Howa 1500 GK project

They do not have to be different barrels. They are the same barrels. You really think WBY is going to export barrels to Japan just to have them make the trip back across the pond? That would be financial absurdity.
 
I wasn't saying they made two trips to Japan either.

All I'm saying is you can only get the 24" barrels for the regular chamberings by getting a Weatherby. Howas are 22". Check the websites if you don't believe me.

24" is different than 22". Therefore they are different barrels. Not better, not worse, not even from a different place.

That is all.
 
what scopes fit well on the howa. i was looking at the redfield. but im unsure of what tube size is best suited for the rifle
 
Should fit about any average scope. The base screw holes are spaced similar to pretty much everything else. The long action takes the same one piece base as a Remington 700 long action.

Your short action Howa can use two-piece 700 bases, but a one-piece for a short action 700 won't work. Slightly different spacing.

All my scopes are 1-inchers. Nothing against 30mm other than it's sort of oddball around here and there's less selection of rings in stock at most places.

Redfield is OK, they are owned by Leupold which means a good warranty. For the money I think the VX-II is a better scope than the Redfield. But that's just an opinion. Also check out the Burris Fullfield E1 line, and The Vortex Viper. Both good scopes for the money in the Redfield price range.

Fitting a scope depends more on what rings you use than the action itself.
 
true, but i remember when the savage axis had issues with scratching the scopes. i just wanted a opinion on some good ones. im currently happy with the nikko GK
 
Howa 1500 gk is here

well i picked it up today at 9am, there was a misspelling in the paperwork so i had to wait a bit and redue it. but i got a free box of Federal Premium gold Medal Match loads which is a redone sierra matchking redone by federal. its 32$ a box so...for 15 min of my time i think its a nice free-bee. I've also decided to name it kindness in Japanese, which is "Shinsetsu".(howa is a Japanese company so it seemed only natural), more of a joke name, but i digress.

the stock has a good solid feel to it. the weight is more forward, as its a heavy barrel. serial number is "163", i thought that was kind of cool to get such a low number.

the scope is mounted and bore sighted for 25 yards. the scope is better than i thought id get for the 20+$'s i paid for the GK series. i love the illuminated crosshairs, and the small sub triangle steps is a very handy thing for precise distance shooting. it adjust quickly and smooth on the light and parallax.

stock wise i like the hogue a lot, but i may get a blackhawk at some point to do a comparison with.

i would like the detachable magazine system, i may buy that later in december.


so far i will zero it out to 100yrds, then i will do a comparison of groups with the ruger american my friend has.

personaly for a base starting gun id always reccommened the ruger american in 308, or lower. but anything higher, i'd suggest loading lead into the stock.
 
I like the olive green stock. I tried to order my Hogue stock in the olive color but the only color they had for the bedding-block stock at the time was black. That scope looks to be mounted a little far forward for my liking, but I'm a short guy with short arms and I sometimes have to make up for the stock being slightly too long by setting the scope back just a little to get proper eye relief. Just make sure when you shoulder the rifle that you don't have to move forward from what feels natural to get a full picture in the scope. Looks like a nice rifle, hope it serves you well.
 
as i didnt mount it im glad it fits my eye relief, its actually perfect for me, but im 6'1" with long arms and long fingers. after disassemble i was very impressed with the stocks bedding, and its trigger setup is very high quality. though i was annoyed with re-installing the drop plate for the bullets, took me a while to lock it back in. i will get the magazine conversion kit with a 10/5 round magazines. the ten looks a bit to long for me, but the 5 round looks well suited for my target shooting


i will do my zeroing at 50 then 100 yards, i will be using federal premium gold medal match loads, which is made from the sierra matchking. which is as good as i can get for consistency, i will stick with sierra rounds as i trust them and have never had any issue with them.

-thanks i hope it goes well, i will try shooting it as soon as i get the bipod from caldwell and the magazine kit
 
project update

so ive purchased the 10 round detachable magazine kit made by legacy arms, via cheaperthandirt. shipping + price has it to be 88$

ive also purchased a caldwell xla bipod pivot model. for 37$s, this should be in tonight, via amazon

i will attach and do some pics and maybe a video with the bipod on
 
A couple years ago I bought a use Howa .223 Varmint model that came with a Boyds laminated stock. I've only shot it a few times but so far it's a keeper. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another if I was in the market or tripped over a good deal on one...

Tony
 
so ive purchased the 10 round detachable magazine kit made by legacy arms, via cheaperthandirt. shipping + price has it to be 88$
Click to expand...

I've considered getting the detachable mag kit for my Howa but I just cant justify a need for it as it is a hunting rifle and only needs one shot per hunt. It holds five as it is, but if it takes more than one, I did something wrong, not the rifle.

The mags look nice though, if you're into the "tactical" thing
 
some thought on the howa

@geezerbiker, ive not shot her yet , but i cleaned and greased her up for some shooting to come. im looking forward to her first shoot, im really impressed and glad i went with the howa rifle.

@steveNChunter, i choose to get the new magazine kit, because when disassembling i had trouble placing the drop plate back in easy. im hoping the magazine system makes this easier. i completyly agree, 1 bullet 1 kill, other than that im doing something wrong.


serial number question
one of the things that strikes me as unique is the serial number is low on this one. she is marked on barrel and bolt as # 163. thats kind of low when compared to my other rifles which are 229028 , 9000897 , ect , i wonder why that is so? any other howa owners have a low number , or was i lucky?

stocks
looking around, there are not a lot of stock options like that of a Remington 700, but on the other hand from what i gathered, the howas factory actions are higher than the 700. now ive looked at a few stock, nighthawk, and the RCS II H1500, and the boyds. the nighthawk seems... well weird looking, i get its functionality, but its not appealing to me, the RCS II H1500 is kind of pricey , and the boyds... ive got one on the mosin and i have no issues with them, but ive already got one. so far im just thinking of keeping the hogue and leaving that as is, it seems very solid and very well made. i trust hogue with my pistols, might as well trust them with my rifle.
 
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currently the magazine should be here in 3 days(ATI)

but i also found this magazine kit on midway USA thats metal and says it can take normal 308 magazines , anyone have any experience? because if true ill get crazy and slap on a 15 rounder on it

link
 
but i also found this magazine kit on midway USA thats metal and says it can take normal 308 magazines , anyone have any experience? because if true ill get crazy and slap on a 15 rounder on it
Click to expand...

That kit will only use the Wyatt's brand mags. By "normal" I assume you meant AR10 .308 mags or something? I don't care what kind of mag it takes, I wouldn't give the asking price of $250 for it.

Also keep in mind that it you fire ten shots in rapid succession from a sporter weight barrel, you will start to see a POI shift after about shot #3 or 4

For that reason I don't see the purpose of a ten round DBM on this type of rifle. But to each his own
 
ah darn..

well i know the issue, but it might have come in handy on the tournaments i have to fire more than 20s not rapid succession but would have helped me not need to reload for a while

Also sorry i said normal i should have stated "standard" 308 cartridge, that was an error on my part.

mainly i just want to see how this platform works before i get crazy with it.
just slapping on the ATI mag kit and a biod to see how it handles. then i might look into a timny trigger system and an alternative stock to "play with"

so far the goal is 300+ yards sub moa and its supposed to do that out of the box. the federal gold medal i have is highly consistent so i have a good idea of its grouping. so lets see how she goes. ati mag will be in on wends and installed that day (hopefully no issues)
 
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