The ongoing war in Ukraine has seen all sorts of small arms pop up. Many from military stores, some old some new. But also large numbers of previously civilian-owned and commercially available rifles.
One manufacturer which continues to surface is Savage Arms. We’ve seen a range of Savage firearms in social media posts from Ukraine. In this short video we’ll take a look at some of the models of rifle which have been seen on the ground.
It is worth noting that Savage 110s have previously been seen in the hands of Ukrainian Special Operations snipers prior to the current conflict, as early as 2017. It was reported in September 2018 that 125 Savage 110 Stealths had been purchased for Ukrainian Airborne troops and it seems that along with Ukrainian Z-10 DMR and other Western bolt actions the Savage Arms rifles are one of the systems which replaced many of Ukraine’s SVDs.
Before the war civilian firearms ownership in Ukraine was fairly buoyant, and this only increased as tensions before the Russian invasion rose. Savage Arms have dealers and stockists all around the world, including Ukraine. Savage’s site lists IBIS LLC / Europa Arms Sports Ltd as their Ukrainian stockists with an address in Kyiv but IBIS have a chain of stores across Ukraine.
IBIS’ site lists a large range of Savage Arms firearms and accessories with nearly 50 different models and variations listed. Everything from 110s in .338 Lapua Magnum to semi-automatic 7.62x51mm MSR-10s, and Savage Model 10s in various calibres to MSR-15 ARs.
With the help of DixieMauser, on Instagram, I’ve been collecting images of Savage Arms rifles in the field. From the photos we can see that both Savage’s semi-automatic rifles and bolt actions are in use.
A comparatively small number of photographs feature Savage’s MSR series. In these photos we see MSR-15s, Savage’s AR-15 pattern rifle. In use with Ukrainian forces they all appear to be running variable power optics. Much more common, however, are Savage’s bolt action rifles. They are seen with a range of suppressors and optics being used and while most appear to have factory stocks and chassis some barrelled actions have been placed in after-market chassis.
It is worth noting that Savage previously offered 10 (short action) and 110 (long action) versions of their rifles but in recent years have consolidated to referring to all their bolt actions in the 10/110 series – 110. It is difficult to differentiate between 10/110s in many of the photographs with the magazine being the key indicator.
Due to the nature of sourcing the photos across several social media platforms its difficult to identify units or know where personnel are operating. But one thing we can tell is the kinds of rifle being used.
Savage 110 Precisions have been seen as well as a number of 110 BA Stealths. We know that one of these Stealths was also used in Irpin at the beginning of April as it was mentioned in a Daily Beast report and pictured on the ground.
A number of 110s have also been seen in MDT chassis. In terms of calibre 7.62x51mm and .338 Lapua Magnum appear to be the most commonly seen but 300 Win Mag is also believed to be in use.
Conventionally stocked Savages have also been seen including this rifle which appears to be a Model 10 or 110 Hunter. Even a Savage 110 Carbon Tactical, still with its Savage sticker has been pictured. At least one AXIS series rifle has been seen in use with one unit operating around Kyiv.
It’s also worth noting there it’s not only Savages which have been see, there have also been a significant number of Remington 700s, Sakos and others seen in use. It is impossible to know how many of the Savage rifles were procured by the Ukrainian military and how many are formerly civilian owned or commercially sold firearms.
It is important to contextualise a sampling of photographs like this one as it is difficult to gauge how widespread the use of the rifles is and indeed in what areas of Ukraine they are being used in. They could be in fairly wide use or localised within a region or smattering of units. But we can say that rifles made by Savage Arms rifles are being used as precision rifles by marksmen and snipers of the Ukrainian armed forces.
Special thanks to DixieMauser for his help compiling the photographs of Savages in use, check out his Instagram page here.
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Bibliography:
Ukrainian Special Forces Precision Rifle Competition, TFB, (source)
Ukrainian President Poroshenko buys 430 sniper rifles for paratroopers, UAWire, (source)
IBIS Savage Arms Listings, IBIS, (source)
You Won’t Believe the Horror Left Behind, Daily Beast, (source)
What Ukrainian snipers are fighting in Donbas, Rambler (source)
First Sniper Tournament of the SSO of Ukraine, SSO, (source)
The Armourers Bench 