Savage Arms Renegauge

[Tim Terrell]

All-new entry into the already crowded field of waterfowling shotgun choices for 2020.
Website says "Made in the USA."

https://www.savagearms.com/content?p=fi ... ry&s=57602

https://www.nrafamily.org/articles/2020 ... 7NOQIIK44C

[fishmasty]

Its Pricey

[HNTFSH]

Its Pricey

That's what I was thinking. For a Savage gun.

[jsh909]

That stock looks like a turkey/tactical grip, not wingshooting.

Yea every thread I have seen on the gun comes back to the price tag. It better be a great gun for the market it will have to compete in with that price point

[Snowgoose_56]

Pricey, kind of ugly ( though that shouldn’t matter). I’m intrigued by it myself but at that price point there is no way I’d try one. Get her down about $799 and I’d give it a shot. Too many excellent guns that are proven reliable in that price range to take a chance. Just my $.02

[ohio mike]

$1499 is MSRP. I'm gonna guess it will sell at about the same price as a Versamax. Way early to speculate.

[RustyGunz1960]

Pricey tends to go hand-in-hand with Made in USA. It depends if paying the premium for that is worth it to you. And it also has to work. I'll never advocate buying a piece of junk just because it's made here.

[HNTFSH]

Pricey tends to go hand-in-hand with Made in USA. It depends if paying the premium for that is worth it to you. And it also has to work. I'll never advocate buying a piece of junk just because it's made here.

And then of course defining what "Made in USA" actually means relative to the product, parts, assembly, etc..

[mudpack]

All the posts here so far are spot on, but Snowgoose pretty much nailed it.
Here's some more observations:
https://www.refugeforums.com/threads/sa ... i.1054625/

[Tim Terrell]

All the posts here so far are spot on, but Snowgoose pretty much nailed it.
Here's some more observations:
https://www.refugeforums.com/threads/sa ... i.1054625/

Being a 3-inch gun, target should have been Remington V3, SX4 or Franchi price-points. Savage will face an uphill battle marketing this gun @ $1500. It's not an 8lb Versamax.

[Tim Terrell]

Shooting Times --July'20 has a review on the new Savage auto-loader.

It uses a "new" gas-operating system. They call it DRIV-- or Dual Regulating Inline Valve. 'Seems based on the V3/Versamax, but the action bar assembly includes the action bar, bolt and bolt-head all in one assembly-- welded into one piece and chrome-plated.

Reviewer stated the Renegauge would not cycle 7/8 oz loads-- would fire. but not enough oomph to cycle next round. He liked the trigger and adjustable nature of stock and comb for length of pull, drop and cast. It's offered as a 3-inch twelve gauge-- in 3 barrel lengths. 'Camo model is $100 over the black synthetic priced @ $1449 retail. Weighs nearly 8lbs with a 26" barrel.

'Looks to have a stepped vent-rib like a Benelli M1/M2-- this gun just leaves me cold. 'Especially at that price-point. Definitely looks better in camo-- hides all those funky-looking grip panels and extraneous accent lines on stock, receiver and forearm. I wish Savage good luck and success... but I won't be lusting over this one.

[Specklebelly]

I may give this one gun a try. I am more than satisfied with their products and I am willing to pay more to support USA products.

I can't find too many for sale but will hopefully get a handle on one before the end of summer.

[Lefty Ray]

I shot it in January at the Shot Show. Next month i will get to use it on ducks on a factory invite. Lets see what happens.

[ibedamn]

If it shoots as good as the Savage rifles I have owned, it might be just the trick. But, I suspect by 2021 they have several improvements and more options.

[mudpack]

I may give this one gun a try. I am more than satisfied with their products and I am willing to pay more to support USA products. I can't find too many for sale but will hopefully get a handle on one before the end of summer.

So, have you bought one yet??
If so, would love to hear about your experiences with it.

[Specklebelly]

I may give this one gun a try. I am more than satisfied with their products and I am willing to pay more to support USA products. I can't find too many for sale but will hopefully get a handle on one before the end of summer.

So, have you bought one yet??
If so, would love to hear about your experiences with it.

I have not and won’t at this point. I did some research and there are some things that I think need fixed for a gun at this price point.

Minor stuff that is just unacceptable as well as balance issues. I hope they fix the concerns I read about as I would like to support an American company, especially since Remington decided to go bankrupt.

[Yuchi1]

BPS in Broken Arrow had one in the rack two days ago with ~$1250 on it. Held and pointed it and although a bit techy in appearance it did handle well. Seemed to feel solid and well put together and the 3” chamber isn’t a put off as the 3 1/2” twelve gauge aura has been steadily losing its luster especially with those firing the Roman Candle cartridges to any significant extent.

[mudpack]

I did some research and there are some things that I think need fixed for a gun at this price point. Minor stuff that is just unacceptable as well as balance issues. I hope they fix the concerns I read about as I would like to support an American company, especially since Remington decided to go bankrupt.

Interesting. What are those minor issues that took it off your list?

[Specklebelly]

I did some research and there are some things that I think need fixed for a gun at this price point. Minor stuff that is just unacceptable as well as balance issues. I hope they fix the concerns I read about as I would like to support an American company, especially since Remington decided to go bankrupt.

Interesting. What are those minor issues that took it off your list?

It just seems like little things were missed, such as these things I have read:
- The plug only allows one shell in the magazine. If you wanted two shells, you have to measure and cut the plug. This is just 100% bizarre to me for a duck gun.
- The bolt is not camo and shiny. Not a big deal but an oversight for a camo gun.
- They do not send choke tools or maybe it was the turkey choke tube doesn't fit the choke tool. Something about that.
- It is very front end heavy. I don't mind a heavy gun but from what I have read, the balance is WAY off.
- The barrels are rough inside and not smooth.
- Some people complain that the turkey gun doesn't have sights or scope mounting holes. That doesn't bother me as I don't use optics for turkey hunting and tend to do well every year.

Now I have never even seen a Renegauge, let alone looked at one other than on the computer, so I can't say if this is true or not. It is just not a risk I am willing to take for a high end gun. If all this is true, it almost is like they didn't even ask a duck hunter for any time during R&D.

Here is a review I found that solidified my decision:
https://www.alloutdoor.com/2020/09/29/r ... e-shotgun/

I hope they rework it and make this a successful gun. I want to want one, but just can't put my hard earned money into something with this much risk that I would not be happy.

[mudpack]

It just seems like little things were missed, such as these things I have read:
- The plug only allows one shell in the magazine. If you wanted two shells, you have to measure and cut the plug. This is just 100% bizarre to me for a duck gun. That is strange. Maybe the plug was made to hold two 2 3/4" shells instead of three inchers? Still, that's unacceptable.
- The bolt is not camo and shiny. Not a big deal but an oversight for a camo gun. I agree; should be black, like every other camo shotgun.
- They do not send choke tools or maybe it was the turkey choke tube doesn't fit the choke tool. Something about that. Odd. The link you provided indicated that it comes with a choke tube wrench. This agrees with the Savage website.
- It is very front end heavy. I don't mind a heavy gun but from what I have read, the balance is WAY off. Balance is a personal preference. I don't see this as a design flaw, not like the other things you mention.
- The barrels are rough inside and not smooth. Yes, not acceptable.
- Some people complain that the turkey gun doesn't have sights or scope mounting holes. That doesn't bother me as I don't use optics for turkey hunting and tend to do well every year. No scope mount holes is only applicable to the turkey gun, I take it. The website shows a Truglow-type front sight on the Turkey gun.

Now I have never even seen a Renegauge, let alone looked at one other than on the computer, so I can't say if this is true or not. It is just not a risk I am willing to take for a high end gun. If all this is true, it almost is like they didn't even ask a duck hunter for any time during R&D. I agree. Don't buy any gun until you can handle and inspect it. That's the second rule of duck hunting.

Here is a review I found that solidified my decision:
https://www.alloutdoor.com/2020/09/29/r ... e-shotgun/

I hope they rework it and make this a successful gun. I want to want one, but just can't put my hard earned money into something with this much risk that I would not be happy.

I hear you, and amen. Thanks for the information.

[Lefty Ray]

I did try the Renagauge on a media duck hunt. The latest on this fairly new gun is that it comes in TrueTimber Prairie camo on the stock and fore end with the barrel and receiver cerakoted.

While the gun shot well, if you are left-handed beware. Everytime a flock came within range, I could get 1 shot off but not 2. The safety would get pushed in while firing the 1st shot, negating a 2nd and 3rd shot. The Savage rep said the safeties are reversible. With 3 left-handed people attending this event, why they did not reverse the safeties for us is beyond me.

The second issue was the color of the cerakote. On this model it was a pale greenish-tan. Too pale for me. With 4 guns laying on top of the lid of the pit blind, the barrels really stood out from the brush underneath and possibly flared off some ducks.

In one of my action shooting photos, 3 of the barrels really stood out while the 4th actually reflected silvery sunlight. This gun does come in other camo schemes and if I were to buy one, it would be one with a darker colored barrel.

The 10 guns at this event were the first off of the line and I hope the cerekoting process improves as the quality was not there for a gun at this price point.

It did shoot well. The 3-gun touches were nice which you can read on their just released web page for this model.

https://www.savagearms.com/content?p=fi ... ry&s=57776

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-T818A using Tapatalk

[Tim Terrell]

Thanks for the personal insights on this one Lefty. Your comments are certainly kinder than those coming from Wakeman... easy now Yuchi. LOL

"While I have long held a very high opinion of Savage Arms and their team, the new Renegauge is not a competitive product. If the excessive weight of the Renegauge (for a 3 inch field gun) doesn't turn you off, the spectacularly miserable nose-heavy balance and handling most assuredly will.
As much as I really do not enjoy saying it, the Renegauge just doesn't have much of a chance of making it in its present form. If you looked up “balances like a pig on a snow shovel” in the dictionary, it should say “see Savage Renegauge.” This shotgun is a major league disappointment in my view, offering nothing in terms of value, aesthetics, or performance compared to several other readily available, popular, and less costly models. The Renegauge is a swing and a miss: if there ever was a new autoloader doomed to fail, it is the Renegauge. Unless homely, heavy, expensive, and lousy handling are what someone suddenly wants in a shotgun, its chances are slim to none . . . and Slim just left town."

Copyright 2020 by Randy Wakeman. All Rights Reserved.

[HNTFSH]

Ouch!

[Tim Terrell]

A CDNN online sale today shows the Renegauge on sale... now $600 off. Going for $999 in black or camo. I'll bet they have plenty of them in stock too.

[Specklebelly]

A CDNN online sale today shows the Renegauge on sale... now $600 off. Going for $999 in black or camo. I'll bet they have plenty of them in stock too.

Wow, that is quite a drop in price.