Howa 1500 Review: A High Value Barreled Action

I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to call a Howa 1500 bolt action, the Japanese version of a Remington 700. Wait, you didn’t know they made the Howa 1500 in Japan? Truth be told, neither did I, until I started researching the history of this rifle system in preparation for writing this article. Let’s dig into it and see what else we can learn. 

Howa 1500 Background

Howa Manufacturing was known for the Golden Bear hunting rifle before they launched the Howa 1500 rifle. The Golden Bear was introduced in 1967 and they would sell only three thousand of these rifles to the United States. The Golden Bear was one of Japan’s first hunting rifles, offered to the U.S. market in the popular 30-06 caliber.

The Howa 1500 rifle was released next and has become much more prolific since its introduction in 1979. These were originally offered in 308 Winchester as a short action, and 30-06 as a long action. Currently, Howa offers three different action sizes: the mini action, short action, and long action. Mini action calibers include .223, 7.62×39, and 6.5mm Grendel. Short action calibers include .223 Remington, .204 Ruger, .308 Winchester, and 6.5mm Creedmoor. Long action calibers include .270 Winchester, 30-06, 300 Win Mag, 338 Win Mag, and 7mm Rem Mag. (Included but not limited to)

I think it’s interesting to note that they sell the Howa 1500 to the U.S. market almost exclusively as a barreled action. Many companies choose these actions as the backbone for their own semi-custom bolt-action rifle builds. Having attached their stock or chassis of choice, they will then market them to the consumer as complete rifle systems.

Howa 1500 Features

1 Reliable 90 degree bolt

Howa 1500 bolt action rifles use the reliable 90 degree throw. This feature has become so commonplace that most people don’t realize that rifles are now offered in 60 degree throw variations. You can field strip the bolts from the Howa 1500 for cleaning and repair. They also use the common m16 style extractor. Parts are readily available.

2 Two-stage trigger

The Howa Actuator Controlled Trigger comes pre-set from the factory at 3 pounds. The trigger is smooth and has zero noticeable creep. Probably one of the cleaner factory triggers available.

3 Robust steel action and barrel

They obviously machined the Howa 1500 actions out of steel, which makes them extremely durable and long lasting. The barrel is steel as well, and the average shooter should be able to expect a lifetime of reliable service.

4 Customizable

The Howa 1500 barreled action enjoys plenty of aftermarket support. Timney and Rifle Basix offers triggers. There are too many stock and chassis manufacturers to mention; all offering excellent custom options. Pre-fit barrel blanks are readily available.

Models and Variations

Again, as the companies that sell them customize these rifles, the specs, models, and colors are often very different depending on who’s building them and the various models that are available.

There are currently 16 different models of the Howa 1500 bolt-action rifle available. They come in steel, carbon fiber, black polymer, custom painted, and hydro-dipped camouflage options. They are offered in stocks, chassis, and crossover stock configurations. All of these options have at their core the Howa 1500 barreled action. 

Our test rifle is cerakote black steel with a polymer crossover stock named Bravo from Kinetic Research Group. 

Howa 1500 Review

Shootablity

Shootability can refer to a number of different things and can tend to be quite subjective. One person might consider a .308 to have too much recoil for precision work, while the next person isn’t bothered by that amount of recoil. The weight of a rifle can make it unwieldy for some shooters, while others want to add more weight to help tame down recoil.  

The Howa 1500 sitting in the KRG Bravo stock that I tested is actually quite shootable. It’s not too heavy that you wouldn’t want to carry it into the backcountry on a hunting trip, and it’s not too light that .308 recoil begins to cause the shooter to flinch. I did add a magnum sized suppressor to the end of my 24 inch Howa 1500 barrel during testing. This added length and weight would make the rifle too long and cumbersome for a woods hunting rifle. I also suspect that the extremely large suppressor affected barrel harmonics to the point that accuracy suffered. 

Reliability

Reliability simply means, does the rifle go bang when it’s supposed to? Does it not go bang when you don’t want it to? Does it feed and eject properly? Did anything break during usage?

During my testing of the Howa 1500, I experienced zero malfunctions. Everything worked as expected in terms of the general operations of the rifle. Rounds picked up out of the magazine and chambered appropriately. The trigger and safety worked as expected and the rifle fired reliably. 

Unfortunately, I did have one “breakage” happen during my time on the range as the scope base came loose. The picatinny style 20MOA base loosened to the point that I could not continue shooting the rifle. The base screws will need to be “lock-tited” back into place and properly torqued before additional testing can be done. As expected, accuracy suffered due to this issue. 

Ergonomics

The Ergonomics of this rifle are excellent thanks to the KRG Bravo stock. It has plenty of adjustability for length of pull with the ability to add spacers to the buttstock. The cheek riser is adjustable for height, which I ended up needing because of the high rings I used to mount the Brownells MPO scope. The grip is nearly vertical, which helps most shooters approach the trigger in a more consistent way. It is especially helpful when shooting positional off of natural obstacles and man-made barricades. The KRG Bravo gets high marks from me in terms of ergonomics. 

Accuracy

The accuracy of my Howa 1500 was not as good as I would have expected. These days with manufacturing processes being what they are, barrel cutting being excellent, and match grade ammunition shooting quite well, I think sub one minute of accuracy should be the standard. Howa has a 1-MOA accuracy guarantee with some stipulations placed on using the correct ammunition.

I found this test rifle to be approximately a 1MOA gun at 100 yards. I took the average of four different five-shot groups. The best group measured .4 MOA with Federal Gold Medal Match 175 grain bullets. The worst group measured 1.7 MOA with Berger OTM Tactical Match 175 grain, which was very unexpected. I fired two groups using the Federal Gold Medal Match 168 grain bullet. Both groups shot approximately 1 inch at 100 yards.  

I think it’s also important to mention again that my scope base came loose at some point during the testing and I didn’t notice it until I was done shooting. 

Value

I would definitely place this Howa 1500 rifle in the “value” category. That can mean a couple of different things based on your budget. My Howa 1500 cost right around $850.00, not including the Brownell’s MPO scope. Add $1000.00 to the total if you include the optic.

I think that price range is considered budget when you consider that many quality precision rifles are in the $1500 – $2500 range these days. Full custom precision rifles are going for north of $4500 regularly.  

The real question is, are you getting a decent rifle for the price? In that sense, I do think the Howa 1500 is a great value! For all the reasons listed in the “features” section above, I think the average shooter, hunter, or competitor would be very pleased with this rifle. We even have a version of the Howa 1500 on our best hunting rifle list!

Howa 1500 Pros and Cons

Howa 1500 Starter Pack

Eye Protection –Here are some of our favorite eye protection.

Hearing Protection – Having some quality hearing protection to prevent hearing loss.

Gun Cleaning Kit – A good cleaning kits will help you keep your guns working.

First Aid Kit – Its always good to have a first aid kit on hand for your range trips.

Upgrades and Accessories for the Howa 1500

For the Howa 1500 you will want a good stock for your desired usage, a good scope and scope mount system, and a bipod.

Upgrades and Accessories for the Howa 1500

Hunting Stock H-S Precision Howa 1500 Sporter Rifle Stock		Full length aluminum bedding block 2.375 lbs	Check Price
Precision Stock KRG Bravo		Adjustable comb height MLOK forend 2.9 lbs	Check Price
Bipod Harris Bipod S-BRM 6-9in		Hinged base Notched legs Made in USA	Buy on Amazon
Bipod Accu-Shot Atlas Bipod BT10		Mounts directly to Picatinny rail 5 leg positions: 0, 45, 90, 135 & 180 degrees Made in USA	Buy on Amazon

Best Ammo for The Howa 1500

Here are our picks for ammo to use in your Howa 1500. One is a match round for target shooting, the other is a hunting round.

Other Bolt Action Rifles of its Class to Check Out

One of the nice features of the Howa 1500 is you can easily just purchase the barreled action and customize it to your liking. Another very customizable rifle it the Remington 700.

How to Care for Your Howa 1500

Here is a video walking you through how to clean your bolt action rifle.

Important Links and for the Howa 1500

Check out the link below for the manufacturer’s website and owners manual.

• 1500 by Howa
• Howa 1500 Users Manual