Savage bolt actions have become the most
recommended varmint and target rifles to our readers who write
and ask my opinion. I am often asked to recommend handguns,
shotguns, and rifles to shooters who are looking to buy a
firearm and want to know what I would choose. Sometimes, I have
wished that I did not recommend a certain gun when someone buys
it, and then it doesn’t work as it should. I have been burned
that way a couple of times, so I am very choosy about what I
recommend. Whenever I have recommended a Savage, I have never
been bitten. The dern things are accurate, and that
ain’t just my opinion. Lots of competitive shooters are
discovering that a Savage will shoot right along with rifles
costing several times the price. Savage has many variations of
their heavy-barreled bolt guns, to serve as dedicated bench
guns, tactical rifles for police, and heavy varminters for
setting up near a prairie dog town.
A little over a month ago, I received here the
new Savage Predator Hunter. It is a fully camouflaged
medium-heavy barreled .22-250. It is of a size and weight that
can serve well from a fixed shooting position for a day on a dog
town, and also serve as a walking varminter, being moved from
field to field in pursuit of groundhogs or coyotes. With
the full camo treatment and lightweight stock, Savage is
marketing it towards the coyote hunter, hence the name
"Predator Hunter". Besides the .22-250
chambering, the Predator Hunter is also offered chambered for
the .223 or .204 Ruger. The free-floated barrel is twenty-two
inches in length, and has a diameter of 1.045 inches at the
receiver and tapers to .738 inch at the muzzle. The Predator has
the large bolt knob that works very well with a gloved hand. The
internal box magazine holds four cartridges in .22-250
chambering, and probably one more in the other two chamberings,
but I had none here to verify that. It of course has
Savage’s excellent AccuTrigger
that is adjustable from about 1.5 to 6 pounds. At its
lowest setting, mine measured one pound and ten ounces. In
my opinion, the AccuTrigger is the best trigger available on a
production rifle today. Because of the AccuTrigger, other
manufacturers are making their triggers better than they used to
be as well, but I still haven’t seen any that I like better
yet. The stock is synthetic, and the action is pillar bedded
into it. The stock has molded checkering on the pistol grip and
forend, and has a sling swivel stud attached underneath the
forend, with another near the toe of the stock. The action
comes with two Weaver style scope bases attached, and the
sample that I received has a 4 to 12 power Simmons scope
mounted that matches the finish of the Mossy Oak camo
rifle. It seems to be a pretty decent scope, and has an
adjustable objective and one-quarter minute click adjustments. I
believe that Savage offers the Predator with or without a scope
attached. Without scope, the Predator weighed in at seven
pounds, fourteen ounces. That is a pretty handy carry weight. My
Savage VSS Varminter .22-250 weighs more than eleven pounds
without scope. It is great for a fixed position, but can be a
burden to carry all day long. The Predator Hunter is the ideal
weight for a walking varminter.
Shooting the Predator proved even better
accuracy than I expected. I wanted to try out some of the new Varmint
Grenade bullets from Barnes. These little thirty-six
grain pills are a hollowpoint design, and have a core made of a
copper and tin mixture. They are explosive upon contact with
just about anything, especially when pushed to over 4000
feet-per-second from a .22-250. Jessica Brooks at Barnes
Bullets suggested that I try Ramshot TAC powder, but I
could not find any, so I used one of my favorite .22-250
powders, AA2460. Using the Accurate Arms 2460 powder, I
pushed these little jewels 4315 feet-per-second at ten feet from
the muzzle of the Predator. For accuracy testing, I mounted a Leupold
6.5 to 20 power target scope. The Simmons that came atop the
rifle would probably serve well, but the optics are just nothing
like as clear as the Leupold, and I wanted to see how good this
rifle could shoot. This rifle with those little Barnes bullets
would group better than I can hold, I do surely believe! If I
could shoot well enough, I think that they would all go into the
same dern hole at 100 yards out of the Predator. Even with
me doing the shooting, every group went into under
one-half inch at 100 yards. I was very pleased with the
performance of the rifle and ammunition. As expected, this is
one accurate rifle! I have come to expect no less from Savage.
If you are in the market for a varmint rig that
will really perform, I highly recommend the Predator. It is not
too light, not too heavy. Just right. The camo finish is a nice
touch for setting up calling in coyotes. The .22-250 chambering
is great for just about all varmint and predator hunting. With
the right bullet, like a Barnes X or Nosler Partition, it
is even well-suited for whitetail deer hunting, where legal. A
neck shot with the right bullet is easy to make with the
Predator Hunter, and ruins very little meat that way.
While the camo scope looks good on the Predator Hunter, I
recommend that you buy the rifle without the scope, and bolt on
a good Leupold. It costs more, but an accurate rifle deserves a
quality scope., and you will never shoot to the rifle’s
potential without good optics.
Check out the Predator Hunter online at: www.savagearms.com.
You can buy the Barnes Varmint Grenade bullets
at any good gun shop, or order from: www.barnesbullets.com.
For the location of a Savage dealer near you,
click on the DEALER LOCATOR icon at www.lipseys.com.
Jeff Quinn
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