psdan000
Member
Been wanting to try one of these out for a long time and finally got the nerve to order one. My first impression was it's a lot nicer looking than I expected. I really like the 20" heavy barrel and was torn between this and the Rem 700 SPS tactical, but at almost $100 cheaper I decided to give it a shot (pun intended). The hogue stock is pretty nice, nicer than the ones on the Rem 700 SPS tactical IMO, but still just a little flimsy near the for-end with a bipod attached. Unlike the SPS tactical stock, The stock on the Howa is already free floated and has some fancy emblems on it and whatnot, I like the OD green too. The rifle balances nicely, a little heavy but thats to be expected. The trigger is great for an out of the box trigger. My trigger scale shows it breaking consistently at 2.5lbs and I really like the "two-stage" effect it has, makes it a lot more predictable I think. Action is smooth and cycles shells perfectly. I have two complaints: 1) I wish the action and barrel had a matte finish instead of the shiny blue. and 2) The magazine follower is plastic. Other than that I was really impressed with this rifle. I wont have a chance to shoot it until this weekend so a range report is soon to come, hope it shoots as good as it looks.