Since its 2019 introduction, the Winchester 350 Legend has exploded in popularity. Today, Winchester alone offers eight different loads in .350 Legend. It has quickly become a mainstream cartridge, with Savage Arms now offering a whopping twenty-six variations in a bolt action rifle for the 350 Legend. I'll note that Savage's entry-level Axis in .350 Legend has an MSRP of $419. This Savage 110 Apex Storm is the first of several .350 Legend rifles I plan to review, with a Mossberg Patriot, Henry single shot, and Winchester XPR incoming.

This Savage 110 Apex Storm is going to be really tough to beat. With a comfortable AccuFit stock, AccuTrigger, pre-installed rail-mounted Vortex Crossfire II 3-9 x 40mm scope, this rifle is ready to hunt right out of the box.

Savage Arms SKU Number 57537

Savage certainly did a great job bore-sighting the scope, for far from just being on the paper the Apex Storm threw the first three shots into the same hole at short range. Recoil is extremely mild, and the Vortex Crossfire 3-9 scope is surprisingly clear for an OEM installed, 'deer rifle in a box' type offering. To get decent velocity out of a .350 Legend, you don't need much more than 16 inches. The standard published Winchester ammunition velocities (two examples follow) are from 20 inch barrels. The fast-handling 18 inch barrel of the Savage 110 is an excellent choice.

X350DS – 150 Grain Extreme Point

Muzzle Velocity: 2,325 FPS

Muzzle Energy: 1,800 ft/lb

X3501 – 180 Grain Power Point

Muzzle Velocity: 2,100 FPS

Muzzle Energy: 1,762 ft/lb

Why the 350 Legend in the first place? Well, you have far better ballistics than the .357 Magnum and .44 Remington Magnum, far less recoil than slug guns, and a far less cost per shot than slug guns as well. With the .350 Legend, FMJ target ammo starts at 80 cents a round, with hunting ammo at $1.35 per round on up. The saboted slug hunter is often looking at three to five dollars per shot . . . when and if you can find the ammo your rifled shotgun likes, that is. Assuming a six inch kill zone the Maximum Point Blank Range is 193 yards with the Winchester X3501 180 grain Power Point load. Sight in is at about 2.93 inches high at 100 yards. As most whitetail east of the Mississippi are taken inside 100 yards, many hunters will have all the range they want out of the 350 Legend.

It is hard not to call the Savage 110 Apex Storm a superb little rifle. With fast-handling, excellent balance, a terrific trigger, low recoil, and pinpoint accuracy, most anyone would be pleased to hunt with it. Your wife will, your son will, your daughter will, and you will. The bolt is smooth, as is the feeding and ejection, and if someone doesn't love truly love this rifle, I'll be surprised.