Savage BTH - or Boyd's Stock?

M

Mr. Whimsy

New member
I have been wanting a .260 Rem. Savage 16. I really like thumbhole stocks, so I was planning on putting a Boyd's featherweight thumbhole stock on same.

I have 0 experience fitting a stock to a rifle, and I have no gunsmith, so there is the inconvenience factor of ordering from Boyd's. Further... will I have to glass bed it? Yet another loathsome task I wouldn't mind avoiding.

The easy thing would be to get a Savage 11/111 BTH, which comes from the factory with a laminated thumbhole stock. It only comes in blued and the closest chambering to what I want is .25-06 cal. I could live with this... although it would be slightly more convenient for reloading were it in .260 - and a little more attractive were it stainless.

Either way, I am likely going to have to lop off an inch or so off the butt, as both look really, really long. Haven't found any locally to handle, so can't say if it will be necessary.

The third option is to call Savage's Custom Shop and ask them to put together what I want. I will do this Monday, although I expect to discover a wait time that will curtail my enthusiasm. It may also run into more money than I really want to put into the project.

So, of the first 2 less expensive options, which would you take?

Any owners of the BTH care to chime in?
 
Could always buy the BTH and change the barrel yourself to 260 and sell the factory barrel to offset the cost. I"ve seen most boyds owners say the stocks are a drop in fit though unlike some other stocks on the market. Could also look at stockade stocks for synthetic thumbhole.
 
Well I would have to buy the .243 BTH wouldn't I? The .25-06 is long action...

This is a great idea though. I have no idea how hard it is to switch barrels or what is involved in getting headspace adjusted. Might be kind of cool to do this.
 
After watching some YouTube videos... changing the barrels just isn't for me. Plus, this adds another $200 to the project. Might be preferable to live with .25-06.
 
You could still use the 260 in the long action or yes go with the short action version. Also did you watch a barrel change for a savage? It's much easier and less involved than changing a barrel on any other rifle. Throw it in a vice unscrew the nut screw the new one on, and tighten down the nut is more or less all there is to it.

Like i said you can sell the factory barrel too to offset the cost of the replacement.
 
I just ordered the the BTH in .243 on Wednesday, I handled one in .30-06 at a gun show and it felt and fit me great. I have a friend with a T/C Omega w/ thumbhole stock and they are very similar to the BTH in fit on me. Just curious why you think you need to cut stock down, I am 5'5" and it fit me just fine.
 
The BTH stands for Boyd's Thumb Hole. It's the same stock. If you're stuck on the .260, get one, then add the Boyd's Thumbhole. I'm sure that as many stocks as Boyd's makes for Savage, it would be a simple drop-in. Those stocks are neither pillar nor glass bedded, so if you want the action bedded you'd have to do that yourself, or pay to have it done.

The .260 is a great caliber. My sister-in-law shoots one, and she's four-for-four on our little whitetail deer now.

firme67 said:
Just curious why you think you need to cut stock down,
Click to expand...
Stock fit is very personal. I like a shorter LOP than most people my size. When I have a stock cut for me, or when I add a recoil pad, I specify a 13" LOP.
 
BTH is Boyd's Thumbhole... well I've looked at Savage's website a hundred times and never found this critical info for some reason. Very helpful!

People on this forum are great.

I get along better with shorter L.O.P. because I bundle up for deer season but also because I just find 13" more comfortable given my short arms and stocky build. Everybody's body is different, and I'm a little amazed at how many people on this forum can't wait to question me over every trivial non-standard preference or my unwillingness to accept whatever some anonymous factory designer hands me. This is real life, not boot camp. Guns are too expensive to throw choice out the window.

I'm truly sorry you can't see any reason anyone would want to do some of the things I ask about, but I like to actually feel comfortable with MY rifle. I guess my needs are not your needs.

I have never owned a thumbhole stock. I have extreme difficulty getting down into a scope on a conventional bolt action rifle unless the scope is mounted via see-thru rings and the butt is really short. This setup has some short-comings, but I have a disability and that's just the way it is. I have already had someone on another thread inform me that I need to trash 30 years of shooting success because I'm obviously not doing something right if I need this setup. Asinine.

At any rate, I tried a thumbhole stock on my brother's Encore and Voilla! - no shortened butt or high scope rings needed. I don't know if this will transfer over to the bolt action Savage, but I tend to think it will bypass many of my problems and discomfort with that platform. It'd be a shame to go without a good, accurate bolt gun in your battery, but I have for a long time deferring to levers and semi's that are simply more ergonomic. But the time has come for a good medium-range deer rifle.
 
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I will already be reloading for the .260 I talked my dad into getting. He loves it, and everyone who owns one seems to have only glowing remarks about this caliber. I find the stock on his gun too long, so I haven't been able to enjoy shooting his gun. I already have dies for .25-06 on hand, so it is really just a logistical preference for loading ammo we can both use. That is why I was considering just getting the easier-to-come-by-locally .25-06. If I sell it, it's more popular, and WallyWorld carries the bullets. Honestly it's 6 one way/half a dozen the other. Which is why I couldn't decide.

Sounds like I need to buy the .260 and get the stock for it. It would be short action and thus slightly lighter than the .25-06 BTH. I think the cost will be the same.
 
Can anyone tell me if the Accu-stocked 16 is any different than the standard 16 in terms of which Boyd's stock to order? I have a line on an Accu-stocked 16 in .260, but wouldn't want to buy that if it would require special fitting. That would be a PITA.

I am not seeing on Boyd's site where there is any distinction, but thought I read somewhere that the Accu-stocked action uses an extra mounting bolt. It's possible I could have misunderstood though.

Sorry for so many questions but I am new to the Savages.
 
Savage has done some really neat things over the past 10 years, but they've spawned a lot of questions. Those neat things that they've done were based on changes to their rifles to innovate, reduce manufacturing costs, and increase accuracy on an out-of-the-box rifle. For several years, many of the other manufacturers were playing catch-up.

The most aggravating change was the one they made in 2006 when they went to a centerfeed magazine and increased the action screw spacing from 4.275" to 4.400" on the short action. In 2009, Savage brought out the Accu-stock, which incorporated an aluminum bedding block in the stock and an additional wedge-bolt to draw the action down into the block. Some wags discarded the extra bolt as unnecessary, some folks love it, and many of us question not only the utility of the extra bolt, but the torque settings that the bolt requires. I have no personal experience with accustock rifles. Most of mine are the older staggerfeed action, but I do have one Gen3 that I've been playing with.

As far as I know, Savage did not change the action bolt spacing when they went to the AccuStock, so changing a rifle from the AccuStock to the BTH should be a simple drop-in. I notice that they make both, and I can't believe that they'd have anything on the assembly floor that would have to be done to swap from one stock to the other.

The Savage Shooter's Forum is the place for these more technical questions. Go over there and surf around, I'm sure you'll find the information you need.
 
I was told by Savage that a non-Accustock action could not be retro-fitted into an AccuStock. Whether that was because they feel the third action screw is a requirement that drove that answer, don't know.

Firsthand experience because a 111 I bought from a large online retailer a couple of years ago was advertised as the AccuStock model. Turns out, their warehouse shipped me a NOS of the same model- without the Accustock!

I raised holy hell- and they told me they'd pay for the AccuStock from Savage. Savage, however- said no go, couldn't be done. They (the dealer) did refund me $200 for an aftermarket stock, though :)

I've never checked to see whether the AccuTrigger action we have would drop fit into another one I have with a non-AccuTriggger, but the trigger inletting is worth checking, too. I do know that the actions are different, and Accu and non-AccuTrigger actions are not interchangeable.
 
Mr.Whimsy,If you get a Savage 16FCSS,it has the Accu-Stock.
The package series Model 16 International Trophy Hunter XP and the Trophy Hunter XP rifles don't come with the Accu-Stock.
You will also have to either have the stock inletted for the detachable magazine,or take the bottom plate off the magazine and order a factory retaining clip from Savage to change it to a blind magazine set up. I don't think Boyd's offers a stock for the detachable magazine.
I have an older staggered feed model 12FLVSS in a LH Boyd's thumbhole stock. Other than having to enlarge the barrel channel for the varmint barrel and finishing the stock ( LH stocks only came unfinished then),the stock was 100% drop in and shoot. It is an excellent stock,and I've never needed to bed or pillar the stock,the gun shoots better in this stock than it ever did in the factory one.

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Whimsy, I meant no disrespect asking about you cutting down the stock. I was just curious, because I too have short stocky arms. I had the same concern when I was considering the thumbhole stock and until I actually handled one I was unsure. After handling one, the way I shoulder and hold it I feel comfortable with the standard thumbhole stock whereas with a typical standard stock I would favor a youth or shortened stock. Once again, accept my apology as I meant no disrespect, and good luck with whichever route you take. I am still waiting for my Savage BTH to get to FFL.
 
I know the thread is a bit dated (grin) but.......

And now I know what the BTH means!

I am curious if anyone has information on the barrel contour of the 111 BTH in 30-06?

I am looking for long term setup to get a HB barrel and this looks like a great chassis for that.

If the barrel it comes with shoots 5 rounds groups until I wear it out that's fine, then get the new barrel. If not up for sale and get replacement barrel.
As I tend to shoot 100 rounds a week that will indeed wear out a barrel in a couple of years if I shoot equal time with the 308.

I can't find any info on the barrel itself other than is 22 inch and it looks hekrier than normal but that could be the shorter length making it look heriker. .

I am assuming I can work out the channel for a heavier barrel as needed?
 
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