When I turned 14 on my birthday I got a Howa 30-06 as my first rifle. Now I'm a couple of months away from being 18 and I still have that rifle and shoots amazing guys. I have the Hogue stock still but I got a Blackhawk Bi-Pod and a Vortex hs-t Viper 6-24 scope. The farthest group I have shot is 800 yards and all 3 shots were with in 2 inches of each other! I got my Howa for 420 bucks with scope and sling! Amazing rifles I really recommend them!
I picked up my .308 last week. I LOVE IT. got a great deal at big5 bought it for $550 scope bi-pod and the 10rd mag. zero'd the scope and love the gun. FIRST TIME OWNING A RIFLE.
My weatherby also shoots 7.62 particularly well. The federal m80 is the only load I’ve done a sub moa 10 shot group from that rifle. That was after I bedded and free floated the stock though.
The Weatherby vanguard and howa rifles are basically the same rifles so you can use the Stocks interchangeably and this bottom metal will work on the weather vanguard
I have a new 10 round howa magazine and trigger guard assembly I would sell for $50. Also agree with guntank the Howa is truly amazing, get Sub MOA easy at 100 yards and I am not a great shot at all. Love this gun!
Like the gun, but that video was unnecessarily long. Basically I got that the mag feed was nice and the stock helped with accuracy. Be more concise. Good info, just prepare a checklist of points.
Guntank, First, thanks for the video. I know it takes time not only to shoot but also edit these vids and so I thank you for your effort. Now for the gentle critique: You could have saved your $200 simply by glass bedding your Hogue stock! It would have given it much greater strength and far less flex, as well as amplifying the inherent accuracy of your Howa rifle. Bell & Carlson stocks are nice but far too heavy normally. I bought a couple years back but switched back to wood or Hogue. In 1986, when I got my FFL, the first guns I purchased were Howa barreled actions...one in .308 (S&W) with a sporter barrel the other was the .223 varmint heavy barrel (Mossberg). I bought a couple of semi-inletted, walnut stocks and hand inletted them with small chisels and then glass bedded them. Both rifles were true tack drivers with the reloads I tailored for each rifle. Back then I paid $139 for the .308 and $199 for the .223. The .308 was sold a couple of years ago for over 3X what I paid for it but I still have the .223 and it shoots as good today as when it was brand new....28 years go!!!!! If you want better accuracy from your rifle, glass bed it and start reloading for it. Using mil-surp ammo is never going to give you the accuracy that rifle is capable of. The groups you are getting now with that ammo is okay but your Howa...especially in .308 Win...can do much, much better. The Legacy Sports mag conversion seem to be ideal for varmint hunting and cost about $68 with the 10-round magazine. The down side, those mags cost about $35...almost half what the entire conversion goes for. It's a shame they didn't make the conversion compatible with AR-type magazines.
you are right it is difficult to find accessories for it, as far as the new barrel I do not recommend it because I have heard howa barrels are extremely difficult to remove and it is probably cheaper just to buy a bull barrelled action without the stock. Glad to hear a review on the magazine upgrade and the bell and carlson stock I have been thinking about getting them both
I have a very similar set up on my Howa .204 and I love it. The polymer mag system is great! I recommend to anyone considering a Howa to buy the barreled action and pick your stock online. Howa parts are compatible with anything made for Weatherby Vanguard. Nice DNZ mounts, just need to get in in black next time! ;-)
how come people don't like the Hogue stocks? They are very grippy in hand(not slick like most stocks that feel like they'll slip out of your hands) and they are fully free floated. What's not to like?
I picked up the mag conversion kit from Midway. For whatever reason the stock that came with mine is not pillar bedded. I found that I had to shim with washers on the front bolt of the carrier and none on the rear bolt to get things to feed right and have enough action bolt thread engagement. The rear is set rather deep in the trigger guard space in the stock. The factory metal fit flush.
You can get this gun at Big 5, with the magazine, an awesome scope, and the bi-pod. After tax, and the background check, you're at roughly, $798.00 out the door. Pricing may vary depending on your State. Right out of the store this weapon is extremely accurate and you'll spend about the same money as "Guntank" has after his upgrades or less. Great video, fantastic weapon.
I only use DAG or MEN rounds they have the best accuracy and have never had any problems with it. DAG and MEN are the German Army ammo manufacturers, these rounds are used in the G3 and MG3.
The bottom "metal" that you order from Legacy sports is actually plastic. The bottom metal from CDI is a much better option. The catch is its also a lot more expensive. Anyway, Now you have me wanting to post a video of both my Howa 1500's. Love that bell and carlson. I ordered the vented version on my 223 and the vertical palm swell version on my .308. They both shoot about 1/2 moa with hand loads. I'm now looking ot upgrade optics when I get some more money.
You can get a 30-06 detachable mag for the Weatherby Vanguard but it's only 3 shots and they are always out of stock. You can also get a metal one from CDI (search cdi dbm) but it uses accuracy international mags and is significantly more expensive than the Weatheryby.
Hey there, thanks for the video... quick question.. I was looking at a 1500 in a short action .223 this afternoon, and noticed that standard it had a polymer "bottom metal" as well. Now that you've had experience with the polymer bottom metal, how have you found it? Is it wearing out or showing signs to could become unreliable? thanks!
"the mag may drop out, so it's not combat ready" I know the US is a bit cash strapped at the moment, but i don't think it is at the point where it's soldiers need to bring their own weapons, and if they did, I don't think it would be a $500 Howa
I also want to mention, there really is no need to go to the heavier barrel unless you plan on doing a lot of rapid firing or competition shooting with it. Also...if you put a compensator or muzzle brake on it then you will lose some accuracy. Why go with the cost of rebarreling and threading when the sporter barrel is capable of just as good accuracy and putting on a comp or brake is a step backwards?? For the poster that said S&W and Mossberg bought the patents to the 1500...Howa never sold their patents to anyone...Howa (Japan) is a major firearms manufacture for military small arms as well as for the commercial market. Mossberg and S&W were only licensed to put their names on the Howa rifles and sell them in the American market...just like Springfield Armory does with the XD line of pistols that are made in Croatia.
Realy like the howa platform they are better quality than the remingtons imo and they are just as if not more accurate than the 700s and they are cheaper too. Nothing but good things with my howa, I do like the boyds stocks they are cheap and you can bed it and will have a very consistent shooting platform (around .5 moa with my reloads).
The plastic bottoms for Howas are lousy for extended use. The plastic simply will not maintain the proper torque over time. Howa’s mag release sucks in the field too. I replaced all the factory plastic with DIP products billets aluminum assembly and it was worth every cent on my 1500 Mini.
Yeah! All the deer we stalk here in East TN would just saunter away saying, “Puh’lease!” if I dared to site them with stainless rings on a blued action like that. Rifle bling improves accuracy, even if, only in the shooter’s mind. :P
Dude I shoot sub moa with the stock pillar bedded Hogue stock on my 1500 with the "skinny barrel" you should have way better groups. oh and i wasn't using a stand.
+Andrew Khanoff I didn't see a significant change in accuracy after chancing stocks. I no longer have the rifle, but I am pretty sure the the length of the two stocks was more or less them same. I certainly don't remember them feeling any different. Hope that helps, sorry I can't give a more specific answer.
Adam Richards, I did make bedding. Improvement is real. Plastic hogue was designed for short range hunting, nothing else. But b&c stock requires bedding. Accuracy improves from 1-2 moa groups to 0.5 in 308.
Dude, I shoot sub MOA with my grandpas (very) old M/1896 6,5x55mm Swedish Mauser + an old Leupold sight. There's nothing wrong with your rifle(!), that's what I'm saying. It's unacceptable to have new, modern, brand factory made rifles shooting like that, that's my point. Instead of changing stocks and what not - remember to clean your rifle properly once and then (its A and O) - and get rid of that chinese Redfield scope, buy a used Leupold or if you can afford: Swarowski, Schmidt & Bender, Helia, Khales, *any German/Austrian quality optics*. I wish you good look, and please post a video when you get those 1/4MOA (6-7mm) groups where you want 'em =) . Thanks for the video also.
I have an Axiom and with decent not match ammo and can easily get 1 MOA, 1 MOA isn't very accurate almost any rifle can do that. Anyway 1 MOA is nothing for this gun I consistently get .4 to .6 with 168grs
I'm confused ! It seems like you bought a Volkswagon with the intention of turning it in to a corvette. Why not simply buy a rifle that met all your needs from the start ? I own a stock Weatherby vanguard .270 & a Howa 1500 25.06 and am pleased with both of them as they came from the factory. Of course I'm not looking to get into match shooting contests, just hunting. I hope your happy but, it seems like you've gone through a lot of conversions just to get something you could have bought as is.
Half inch squares... 2 and a bit squares makes just over 1 inch and therefore 1 MOA... Also, groups should be measured centre of hole to centre of hole for a true group size.
Honestly, not to be a huge jerk, but am I the only one that is thinking why are your "sub-moa" shots so far from your center? Sub-moa is usually only worth a crap if you actually hit what you are aiming at. It is a fine looking rifle though, no doubt.
@@Guntank214 there the same starting base action ,they do the machine work , then weatherby gets them and does the finish work. Lapping ,cerakote,blueprinting ,ect. Weatherby does a much better job on the finish work then howa. Own cpl of both howa1500 and weatherby vanguard s2 and the weatherby across the board is better. Better stock fit, better smoother bolt , and the cerakote is twice as thick. Hope this helps.
+Ragu Spag ..........my point to the front as that is how I mounted them but in reality it is a preference thing just like his having scope rings versus a rail...preference.
+Sheppard Lawn Services ....depends how the bipod is manufactured...mine points forward and is in a non-extended not under pressure form...when pulled back it doesn't necessary lock in the sense that it clicks into any type of a locked position but rather the retrieving springs are over-extended...now I am not familiar with the type of bi-pod he has but in the full extension mode it may actually extend into a lock detent and the only purpose of the springs is to retrieve the bipod legs back up much like the mechanical landing gear (non-hydraulic) on older airplanes.
+hmadison The floor plate is one component of... the bottom metal. His terminology is 100% correct. You may wish to take your own advice and brush up on your terminology. www.google.ca/search?espv=2&biw=1366&bih=681&q=rifle+bottom+metal&oq=rifle+bottom+metal&gs_l=serp.3..0i71l8.0.0.0.35507.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1c..64.serp..0.0.0.CXuuh72RYyg
"Why not simply buy a rifle that met all your needs from the start?" Well, Richard, this is America and we still have the small Freedom to do what we want with our money. If the owner wants to spend some of his money on upgrades for his rifle, I don't see any reason why he cannot. Maybe he should have checked with you first and got your blessing before taking the decision to do what he did?
I'm not entirely sure you're qualified to be educating others about this or any firearm... I'm not sure what worries me more, the fact that it took you an hour or 2 to remove a small amount of fibreglass (why you chose a knife for the task is also beyond me) or the way you explained the design of a monte carlo stock... It's purpose is to raise your cheek to better align you with your scope... nothing to do with recoil or whatever you think... educate yourself before you misinform others.
This is a Weatherby style Monte Carlo, which is designed such that the cheek riser has an angle that causes it to recoil away from your face not in to it while also lifting your head to align better with the scope. Also, as a college student I don't have a lot of money laying around for tools, I used a knife because it was all I had, and took so long because I was using a knife and wanted to make sure I didn't remove to much material so I was constantly reinstalling the rifle to check the fit.
