I'm sure the savage is a very fine strong rifle, it just doesn't trip my trigger. The biggest negative is you souldn't try loading smockless by volume. This means you will have to premeasure a lot of charges or take your scale with you to the range. I find it simpler to use a more traditional powder or replacement. As for the velocity, I didn't fall in love with muzzleloading because the bullets were fast. I like the challenge of one shot, questioning whether the thing will fire and having to get up close.