Issues with savage 93r17

H

HardwickN

New member
I inherited a savage 93r17 from my dad. I remember him getting this rifle back when they first came out I think it was around 2004. However he had accuracy issues since the beginning. He got the sweet17 scope for it and sent it ijn to habe the trigger replaced with a rifle basix sav-r. However still can't get this rifle to group better then about 3 inches. I know he tried two different types of ammo and one was better then the other but can't remember which one better. I know it was the Hornady bad. And the TNT speers.. Any ideas?
Thanks
 
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I have the same rifle mine likes 20grain ammo hornady xtp and cci game point. Might try another scope if you have one, check the action screws to see if there snug. And on mine I free floated the fore arm it was rubbing on one side. Off the bench at 50 yard mine will clover leaf. Deadly on tree rats
 
Break it all down and clean it. These rimfires are picky about how they are put together and torqued. Start there, along with scope mounts and the scope itself. A good thorough cleaning and try again.
 
The 17hmr is pretty well known for accuracy with several makes and
models. The only time I grouped my Marlin 17vs resulted in 1/4"
and 3/8" groups @ 75yds with the Hornady ammo.

Was the bore thoroughly cleaned when new from the factory? If
factory "crud" was left in it, that could be the problem. A good
cleaning could possibly solve the problem. If the bore is clean:

I'd be for checking the crown to begin with. If you cannot see
any flaws, shoot 5-10 rounds, then look at the muzzle. You
should see a perfect, even flower of carbon deposits extending
out from the bore.

There could also be irregularities in bore diameter (doubtful).
A tight fitting patch run through the bore could tell you if
there are tight or loose spots within the CLEAN bore. I don't
use anything like a bore snake, but use a 17cal rod.

Then there's the possibility that the chamber was reamed
off-center, and it would probably take a 'smith to check it
out......the only "fix" would be a rebarrel.

My guess and hope for you is that the barrel just needs a good
cleaning.
 
Originally Posted By: pahntr760Break it all down and clean it. These rimfires are picky about how they are put together and torqued. Start there, along with scope mounts and the scope itself. A good thorough cleaning and try again.

Torque on the action bolts is where I'd start first. I have a HB SS thumbhole stock Sav. 93/17 HMR and it is very sensitive to torque on the action bolts. In both my Sav. 93/17 and Bmag 17 WSM I've found 18-20in.lbs on the front and 14-16 on the rear is where they wanted to be. I recommend getting yourself an in.lbs torque wrench because it is sooooo easy to go WAY over torque on these things and not think you are. I used to think I was just snugging them up good until I got myself an in. lb torque wrench and found out my, just snugged up, was actually 35+ in.lbs so now I always use a Wheeler torque wrench.

Also, on my Sav. 93/17 HMR I replaced that flimsy little piece of bottom metal with a thicker one from DIP Inc.
 
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Thanks for the info guys. I'll try some of the suggested things and see what happens.

I've seen several people say to stay away from the boar snake type cleaning systems what's the reason?
 
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I have DI Products bottom metal for sale, cant bend it like the factory one, and a new 17/20cal 1pc Tipton Cleaning rod, feel free to pm me.
 
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I had 2 savage 17s buddy of mine had one. They shot really tiny groups. At the time all ammo was made by cci, the only difference was the color of the tip. They all shot the same but we shot more Hornady because it was the cheapest.

I never cleaned mine. I bought a .17 snake, line broke trying to pull it. None of my rods would fit the bore so I gave up. A ton of ammo later, still tiny groups. Some folks dont like the snakes for anything, I've used them for everything and haven't got any complaints except the above.

The only issue we ever had was a few ammo fountains when the mag lips spread our too far to hold the rounds in place.

Maybe it's your glass. If it is actually the gun contact savage.
 
I’ve shot penny’s at 100 with mine. Clean it between 100-300 shots. Savage has been good to me when I call. Maybe call and see if they’ll check it out. Usually only will cost you shipping to get it there
 
Originally Posted By: tomcat388thI have the same rifle mine likes 20grain ammo hornady xtp and cci game point. Might try another scope if you have one, check the action screws to see if there snug. And on mine I free floated the fore arm it was rubbing on one side. Off the bench at 50 yard mine will clover leaf. Deadly on tree rats

Same here. I tried the 17 gr hornady ammo and it did not like that. Tried the 20 gr and seems to love them. Have not tried the cci ammo though.
 
A few years ago after doing nothing but shoot the heck out of it and putting a couple thousand rounds through my Sav. 93/17 HMR I'd show it some love and give it a good cleaning. I'd already bought a bore guide specifically for the Sav. 93/17 and it's a good thing I did because on the first pass down the bore with a wet patch, I could BARELY get a wet patch through it and I'm not sure I could have had I not had a bore guide because those 17 cal cleaning rods are anything but rigid and this thing was dirty. So after quite some time of scrubbing and cleaning I finally get the bore clean. There really wasn't much copper but it sure did have a butt ton of powder fouling build up.

After getting the bore clean, considering how dirty it was, I'm now thinking if this thing shot well before, boy howdy, this ole girl is really gonna shoot now. Wrong! First trip out with a clean bore and it was shooting groups that looked like you'd just shot the target with a shotgun. It took well over a box of ammo before it started to settle down and go back to shooting like it was before I cleaned it.

I've come to think these factory rimfire barrels are some finicky little buggers and know two are ever alike because some shoot better dirty while others shoot best with regular cleaning then they are some that just don't seem to care and shoot well all the time. Or, unfortunately, there are those that just never shoot worth a darn no matter what you do to them and about the only thing they're good for is an extra long jack handle.

As some have alluded to, don't rule out trying different ammo. Even if it's the exact same ammo but from a different Lot # it'll sometimes shoot drastically different. You wouldn't think the ammo in these little things could vary that much from lot# to lot# but it sure can. I pretty much only ever shoot the Hornady labeled 17gr Vmax ammo because it's easy to get and is generally the cheapest and you sure wouldn't think this stuff could/would vary as much as it does but I've had certain Lot #'s that shot crazy good but I've also had some that shot literally inches different in POI at 100 yards. It's one of the things I hate about rimfires.
 
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