and provides its shooter with a lifetime of reliability. The Savage 110 series stayed true to a classic push-feed configuration with forward mounted locking lugs, and small extractors.
Over the years, the Savage Arms Company has had its ups and downs and even came close to complete failure at times, but the one firearm to survive even their toughest times has been the Model 110 series.
Today the Savage 10 /110 series is still relatively affordable and can be found in many varieties and calibers, no longer are they made with cheap wooden stocks and inferior triggers. They now have the safe and fully adjustable Savage Accu-Trigger system. They also offer choices - black synthetic and camouflage stocks are available to fit any shooter's need. The rifling and precision of their barrels compete and perform well alongside rifles that are double and triple the price. So if there is something that we can learn from the Model 110, it is that the next time you're browsing your local gun shop, take notice of the rifles that are easily overlooked. They just may provide the biggest bang for your buck.