Thread: Opinions on Howa Mini in .223

Opinions on Howa Mini in .223,

I suppose I mean what is it like after working with one for a while? How heavy are they? How about carrying it in the hand with that mag sticking down? Do the mags last and keep feeding alright? HOw accurate in general? Can they handle heavier bullets - or only heavy bullets? How do they shoot 53 grain TSX? Or 60 grain Hornadys?

I have had a Sako Vixen in .222 years back and did well with it and I suppose I am worried I wont like the Howa.

Just get the regular Howa 1500 SA, preferably blued not 'stainless' as the latter are prone to rust more!

Do a bit of digging and find a lightweight one like the picture below (the receiver has cutouts, same action used on the Howa Apline Rifles)



Try and get the 1:8 twist barrel, but a 1:9 barrel will probably work OK with bullets up to 60-70 odd grains, a 1:12 won't be the end of the world either, my old Sako L461 has a 1:14 barrel and shoots lights out with flat base bullets.

Might be able to get a nice stock for the Howa 1500 S/A easier than the Howa Mini, also the Timney trigger bolts straight in vs. the Mini which needs modification.

Most of all, the Mini has a terrible detachable magazine. No one who uses it for anything other than a range toy thinks the execution is good. You can pop it off by accident very easily.

If you have your heart set on detachable magazines, the longer 1500 SA action can accept AICS magazines either through a chassis (KRG/MDT) or detachable magazine system from Atlasworks.

With a Howa Mini, you are stuck with their magazines. Some USA vendors make 'proper' floorplates for the Mini but they are both expensive and sub-optimal (double stack, single feed, require inletting the stock to fit).

Good luck!

I love the mini. I've a 223 and it keeps the freezer full. I have no problems with the mag except for the stupid mag release. Why they let Homer Simpson decide where to place it is beyond me. I bought this mag release guard; and it makes all the difference. Peace of mind because it stops you inadvertently losing the mag when you accidentally move the catch.

https://www.vtp.co.nz/product/howa-mag-release-guard/21

I have a Howa Lightweight in 308. It's a nice rifle; but not really lightweight. Most times I grab the 223. The mini was cheap (blued rifle, $899 package deal). It's not the flashest looking; I class it as the Toyota Corolla of the hunting rifles. Accurate, light enough and reliable.

When I bought it I was also looking at a Remington Model 7 stainless. I did prefer the Model 7, but was strapped for cash (had to but the mini on laybuy). But decided that even though I preferred the Model 7, it wasn't going to kill a deer $700 (plus have to get a scope) "dead-er" than the mini. I probably only miss the Model 7 as an aesthetic thing, not practicality. I love the mini as the ugly duckling that just gets the job done. Mine shoots accurately and drops deer very well with the Buffalo River ammo loaded with the 55gr Sierra Game King. The Federal 64gr shoots t the same POI, but 1 inch lower.

I haven't regretted buying the Mini. Cheers

i have one, camo stock with a leupold scope and unused if you are interested. (plus lots of ammo)

With the mini cutting the mag release in half solves that issue, the hact trigger can't really be improved on and the 5 round mag doesn't really interfere with handling the 10 is another story all together.
The stock design although ugly at the foreend is ergonomically good overall i reckon they offer outstanding value for money.
For a working rifle/truck gun they are pretty hard to beat

I've had 2x223 and a 7.62x39. Don't have any of them now and don't miss them. They are quite variable as to accuracy, as has been pointed out the SS ones rust easily and go mottly when you remove it. Truck guns sums them up, yes they are light and mechanically sound but there are other choices out there that are a lot nicer.

Thanks all I appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Tentman

I've had 2x223 and a 7.62x39. Don't have any of them now and don't miss them. They are quite variable as to accuracy, as has been pointed out the SS ones rust easily and go mottly when you remove it. Truck guns sums them up, yes they are light and mechanically sound but there are other choices out there that are a lot nicer.

What do you have now?

I saw "Mamba Mag" a new company with affiliation to MDT, mention that they will be making steel magazines for the mini action. I believe also an alloy or steel bottom metal.

I recently bought a Howa 1500 in 223 and am pleased with that decision. Easily adjustable trigger, nice action, easy internal mag load with drop down plate, good safety, and good ergonomics. A little heavy for an LR bunny carry rifle but I can live with that.

Best feature is accuracy. Range tested twice now with Fiocchi factory ammo and by heavens its a shooter. All groups on two target sheets well under 1" at 100m - varying down to 0.4". Exceptional accuracy for factory rounds.

Overall - yes. Howa 1500 a dam good rifle - especially for your $$. Sturdy, well constructed unit and performance will match rifles several times the price. Don't know the mini.

@mudgripz They are very good value. I bought the 308 Lightweight for $599 used! Someone had bought it to try the Howa 1500 system before buying a 6.5 CM barrelled action to fully trick out as a long range rifle. He bought the 308 because he knew it was a calibre he could easily sell. I was the lucky person who snavelled it for that price. If you didn't know the history of the rifle you'd swear it was brand new. It was mint! Hardly any rounds through it I'd say. It loves the Sako 150gr Gamehead ammo

What problems ae people having with the plastic mags? I've put a fair few rounds through mine and it has been fine? Cheers

Originally Posted by bumblefoot

What problems ae people having with the plastic mags? I've put a fair few rounds through mine and it has been fine? Cheers

I had one for service rifle shooting after the confiscation. I found that the mags where a bit of a weak point for that type of shooting. They started to wear out on the feed lips with the high volume of shooting and being single stack and slightly slower to load I wasn't a massive fan. A solution would have been to buy lots more mags but i decided to go with the Ruger Ranch Rifle instead. A bit more industrial feeling but the mags are robust and easy to load.
If the rifle was purely for hunting I think they would be great and one in 6.5 Grendel would be an interesting prospect.

Fellas… Howa changed the mag release on the Mini due to the criticism and lost mags.

This the the first effort (photo from VTP):



This is the re-designed catch on mine:



The catch tension on the improved version is still a too light but that is very easy to fix by simply replacing the spring with a much stauncher one. I’ve tested all sorts of different ways of trying to accidentally drop the mag but everything just glances off the catch now because it’s now too stiff to accidentally activate.

I’ve never been much of a one-handed carrier of a rifle. So the 10-shot mag doesn’t bother me. But if you are, then the 10 shot mag is in the way of the balance point in front of the trigger guard. There are all sorts of aftermarket options for bottom metal and magazines but the thing to remember is that it’s very easy to end up spending over half the cost of the rifle on small replacement parts in a never-ending pursuit of perfection. If you’re fussed about all of this kind of thing then buy a Sako micro action .223 for god knows how much! I can pretty much guarantee that the Sako will not outshoot the Howa, certainly not in field performance terms.

I modified the foreend of the plastic stock in the standard manner, using a Dremel to remove material at the tip of the barrel channel. This opens up the gap to the barrel and there is zero chance of anything touching.

The 1:8” twist shoots all the bullets you would expect it to up to the 75gr ELD-M length. I shoot an old school Speer 70gr semi point in mine, a soft and very lethal bullet on goats and small deer. Consequently everything fits in the mag just fine and I have no problems with rapidly cycling the bolt and feeding when shooting rapid fire strings of five or six or more shots.

I don’t use mine for precision work, mostly just shoulder shooting goats, and don’t mind if the point of impact wanders a little bit due to barrel heating (which does get hot with longer strings). With a 3-9x Zeiss Terra its happy knocking them over out to 300ish no problem. On the odd occasion I’ve whacked a bunny at a silly distance and been mightily impressed with myself (and the rifle).

It’s important when reviewing these rifles to remember how much it costs relative to most of the micro action competition. It’s a cheap, functional, reliable, hard wearing work rifle and it fulfils that role perfectly. Most of the criticisms are personal preferences and these can be solved either by some DIY mods like @GWH’s mag shortening instruction. If you don’t like it then buy something twice or five times the price and be happy!

@PeteD Thanks!