Have you any experience with Weatherby Vanguard?
I would like info from people who use it.

Right out of the box with my handloads a 30.06 I bought two years ago shot under 1 inch groups (barely) and at $384.00 was a steal. Got it from Wal-Mart locally so there was no shipping incurred. It shot equal to the Remington 700 PSS DM in .308 that cost $699.00. I'm not saying every one of the Weatherby Vanguards will shoot that good but the one I got did. Good shooting! Mike

The Vanguard is made by Howa in Japan. Howa once marketed the same action/rifle under their own name, and Smith and Wesson used to market it under that brand. The Howas are generally well made and very serviceable.

I also bought a Wal-Mart Weatherby in .300 Weatherby. So far my best load is

180 speer bullet
Remington brass
Win mag primers
IMR-7828 85 grains (Max in my rifle)
for Vel of 3161 fps
.588 @ 100 yards.

Most other loads will shot .75 inch to 1.5 inch.

I am very happy with that rifle.

Jason

Hi there; Here in Norway the vanguard is sold as Howa, they have a very good rep. But proper inletting is often needed, then they perform exelent.

I've got a .300 Weatherby plastic stocked Wal-Mart edition Vanguard. Came with a factory target with 2 holes in it, centers .8" apart. On close inspection, one of the holes is a double. It shoots sub-1" groups with my handloads regularly. Haven't done a thing to it and don't plan to.

I have not owned one, but handled them at Walmart, if they still sold them it would be the rifle I recommend to my friend. He is currently looking to buy a new rifle.

For a person that is a hunter not a firearms enthusiast, get one in 300 weatherby and you have all the rifle you ever need unless you go to africa.

Red

The Vanguard is also sold as the Howa 1500 (its real name) in the US. I bought one NIB two years ago. Excellent rifle.

Better, IMO, than any other $399 rifle out there. Better (in terms of quality, not decorations) than any production American rifle under $800.

Red, they certainly do still sell them at Wal-Mart. Bet that makes Wal-Mart the biggest selling Weatherby dealer in the U.S., don't know for a fact. When I bought mine some 5 years ago, I knew that Weatherby had discontinued the Vanguard several years earlier and suspected that Wal-Mart had found a supply of "new old stock" ones, so I was in a hurry to get one while I could. Obviously they've started making them again, and since that time they've introduced a more expensive model with the flashy, gaudy Weatherby wood stock to go along with the black plastic one. Mine was my first plastic stocked rifle, and initially I thought it ugly, but it's grown on me. It's a very comfortable, practically-shaped one, and as I said above it shoots fine with it. Doesn't change POI with the weather like a wooden one, either.

I've owned/used numerous Vanguards over the years, and currently have a variety of HOWA 1500's. Superb rifles, especially at the prices Wally's wants for them now. My first one cost nearly as much as a full blown Mark V - worked a whole summer to pay for that one when I was 14.

Clean up the bedding, play with the trigger a bit, and you're set.

R-WEST

I have the Walmart 300 Weatherby Vanguard. It is a nice rifle, but it's nothing special. Mine tends to be a fair weather rifle, it shots great in the summer, but my groups expand as the weather gets colder (Even after glass-bedding the stock and free-floating the barrel).
I'm not sure if I'll ever own another one.

The vanguard is the only weatherby that I would own as it is well made and not overpriced like the other weatherby rifles.I owned a smith&wesson 1500 which is the same howa rifle with a different name stamped on it and it easily shot under 1" with handloads.