Howa M1100 thoughts?
- Thread starter Wildtrip0d
- Start date
HI Wildtrip - I had an M1100 in 22lr, and it had to have been the most disappointing experience with any rimfire rifle I've ever owned. That includes over 35 different 22s from Norinco to Winchester to Remington to CZ to Anschutz to vintage Mossbergs to Savage to TOz.
From new I couldn't get the Howa M1100 to feed properly or shoot well. It was a mystery to me how it could be such a poor product from such a great manufacturer as Howa. I've had several Weatherby Vanguards (also built by Howa) which were fantastic rifles. This M1100 was shockingly bad. In the few instances it would feed, the accuracy was abysmal.
After messing with it for a couple of months, I sold it to a true rimfire guru who was aware of the issues but took it on as a project. He tried several fixes and modifications but without success. In a fit of frustration, he also sold it (with full disclosure) to a third owner. The third owner gave up on it quickly too.
I don't have any explanation for why they were so poor (this was roughly 2022) or if they have been improved since. Most YouTube reviews will recount similar issues. I was truly shocked and heartbroken to see such a poor product from Howa.
I did a review of newer production Norinco JW-15A rifles which have notoriously spotty QC and universally poor magazine quality. It was still a much better rifle than the M1100 I had. I do still have the JW-15, which I enjoy quite a bit (mine seems to work well).
It's possible that the shortcomings have been fixed, but I would say 'buyer beware'.
As a newer shooter, I would say try a Savage MkII heavy barrel version (a laminated stock BV is on sale at Tenda now) or better yet a base model CZ457. You would not regret either choice. The CZ can be upgraded with stock and barrel changes easily and has better resale value.
Hope this helps!
