Bix'n Andy's Savage TacSport Pro X & Savage Dakota Triggers

In 2012 benchrest shooter Chris Harris, owner of BulletCentral.com, brought Austrian gunsmith and engineer Andy Atzl's Bix'n Andy triggers to America. Since then, their collaborative innovation has not slowed or stopped.

Well known to the benchrest world, the Remington 700 Competition trigger with its frictionless ball trigger design, has broken records and replaced what came before. Amongst their owners, there is a love for Bix'n Andy triggers that pervades their users. The mechanism that replaced friction designs has gained favor among their followers.

Seeking to go beyond providing triggers for Remington 700s and their clones, Tikkas, Sakos, Barnards, BulletCentral.com & Bix'n Andy now offer a drop-in replacement trigger for the Savage 110 line of rifles. As these popular rifles are offered in many configurations, including single shot target actions, hunting and plinking rifles, it made sense to enter into this world, as well.

In my association with Bullet Central, as their trigger repair and warranty guy, I've seen these Savage triggers installed on competition single shots, prairie dog shooting rifles, truck guns, deer/hog hunting rifles, and varmint rifles. The appreciation shown by their new owners, for having access to the same technology as the most expensive ELR, PRS, F-Class rifles is awesome to witness.

The Savage TacSport Pro X trigger has a pull force weight range from 3.5 ounces to 2.2 pounds, and the Dakota model starts at one pound and goes up to 4.4 pounds. The TacSport Pro X model has the feature of being able to change the shoe, from curved, to straight, to the Gator grip shoe, without disassembling the trigger.

Something that becomes evident with the use of a Bix'n Andy trigger from the first time you use it is how it feels. Because you are not trying to "overcome" something with the trigger force it is set at, and you use, it feels lighter than a friction-based trigger.

When you set a trigger to your desired pull force, whether it is under 10 ounces, or over two pounds, the Bix'n Andy trigger will feel lighter than the others because of its inner mechanism. You are not trying to "overcome" you are "setting off" the trigger, if that's how to describe it.

Also, when some triggers release the cocking piece, they stop, at a wall. Bix'n Andy triggers do not. They "follow through" with over-travel, so the rifle is not upset during that time the bullet has not yet exited the barrel. This is a feature that the Bix'n Andy Savage TacSport triggers and also the Dakota share with the original Benchrest triggers from the same company.

Changing the trigger on a Savage 110 is as simple as removing the stock, pulling one pin to remove the stock trigger, and putting the new trigger in its place with the return of the pin.

Why would you replace the stock trigger on a Savage 110? Well, it's like Chuck said on Friday when he came to pick up a truckload of prairie dog pills - "If yer gonna git serious about shooting prairie dogs, yer gonna change triggers!" Who's Chuck? He's the retired Vietnam vet/volunteer NRA Range Officer that, when asked how many dogs he shot on his last trip, said, "Well, I killed about 400."

That many trigger pulls demand a trigger that works, one that doesn't distract you from the job at hand, and one that allows you to shoot little targets a long ways away.