The stock savage rod ends are soft, sloppy POS... IMHO. lol
I used Hellfire rodends as well as thick 5mm buckles from the HF as well.
I'll just post a thumbnail to not junk up your thread:
They are the same rodends that are used on the adj arm kit for the savage also, they they can do double duty for spare parts.
Now str ends are v thick, solid and no slop. V happy results.