Howa 1500

GolfVI

Hi everyone,
As the title suggests does anyone shoot one of these for target shooting in .223? If so would you recommend?

What do they shoot like straight out of the box?

Looking to pick up target shooting for some fun and held one and it felt like a well tailored suit to me.

Other options are a second hand tikka t3 and i know straight away everyone will say the tikka but it just didnt do it for me when i held it. Maybe an after market stock would be an option?

Thanks for any suggestions

alanmc

Never shot the Howa, but I had a T3 in 223 20" heavy barrel.

It was a great rifle. Yes, the factory stock is a little disappointing, but the bolt, trigger, action and barrel are all top notch. Put a GRS stock on it (or anything a little more rigid than the factory one), and it'll be ace.

Accuracy-wise, I was getting great groups out of 69g SMKs - 1 in 8 twist ... out to 300m.

Probably the only rifle I've ever regretted trading in.

Cass

GolfVI wrote: »

Hi everyone,
As the title suggests does anyone shoot one of these for target shooting in .223? If so would you recommend?

My one is not specifically for target shooting, but i use it for it from time to time and have to say i'm very happy with its performance.

What do they shoot like straight out of the box?

Not bad at all. The one i have has a Boyds stock, removable mag system and was glass bedded so while no longer factory, it's not exactly custom either and nothing you couldn't do for little money.

They are a 1:12 twist so like anything from 40 to 55 gr. They love Hornady, but also do extremely well with Fiocchi 50gr V-max, Hornady 40gr, UMC 45 gr HP, and any of thr 50gr FMJ stuff. Here are a few groups at 100 and 200 yards. Most were 53 but one was 55gr.

Looking to pick up target shooting for some fun and held one and it felt like a well tailored suit to me.

You don't need to start of with a hugely expensive rifle. If you like the Howa go for it. You can "upgrade" it if you like or not if it works fine for you.

I know some say to buy once, cry once, but that i not always possible due to circumstances, and so you want the best you can with what you have for a budget.

Other options are a second hand tikka t3 and i know straight away everyone will say the tikka but it just didnt do it for me when i held it. Maybe an after market stock would be an option?

The Tikka are a nice rifle and accurate, no doubt. However for me i find they are the "go to" recommendation regardless of whether the person recommending has ever owned or used one. It's like saying CZ when someone wants a 22lr. Absolutely they're a great rifle and shoot well, but there is a host of other options if you're willing to look and try something outside of the norm.

The Tikka stocks are muck. I hate them. For what used to be a reasonably priced rifle i could understand the stock, but with prices going up, but no improvement in the stock i don't think its "all that". Most i know change the tock immediately or soon after buying. So now you've handed out €1,100+ for a rifle and have to come up with €250 (minimum) for a new stock.

You could argue the same for the Howa, but the starting price of €650-€700 means i can change the stock, mag system, and pillar/glass bed it for the price of the Tikka new, and i'll put my Howa against any Tikka in terms of accuracy (awaits abuse )

In all seriousness i'm not saying Howa is up there with Tikka, there is obviously a better something in the Tikkas, but i wouldn't look down my nose at other brands especially, as said above, if you like it, and can afford it easier.

GolfVI

Cass wrote: »

My one is not specifically for target shooting, but i use it for it from time to time and have to say i'm very happy with its performance.




Not bad at all. The one i have has a Boyds stock, removable mag system and was glass bedded so while no longer factory, it's not exactly custom either and nothing you couldn't do for little money.

They are a 1:12 twist so like anything from 40 to 55 gr. They love Hornady, but also do extremely well with Fiocchi 50gr V-max, Hornady 40gr, UMC 45 gr HP, and any of thr 50gr FMJ stuff. Here are a few groups at 100 and 200 yards. Most were 53 but one was 55gr.








You don't need to start of with a hugely expensive rifle. If you like the Howa go for it. You can "upgrade" it if you like or not if it works fine for you.

I know some say to buy once, cry once, but that i not always possible due to circumstances, and so you want the best you can with what you have for a budget.


The Tikka are a nice rifle and accurate, no doubt. However for me i find they are the "go to" recommendation regardless of whether the person recommending has ever owned or used one. It's like saying CZ when someone wants a 22lr. Absolutely they're a great rifle and shoot well, but there is a host of other options if you're willing to look and try something outside of the norm.

The Tikka stocks are muck. I hate them. For what used to be a reasonably priced rifle i could understand the stock, but with prices going up, but no improvement in the stock i don't think its "all that". Most i know change the tock immediately or soon after buying. So now you've handed out €1,100+ for a rifle and have to come up with €250 (minimum) for a new stock.

You could argue the same for the Howa, but the starting price of €650-€700 means i can change the stock, mag system, and pillar/glass bed it for the price of the Tikka new, and i'll put my Howa against any Tikka in terms of accuracy (awaits abuse )

In all seriousness i'm not saying Howa is up there with Tikka, there is obviously a better something in the Tikkas, but i wouldn't look down my nose at other brands especially, as said above, if you like it, and can afford it easier.

As always youve out done yourself Cass, thanks very much for the reply, looking at your pics that is some serious good shooting out of the rifle, if thats what i can expect after some slight changes then it will definitely out shoot me, i think i may go for it so instead of the tikka cause honestly the stock was just awful

Cass

I cannot take credit for the rifle. I done a swap with another Boardsie and he done the work, but the rifle has shot unbelievably well since i got it.

I always seem to play it cautious when i recommend something. The reason for that is what i've experienced or thought may not be what others think and i'd hate for someone to buy something based on a recommendation i gave only for them to hate it or have a bad experience. So for that reason i always seem less than fully committed.

However that said there is no doubt in my mind that a factory, out of the box, Howa will maintain a sub MOA performance, and better with work on either the rifle or shooters ability.

It reminds me of a chap on the range one day who bought a Steyr based on a recommendation from another chap. He bought the rifle, and it would not group for him. He was getting truly pissed with the gun and i was doing RO so he asked me to check the rifle for possible problems and performance.

I checked the rifle over and all seemed o in terms of rings, scope mount, etc. When i checked the parallax i noticed the crosshair would "move" around the target without the rifle/scope actually being moved. IOW if i moved my head the crosshair would move with my eye. This is a sign the parallax is not properly set on the scope. I adjusted the parallax, and took three shots and had them all clover leafing at 100 yards. I then got another chap to try and he done the same.

The owner tried and the group while tighter than before was still spread out to over an inch. I watched him shoot, gave him a few pointers on grip, cheek weld, breathing, and the group tightened up. He kept at it, taking his time, and ended up with half MOA groups so he left a happy camper.

Thats a long story for this point. Too many lads buy a gun and based on recommendations or reputation believe the gun will do all the work. A good rifle will improve your shooting while a bad will never work, but don't get disheartened if you cannot replicate the performance someone else can get.

GolfVI

Cass wrote: »

I cannot take credit for the rifle. I done a swap with another Boardsie and he done the work, but the rifle has shot unbelievably well since i got it.

I always seem to play it cautious when i recommend something. The reason for that is what i've experienced or thought may not be what others think and i'd hate for someone to buy something based on a recommendation i gave only for them to hate it or have a bad experience. So for that reason i always seem less than fully committed.

However that said there is no doubt in my mind that a factory, out of the box, Howa will maintain a sub MOA performance, and better with work on either the rifle or shooters ability.

It reminds me of a chap on the range one day who bought a Steyr based on a recommendation from another chap. He bought the rifle, and it would not group for him. He was getting truly pissed with the gun and i was doing RO so he asked me to check the rifle for possible problems and performance.

I checked the rifle over and all seemed o in terms of rings, scope mount, etc. When i checked the parallax i noticed the crosshair would "move" around the target without the rifle/scope actually being moved. IOW if i moved my head the crosshair would move with my eye. This is a sign the parallax is not properly set on the scope. I adjusted the parallax, and took three shots and had them all clover leafing at 100 yards. I then got another chap to try and he done the same.

The owner tried and the group while tighter than before was still spread out to over an inch. I watched him shoot, gave him a few pointers on grip, cheek weld, breathing, and the group tightened up. He kept at it, taking his time, and ended up with half MOA groups so he left a happy camper.

Thats a long story for this point. Too many lads buy a gun and based on recommendations or reputation believe the gun will do all the work. A good rifle will improve your shooting while a bad will never work, but don't get disheartened if you cannot replicate the performance someone else can get.

100% agree , there is only so much a rifle can do for you, the rest is up to who pulls the trigger.

I see it in work everyday with the Steyr AUG, some lads can put 5 bullets into one hole and others couldnt hit water if they fell out of a boat
I can Consistently shoot sub MOA with the Steyr at 100 yards and thats using a 30 year old rifle with ammo made by the cheapest bidder , so ive every bit of confidence in myself that i will hold up to the performance of the rifle and the round.

That being said it is good to see the physical evidence of what the Howa is capable of in the right hands, so puts a bit more confidence in myself if deciding to purchase it.

Half-cocked

I have a howa 1500 in .22-250. It was a tack driver straight out of the box.

GolfVI

Half-cocked wrote: »

I have a howa 1500 in .22-250. It was a tack driver straight out of the box.

Its good to hear that people are getting on good with it

Ghost.

I've a howa and I find it excellent. I would buy another howa in a heart beat. Mines in a PSE stock which is great.
I don't know what they are like out of the box but by all accounts on line they are very good value and have decent accuracy out of the box.

Rows Grower

I need to get a Howa, what kind of moola would you be talking about for a secondhand well looked after basic rifle?

Rows Grower

Did a bit of googling, it probably won't be on this years Santy list for myself but it's worth saving for.

GolfVI

Rows Grower wrote: »

Did a bit of googling, it probably won't be on this years Santy list for myself but it's worth saving for.

What kinda prices were you getting?

Rows Grower

GolfVI wrote: »

What kinda prices were you getting?

They were along the lines of "buy a better scope for the other rifle first and practice your aim" sort of thing.

Captainaxiom

A new howa is about €800

GolfVI

Captainaxiom wrote: »

A new howa is about €800

Thats what my local is selling them for

jingojonson

Can I ask if you've seen any non-standard Howas in your dealer? If you check out howa uk they have a great range of stainless, varmint barrel etc with different stock choices whereas all i've seen here is the sporter model with a hogue stock.

GolfVI

jingojonson wrote: »

Can I ask if you've seen any non-standard Howas in your dealer? If you check out howa uk they have a great range of stainless, varmint barrel etc with different stock choices whereas all i've seen here is the sporter model with a hogue stock.

I couldnt say tbh, i was just shown the one rifle , it had what seemed a standard stock that was fully rubberized in black if thats the hogue stock?

Captainaxiom

I’ve seen them in the same style stock as the pic Cass put up.

photosmart

Can I ask which dealer?

Captainaxiom

photosmart wrote: »

Can I ask which dealer?

Seen one in griffin & Hawe in Athy a while back and they had the grey/pepper version of that thumb hole stock in .308

Cass

There is a model called the Howa Supreme (or somethign to that effect) and it comes with the Pepper laminate stock as standard. Few more "fancy" bits on it, but essentially the same rifle.

Think of it like the CZ 527. Four models, but apart from the Kevlar (which is €550 more expensive and 1:9 twist) they are the same rifle just variances in stock/finish.

Cass

Here it is:




Howa M1500 Supreme Varminter.

Comes with:

• Blued barrel
• Stainless barrel
• Thumbhole
• "Solid" stock with cheek riser
• 223 or 308

I held one of these about 5 years ago and its a fantastic rifle in terms of feel, fit, and surprisingly not as heavy as it looks.

Cass

Found this from a couple of years back:

GolfVI

Cass wrote: »

Found this from a couple of years back:

Thanks Cass, just wondering what sort of long range shooting have to achieved with the Howa? Beyond lets say 300 yards?

Would it be possible to shoot out to 500-600 yards?

Cass

I haven't done anything with it past 300. The furthest i shot it to was 300 because i couldn't be arsed setting up the target and getting someone in the butts for 600 yards.

At 300 yards the rifle will give 1.75 to 2.25 inch groups with most ammo i mentioned above. As you can see fro the last picture the Fiocchi HP were the wosrt ammo. So bad in fact that i got the box from a chap on the range. He fired three rounds and gave me the remainging 47. I fired the three in the picture above and then gave the remaining 44 to another lad. Pure muck, and not even good enough to use in the AR.

As for medium distance shooting. The gun, any 223, will happily reach out to 600 yards all day long. One chap, another Boards member, was at a shoot i held a few years back. He was shooting a 223 with a 3-9 Leupold. While he had the lowest power scope, ran out of elevation and had to hold off, he still held one of the best groups of the day.

The rifle will go further, possibly 800 yards, but at this point and definitely beyond you need a heavier round, hence faster twist and also need to start reloading as factory ammo can let you down. There one or two lads running an FTR rig in 223, but they have custom barrels (usually 1:8 or 1:7.25) and are running 90gr VLDs or so.

For a factory rifle you can comfortably, within the ability of the shooter, fire out to 600 yards and expect fairly good results. The sporting league at the Midlands every few weeks might be a good place to see this in action. Lads are using everything from 223 to 308 (and everything in between) and shooting at 600 yards. Some impressive results.

Hunter456

being using weatherby/howa 1500 for the past year taken rabbits out to 515 yards, was absolutely shocked at the accuracy for an out of the box rifle, took a deer the first week of the season at 350 yards.

GolfVI

Just a quick update, thanks to everyone for your replies , you’ve all been more than helpfull.

Its been good to see so many happy with their rifle so ive a deposit on a new howa 1500 put down, and membership to the Midlands national shooting centre of Ireland got

Now i just need to pick all your brains for a new scope, but im sure that’ll be the topic of a new post