Savage Mark II

Price: $421
Contact: savagearms.com

For the first time since we began doing our annual gun test, a single rifle has won both the Editor's Choice and Great Buy awards. So how did it do it? With its gleaming stainless-steel action and barrel and a laminated hardwood stock that echoes the sculpting of legendary stock-stylist Reinhart Fajen, the MK II certainly looks considerably more upscale than its price tag indicates. But good value alone doesn't win Outdoor Life's top award. To do so, a firearm must exhibit a level of performance consistently better than that of other guns in its class. The Savage MK II .22 RF we tested proved to be not just the most accurate rimfire we tested this year, but the most accurate rimfire we've ever tested, including some high-dollar rifles of exalted European origin.

After the gun was sighted-in at 50 yards in a test tunnel, the first four 5-shot groups measured .191, .202, .263 and .260 inches, for an average of .229 inches. Yep, that's less than a quarter-inch! More remarkable is the fact that these tiny groups were fired with standard Remington/Eley ammo and an old lot of CCI Green Tag, neither of which are considered the ne plus ultra by accuracy fanatics. The smallest group of all was fired by team member Sam Arnett, who demonstrated his award-winning benchrest technique with a barely measurable .109 inches. By comparison, an eighth of an inch equals .125 inches, so go figure.

Aside from its obviously super-accurate barrel, much of the MK II's shootability was credited to its weight and the solid way the contoured stock rides the bags.

Testers' Comments: Incredible value; can't beat the price for this kind of accuracy; Trigger pull could be better; A tack driver; Savage can be proud of this firearm; Aesthetically very pleasing overall; a damned fine .22 rifle; I¿ll buy it.

Editor's Choice
Great Buy
Workmanship:***
Performance:****
Price/Value:****