A couple of weeks ago, I teased a potential review of this rifle. Well, I finally got my hands on one and put it through it’s paces.
Before we get into the meat of the review, a bit of history is in order. Stevens Arms was founded in 1864 in Chicopee Massachusetts by Joshua Stevens. The company introduced everyone’s favorite rimfire, the .22 long rifle, in 1887. By 1902, they were advertising themselves as “the largest producers of sporting arms in the world”. Stevens Arms was purchased by Savage in 1920. The company continued production at the Chicopee plant until 1960. Savage stopped using the Stevens name in the early 1990s, but resumed use in 1999 as a brand marque for lower cost rifles and shotguns.
This is what Savage has to say about this rifle:
Where value and performance meet, is where the Model 334 bolt action rifle excels. The rifle features a crisp trigger and a 60-degree bolt lift to allow faster loading on follow-up shots. The barrel is free-floating and button rifled for consistent accuracy. Offered in three popular calibers, the Model 334 is available in a Turkish Walnut stock option with a silver bolt or a black synthetic stock with a matte black action to match.
The 344 is built in Turkey for Savage. The three calibers available are .308, .243 and 6.5 Creedmoor. The 6.5 has a 22″ barrel, the other two get 20″ tubes. The length of pull is 14.5″ and the overall length is either 41.25″ or 43.25″. The forend is free-floating and there is an aluminum bedding block to hold the receiver in place. A steel Picatinny rail is included, though the receiver is drilled and tapped for Savage 110 bases. Weight runs a bit more than 7 pounds. MSRP is $509 but you can find it for considerably less.
The rifle I shot was purchased by a shooting buddy and chambered in 6.5. It’s a nice looking rifle, the wood has very nice figuring and the oil finish looks nice. There are no obvious machining marks and the metal finish is evenly applied. The 3 lug bolt runs pretty smoothly, and will smooth up even more as the rifle gets used. Being a Winchester guy, I appreciated the location and function of the 3 position safety. The cocking indicator is a nice touch. The bottom ‘metal’ is plastic, but not cheap plastic. It seems like it will hold up to a decent amount of abuse. The buttpad is soft and squishy, but has a hard plastic ‘horseshoe’ that helps prevent snagging the squish on your jacket while mounting the rifle.
Off a rest, I averaged 1.75 MOA groups. My best – a just under 1 MOA 10 shot string – came with Hornady 140 gr Match ammo. The worst was a 2.75 MOA string with 120 gr American Eagle.
Part of that was the ammo – I used a wide variety of loads – and part was me getting used to the trigger. The trigger, a two-stage type broke at a heavy 7.5 pounds on this rifle. Looking at other reviews of this model, it seems to be a common complaint. The trigger is not user adjustable.
So, let’s talk about what this rifle is and what it isn’t. The Stevens 344 is a fantastic, low cost, entry level rifle. The example I shot cost $450 after tax. The owner put a $150 Vortex Crossfire scope on it. So for right around $600, he got a reasonably capable hunting rig.
It is not, however, going to win any accuracy awards. At least not with the factory trigger. And that trigger is the only drawback I see to this rifle.
If you’re looking for an inexpensive hunting rig, I’d recommend you take a look at the Stevens 344. It’s a lot of rifle for the money.