Rapidfire Review: Savage B Mag Target 17 WSM
Winchester released the 17 Winchester Super Magnum in 2012 and I have been keen to try one ever since.
Early support from major manufacturers was pretty limited and reports of the quality and accuracy of the ammunition was not great.
Fast-forward to 2021, CV19 is in full effect and the ammo and rifle issues that plagued the 17WSM on launch have largely settled down (Par for the course).
Hornady market a 20gr polymer tipped round, Winchester has 20gr and 25gr offerings and Federal (American Eagle) offer 20gr BT. Olin (Winchester) reputedly make all of the ammunition for Federal and Hornady and I managed to secure a box of each offering less the federal which I can't find in NZ.
The rifle sits in a right-hand laminate thumbhole stock which is very comfortable. It has a black rubber recoil pad, dual sling studs up front, a 'beavertail' forend and feels good in the shoulder. The trigger guard is a polymer one piece that is held onto the stock with two Philips head screws. The rear of the trigger guard covers the rear action screw, overall the trigger guard does not look very robust, but its lightweight and does the job.
The rifle is fed from a polymer 8 shot rotary magazine and comes with one standard. I ordered a second for high volume rabbits. They are easy to load providing you have the rear of the cartridge snug against the back of the magazine and feed very reliably.
The barrel is 17mm at the muzzle and is heavy for a rimfire. Its 22" long and has a 1:8 twist. The barrel was not centered in the stock, indicating some warping might have occurred. The action is fitted to the stock via two action screws, the front one mates with a cylinder that is held to the barrel via a C clip and moves. Noting this and watching reviews from America on YouTube I elected to do a quick bedding job to;
1: Ensure the barrel is centered as possible in the stock and is free floating, and;
2: Make sure the action is held firmly and returns to the same location every time I clean it and re-assemble.
Normally I use JB weld or epoxy, but for a rimfire elected to try some 'Knead it' epoxy putty, a quick sand, drill and 5 mins with the putty and nugget and it was good to go. Epoxy putty is as hard as metal when set and sets in 15min, great for repairs of the mechanical nature if you find yourself in the bad lands of South Sudan and you radiator has a hole in it from a 7.62 ;)
In this case it worked great and straightened up that barrel and didn't lock the gun up.
The trigger unit is all polymer less the springs and blade. I'm not a fan off 'accutriggers' but this one had a knurled plastic wheel that simply turns into detents to adjust weight. I managed to get it down to a consistent 2lb which was good enough for me. Adjusting the trigger did feel like I was moments from breaking something, the trigger assembly and guard feel cheap and not robust.
The bolt is hardened steel and interestingly, cock on closing. The bolt requires significant force to close, but is lightning fast to open. The receiver comes fitted with two piece bases which I checked and applied red Loctite.
I fitted the rifle with a set of medium steel rings and a Weaver 4-16x44 Grand Slam, Japanese glass is always a crowd pleaser, and the old Weaver doesn't disappoint.
At the range I got it sighted in at 100m and fired a 5 shot group with each type of ammunition. It was windy, I was on a bench (I normally do accuracy testing prone) which I hate and I was under time pressure. Never a good combo for accuracy testing.
The LabRadar gave the following:
Win 20gr 2919fps ES76 SD32 Group Size: 23mm
Win 25gr 2580fps ES99 SD41 Group Size: 39mm
Hdy 20gr 2960fps ES38 SD18 Group Size: 11mm
After the three groups I sorted a rest out and shot the 11mm group with the Hornady. I'm sure it can do better with the Winchester loads as I get familiar with the rifle and if I take my bipod and rear bag to the range next time.
A bit slower than advertised (20gr 3000fps, 25gr 2600fps) but nice to shoot.
The empties fly about 30 feet in the old money and surprisingly the more I shot the better the bolt felt, occasionally I would cam the bolt over before the bolt handle was 'in slot' which was an interesting sensation!
Recoil is non existent and the rifle is proving to be very accurate. I'm glad I bedded it and its in a Hardy Rifle Engineering getting an over barrel rimfire suppressor fitted as I write. I'm confident as the barrel runs in it will speed up slightly and the suppressor will add to the accuracy.
When I get it back its off after Possums and Rabbits, then down south to see how it goes on Roos.
If you are in the Lower Nth Island and know a spot for goats I'd love to try it out with 25gr.
In sum, built to a price point, ammo costs the same as 22 Mag, but I think you will easily get 200m+ on small game and medium light skinned game should be OK up to 150m making it a bit more versatile. As long as ammunition is in supply I think it will be an economic and fun shooter.
Photos below.
