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A Star Is Born
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Savage and CCI combine to offer something special hooters who desired a high-performance rimfire autoloader capable of handling a magnum cartridge saw their wishes fulfilled last year when Savage Arms unveiled the A17. Chambered in .17 HMR, the rifle takes full advantage of the high-performance cartridge. Bill Dermody, Savage’s marketing director, emphasizes that it is important for retailers to understand that the A17 is not a previous model adapted to fire a magnum rimfire round. It is a brand-new design. “Other manufacturers have tried adapting straight-blowback actions over the years to convert their standard autoloader rimfire rifles to shoot magnum rimfire loads, but those guns never flourished,” he says. “The .17 HMR cartridge is just too hot for the straight blowback action—a design that typically does not allow enough time for gases to escape down the barrel before cycling. That trait can cause performance and safety issues. But the A17’s unique delayed-blowback action is specifically designed for high-performance magnum rimfire cartridges to ensure safe, reliable cycling.” CCI’s A17 Varmint Tip was created to optimize the performance of Savage’s A17 semi- automatic rifle, which utilizes a delayedblowback action designed to handle highperformance cartridges.