Anyone have any first hand experence with these rifles, worth the $$.

people who spend $3K on a rifle rarely concernt hemselves with value.
they are after a different reaction than what good value brings.
I like to say " yep, and i have $800 into the whole package scope and all"
others would actually prefer to say "hell the bases and rings alone cost me $400.
different strokes i guess.

KSTEPHENS, Actually, the people who buy custom rifles are very concerned with value. they just have different standards. Not better or worse just different. There are a few who are interested in bragging rights most just want the very best.

The price is high, but I do not mind paying it if I know I'm getting a quality, accurate rifle. Also by being a lefty, I will have a greater selection of caliber that is just not offered in the factory left hand guns.

If you are going to buy a custom left handed rifle, I'd advise you check into some other makers.

H-S precision will most certainly build and sell you a shooter, but their customer service will leave you wanting. That is hearsay, but seems to be a very common report.

There are a LOT of excellent riflemakers out there.

I think the H-S precision action is a good one, but why not buy a Jim Borden Alpine action and buy your own custom barrel, then send them to a smith and have him do final assembly?

I also shoot left handed. What are you looking for? Caliber, etc.?

I have a couple of them. I think that they are a pretty good value within their price range. The barrels are excellent, the action is very good the trigger is very good, the stock is good and the magazine system is decent.
I love their takedown rifles. It's one of the best systems I've seen.
They have an accuracy guarantee.
I would very much like to have one of their new lightweight sporters.

You can build a custom rifle out of parts of equivelant quality and pay as much or more than you will pay for an H.S. Rifle. The difference is that a factory produced rifle like the H.S. is much more likely to maintain a high percentage of it's value than one built up from various parts. On the other hand when you choose individual parts you might get specific items you prefer over what you get on an H.S. rifle, for example you might prefer a McMillan stock over the H.S. Stock (most do).
Also depending on who you have build up a parts gun I think you are more likely to get a reliable out of the box gun with an H.S. than with one someone slaps together. Of course there are some custom gun makers that will never let anything that is less than completely reliable out of their shop but there are a lot more that send out stuff that isn't.

So I think if you compare them to similar rifles like say a Dakota, Hill Country, Christiansen etc. The H.S rifles are probably the least expensive of the bunch and in that comparison are probably a good value.\

The Cabela's in Ft. Worth Texas has a couple H.S. Rifles in stock and maybe some of the other ones do also. If at all possible handle one and see if it fits you well and feels good. It will shoot.............................................DJ

I highly recommend Lex Webernick of Rifles Inc.

I do not own one, but I have had a fair bit of experience with an H-S Precision rifle that a friend owns.

I worked up a reload for it when he first bought it. It is chambered in 375 H&H and it shoots like a varmint rifle when loaded with 300 grain Swift A-Frame's. I have it here in my safe right now, just put a different scope on it. When I sighted it in with the new scope I shot a 0.55 inch group with it at 100 yards.

The rifle feels good, comes to the shoulder well. The fit and finish is good. The trigger is very crisp and clean, it measures 2.5 pounds right out of the box. The rifle is stainless steel but has a matte black finish that is very nice.

If I were going to spend more than the average Remington or Ruger costs these days H-S Precision would get my business.

I looked closely at HS Precision and thought about buying one of there products. They seem to have a good reputation for accuracy, but ,as previously mentioned, the reports of customer service woes worried me. For not much more money the base model of the Waffenfabrik Hein Big Game rifle seems like a better value to me. I have been seriously considering a nice high end rifle chambered in a go-anywhere/do-anything cartridge. Hein certainly got my attention, as I couldn't find any complaints about them while searching these forums. Check out rifleactions.com.

djpaintles...any experience with the takedown H-S models? I have a hankering for one of those.
Peter.

Peter:

I have a 300 Win takedown and it is extremely accurate (1/2") and very nice for travel. My understanding is they are now quoting 2+ years lead time. I have had two others and all shot as well. They tend to be a little on the heavy side, however. My 300 weighs 10 pounds with scope.

I have 4 HS Precision Rifle and like them all. My first on was a 300 RUM in 2000 in the Pro Hunter when they where $1600.00. It is still my favorite shooter.

I have used their customer service several times and they have been great for me.

As noted they are a little heavy, I personally like a rifle a little heavy. I was looking for something a little lighter but not as light as the Ultra Light model. While speaking with customer service rep he sugested that they can flute the sporter model and I wanted a Cheek piece as on the PH model. They added both for no charge. Rifle is 8 1/2 pounds with the scope which is perfect for me.

A friend of mine had a take down and it felt very heavy and like a club. not sure of barrel length etc. He did not keep it very long.

THe open sight big game model is nice and the sights line up great for me.

I have had a few higher end rifles, Ed Browm, Brown Precision, Dakota, Custom by a small time good gunsmith. After all thoose I found I personally like the HS the best.

Mike

quote:

Originally posted by Peter:
djpaintles...any experience with the takedown H-S models? I have a hankering for one of those.
Peter.

I have one with a strange 2 barrel combination: 300 Win Mag and 300 Ultra Mag. I bought it used with both barrel sets, I wouldn't order that combo normally but I got a good deal on it.
I think it's one of the coolest guns I own. It's not light - It would compare to a Remington Sendero type rifle not a std weight hunting rifle. For a Stand gun it's great. It's a 1/2 MOA rifle or better in 300 Ultra, I haven't shot the 300 Win Mag much at all. You can take it apart and it holds it zero too. It's the perfect rifle if you wanted to have a compact travel gun for stand hunting etc.. It wouldn't be the one I'd take for a long hike though.
I think the price has gone up on them a good bit, I'm not sure what they are selling for now...............................DJ

Yes, they are worth the dollars.

I've heard alot of bad things and alot of good things about them.

My personal opinion is to just have a well known custom rifle builder build you a rifle exactly how you want it. You can have a custom built for much less $$$ than the HS rifles. A good friend of mine just got a quote from a well know smith in the LR world. it was going to run him right at 1300 for: laminate stock, pillar bedded, free floated, glass bedded, Holland recoil lug, stainless Lilja bbl, blue printed & trued 700 action, lapped lugs, Sako extractor, tuned factory trigger, bead blasted finish.

I know where I'd spend my money.

Good Luck

Reloader

Reloader, if you are referring to APS, I can certainly vouch for his work.

I have a 270 AM and it is a fine rifle.

I own an H.S. Sporter in 300wm. I worked with Superior Ammunition to work up a load for whitetails. I've gotten the .5 inch groups off sandbags regularly. It is a shooter for sure. I also went through the same shopping process. I considered Rifles Inc. as my second choice. I went with H.S. because with Rifles Inc you would have to supply the action and pay an equivalent fee to get the rifle. I sold my old rifle and that helped pay for the H.S. I love the rifle. The only thing that I don't like is the recoil pad. It is supposedly a pain to replace it due to it being glued to the stock. The rifle is a "complete" package and guaranteed to shoot for a fixed price. I also got mine in less than 6 months. No experience with customer service.

Wow, what an informative thread! Not everyone agrees, but, alternative suggestions are provided. Pros and cons clearly stated. Lots of personal experiences. This should be a model thread!
Peter.

Yes, it is refreshing to not see people beating eachother to death with personal preferences I liked the 3 postion safety of the Pro-Series rifle and it also good to hear some postive comments about the customer service department. When I searched old threads concerning the Pro-Series rifles, I saw some concerning posts about customer mistreatment, but the response in this thread seem very positive. Maybe I will revisit HS for a closer look. Thank You.

Yep Doc, it was indeed APS. If I have someone build me a rifle anytime soon it will be Kirby.

Reloader

The rifles are very good for the money.

But I have two main reason why I don't own one.
1. Their stocks are too noisy. I may be crazy, but when going through brush. They are LOUD. Try running your fingernails along one in the gunshop sometime.

2. I live 40 miles from their shop. I stopped in when I was seriously considering buying one and they did not act like they cared if I bought a rifle or not. I was there for all of about three minutes and decided that this was NOT the place to spend that kind of money on a rifle.

quote:

Originally posted by matt300wm:
The only thing that I don't like is the recoil pad. It is supposedly a pain to replace it due to it being glued to the stock.

I just mailed one of my H-S stocks to "westpac" in Utah to get the stock shortened and install a decelerator from pachmyer. It can be done. Check out my thread in "gunsmith."

I'll probably send him my other 3 to get those pads changed out too. I hate the pad that comes with the H-S.

CLK320,

Have to wait 13 month’s for a rifle that does not shoot accurate, I am very disappointed.
Called twice, with a promise we call you back, a month down the road, no call!!!

Roland

Found a couple lefty Weatherby Mark IV on Gunsamerica, could buy two for the same money, any thoughts, not to thrilled with a 1 1/2" accuracy guarentee. Someone please tell me they have a safe full of these that shoot 1/2 inch.

I'd suggest you PM Jorge. If I recall, he's a Weatherby fan and has posted some nice pics of groups from his rifles.

Try not to get so caught up in any 'gaurantees' on rifle accuracy. I tried to work up a load for a friend of mine in his 300 Weatherby and the very best I could do was 3" at 100 yards. His rifle needed work. So much for that guarantee.

Exactly what are you looking for? Any caliber in particular?

quote:

Originally posted by Doc:

quote:

Originally posted by matt300wm:
The only thing that I don't like is the recoil pad. It is supposedly a pain to replace it due to it being glued to the stock.

I just mailed one of my H-S stocks to "westpac" in Utah to get the stock shortened and install a decelerator from pachmyer. It can be done. Check out my thread in "gunsmith."

I'll probably send him my other 3 to get those pads changed out too. I hate the pad that comes with the H-S.

HS could use a better pad. I have 2 of the stocks and like the stock but not the pad. You can buy them from Rem for $70 less than buying them from HS. I have talked to them a couple times and they don't seem to care if you buy anything from them or not. I guess they have too much corporate business. They did tell me to freeze the stock if I wanted to take the old pad off and put on a new one.

quote:

Originally posted by CLK320:
Anyone have any first hand experence with these rifles, worth the $$.

I have a .300WM and a .375H&H from HS. I'm right-handed but shoot left-handed and am small - 12 1/4" LOP. Both of these guns felt absolutely perfect when I took them out of the box. I took ten animals in Africa last year. The only two that took more than one shot were a croc for obvious reasons and a reedbuck that was a running away shot on the first and needed a finisher. There isn't anything about them that I don't like.

As for customer service, I have had no problems with them whatsoever - even found them very helpful. They can be as technical or as simple as you need them to be and don't seem to mind either. I dealt with different people with each gun, so I have a feel for a couple of the folks there and I think they're great.

Others can say what they want, but in my opinion I got more than my money's worth and would not hesitate to return or recommend them.

CLK320, The MV is a gamble. I have experience with 5 of them and most of them shot quite well. Some shot outstanding, a couple shot pretty good and one only shot so so.

They are a very nice rifle IMO. Only thing I don't like about MkVs is the weight, they are heavy when compared to other sporters.

Good Luck

Reloader