Savage Revel Classic 

Review by Brad Allen 

In recent times, there has been a resurgence in the popularity of lever action rifles in general and rimfire lever action rifles in particular, so when NIOA Australia, the importer of Savage firearms, requested SSAA Queensland to review its new Savage Revel Classic rimfire lever action, take down rifle, I was only too happy to oblige. 

The Revel is easily taken down into its two major component parts by pushing the captured retaining pins through the action.  

Look at any of the online firearm sales sites or any gun magazine and you’ll be overwhelmed with advertisements for new lever action .22 rifles. To be spoilt for choice isn’t a bad problem to have, but the first time I saw an ad for the Savage Revel, I was impressed. It was a nice-looking lever rifle, but with subtle differences from anything else on the market. Why do they call this model a ‘Revel’ I hear you ask? I also wondered, but quite simply, Revel is ‘Lever’ spelt backwards. 

In Savage’s own description, the Revel is a sleek, modern take on the classic lever action rimfire rifle, which embodies a fusion of tradition and innovation; I’d have to agree. Fit and finish on the Canadian made test rifle was well executed and the walnut stock with its angular swells in the forearm and butt stock showed unusual figure that was pleasing to the eye. The action, lever, trigger and hammer are all investment alloy castings, very neatly executed. Revels are available in the Classic model (tested) and also the DLX model, with carved stock and curved pistol grip and lever loop, in both .22lr and .22 Magnum. 

One of the first things that caught my eye on the test rifle was the satin finished walnut stock and dull black receiver. As a hunter, I don’t like shiny rifles! Throughout the years, I’ve been ‘pinged’ by game animals on more than one occasion when carrying a rifle with a glossy stock and shiny metal work, which may look nice, but is totally impractical for hunting. The overall satin finish on the Revel looks good and is extremely practical. 

The oversized lever loop, while not a new idea, is a nice touch, both aesthetically and for practicality. I owned a lever action .22 rimfire many years ago that had an extremely narrow finger lever that bordered on the uncomfortable. The Revel’s oversized lever loop reliably cycles the action in a smooth and positive manner and is comfortable to use, without being too large.  

With modern metallurgy, design and manufacturing techniques, it’s quite common these days to see many different rifles with alloy receivers. Some of the more upmarket rifles, like Blaser and Merkel, have alloy receivers which in no way detract from their strength, functionality or accuracy. The Revel’s cast aluminium receiver is both solid and functional with, its dull matt black finish. The top of the receiver is drilled and tapped for scope mounting and the test rifle was supplied with the new Bushnell R3 rimfire scope. Just as well really, as my old eyes struggle these days using iron sights. However, the iron sights on the rifle, although quite rudimentary (drift adjustable for windage and a serrated ramp for elevation adjustment) are more than acceptable for anyone with normal eyesight.   

Considering that full ballistics for the .22 are achieved in 16 inches of barrel, the Revel’s medium profile carbon steel barrel is a handy 18 inches in length. It provides good balance and usability, with the rifle holding well in the offhand position. The underbarrel tube magazine holds 12 rounds of .22lr ammunition, which is more than enough firepower for a session of plinking or small game hunting.  

The Revel also sports a crossbolt safety catch in the action above the trigger, something that was never seen on lever guns back in the day. I recently had this very conversation with my son Billy, who owns two Marlin lever action rifles, both with crossbolt safeties. Bill likes the safety they afford, especially while unloading. After firing the Revel during an informal target shoot, I could see his point. To unload, I put the safety on before ejecting any round in the chamber, then leaving the action open, removed the remaining rounds from the tube magazine. It’s then necessary to make sure there are no more rounds left in the rifle by cycling the action, with the safety on, while pointed in a safe direction. The crossbolt safety works well and is a welcome addition to the Revel. 

I was pleasantly surprised with the performance of the trigger on the ‘Revel’. Although there was some trigger ‘creep’ which is to be expected on a rifle of this type, it was very smooth in operation and not too heavy, which is fine for plinking and small game hunting. I’ve owned a couple of lever action rimfires over the years that although they shot well, had horrendously heavy trigger pulls, which was the main reason that I no longer own them! 

Although it has some creep, the trigger of the Revel was quite acceptable. 

The Revel is a ‘take down’ rifle, which is easily broken down into its two major component parts, being the action, barrel and magazine assembly and the butt stock, lower receiver and lever. It’s simply a matter of making sure there is no round in the chamber, then pushing the two retaining pins from the left side through to the right-hand side of the action. The two pins are fully ‘captured’ within the frame at this point, so can’t be removed from the action and lost; then, just pull the lower receiver, lever and butt stock assembly free from the upper receiver. Re-assembly is just as simple, but in reverse. Once broken down, the rifle can easily be transported in a backpack. 

The performance of virtually all .22 rifles will be enhanced with the addition of a telescopic sight, regardless of your eyesight. The problem is, most scopes fitted to .22 rifles are designed for and meant to be mounted on centrefire rifles, with their parallax adjusted for centrefire rifle distances, usually 100 or 150 metres. Consequently, .22 with such a scope will not be performing at its optimal. Owing to the usable distance that a rimfire rifle will invariably be used, any scope on a .22 rifle needs to have parallax set for around 50 metres. Only then will the rifle perform at its best. The 3-9×40 Bushnell R3 Rimfire Scope as supplied with the Revel for testing, has its parallax set appropriately for .22lr distances and has a BDC reticule with three dots under the main cross specific to .22lr hold over. The Bushnell R3 rimfire scope is a very useful addition to the Revel or any other .22lr rifle, as its designed specifically with rimfire shooting distances in mind. 

During our shooting session, the Revel shot quite well by .22lr standards. I shot the rifle with both CCI High velocity 40grn solids as supplied with the rifle and Winchester 40grn Subsonic hollow points. At 50 yds, both rounds grouped around one inch, with some lateral dispersion due to a brisk cross wind. This is more than acceptable accuracy from a rifle meant for plinking and small game hunting. 

I found the Revel to be a handsome, well-made and lively little rifle that functioned smoothly and positively with good accuracy. Anyone currently considering the purchase of a new lever action .22, should have a closer look at the Savage Revel. You won’t be disappointed. 

At the time of writing a check with several distributors revealed that the Revel Classic was generally selling for under $1000 and the Revel DLX for just above $1100, so best advice is to shop around. Savage firearms are distributed in Australia by NIOA Australia.  

The author’s tiny Leupold FX1 4×28 rimfire scope complements the trim Revel perfectly.