Weatherby Vanguard S2 or Savage 116

[yalwal]

Hi all,

I am considering buying a new rifle in 270 Winchester and have narrowed the choices down to either a Weatherby Vanguard s2 in stainless/synthetic or a Savage 116 also in stainless/synthetic.

The Vanguard has a 24" barrel vs 22" for the Savage. Both are very well spoken of by owners and get very good reviews.

Which one would the forum users choose? Please take into account the pros and cons of the 24" vs 22" barrel, muzzle blast, differences in velocity (loss of), accuracy and anything else that might be relevant.

Weight is not really an issue.

P.S. The rifle will be mainly used for deer.

Thanks.

[rummer]

You definitely don't need a 22" barrel for the .270.

I have the TIkka which has a a 22" barrel and it shoots clover leaf groups any day of the week.

[yoshie]

I've got a weatherby and i find it heavy, this is a good thing in a calibre like 270, 308 and 30.06 as it soaks up recoil. Also after market bits for the Howa/Weatherby as easy to come by. They are a pretty good gun for the money, have you looked but a Tikka?

24"barrels can get a bit annoying for a wall about rifle.

[reddog]

I don't think you will see any difference in accuracy with only 2" difference in length.

The rule of thumb is between 25 and 50 FPS loss for every inch shorter the barrel is, but the deer will not notice the difference.

However I think there will be a noticeable increase in muzzle blast and noise.

It really comes down to which one feels good in your hands.

I have a Winchester M70 it has a 24" barrel and is well balanced so feels good, however they have a fairly light sporter weight barrel.

Personally I think for a .270 a 24" barrel is ideal but that's only my opinion.

[Rakk]

The only need the longer barrel for magnum calibres where there is all that extra powder to burn.

No point for any small or medium cartridges IMO. Only for the magnums burning lots of powder.

[reddog]

The only need the longer barrel for magnum calibres where there is all that extra powder to burn.

No point for any short/medium action calibres IMO.

Trouble is you need a long action for a 270

[Rakk]

Soz, my bad. Meant to say cartridges, not actions...

Had another topic in my head and typed the wrong thing.

Yer, it's nothing to do with action length. e.g. The short magnum cartridges don't have long actions but still have plenty of powder.

I meant to say not needed for smaller cartridges, only for large capacity ones with lots of powder.

Corrected my original reply...

[reddog]

Well I'll stick with my statement that they need a 24" barrel remember the 270 is a long cartridge so usable barrel length is less

[Member-Deleted]

Either one is fine, they will do the same job. Are you from Nowra way?

[Rakk]

Well I'll stick with my statement that they need a 24" barrel remember the 270 is a long cartridge so usable barrel length is less

Fair enough. Hasn't made a difference in my experience, but experiences differ...

Whatever does the job.

[yalwal]

Either one is fine, they will do the same job. Are you from Nowra way?

Do you recognize what "yalwal"is?

[Member-Deleted]

Either one is fine, they will do the same job. Are you from Nowra way?

Do you recognize what "yalwal"is?

That's the give up, I was down at the range yesterday.

[Joom]

Yalwal in a National Park in NSW?

(Queensland talking here )

[yalwal]

Yalwal in a National Park in NSW?

(Queensland talking here )

it's actually a location not far from me and a former gold mining town.

[lole]

Yalwal in a National Park in NSW?

You weren't far off.

Yalwal State Forest borders on Morton National Park, like so:

https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Ya ... b49043d9b0

[Member-Deleted]

The range is just before yalwal

[SendIt]

If it's mainly for deer I'd be taking the shorter barrel too.

Better balance, better handling, weight and it's not costing you anything as a deer rifle to go shorter.

It's not a bench rifle...

[Member-Deleted]

Plenty of deer getting about down there at the moment

[yalwal]

You weren't far off.

Yalwal State Forest borders on Morton National Park, like so:

https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Ya ... b49043d9b0

Yep, been there about 200 times.

[Walt68]

Price I think will be the only noticeable difference, both are accurate rifles. I own a Savage 116 Bear Hunter that shoots MOA at 500 yards with 3 shot group.

[bobnob]

I think the Vanguard S2 along with the Zastava are the best buys for the money. I include the Howa as the Vanguard BTW, nearly identical.

I don't agree that only magnums benefit from the extra barrel length. Where did you learn that? A 270 Win will get as much advantage out of the extra 2 inches as will a 300 WM or 375 H+H. The powder is burned in the first few inches of barrel, not down the end. Its the increased bore volume allowing the gases to continue to expand and push the bullet down the bore that give the extra speed, not burning of any extra powder.

All of my bolt action centrefires have 24 inch barrels and they are not a hassle to carry at all. Having said that I would not turn my nose up at a 22 inch barreled bolt action in any calibre, magnum or otherwise. Just be prepared for more noise and recoil.

You'll probably get the Vanguard S2 / Howa cheaper than the Savage. Personally I would pick the Vanguard but the Savage will not disappoint you I would have thought.

Great calibre choice by the way!

[zook60]

I would go for the Vangaurd S2 over the savage. its holds 5+1 and its cheaper too. The s2 have a heaps better finish than the old ones.

From what I have read over bore calibers like longer barrels to get the most FPS. Normal cals like the 223-308 ect don't really suffer from shorter barres as much

An over bore cal is something that has been necked down from a parent case. 22-250 243 25-06 270 belted magnums also fit into this category.

I'm not talking about accuracy but energy and fps left when down range. Some very popular righters have say over the years that less than 24" robs the 270 of its full potential.

Here is a link to an interesting barrel length test. not 270 but though someone might get some interest from it.

http://www.tacticaloperations.com/SWATbarrel/