Howa Mini or Ruger Ranch Gen II

Beeron

Beeron

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Greetings y’all.
Just interested in folks opinions.

I am buying a 6.5 Grendel.

My choices at the moment are either a Ruger American Gen II in either 16” or 20” barrel.

Or a Howa mini Action (stainless) in 22” barrel.

The ruger has a lot going for it including a shorter barrel and it fits in the MDT chassis I already own.

the Howa would be entirely new to me but their actions have an excellent reputation and they come with an MOA guarantee. Also stainless is a bonus.

I wud likely send the howa off to be cut shorter to make it more handy and stiffen the barrel.

So those are the options.

Please vote and if u feel like it, provide a reason for your vote.

Thank you for your input.
 
I have both a 16” Ruger American and a 22” Howa carbon stalker. The Ruger can’t make the promised speeds the calibre offers. Both are MOA guns.
 
mark k said:
I have both a 16” Ruger American and a 22” Howa carbon stalker. The Ruger can’t make the promised speeds the calibre offers. Both are MOA guns.
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Do u find the howa has a pretty whippy barrel?

I am leaning toward the 20” ruger for a bit more speed and the 22” howa wud be a bit faster yet but i worry about the noodly barrel.
 
I like the Howa, but that's just a personal preference.

The Ruger American Gen II is an excellent platform as well and offers some very nice features right out of the box, which you would have to purchase seperately if you buy the Howa.

I'm very "old school" traditional when it comes to rifles, for the most part and I find the Howa was ergonomically suitable for "me" out of the box.

I had the opportunity to shoot a Ruger American Gen II back in early December. It was also chambered for the 6.5 Grendel and had a 20 inch bbl.

The fluted barrel works quite well to provide rigidity and cooling with the diminutive 6.5 Grendel.

The rifle I shot had a ten round, after market magazine, which was one of those 3D printed types available online. It fed flawlessly and put all ten shots into a tight cluster at 200yds which could be covered by a quarter. I didn't take my time or the group might have been tighter.

It's owner loves the rifle.

The stock setting on the Ruger was a bit long for me, especially on the bench, recoil was minimal, but the trigger left a bit to be desired IMHO.

The owner was set up for the field, hunting domestic pigeons, crows, coyotes and other critters bothering is cattle when they start calving end of February. He told me he often has cold, stiff fingers while doing predator control and doesn't want to risk accidental discharges, so set the tigger at 3.5-4 pounds. Makes sense to me.

Very pretty rifle, should stand up well to the elements, but I wonder how that stock will do in "warm" weather?? Likely just fine.

The Mini Howa just "feels" better to me, but it's a personal thing and I like the action. I'm not a fan of Ruger actions, other than the NO1, but that's me again. I've never seen or heard of one failing, as long as it was taken care of.

I will also say Ruger triggers seem to have come a long way over the past ten years.

You can't go wrong with either choice but it sounds like you already have "accessories" for the Ruger, so IMHO, go for the Ruger.

The first thing I would do if the Ruger were mine is to get rid of that useless brake, whose only purpose appears to be "eye candy" and making noise.
 
Beeron said:
...I am leaning toward the 20” ruger for a bit more speed and the 22” howa wud be a bit faster yet but i worry about the noodly barrel.
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How are you planning to use the rifle? And, do you handload?

For almost every kind of field shooting, I'd gladly take additional muzzle velocity over barrel stiffness any day.

The Mini action is really very short - I don't have the numbers but I wouldn't be surprised if the 22" Howa has a similar OAL as the 20" Ruger. That's even after you take the stupid brake off the Ruger (and then of course you'll need a matching thread protector or you'll be sad).

FWIW, I think the Rugers feel cheap, and they look cheap and dumb. Your chassis would probably help on those counts though. The Mini is kind of different animal, in a league of its own. They're definitely not for everyone. I'd say try to handle one if you can.
 
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I've never handled a Howa mini action, but I believe you can get a 20" heavy barrel as well. I know you are unsure about the 22" option, so maybe the 20" HB could work for you without having to cut it down. I suppose they might be a bit front heavy too, I'm sure someone knows
 
Beeron said:
Do u find the howa has a pretty whippy barrel?

I am leaning toward the 20” ruger for a bit more speed and the 22” howa wud be a bit faster yet but i worry about the noodly barrel.
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The Howa is thin, but shoots well.
 
I have a Howa in 6.5 Grendel and it's accurate. The trigger is one of the best factory triggers (imho) and the magazine can be easily shortened if you don't need the full capacity and would rather have an almost flush fitting mag. The mag release is very sensitive though and the mag will drop if you look at it sideways....:-( When in the woods, a bit of string tying the mag to the trigger guard is a cure ffor that.
 
slinkylegs said:
I've never handled a Howa mini action, but I believe you can get a 20" heavy barrel as well. I know you are unsure about the 22" option, so maybe the 20" HB could work for you without having to cut it down. I suppose they might be a bit front heavy too, I'm sure someone knows
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Right now i cant find the 20” Hb in stainless.

This is to be a daily driver and where i hunt, its wet.
 
I’m literally going through the process of buying 6.5 Grendel myself and also torn between the two same choices. I had a Ruger American Gen 2 in 7.62x39 and it was ok but felt cheap, I’ve had two Howas, one in .450BM and one in .308. It was a much better functioning rifle in my opinion. I will probably be buying another Howa
 
colton12345 said:
I’m literally going through the process of buying 6.5 Grendel myself and also torn between the two same choices. I had a Ruger American Gen 2 in 7.62x39 and it was ok but felt cheap, I’ve had two Howas, one in .450BM and one in .308. It was a much better functioning rifle in my opinion. I will probably be buying another Howa
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Im also concerned that the week or two after I buy the Howa, they will release one almost the same but with a stainless 20" HB and a hinged floorplate. lol
 
slinkylegs said:
...maybe the 20" HB could work for you without having to cut it down. I suppose they might be a bit front heavy too, I'm sure someone knows
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Every time the 20" HB Mini comes up in a discussion, the most common comment seems to be how unpleasantly nose-heavy it is.
 
alpining said:
Every time the 20" HB Mini comes up in a discussion, the most common comment seems to be how unpleasantly nose-heavy it is.
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Interesting! I was talking to a guy about one yesterday, and without a scope or anything on the gun, he says his balances in his hand right in front of the magazine, which doesn't seem too out of place to me. I have actually thought about a 20" HB Howa, it would make for a good bush gun (if you had a hinge floorplate)
 
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