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Old 03-04-2022, 10:26 PM
JDHasty JDHasty is offline
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Default The kids Howa Mini 20 P is about to wrap up

I got an email from Cabela's a few years back that they had Howa Minis in 223 for $349 and my cousin and I each picked one up.

It proved to be a good shooting gun, but the plastic fantastic was strong and some of it affected it in ways that went far beyond cosmetic and pride of ownership.

The first thing I did was take a pair of diagonal cutters to the magazine release and cut it to the quick and finished it up with a fine cut file because it was not suitable for field usage as issued. Then I took it coyote calling and grabbed it and an empty magazine that I slapped in the base plate to seat in the mag well and when I did that the tit on the end of the follower spring jumped out of the hole in the base plate and the base plate and guts ended up in the dirt. That took me an hour to locate the parts and put it back together and then figure out what had caused that to happen. Once figured out I put a point on the tit and used a countersink on the hole so that if/when it jumps out again it will find it's way back home. That solved that issue. It only happens on an empty magazine, but I keep the ammo out of our rifles all together until we are actually in a legal hunting area. The stock is serviceable, but the fore-end is a wet noodle and that affects accuracy and POI with Harris Bipod usage.

So it went in the safe until about this time last year.

I was thinking of cutting the stock down for the kids but it is difficult to get a pad attached w/o filling the hollow in the plastic stocks with spray foam and then gluing a pad on or putting a block in to screw to.

So, that's what we started with.

Later today or tomorrow I will detail the major overhaul that is just about to wrap up.

Last edited by JDHasty; 03-12-2022 at 03:58 AM.
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Old 03-05-2022, 03:01 AM
JDHasty JDHasty is offline
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I had given some thought to making it into a chuck rifle for the kids, but my 12 year old is a big twelve year old and my 6 & 8 year olds are extra small. That got me to thinking about the Boyd’s AT-One, but they are so thick through the grip. When I found out they were making a thumb-hole AT-One and it doesn’t suffer from that… problem solved.

I was looking at the Rapid Fire on Boyd’s Gunstocks site and an AT-One Thumbhole in blue laminate for a Howa Mini showed up for a good price, pretty much a give away price. So I grabbed that before it disappeared. What is really nice is that blue is my oldest girl’s favorite color.

Around that time I learned of the DIP aluminum trigger guard and improved magazine release and immediately ordered them.

So the stock and trigger guard show up on the same day and I was excited to see how it all fit together. Well, it all went in the stock just fine, but tightening either action screw lifted the opposite end of the action about 20/100ths of an inch. It also is kinda loosey goossey in the wood to metal fit. No big deal, I had already ordered pillars from Score High and planned to pillar bed it anyway.

Then one day I am on the phone with Match Grade Machine last winter and we are done transacting business and just chatting and the topic of mini actions comes up and I mentioned that I have this Howa Mini I’m working on and they tell me that their sister company is making “pre-fit” barrels for the Howa Mini. That got me to thinking about putting a 26 inch #3 heavy sportier barrel that tapers to .7 at the muzzle on it. If I were to do that it would also provide me with a basically new 224 barrel that I could fit in an Eagle View stub kit that has been gathering dust in my safe waiting for me to find just the right barrel to make up a really light 22 caliber Contender carbine setup with.

What I was looking for in the Howa right away is something that will allow my older daughter greater range than her 17 Hornet Contender carbine and not have much recoil or muzzle blast. I also want her to hand it off to the two younger kids as she gets used to her Encore in 243. (Her deer gun is a 20 ga H&R Ultra Slug Hunter and she tolerates the recoil, but I like the idea of having something in between). Being a lefty, a right hand bolt action is not a bad choice for shooting from our shooting benches.

I have an Ultra Wildcat in 17 Rem and a CZ 527 in 204 and really don’t want anything more to do with the 204 because of brass scarcity. 17 Rem is a fun cartridge and brass is never going to be a problem with it because making it from .556 is as easy as it gets. It just needs to be sized, neck turned and annealed. But, the 20 caliber makes a better 400 - 450 yard chuck round. It just performs better at the long end of mid-range.

Having a Redding S Die set in 233 made the 20 P an easy choice over the rest of the 20 cal choices. I also had a spare 204 Lee Collet Die that we chucked up the collet in the lathe and took 10/100th off and deepened the dimple in the die cap so the mandrel/decap Assy can move up and not bottom out on the case web. We have been using a 204 RCBS Competition Seating Die, so the only expense was a .233 bushing. Not bad. We also have a set of headspace gauges in 223.

The brass has the primer pocket swaged, has gone through a standard 223 seating die with the guts removed, then the Redding S Die with .233 bushing and then run through the Collet Die before being annealed and trimmed. We have 800 pieces of WCC brass and a thousand 32 grain V-max bullets sitting here ready to go as soon as the rifle is ready.

The stock action screw holes in the stock have been drilled through with a forstner bit and wood relieved and is ready to be bedded as soon as I relieve the barrel channel to fit the new barrel.

So, how bout those Howas? Either the factory barrel comes off without much effort, or it is easier to move heaven and earth than to break them loose is what we have seen. I was hoping for the former, but blessed with the latter and since Preferred Barrel Blanks will install their barrel on your barreled action for $90… let’s just say I used an old Indian trick, shipped it to Utah and paid white man ninety bucks.

Our barreled action will be home Tuesday. We should have it bedded by Thursday and it will be cured and ready to shoot Sunday. As soon as the barreled action gets here I will measure the distance to the lands and get going on loading up ammo with five or six different powders. We already have 35 barrel break in rounds ready to go.

We put identical Burris Fullfield e1 6.5-20x50s on the kids’ 17 Hornets and when they went on sale for $190 at Natchez a couple weeks ago we got a third one for this rifle. The sub crosshairs in that scope are set specifically for a 22-250 55 grain load. They should line right up with the 32 grain load from the 20P as well.

Last edited by JDHasty; 04-24-2022 at 01:26 AM.
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Old 03-06-2022, 12:06 PM
JDHasty JDHasty is offline
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Here’s what we are working with:
The thumbhole AT-One has a nice slim grip and will shorten up to 12.5 LOP or extend out to 14.5.




The trigger guard/mag well from DIP is much nicer. My cousin cracked his plastic one and I sent him the one from this rifle, they just are not getting good advice on finishing up on what could be a rifle on this action that has the potential to practically own the mini action market segment. The Japanese can turn out a first rate finished product if/when they are partnering with guys who are pointing them in the right direction. Think Weatherby Vanguard. But on their own they don't have the first clue and the Legacy Sports bunch just don't get it either.

A while back I saw 1500 Varmints in 22-250 and 243 that would have sold like hotcakes, but they had a 20 inch barrel on them and they sat on the racks in gun shops and the price was unbelievably good. And, what's with that magazine? At least offer one that does not stick down that far. I figured that decision out. Chassis instead of stocks are the rage and the Legacy Sports guys are not rifle enthusiasts, they are marketing guys and bean counters. I used to run one of the biggest gun counters in the region and dealt with guys who were manufacturer's reps who were able to rattle off the talking points like no tomorrow, but didn't know which end of a gun the bullet came out of and/or which end of a binocular to look through.



That DIP mag release makes the best of a bad situation and overall is pretty satisfactory and the magazine will be OK, if not great. It will never be great but it will be OK once shorter magazines are on the market. The two we have feed fine.

My understanding the hinged floor plate assy being made for the Howa Mini down in Oregon is off the market for now.



The barrel channel would have been perfectly OK if I had gone with the original barrel. Bedded with black tinted glass and it would have looked great. The new barrel will fill out much of the barrel channel and I will bed the first two inches in front of the recoil lug tight to the barrel and use one layer of pipe wrap on the rest of the barrel to free float it and fill the gap with black tinted glass and it will look fantastic.

And if anyone reading my post and pulling out their hair about me using those nice old counter mats in my shop... I finally listened to friends who were just as upset about my lack of proper appreciation and took them in the house, washed them up and they are now perfectly safe. They survived thirty years in my shop and came out none the worse for it, but they my friends were right. It doesn't make sense to risk wrecking them. I put a piece of 1/4 stall mat there instead.

This is a new shop, my loading and gun work shop was at my mother's home for thirty years until she passed away in 2019. I didn't do much in the last two years because I was executor of her estate and also had to put up an outbuilding to free up space in my home to build this shop then remodel the space and build cabinetry and install it.

Last edited by JDHasty; 03-06-2022 at 01:19 PM.
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Old 03-06-2022, 12:58 PM
JDHasty JDHasty is offline
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My thoughts on the Howa Mini are that it is the best mini repeating action currently out there unless you want to look at the semi-custom market and three times the price.

It is smoother than the CZ 527, but cannot handle rimmed cartridges. I didn't care about that until the 527 was discontinued, I do now. I had plans to pick up a 527 Varmint in 17 Hornet, unless I come across one at pre discontinuation prices... I can live without it. I have 527 Americans in 17 & 22 Hornet and will survive without one.

I am not wild about the Savage for a number of reasons that go beyond it being just plain ugly. Primarily they go out of commission all too often for my liking.

I suppose the Ruger 77 is a good action too. My 77/22 in 22LR didn't shoot that great and I sold and got a Kimber Mini Classic that really shoots. I have a 52 sporter that really shoots too, but the Kimber is much more compact and I rarely use the 52 in the field. Perhaps it is as good or better than the Howa Mini, but Ruger only offers it with a 18.5 inch barrel in 17 Hornet now. That is a waste. The tipped 20 grain bullets kill very well out to 225 yards, but we use HP 20 grain bullets when shooting past 200 because they open up and kill well. With a 18.5 inch barrel the tipped bullet will fail to open reliably after a buck and a half. Buying a Ruger and a barrel from Lilja or another outfit makes the Ruger at least a $1,300 proposition. Go with a TC Encore or Contender and 22 - 24 inch MGM, BullBerry or EABco instead for a 17 Hornet. The Ruger 22 Hornet is still offered with a 20 inch barrel.

The Howa is larger than the 527 and the Sako L461, but not sufficiently enough to make that a deal breaker. I like the hinged floorplate on the Sako and it's finesse, and hate everything about the Howa magazine except how well it feeds.

The factory trigger on the Howa is fine, it is also from what I understand a straight up 1500 trigger and can be upgraded or tuned if a guy wants it lighter.

Last edited by JDHasty; 03-07-2022 at 04:31 AM.
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Old 03-08-2022, 11:33 PM
moorepower moorepower is offline
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That turned out nice! I got a spring kit from a guy in OZ a couple of years ago for mine, but who knows if he is still selling them. I sanded on my barrel channel a bunch on mine, to float, but rigid, they are not.
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Old 03-10-2022, 04:14 AM
JDHasty JDHasty is offline
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The barreled action came home from Utah yesterday evening and the #3 Sporter profile fit the barrel channel real well. I sanded it down to clear a single layer of pipe wrap at the forrend tip and to allow a business card to pass back to where I have a double layer of 10 mil pipe wrap to block the bedding compound.

I ordered fresh Devcon Steel and expected it Saturday, but it showed up today. It looks like I may get it to the range Sunday. I’ll pull it out of the stock and bed the trigger guard and the rest of the barrel channel with black tinted Score High Pro-Bed to a single layer of 10 mil pipe wrap tomorrow evening.

This is my first time using Score High adjustable pillars. It will not be my last. I’m impressed.

The inletting around the action was pretty sloppy. The Devcon blends real well with the blue and dark grey laminate.




Last edited by JDHasty; 03-10-2022 at 03:04 PM.
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Old 03-12-2022, 03:45 AM
JDHasty JDHasty is offline
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Well, there it is. I think it turned out to be a pretty good looking rifle. I’m not wild about either thumbhole stocks or laminated stocks, but the grip is perfect for kids, trim enough that they can get their hand around it and close enough to the trigger too. The blue laminate looks pretty racy, I think the kids will really get a kick out of it.





Here’s what it started out as:


Last edited by JDHasty; 03-12-2022 at 03:54 AM.
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Old 04-23-2022, 02:37 PM
Spook Spook is offline
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I agree, Nice rifle
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Old 04-23-2022, 03:55 PM
Bill K Bill K is offline
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I am enjoying a couple of the mini's now, re-barreled to other calibers also.
Have other Howa's, in 1500 and mini now. But also some CZ 527's. Like both, each have their pro and cons.
On my mini howa, I took a small square of leather and epoxed it between the release lever and housing, so it take some pressure to get the magazine to release and it stopped the issue, for me, of having it drop if you happen to touch the release when carrying the rifle. Just a thought to stop that problem.
One day will more than likely obtain the magazine/floor plate put out by the guy in Oregon, to convert.
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Old 04-24-2022, 01:56 AM
JDHasty JDHasty is offline
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I’ve shot it a bit and it’s shooting pretty well. About .65 at a hundred yards average. That’s not bad, the crosshairs on the scope are pretty coarse and this is a kids’ rifle, so we are talking about 4lb trigger pull on it. I am going to take it with me to the range tomorrow and see if I can get a bit more out of it with loaded ammo in brass that has been fired in that rifle then neck sized only. I also got some 450 primers and have been loading ball powder in it. I’ve been out of 450s for a while now. My experience is that with ball powders 450s usually make enough of a difference to notice. We shall see.

It went with us to Montana a couple weeks ago, but winds were north of 50mph and reached 68mph and we didn’t get to shoot it over there. It was a real hit with everyone who got to handle it though. I have a Remington 788 223 sitting here that I’m thinking I will put in an AT-One thumbhole for the kids next winter.

We were going to make a run to central WA today and tomorrow and take a poke at a few chucks, but…. Sick kid.

Definitely headed over next weekend.

I talked about buying a half dozen of these Howa Minis when they were so cheap. I really wish I had at least one more.

Last edited by JDHasty; 04-24-2022 at 02:05 AM.
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