Savage 12F

Wildthang · September 28, 2012, 09:45 AM

I got a Savage 12F Varmint rifle last Christmas in .223 caliber. Due to a very hectic work schedule, I am just now getting around to scoping it, and as soon as I am finished with an outage at the refinery, I am going to start shooting some paper and fine tuning it.
The only thing that bothers me is I do not know what twist I have, and that will be a fairly important factor in choosing the ammo I use.
Is there something in the serial number that would indicate the twist, or is there another way to tell. I know this model comes in either a 9 or 12 twist but I have no idea which one I have since it was a gift!

RKG · September 28, 2012, 11:41 AM

Put a tight fitting patch on a cleaning rod and start it down the bore. Put a piece of tape on the rod (not the handle, but near the handle; you want the tape to rotate as the patch follows the rifling). Mark a line at the top of the patch and then measure how far you have to push the patch down the bore until the mark on the tape makes one full rotation. That is your twist rate.

4runnerman · September 28, 2012, 12:21 PM

Go to Savage Arms.com and ,go to list,find yours and your done

Never mind. I did it for you. Love that web sight
All the Model 12's in F series are a 1 in 9 twist

Wildthang · September 28, 2012, 01:06 PM

Thanks guys, your'e the best. But I would swear that I read somewhere that my rifle came with 2 different twist rates. Mine is a low profile model if that makes any difference.

45YearsShooting · September 28, 2012, 07:40 PM

This article says your rifle has a 1:12-inch right-hand twist:
http://dailycaller.com/2012/06/11/gu...varmint-rifle/

I wouldn't worry too much about the twist in bullet selection. Different rifles like different bullets regardless of twist. However, I suggest you start by trying the Speer 52-grain Hollow points. That is what shot the best out of my Savage .223 112BVSS out of all the bullets I tried, and I tried a lot.

The bonus is that those bullets are cheaper than many others (you can get them in 500 packs), and they explode varmints really well.

45YearsShooting · September 28, 2012, 07:43 PM

Oops, just noticed the test rifle in that test that I posted was in .204 Ruger.

Tom Matiska · September 30, 2012, 04:04 PM

+1 for the patch on the rod . It will probably confirm you have the 9" varmit twist, and not the 7" 12F target twist.

TheNatureBoy · September 30, 2012, 04:21 PM

I think its a 1:9 twist rate.

kahrguy · October 3, 2012, 02:06 PM

You could contact savage and with your serial numer they can confirm what the twist is. In the past savage has had 1-12 and they also use a 1-7 in the target class 223. .

September 28, 2012, 09:45 AM	#1
Wildthang Member Join Date: September 26, 2012 Location: Northern Ohio Posts: 16	Savage 12F I got a Savage 12F Varmint rifle last Christmas in .223 caliber. Due to a very hectic work schedule, I am just now getting around to scoping it, and as soon as I am finished with an outage at the refinery, I am going to start shooting some paper and fine tuning it. The only thing that bothers me is I do not know what twist I have, and that will be a fairly important factor in choosing the ammo I use. Is there something in the serial number that would indicate the twist, or is there another way to tell. I know this model comes in either a 9 or 12 twist but I have no idea which one I have since it was a gift!

September 28, 2012, 12:21 PM	#3
4runnerman Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: Minnesota Posts: 3,577	Go to Savage Arms.com and ,go to list,find yours and your done Never mind. I did it for you. Love that web sight All the Model 12's in F series are a 1 in 9 twist __________________ NRA Certified RSO NwCP- Performance Isn't Optional

September 28, 2012, 11:41 AM	#2
RKG Senior Member Join Date: June 18, 2009 Location: Boston Posts: 562	Put a tight fitting patch on a cleaning rod and start it down the bore. Put a piece of tape on the rod (not the handle, but near the handle; you want the tape to rotate as the patch follows the rifling). Mark a line at the top of the patch and then measure how far you have to push the patch down the bore until the mark on the tape makes one full rotation. That is your twist rate.

September 28, 2012, 01:06 PM	#4
Wildthang Member Join Date: September 26, 2012 Location: Northern Ohio Posts: 16	Thanks guys, your'e the best. But I would swear that I read somewhere that my rifle came with 2 different twist rates. Mine is a low profile model if that makes any difference.

September 28, 2012, 07:40 PM	#5
45YearsShooting Senior Member Join Date: September 9, 2012 Location: Colorado Posts: 105	This article says your rifle has a 1:12-inch right-hand twist: http://dailycaller.com/2012/06/11/gu...varmint-rifle/ I wouldn't worry too much about the twist in bullet selection. Different rifles like different bullets regardless of twist. However, I suggest you start by trying the Speer 52-grain Hollow points. That is what shot the best out of my Savage .223 112BVSS out of all the bullets I tried, and I tried a lot. The bonus is that those bullets are cheaper than many others (you can get them in 500 packs), and they explode varmints really well.

September 28, 2012, 07:43 PM	#6
45YearsShooting Senior Member Join Date: September 9, 2012 Location: Colorado Posts: 105	Oops, just noticed the test rifle in that test that I posted was in .204 Ruger.

September 30, 2012, 04:04 PM	#7
Tom Matiska Senior Member Join Date: April 12, 2000 Location: Wilkes-Barre, Pa Posts: 1,029	+1 for the patch on the rod . It will probably confirm you have the 9" varmit twist, and not the 7" 12F target twist.

September 30, 2012, 04:21 PM	#8
TheNatureBoy Senior Member Join Date: September 6, 2007 Posts: 1,204	I think its a 1:9 twist rate.

October 3, 2012, 02:06 PM	#9
kahrguy Senior Member Join Date: October 1, 2012 Posts: 561	You could contact savage and with your serial numer they can confirm what the twist is. In the past savage has had 1-12 and they also use a 1-7 in the target class 223. .