anyone own a howa rifle

[EddieWalker]

Looks like a bench shooting gun, or something that you would only use if sitting in a blind. I don't know why you would want a big magazine like the one in the picture, It's pretty rare to need more then one shot on anything unless their is a herd of hogs and one of them forgets to run off with the others after our first shot. For a target rifle, there are a lot better choices out there. For a hunting rifle, I wouldn't even think about something that bulky and heavy.

As for Howa, it's as good as most of the other brands out there. What I've found is that those who write about rifles tend to love everything they come into contact with. The secret to making money as a writer is to be a good cheerleader and to never honestly point out the flaws to anything. When I decide I want a new rifle, shotgun or pistol, I put in the time to go look at them in person. When I bought my last rifle, I went to four local gun dealers, and then drove 2 hours to Cabela's because they had the largest inventory and you can just pick up any rifle you want and take a look at it. It's really amazing how different each brand feels and how their actions work.

Most optics on combination weapons are way overpriced and under perform. You get what you pay for with a scope and you have to decide what it is you need it for. I prefer European scopes because I like to travel to hunt different species and when I spend a lot of money and take the time to go on a trip, I want the very best, so it's Zeiss and Swarvoski on my two hunting rifles. Leopold is good, but for medium quality and prices scopes, I think Nikon is better.

 

[bcp]

The Howa is more of a Sako copy than a Remington copy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howa_M1500

Sako and Howa | Hunting Rifles | 24hourcampfire

Bruce

 

[Scotty Dive]

Curious, but what will you use it for? Plinking, hunting, or what? I think that's important

At the risk of derailing this thread - I am trying to round out my fledgling collection. I have had the need to have a larger caliber hunting type rifle to dispatch undesirables. My .22 is just not enough for a humane kill and I am a decent shot, but I would rather something more powerful with longer range. I read that a .308 is an excellent choice for a hunting type of rifle. My knowledge is limited and so would appreciate the advice. I am not a hunter and this will sit in a safe for 99.9% of its life, so I am looking for a value/quality rifle that is accurate. I came across the Howa as a good value for under $700.

 

[mbohuntr]

You don't want to lug a heavy barrel in the woods......unless you enjoy a workout! :laughing: A sporting barrel is much lighter, but harder to shoot at great distance.... 300+ yds

 

[Scotty Dive]

You don't want to lug a heavy barrel in the woods......unless you enjoy a workout! :laughing: A sporting barrel is much lighter, but harder to shoot at great distance.... 300+ yds

Any recommendations?

 

[dusty3030]

Look the rifle you linked first has a 20" heavy barrel and weighs about 10lbs. That is great for shooting! More weight, less it kicks.
IF you plan on putting it over your shoulder and walking 3 miles in the hills to go hunt, you would want a lighter rifle.
IF you want a shooter, it will be fine.
A general sporter weight rifle with 22 or 24" barrel with scope ammo and sling will weight 8 to 10 lbs these days and are great all around guns.
Same action with heavier barrel, stock, and scope you could hit 12 or 14lbs pretty quick. Great for shooting, gets old carrying it.
Lightweight rifles come in around 7 or even less scope and all, but at a cost on shooting that they will have more perceived recoil and may not be as pleasant to shoot.

Accuracy, a lighter weight rifle can and does shoot just fine and are as accurate as you can shoot it, you don't have to have a heavy barrel for accuracy; however, lighter barrels fall victim to heat faster than a heavier barrel. What does this mean? First one or two shots out of a cold barrel will be great. The more and faster you shoot you will notice your groups opening up or unexplained flyers (single rounds that impact the target several inches outside of group). The barrel heats up and accuracy drops off until it cools. A heavier barrel stays more stable longer (usually).

 

[dusty3030]

For a package gun, Savage uses a pretty good Nikon scope and makes an excellent rifle.
For a classic, American all around rifle this one is good:

Savage Arms

One of these predator combos in .243 aint bad for an all around whitetail deer or smaller type rifle either.

Savage Arms

These Browing AB3's are a lot of rifle for the money. Very slick handling.

Browning AB3 Rifles, Firearms, Product Family

Tikka T3 is a good rifle for the money.

T3 HUNTER | Tikka

You have already discovered the Howa, here is it's cousin the Howa built Weatherby. Very good rifles.

Weatherby | Vanguard

 

[dusty3030]

Last but not least, if you consider yourself more of a thinking man and have taste in the finer things, there is none better than a Winchester 70 Featherweight in 30/06.

Model 70 Featherweight, Bolt Action Deer Elk Big Game Rifle -- Winchester Repeating Arms -- Product Model

 

[Scotty Dive]

Thanks dusty.....I have some reading to do

 

[EddieWalker]

Any recommendations?

I would strongly suggest that you go to a place like Cabela's and look at what they have to offer. They tend to be at the higher end of prices, so if you find something you like, shop around and you can save some money. Be very careful of recommendations because there are so many options out there that there is no way to cover them all. You pretty much get what you pay for in rifles when comparing apples to apples. Stick with the bigger name brands with the same action, trigger and features. I prefer the Hogue stock, or something similar. It's very quiet when something touches is. Some make a noise going through branches that is deafening. Wood is always going to be the most beautiful, but it requires the most care. Blued metal will rust over stainless, but it's more affordable. In my opinion, a quality rifle will be in the $600 to $800 range. If you find one that fits you, and you are comfortable with it, you will never need another one the rest of your life.

As for caliber, stick with what you can find anywhere you go. They all perform fairly similar, and it's more for those who like to get into the minute details of what the bullet might or might not do, then how good they perform out hunting. Nobody is going to be able to tell the difference shooting a deer out to 300 yards between a 270, 7mm, 25 06, 7mm 08 and 30 06. I would avoid the wildcat rounds, they cost a lot more and you wont notice any difference out hunting. I personally shoot a 30-06 using 165 bullets because I can buy them off the shelf and have excellent accuracy. The deer don't care if I use bigger or smaller bullets, but my barrel does.

Be very careful of what you read, most are overthought, highly opinionated, want to be experts who are either trying to sell something for a paid advertiser, or are so in love with guns that they love everything, have everything and focus on the insignificant. In all reality, the world would be just fine if there was only half a dozen different calibers since they overlap and perform so similar to each other.

The difference between a good scope and an OK one is when you have very little light, extreme weather, or you are traveling long distances. When the temps change from sunny and warm, to below zero and snow, scopes fog up. When it's cloudy out at first light, a good scope will allow you to see through it when you can't see with just your naked eye. I've actually found my truck after dark with my scope because I came off a mountain just a little off to the side where I went up it and wasn't sure if it was to the left or the right of where I was at. I looked through my scope and could see it, but not by just shining my small flashlight in either direction.

I feel Nikon makes about as good a scope for the money as you can get. Leopold is also a good mid level scope with some upper level ones that you would have trouble comparing to the European brands. I don't think you can get a decent scope for under $500.