In 1975, the 112V was introduced. This was the varmint version and started the new trend of using different numbers to identify the intended use of the rifle. For example, today the Model 12 is the varmint gun as two-digit models indicate short actions. The 12 F Class is the target rifle that is winning long-range matches right out of the box. The Model 10 is the short-action hunting rifle. The Model 110 is the long-action hunting rifle. The Model 16 is a short-action synthetic-and stainless-steel rifle called the Weather Warrior. In the long-action, it is the 116. The new Classic series is the Model 14 in short actions and the 114 in long actions. Then there is the Model 11 short action and Model 111 long action. Finally, there is a rifled-barrel shotgun and a muzzleloader.
Confused? Me too. No wonder: Ronald Coburn, Savage’s chairman and CEO, told me that there are currently more than 700 variations in Model 110-type rifles. But, I guess the point is that with all these variations, there is currently a Model 110-based Savage rifle to fit anybody’s needs. That was not always the case. In the 1980s, Savage was in trouble. The short-action 110 was dropped as management tried everything to cut costs. But foolishness—like messing with your keystone products—is a recipe for disaster, and in 1988 Savage filed for bankruptcy.
Coburn took over and at the time Savage had hundreds of products, dumping them all—except the 110. Savage was selling far more .22 rimfire rifles, about 250,000 per year and 125,000 pump-action shotguns, while the 110 was selling 20,000 rifles a year. The “experts” told Coburn he was crazy to get rid of the lines of firearms that were selling so many and keep something like the Model 110 with much lower unit sales. But Coburn decided that selling guns at a loss, no matter what the volume, didn’t make sense. He also recognized the 110 made sense not only in terms of function, but in its manufacturing as well. He recognized that and picked the Model 110 rifle to be Savage’s only product. On that decision the company would sink or swim.
Today, Savage is doing great, it is back in the rimfire business, the catalog is 70 pages thick and Ron Coburn owns the company. He had so much faith in the business when the owners he was working for decided to bail out and cut their losses, he bought Savage. His vision, drive and dedication saved Savage, along with some help from loyal employees and the Model 110. But Coburn wasn’t done. One big complaint about the 110 rifle was the trigger pull. As Coburn told me, “We had excellent accuracy in a good looking gun at a decent price. What we didn’t have was a good trigger. Like most manufacturers, we were being driven by lawsuits and attorneys rather than good engineering. So we decided to make a better trigger.”
Through an interesting process of design, engineering and Coburn’s vision, the result was the ground-breaking Accutrigger introduced in 2003. This unique trigger is adjustable to previously unheard of pull weights, while remaining safe. It changed the industry by forcing every other rifle company to finally find a way to improve their triggers. But, that’s the way it is with the Savage Model 110 rifle these days, always improving, always moving forward, adding, improving. This 50-year old design is today as modern and cutting-edge as it was in 1958. As Coburn told me, Savage is “Bringing back the heritage of the company with the 110, one gun at a time.”