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Reviews please! Howa 1500.
- Thread starter Shubey
- Start date
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Relate warranty experience too!
clamb4
Well-Known Member
I bought a new stainless howa 1500, 3006 to build a custom. Got rid of the barrel, stock, and trigger.
Then put a pacnor barrel chambered for 7mm rem mag. Had the bolt face opened for the 7mm. Had the receiver blue printed. Put in a timney trigger and bell and carlson stock. Glass bedded the stock. Put a burris veracity 4 x 20 scope on it when they first came out.
I reload berger 168g vlds. At 3020' mv.
Have been using this setup for years. Have killed lots of deer, antelope, and a few elk. Very stable rifle it shoots 1/2 to 3/4 moa. Probably shoots closer to half moa, but I am getting old. Longest kill was a Mule deer at 525 yards. It's been lots of fun over the years.
Most people don't use howa 1500s to build a custom. But they are relatively cheap and they work.
Then put a pacnor barrel chambered for 7mm rem mag. Had the bolt face opened for the 7mm. Had the receiver blue printed. Put in a timney trigger and bell and carlson stock. Glass bedded the stock. Put a burris veracity 4 x 20 scope on it when they first came out.
I reload berger 168g vlds. At 3020' mv.
Have been using this setup for years. Have killed lots of deer, antelope, and a few elk. Very stable rifle it shoots 1/2 to 3/4 moa. Probably shoots closer to half moa, but I am getting old. Longest kill was a Mule deer at 525 yards. It's been lots of fun over the years.
Most people don't use howa 1500s to build a custom. But they are relatively cheap and they work.
I have shot 4 different Howa 1500 and they all shoot well.
2 weatherby Vanguard (Howa 1500) with handloads shoot .75" or smaller stock.
2 howa 1500 rifles in 6.5x55, both will shoot at least MOA. I haven't done final load development on mine yet.
2 weatherby Vanguard (Howa 1500) with handloads shoot .75" or smaller stock.
2 howa 1500 rifles in 6.5x55, both will shoot at least MOA. I haven't done final load development on mine yet.
clamb4
Well-Known Member
I have bought 3 Weatherby vangaurds. For my son and two nephews all in 7mm rem mag. All shoot around 3/4 moa. Unaltered factory rifles. They cost $500 to $550 each. Not bad for rifles that shoot that well.
Not sure it made sense to spend all that money on a custom howa 1500.
Not sure it made sense to spend all that money on a custom howa 1500.
Buffalobwana
Well-Known Member
I also have 3 vanguards. 270, 7 mag and .308. All very accurate. No complaints at all. For the money, it's a great buy
I have the 1500 22-250 and it shoots great ! How can a guy pass on the Price point and reliability of them .
I have my eye on another one as I type this ! I used to have one in 7 rem mag , sold it to a buddy so I could try something else ...that was 20 plus years ago and he still has it !
Just grab one and injoy it !
Rum Man
I have my eye on another one as I type this ! I used to have one in 7 rem mag , sold it to a buddy so I could try something else ...that was 20 plus years ago and he still has it !
Just grab one and injoy it !
Rum Man
TC338
Well-Known Member
Where did you take your rifle to have the bolt face opened up? I've asked several reputable gunsmiths about doing so on my SA build so I could run a mag cartridge but no one would do it because of the extractor cut in the bolt face.
TC338
Well-Known Member
My main hunting rifle is a Howa 1500. Started life as a 308 and I hunted with it for 10 years, shooting deer out to 500 yards with it. Hand loads got it down to sub 1/2 MOA but the throat was very long so my loads at 20 thou off the lands would not fit in the magazine, had to single load. I had it rebuilt a few years ago using the WTO switchlug and a bartlein barrel chambered in 6.5 creed. Installed a Timney trigger and bedded into a manners stock. Shoots right at 1/4-3/8 MOA using factory precision hunter. My hope was to build a switch barrel set up with barrels and bolts for .223, 6.5 creed, and 7SS, but getting the other bolt faces has turned into an exercise in futility. So I'm currently working on having.308, 6 creed, and 22 creed barrels cut for it.
I ended up with a Weatherby vanguard in 300 Weatherby on a trade
about 18 years ago, it shot a good 1 MOA group. I didn't care for the plastic stock, so I bedded it in a HS precision stock, put a Timney trigger in it, worked up a load for it. It's now my wife's 1/4" MOA Elk
Rifle. No complaints, it's been a great gun for not much money.
about 18 years ago, it shot a good 1 MOA group. I didn't care for the plastic stock, so I bedded it in a HS precision stock, put a Timney trigger in it, worked up a load for it. It's now my wife's 1/4" MOA Elk
Rifle. No complaints, it's been a great gun for not much money.
A friend of mine who passed away had two. He seemed to have liked them. The only thing I recall him being frustrated with was that the receiver and barrel have metric threads. This was a problem for his gunsmith because his lathe wasn't set up to cut metric threads.
That's true but there Awesome rifles
There is a seller on eBay that has bolts. Your smith can open a standard bolt face to magnum.
I have bolts and barrels for it, but haven't actually switched between anything but 6 creed and 6 BRA. I am actually going to do a SST on it too.
I might have an extra bolt as well, if interested.
ntsqd
Well-Known Member
I've had one SA (in S&W livery) and two Mini's. The S&W was one that got away and I can not find another like it. It was a parkerized varminter in .223 Rem. that shot better than I could at the time. Both Mini's started out as 7.62x39's. One still is and within 200-ish yards using PPU ammo it simply hits what you intended to like it's reading your mind. The other I had rebarreled to .224 Valkyrie and the jury is still out on that one. I've yet to find a factory load that it likes and I've not had time to do any loading for it.
There have been similar threads on these actions in the past. For what ever reason they do not get much notice, but they are a really good option. As has been noted in this and in previous threads they shoot well. Their triggers are good for a stock rifle. Their action is smooth and precise. The only really notable complaint are the polymer stocks that some come with.
There have been similar threads on these actions in the past. For what ever reason they do not get much notice, but they are a really good option. As has been noted in this and in previous threads they shoot well. Their triggers are good for a stock rifle. Their action is smooth and precise. The only really notable complaint are the polymer stocks that some come with.
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