Howa Superlite

[Trapper330]

Wondering if anyone has experience with the short barelled (16.25") Howa Superlite? I'm looking at getting one in 308 and running a suppressor on it to keep the length reasonable- I like a 20" or so barell. Any input is appreciated!

 

[cbuck516]

I just built an 18” 308Win, my first 308, and the recoil is way more than I expected in my 11.5# rifle. Staying on target is very difficult with the 168gr projectiles I have been using for barrel break in, but I intend to hunt with 135gr projectiles so I’m hoping recoil is much less for those loads. Realistically, I will probably only have scope magnification on 4x-6x when hunting with this 308Win, but anything above that is super hard to stay on target in my gun. It’s great for a trainer rifle, but no way would I ever want an ultralight 308. If you want ultralight go with the 6.5CM or smaller. There is nothing a 308 can do that a 6.5CM can’t. I own a 16.25” Howa 1500 in 6.5CM and love shooting that gun. Recoil with the 6.5 and 140gr projectiles feels way less than the 308 with 168gr. These are my two newest cartridges so I do have limited experience with both, but I am used to shooting -06 derives cartridges and magnums. I truly expected way less recoil in the 308Win based on my readings.

I’m not sure what your intended use case is for this rifle, but if you end up going with the 16.25” CM I would gladly share my load data with you as a reference point.

 

[Bigtis]

Wondering if anyone has experience with the short barelled (16.25") Howa Superlite? I'm looking at getting one in 308 and running a suppressor on it to keep the length reasonable- I like a 20" or so barell. Any input is appreciated!

Put one together with a 2x7x33 vxr and Talley ultralight rings. Fostech titanium. Brake. It grouped everything I’ve ran through it 1.5-.75 moa

 

[Bob Diesel]

Wondering if anyone has experience with the short barelled (16.25") Howa Superlite? I'm looking at getting one in 308 and running a suppressor on it to keep the length reasonable- I like a 20" or so barell. Any input is appreciated!

Did you end up going with this? If so, what was your final weight? I’m considering the exact same setup, however I’m a little nervous to have a pencil barrel contour with a can on the front. I’m curious if the short length mitigates some of the issues a heavy can on a thin contour might create.


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[JPGreg]

They’re definitely light and compact
But, terrible feeding issues, most people have trouble feeding rounds. The magazine doesn’t sit flush whatsoever either. Read up on it.

 

[xsn10s]

There can be feeding issues but I wouldn't say "most" people have feeding issues. I put together my 7-08 with a stocky's seconds stock. It had feeding issues because the stocky needed some more fitting. After about 30 minutes of playing with different torque settings on the action bolts I can see where it needs some help and have attained more reliable feeding. It's accurate enough for me to consistently hit steel out to 800 yards. I'll bed the rifle and free float the barrel. And then I'll bed the bottom "metal" before I do some real load development.

 

[SW hunter]

I haven't experienced any feeding issues. Not that I recall. I would say the mag sits flush. Not enough protruding to get snagged up on brush or anything, catch hand or clothes on, or feel while slung on shoulder. I dont know why it would be a concern. I was unaware I have a problem until I read this.

Some issues may just be forum lore thats been repeated. Sometimes, “read up on it” just means “i read…”.

It’s an ok rifle. It’s pretty good at being what it’s supposed to be. I wouldn't pick it if it was going to be the only rifle I owned.

My gripe is that by the 3rd shot the barrel is hot and the group widens up.

 

[Trapper330]

Did you end up going with this? If so, what was your final weight? I’m considering the exact same setup, however I’m a little nervous to have a pencil barrel contour with a can on the front. I’m curious if the short length mitigates some of the issues a heavy can on a thin contour might create.


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I did end up with the 16.25" barrel in 308 and put a can on it and a big scope, but at the end of the day it all evens out. I'm just breaking it in now. Can't remember the exact weight, but the can is over a pound I think and with the scope I wanna say 7+ pounds. verdict is still out...but I like it so far. I really like the Randy Newberg Howa I have in 7-08 though too.