Thread: Howa 1500 vs. Tikka T3

Necropost.

still stands the test of time, howa are nice and have easily adjusted triggers great bang for buck
tikka are lighter if you are that way inclined(I am) and are great rifles
the tikka will cost a bit more

either way they are both well made, well priced rifles

If you could easily find decent stocks for a howa I would go a howa over a tikka any day, they're more sako than a tikka which is actually made by sako .. if that makes sense

Originally Posted by Stocky

@gadgetman Old post but are you a member of the handloaders club in Chch? I think i met you shooting the Zastava

That would likely be me.

Originally Posted by Ryan_Songhurst

If you could easily find decent stocks for a howa I would go a howa over a tikka any day, they're more sako than a tikka which is actually made by sako .. if that makes sense

As Toby said, Howa is the improved Sako.

I think @stug did a Howa stock for Toby.

Originally Posted by gadgetman

I think @stug did a Howa stock for Toby.

Yep, based off the Sako 75 finnlight stock.

have you got any pics @stug?

Originally Posted by Bill999

have you got any pics @stug?

Can't find much.

https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co....05/#post320639

I'm pretty sure Luke has Tobys howa now

Originally Posted by R.A.N.G.E.R

That sounds just great, the analytic assessmet I’ve been waiting to hear.
But is this true across the board, true about all of the calibers offered and
in all of the varieties of grips and frames and whatnot? Is a heavier barrel
and rifle better at bench shooting, such as at the range, easier to resist
felt recoil due to inertia? Are frames and accessories as common for one
brand as the others?

These are all ‘classic’ questions, but because I’m rifle impaired at the present,
all such discussion falls under the header of Shopping for me. I’m most interested
in medium distance accuracy, but around Atlanta (hey y’all) there are few wild areas
with that kind of range, and I think no ranges that have 250 to 600m rifle lanes.
May some good areas hunters use, leased land and such, in more rural areas of
Georia or South Carolina, Alabama or Florida. Heck, maybe I’ll meet some nice
New Zealanders! That’s a bit of a trip though. Meanwhile thanks for the
informative discussion,

t//s

Welcome to the forum R.A.N.G.E.R.

I nothing against Howas and like some of the ones I've handled. However, Tikka T3x any day. Beautiful crisp trigger, easily adjusted down to 2.5lbs. Very accurate, in fact I've never come across an inaccurate Tikka. Some need the little nubs in barrel channel removed to make the barrel fully free floating before they'll shoot. Good corrosion resistance in stainless although like any stainless rifle the barrel needs to properly cleaned. Can't go wrong with one.

Advantage Howa, simply for price

Originally Posted by FRST

Advantage Howa, simply for price

Quality always costs more.

Originally Posted by 10-Ring

Quality always costs more.

This is true, but just because it costs more doesn't automatically make it better quality...............There are differences between Howa and Tikka. Just like there are differences between Vortex and Leupold, or Toyota and Fiat. I would use Howa and Weatherby but...Well..........

Personally I have had very good experiences with Howa's I have owned. Would I own a Tikka? Maybe if it was at the right price. I have nothing against them, but if I had $1300 for a rifle I would spend $1000 on a Howa and throw the extra $300 towards the scope budget and get better optics. Both will out perform most shooters. Both will be more accurate than 99% of the nuts behind the butt. And if you are asking which is better, I would suspect very strongly that you are unlikely to be part of the 1% who can shoot better than either, in which case you probably would not be looking at either of them.

The advice to try holding both and see what you feel more comfortable with is probably the best advice here. And there are others in that bracket that can perform at similar levels, but these two would arguably be the better of the group.

Only downside to the two is one appears to be named after a curry......

The biggest issue with the howas is the sloppy pos houge stock that comes with them. The tikka stock is nothing flash but at least it's a rigid plaform.

Wish howa would go to an in house halfway stiff stock, like weatherby does for the vanguards

Originally Posted by 10-Ring

Quality always costs more.

"Name brands" always cost more...

"European labour" always costs more...

In saying that the most accurate hunting rifle I've seen was a Tikka, and as some have already said they tend to shoot better with a wider variety of box ammunition.
But my barrelled action Howa was $800 new. It came threaded too. I built the carbon fibre stock for roughly $100, slapped some talleys and a muzzle brake on and still haven't reached the cost of a new Tikka. And unlike the Tikka I can properly seat out my projectiles in the mag-box.
It shoots sub-moa too. The trigger was also really easy to tune down to 2 pounds. I think value for money is what your getting a bit more of with the Howa.