I have a 1941 German model 98 mauser, with an ugly barrel but it shoots pretty darned good for a 72 year old gun, give the Savage a chance you might be surprised.
My 1951 Savage model 99 works really well with Sierra Pro Hunter 150 grn round nose bullets and 38 grns of BLC-2 or H-335 powder (1 grn below max), so work up to it.
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