After the frustration on last week's hunt when I couldn't be comfortable hitting foxes at 200m with bigger cals I've been forced to come to the conclusion that I need a small calibre varmint/predator rifle.
Considering range and cost and flexibility and bbl life 223 seems to be the best cal.
Howa has just come out with a new system whereby you can order a rifle to your spec with choices in all stuff:

• cal - 204 Ruger, 223, 22-250, 243, 270, 7mm Rem Mag, 308 Win, 30-06, 300 Win Mag.
• metal - blued or stainless
• action - short or long
• bbl - sporter or varmint
• stock - synthetic, Hogue overmoulded black, green or camo, synth pistol grip tactical stock or varmint thumbhole laminate

They also do a choice of Nikko Sterling scopes but I'd give that a miss.
To top it off Howa also has a new adjustable trigger on the 1500 that's meant to be a lot better.
The prices start around $630 for the green or black Hogue stocked blued sporter bbl model.
What I'd love to have would be a Ruger No1 Varmint in 223 but I suspect a Howa stainless Hogue green or camo may but what I'll have to get instead as the No1 is $1500.
Has anyone else got a Howa?
How do you find them?

Sorry to hear of your problems kombi. The Howa seems to have a good name over here. I don't as you know have many modern rifles, as for cartridge i just like the .222 Rem better. No real reason but it does look sweet and I like the longer neck. It also performs well. Cheap to shoot and practice with too as it's frugal on powder :grin:.

Of course the Devil in me says knowing your likes that a Nice martini in .22 hornet would also be good :grin:

I think Kombi already has a Martini .22 hornet. However, a martini .222 rimmed may be something he hasn't thought of..... A friend of mine picked one up a few months ago and with 19.5gns AR2207 behind the 40gn v-max or the 40gn WMR HP shoots under 1" at  100m. I think one in this chambering would sit nicely beside Kombis .25-20 and 22 hornet. Bertram Brass still make the cases
 
On the Howas, another friend of mine recently picked up both a sporter weight and varmint weight in .243. He was told an interesting detail; the Howa 1500 and Weatherby Vanguard come from the same factory. Whereas Weathery test fire all their rifles and pull aside the more accurate ones as the sub-moa (with a higher price tag), Howa do not. Therefore in buying a Howa there is the chance that you could pick up a rifle that would be regardedd as a sub-moa model by Weatherby.
 
Now whether there is any truth to the matter I don't know......
 
Marcus

Oh I believe it true Weatherby don't actually make anything but money from enflated markups on others work.

Hey Kombi,
 
have you thought of a Rem 700 with a Leupold 3-9x40 scope?
 
(Batten doen the hatches)
 
 
Marcus

I've shot and reloaded for a few Howa 1500s, and they all shot very well right out of the box.

Paul

Never heard a bad word spoken of them Kombi, our local range have a selection of Howa's as hire rifles, and boy are they knocked around!, however, they still shoot spot on despite the abuse.

Hey Kombi,
 
a more serious suggestion this time - have you thought about a .303-22? You might have seen the article in one of the shooting magazines a few months ago about a bloke in NSW who developed up one of these for less that $AUS1000 (including new barrel and Pentax scope) that shot very well. I think it would be in keeping with your collection.
 
If you are interested send me a PM - I know of a rifle with a nicely shaped sporter stock that is insanely cheap - would be a good base for this type of project.
 
Marcus

Andy, you already got the Tikka and the Ruger No1, can't go wrong with another new rifle. Howas are good rifles, a lot of roo shooters use them. My mate has weatherby vanguard made by Howa in 270win and he has shot a couple of hundred deer in the last few years and it has never missed a beat. I'm looking at a Howa in 243win.

The Howas that I seen at the range are pretty good. They are made right along side Weatherby's Vanguard range. The Howas have a 22" barrel the Weatherbys have a 24" barrel
The barrels on the sporters appear to be heavier than standard sporters but nothing to obvious. The rifles I have seen shoot are very accurate. So much so that I would not bother with heavier varmint barrel. But you could fit it with the varmint stock....Just an option.
I really like the "build your own" style of marketing. You can put together some pretty good looking options. And the price won't break the bank either.
The .223 cartridge is ideal for what you want. I won't get caught up in the .204 is better than the .223 arguement. If you want something that shoots flat, simply load a 40gn v-max in your .223. I use 55gn ballistic tips in my Sako L461 and can shoot everything out to as far as I can see them.
Keep us posted as to what you decide.

Quote from: Branxhunter;107015Hey Kombi,
 
have you thought of a Rem 700 with a Leupold 3-9x40 scope?
 
(Batten doen the hatches)
 
 
Marcus

Ho,Ho, Ho....is funny man.
BTW, you forgot to say it should be a 243.
Seriously though, this time I'm being......arrrgggghhh, I can't believe I'm saying this........sensible.:o
The bottom line is I need a flat shooting light recoiling cal suitable for varmints and predators that can reach out past 200yds and still be comfortable to shoot.
It also needs to be commonly available, cheap to feed and accurate.
And the rifle needs to be brand spankers, not a custom.
My brother has an expression - "Custom means broken."
It doesn't mean something is necessarily busted but that you breach the integrity of an existing thing to create something else.
Or perhaps you take something of used condition or even dubious reliability or condition and resurrect it.
Don't get me wrong , that is laudable, but it has no warranty or guarantee.
I want something that is assembled and finished that is a no brainer.
That means no old obsolete cals (222 Rimmed) or wildcats which need forming.
I might add that while 303/22 seems a great project and I appreciate your recommendation there are about 4 versions some of which involve shortening the case by as much as 1/2 an inch.
One ex-roo shooter I knew said he bought a 303/22 as a youngster and when he was heading down to the shed to do some case forming his father told him not to come back inside until he'd stopped crying.
Collapsed necks, stuffed cases in the trimming process.....case forming had a 30%+ failure rate.
If I was really going to go in that direction I'd get my Martini Enfield action built into a switch bbl but the '22 was a really involved solution for Aussie shooters before the modern hi powered small bores emerged.
Anyhow, the Howa looks like a viable option, especially with the new adjustable trigger it has and I'll be aiming for a Hogue camo stainless setup in 223.

Looks as if you've made up your mind Andy, Now to throw the proverbial spanner in the works, have you seen the nice Ruger no 1  in 204 just listed on used guns.com ?.

ARRRGGGGHHHH!!!!!!:Banghead:
I hurl a curse upon you meddling demon!
 
Nah, the 204, as much as it's a great round, is not one I'd get.
Afterall I could never use it for roo shooting, although to be honest I'd probably use something heavier than a 223 for roos anyway.
But 204 lacks flexibility.
If all I did with my time was detonate foxes and bunnies, well, sure but it isn't.
I've been tempted to get a 22-250 but they burn barrels quicker and recoil more.
If any of the factory 22-250 rifles came with a 1:8" or 1:9" twist I'd consider it because they have the power to push quite heavy pills therefore increasing their flexibility.
But they're usually 1:10" at most and in that context, apart from the flatter trajectory, not much more flexible than the 223 and pricer to feed.
Don't get me wrong....if circumstances change and I can afford a Tikka or Ruger or, even cooler, a Steyr then I'll get one of them.
But the Howa is good value and while the sale of other guns has to finance it I have to keep the price down.

Hmmm, no mention of the "quarter bores."  
The .257 Roberts would fill that niche nicely too.  I think I read somewhere you have some 7mm Mauser experience, so there's your cases for it.  Any std. Mauser action is ideal for the platform.
Or, you could go the 25-06, if you want a little more range with the .25 bullets.

Just a thought.
Jamie

I like quarter bores.....I have a 25-20 and a 303/25.....but both are going to finance the Howa.
And I haven't ever owned a 7mm Mauser, I'd just like one.
But the issue for 257 Bob and 25-06 for that matter is that both are not light recoiling rifles.
They aren't heavy hitters but neither are they mild enough to see a hit through the scope and a 223 is.
Both also use approaching 50gr of powder per round and 25 cal pills aren't as cheap as 224 cal. which can be had in bulk.
And of course there's the new rifle stipulation.
I appreciate you suggestions, Jamie, but this rifle will be for knocking down rabbits, hares, foxes and the odd roo, not for goats and pigs and deer for which the 257 Roberts and 25-06 are ideal.