Author Topic: cz,howa,or savage? (Read 3381 times)

cottonpicker · « **on:** February 26, 2007, 01:54:49 PM »

which brand rifle do you all think is the highest quality for the money.in the past,ive had savage and howas and were very pleased with them,but at the time the savages were much cheaper,and are now similar in price to the howas. ive never had any first hand experience with the cz rifles,but from what i hear they have a solid reputation for being really nice rifles. im am looking to get a short action .308.any help will be very appreciated.

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #1 on:** February 26, 2007, 02:12:29 PM »

I would go with the CZ. I have a savage and the CZ is by far better.

kyelkhunter3006 · « **Reply #2 on:** February 26, 2007, 02:28:36 PM »

I've had several Savages, and they will shoot with anything. Same with the Howa's. I think that the Howa and CZ are better quality rifles than the Savage, by this, I mean that 25 yrs from now, they will have held up better than the Savage. The Howa is a marvel of simplicity and good design with quality materials, while the CZ still has a bit of "old world" craftsmanship in it. The CZ is the best looking by far of the three, and I've hardly heard anything bad about them. If only they'd put a decent synthetic stock on it from the factory, I'd have a couple of them. I cry too much when I scratch pretty wood to have it on a using rifle. I'm not sure if CZ makes a true short action for the .308 cartridges, while I know that Howa does.

Mac11700 · « **Reply #3 on:** February 26, 2007, 06:32:31 PM »

Quote

If only they'd put a decent synthetic stock on it from the factory, I'd have a couple of them.

They do...It called a Weatherby MOA..

Mac

Casull · « **Reply #4 on:** February 26, 2007, 07:31:06 PM »

Quote

They do...It called a Weatherby MOA..

That's the Howa. I think he was talking about the CZ.

7x57mm · « **Reply #5 on:** February 27, 2007, 03:46:42 AM »

While CZ would be my pick, especially a CZ 550 Full Stock in the .308, it does not come in a short action model. CZ produces the CZ 550 in standard and magnum for the heavy hitters. The short cartridges, such as the .308, the .243 and the .22/250 come with a magazine and the .270, .30/06, 6.5x55 and 9.3x62 all come with the intregal magazine. The company produces a CZ 527, which is a micro-length Mauser-type action, but it is way too short for the .308. The CZ 527 fits the .223 Remington, .222, .22 Hornet, .221 Fireball and the .204 Ruger. Good luck ... Tom P

Ahab · « **Reply #6 on:** February 27, 2007, 04:10:48 AM »

Since the CZ doesn't have the short action, I'd go with the Howa. I have Savages and Howas and believe the Howa is a better value.

kyelkhunter3006 · « **Reply #7 on:** February 27, 2007, 10:49:34 AM »

Quote from: Mac11700 on February 26, 2007, 06:32:31 PM

Quote
If only they'd put a decent synthetic stock on it from the factory, I'd have a couple of them.

They do...It called a Weatherby MOA..

Mac

Ha ha, Casull was right, I was talking about the CZ.

But the Weatherby MOA is a very nice rifle too.

R.W.Dale · « **Reply #8 on:** February 27, 2007, 12:15:46 PM »

I've owned all three, In my opinion they rank in this order

1 CZ qty 5
2 Howa/vanguard qty 4
3 Savage qty 2

With number 1 far above the others in quality and value for the dollar

SeaBass · « **Reply #9 on:** February 27, 2007, 09:25:47 PM »

What models are you considering? I have all three brands. They all have their pros and cons. I can't really make a recommendation with out a little more info. What will you be using the rifle for?

Zachary · « **Reply #10 on:** February 28, 2007, 03:17:16 AM »

Quality generally means accuracy, but that's not necessarily true with the Savage. I find the Savage to be of subpar quality - meaning fit and finish. Working the bolt feels sloppy to me. However, that said, the Savages generally outshoot many other brands.

Still, of the three, I would get either the CZ or the Howa. I find the fit and finish on the CZ to be the best of the three (although not substantially better than the Howa), and accuracy is still generally quite good.

Zachary

myronman3 · « **Reply #11 on:** February 28, 2007, 06:44:33 AM »

my poppers bought me a bolt gun when i got out of the military.. it was a savage because he had a 243 that was a tack driver. the one he bought me was a 300 win mag. anyhow.... the gun wouldnt post less than an 8 inch group at 50 yards. many loads were tried, all sucked. so w sent it back to savage. they returned the gun with a test target ( 8 inch group @50 ) and said the gun was within factory specs. that was the last savage i bought. i know they can be tack drivers, but htat one was fubar and they couldnt have cared less. it was dumped for a loss, and we found a beautiful howa '06 to replace it. that gun would clover leaf at 100yards. skip the savage. howa or cz gets the nod.....

cottonpicker · « **Reply #12 on:** February 28, 2007, 02:34:07 PM »

thanx for all the great replies,they are greatly appreciated.i will probobly be getting the howa because they are a lil cheaper,and this rifle will be used for deer only,and we do have a short season,however,because of all the great info i have gotten from you guys,i will be getting a c.z. a lil later on,ill get the 30-06 in 550 american.that should be two great additionsto the gun cabinet,thanx again for all the replies.

brasschaser · « **Reply #13 on:** March 03, 2007, 06:11:18 AM »

I'm looking at a Howa or CZ as well. Likely in 6.5 or 308. The Howa looks to be the best deal now. CZ seems to have had a huge jump in price from last fall. ~$100.

How are the Howa synthetic stocks though?

jcn59 · « **Reply #14 on:** March 03, 2007, 06:31:52 AM »

Nice thing about the Savage is that different caliber aftermarket barrels can be had & "user installed" for $100. to $175.. So if you buy the long action gun (6.5 X 55 Swede ?) you can get a 22-250 barrel & use the same magazine, or a .35 Whelen barrel & get a 30-06 magazine to use. The .35 Whelen barrel has a larger o.d. however.

My writing "style" is clear as mud, but you get the idea, huh? You can change calibers for alot less money than you can get a whole different gun for. So if you can't justify the price of a new gun just to hunt elk a few days every few years, you can turn your deer rifle into a pretty good elk rifle for $150.

kyelkhunter3006 · « **Reply #15 on:** March 03, 2007, 04:03:33 PM »

The Howa synthetic stocks are as good as any other plastic injection molded you find on other rifles. After market stocks are readily available for that action--Bell & Carlson is good for the money, under $200 for the Carbelite series of solid Kevlar and fiberglass stocks. As posted by Mac11700 previously on this thread, the Weatherby Vanguard is the same rifle, and the MOA series in that rifle line comes with the Bell & Carlson stock from the factory.

R.W.Dale · « **Reply #16 on:** March 03, 2007, 05:10:38 PM »

Quote

How are the Howa synthetic stocks though?

A cheap hollow ill fitting piece of garbage, Or at least the entry level stocks. And this coming from a Howa/vanguard fan.

But with the money you typically save on the rifle makes investing in a better stock a much more appealing proposition.

I replaced the factory stock on this Vanguard with a B&C carbelite

brasschaser · « **Reply #17 on:** March 10, 2007, 06:27:56 AM »

So are the wood stocks on the Howa pretty decent? That green carbelite stock sure looks nice. Where did you find those?

kyelkhunter3006 · « **Reply #18 on:** March 10, 2007, 07:52:40 AM »

Most of the wood stocks I've seen are just good straight grained walnut. Nothing showy, just good wood. You can get the Carbelite stocks at Cabelas, Midway USA, Lock Stock and Barrel, and other places.

Tackleberry · « **Reply #19 on:** April 04, 2007, 09:42:36 AM »

Savage... for the money...HOWEVER, my Browning A bolt made by Howa in .280 is the most accurate rifle I 've ever shot....

deerhunter10 · « **Reply #20 on:** April 16, 2007, 09:02:59 PM »

Own 2 Howas, awesome! My daughters .243 with the raised palm swell is like my Sako, very comfortable. For the money I don't know that there is a better gun out there. I paid around $475 for her S/S camo gun, and shoots about 1.5 moa at 100 yards. My .223 is shooting around 1 moa. Solid purchase.

Deerhunter10

Inrut24/7 · « **Reply #21 on:** April 26, 2007, 04:01:30 PM »

If your a howa fan go up to "request a new forum" and vote for having a new, howa/vanguard forum,then again with a rifle so good there might not be much to talk about.

Mac11700 · « **Reply #22 on:** April 27, 2007, 03:24:11 PM »

You might want to check out the new products from B&C...I'm debating on one for my new Savage..it will either be this one or a McMillan A-3..if funds allow it ...

http://www.bellandcarlson.com/Page5.htm

If owned a couple of their Medalist stocks and they are nice for the money...but this new Varmint/Tactical stock intrigues me..

Mac

kyelkhunter3006 · « **Reply #23 on:** April 28, 2007, 11:05:29 AM »

That's a really nice stock. I like the B&C's because they are a solid stock design, not a foam filled shell. I've had two of those tactical stocks, and the actions dropped right in without a single problem. If you watch for them on ebay, you can get them at a steal. I paid $190 total for a black one, and $175 total for one with the green/black spider web finish. Both were NIB. You can't beat that for a stock with an integral bedding block.

jmckinley · « **Reply #24 on:** May 09, 2007, 07:08:38 AM »

The new Howa stock is not junk,,,It's a Hogue overmold and frankly an excellent stock. I liked it so much i just purchased (layaway) a Howa in 30-06 and will build my rifle battery around this rifle. I will finish with 06, 270, 243 and a Varmint in 22-250. I can get all 4 for under $ 2200.00 and be set for life. I will throw my Savage 110E in 270 in the mix and want for nothing. Jess