When it comes to bolt action varmint rifles, Savage
has for many years been my first choice. There are a couple of
good reasons for this. The most important is accuracy. Savage
bolt guns are generally very accurate, right out of the box. No
need for rebedding the action or lapping the bolt lugs, no need
to recrown the muzzle or replace the trigger. Up until a couple
of years ago, I would carefully rework the Savage trigger for a
lighter, smoother trigger pull, but all of that changed with the
introduction of their wonderful AccuTrigger.
Another very good reason that I usually look to Savage first is
that their rifles offer excellent value, and usually outshoot
rifles costing twice as much, again without any special tuning.
The Savage Varmint rifles have been legendary with serious
varmint shooters for decades. I was first introduced to
the Savage varmint rifle while reading the stories that Bob
Milek wrote for the gun magazines back when I was a kid. His
.22 Swift in the single shot Savage 112 was a varmint rig
supreme. I have since owned several Savage varmint guns, and
have recommended them without hesitation to many other shooters.
Last year, Savage introduced a new varmint rifle
to the shooting public, calling it the Model 40 Varmint
Hunter. This year, Savage has really upgraded that rifle by
fitting it with the excellent AccuTrigger. While the Model 40 is
billed as a value-priced varmint gun, Savage did not cheap-out
on its fit, finish, or features. I am certain that a plastic
stock would have lowered the price a bit, but the Model 40 wears
an excellent varmint style laminated wood stock. The metal
finish is also a very nicely-polished blue. The Model 40 wears a
varmint weight twenty-four inch barrel that measures .804 inch
just ahead of the receiver and tapers to.740 inch at the muzzle,
which has a recessed target crown. The barrel is supported very
well by the extra-long receiver, effectively sleeving the barrel
for almost five inches. The remainder of the barrel is
free-floated. The laminated stock has an extra sling swivel stud
on the fore end for attachment of a bipod. I commend savage for
putting swivel studs on their rifles. Every hunting gun should
be equipped with swivel studs. I have purchased hunting rifles
costing four times the price of this Savage that came from the
factory without swivel studs. The Model 40 is a single shot
action, and is chambered for the .22 Hornet cartridge only, so
let’s briefly examine that dandy little varmint cartridge.
The Hornet is a masterpiece of efficiency. It
propels twenty-two caliber bullets to speeds which are all out
of proportion to its diminutive size. Properly loaded, the
Hornet can push 35 to 45 grain bullets to speeds between 2800
and 3000 feet-per-second (fps), using only 10 to 13 grains of
powder. That gives a handloader up to 700 shots from a one-pound
can of powder. Winchester has three factory loads that
carry 34, 45, or 46 grain bullets at speeds of 3050 fps for the
first and 2690 fps for the latter two loads. The cartridge is
also relatively quiet compared to other common varmint
cartridges such as the .223 Remington and the .22-250. While the
little Hornet is not as flat-shooting as those two, it is a
dandy little varmint cartridge out to 250 yards or so on
medium-sized vermin. As for handloading the Hornet, there are
many bullets available made especially for the cartridge. There
are also several good powders available including Alliant
2400, Hodgdon H110, Winchester 296, and the 4198 and 4227
powders from IMR and Hodgdon. However, the relatively new
Hodgdon Lil’Gun powder
is perfection in the Hornet case. It is as if it was made just
for this cartridge. I have settled upon Lil’Gun as my one and
only powder to use in the Hornet for my personal use. There is
nothing better. It offers top velocities at moderate pressure,
and exceptional accuracy.
The Model 40 weighs in at seven and
three-quarters pounds, and has very good balance, actually
feeling lighter to me. The stock wears a solid synthetic rubber
butt pad, and a wide beavertail fore end. The load platform is
well-designed. Just drop a cartridge into the receiver and close
the bolt. Extraction is handled by two opposed extractors, much
like most rimfire bolt guns. The safety is located just to
the right of the bolt, just behind the handle, and is easy to
manipulate by either a right or left-handed shooter. It moves
silently and smoothly in both directions. The AccuTrigger is
easily adjusted by the shooter, and at its lowest setting, the
trigger on my sample released crisply at two pounds and four
ounces. As stated earlier, it is a superb factory trigger, and
Savage is to be commended for putting it into their low-priced
Model 40 rifle.
Shooting the Model 40 proved to be a real
pleasure. I mounted a Mueller 8.5 to 25 power scope in B-Square
rings and Weaver bases. The Model 40 takes two number
eleven Weaver bases. The recoil was nonexistent, and the report
was mild. Accuracy proved to be very good, especially for a .22
Hornet. Factory Winchester ammo grouped into just
nine-sixteenths of an inch at one hundred yards. Feeding and
extraction were perfect.
This Model 40 Savage .22 Hornet is an excellent
rifle, at an excellent price. The Hornet can easily handle
ninety percent of my varmint hunting needs, and costs just a few
cents per shot to shoot. Current MSRP is only $436. The
real world price is usually less than that. I really like this
Savage Varmint Hunter rifle. I have a few very good varmint
guns, and need another about like I need a third nipple, but I
will be purchasing this fine little rifle from Savage. I cannot
think of a better endorsement.
Jeff Quinn
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