School me on Husqvarna Rifles

My Husqvarna FN 98 is factory drilled and tapped for scope mounts. It's a nice little gun, although while the stock is not broken nor cracked, the inletting - particularly around the recoil lug - is not very good. A little bedding work will fix it, though.

Consider the safety - mine is a traditional Mauser wing, so I'm keeping it open sights.
 
1bigrn said:
Has anyone seen a Husquvarna in .308. I believe it is a model made somewhere around the 1970's. I cant seem to find much info on it.
It has a tang safety, hooded front sight, nice checkered stock.
Any idea what the value of a good .308 Husquvarna rifle.
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If it has a slender forearm then it is a 4100, if it has a black forend tip then that is a Crown grade. Same receivers, but maybe different barrel length and different stocks.

Value...same as the others, conditon pending.
 
thepitchedlink said:
... really for the $ you can buy them for, it's the best built gun you can get. The workmanship really is very good compared to what you get today. ...
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This is a key factor imo. Some other options: FN Browning, JC Higgins M98, Brno or an older Sako. The Browning and the Sako will be a little more money.
 
As far as the Parker Hales go, if you find a model 81 Classic they are pretty nice and on par with the HVAs. If I hadn't built mine with such a heavy barrel I would have kept it longer. They have a nice large trigger guard for gloved fingers. Ruger has a very ting trigger guard opening.... if you are picky that way.
 
I just got my Husky yesterday. It's a lightweight 1640 action in 30-06. It stock has no cracks, only a few handling marks. IT is bedded at the front bedding screw, and a bit in front. The barrel channel looks like it has never been treated with varnish or oil or anything. Just virgin wood. So I'm in the middle of putting a few coats of varnish on it. The varnish won't match the oil treatment on the outside of the stock, but no one will be able to see that. The varnish will keep the wood from swelling when wet, or drying out and cracking in the arid alberta air. The Bore looks nice and shiney, but the outside of the barrel had a fair bit of rust spotting. I got some steel wool and got rid of all the rust, then this afternoon I spent several hours re-bluing it. The blueing is not quite as dark as the original, but it is more shiney, and the rust spots are gone, so it looks better overall. The trigger was long a creepy, so I tinkered with that. Now its a crisp 3.5 lbs with no creep. I haven't taken it to the range yet, so I don't know how it shoots.
I wanted a gun made of real wood and real steel. No aluminum, or polymers or alloys or anything like that. Just wood and steel. As far as I know you need to get an older gun to fit that bill. Huskys have a good reputation for reliability and even though the 1640 action is a small ring, the metalurgy is high quality, so the strength is still there. I like that the 1640 action rifles have a side safety, so are more compatible with a scope, and the lightweight is only 7 lbs without the scope. The rifle feels nimble and quick.
To the original poster: I don't know if the amount of work I've put into my husky is typical. IF it is then you'd be better off with a Rem 700 sps or something [I have one and like it]. If you don't have to do much tinkering or fixing, then you should be well served by getting one.
 
I have a FN Husky and a 1600 .Both were used as starting point for other calibers,338-06 and 6.5-06. Both required new triggers. The M-98 FN is much ,much,easier for parts. The 1600 is one sweet rifle. Mine is a export one with very good wood,in need of refinish and repointing. The FN mauser they used was the '51 model,a desirable(sp) for a custom rifle,but as is for a hunting rifle,the Remington imported Zastava(M-798) is better bet and at $550,a truly great buy.These rifles were also imported by Charles Daly and Interarms as the Model X. So they are also good bets used. The Model X Whitworth is prized.

A 1600 would need trigger work,they say Timmey might do a run, and glass bedding.But HVA (1600)and BSA actions make the sweetest mauser type hunting rifles.

A FN Husky would need hinging the floor plate which is gunsmith work, a trigger and likely a new stock.
 
The Parker-Hales have great made-in-England barrels,nobody has ever complained about accuracy,just boasted.But with the alloy trigger group and the Spanish made receivers ,gunsmiths have "noted".Parts can be a challenge.

As far as used,I like the post '72 M-70 push feed Winchester,they are certainly not a collector's prize,so their prices are less than the Remingtons,but they are accurate,a crap shoot with the tang safety Rugars,and reliable as the Remingtons.

I was working with my new SS Savage and my Husky 1600 6.5-06,there is a big difference.They say Timmey is going to do a run.

The Savage gets a vote as a new rifle,great trigger,good to great barrels,with reliable feeding.
 
Husqavarna made four basic models,640, commercial M-96 between the wars,940, a large ringed FN M-98 actioned after the war,1600,the HVA which we are talking about,and 1900,a push-feed ,often labelled Carl Gustav.That's a short and rough history.

HVA is very much improved small ring M-96. The improvements made it like a FN M-98.
 
I second what Downwindtracker2 said about the Winchesters. I grew up hunting with a mid-80's push feed Winchester. They are certainly decent guns. Mine was very accurate. And they won't be very expensive since they aren't the collector's PRE-64. If it were me I'd look for one in a featherweight version.
 
Personally, I think most Parker Hale rifles have fugly stocks. I don't like rollover cheek pieces, white line spacers, skip line checkering, angled forend tips, or sporter stocks with flat-bottomed forends.
 
1bigrn said:
Has anyone seen a Husquvarna in .308. I believe it is a model made somewhere around the 1970's. I cant seem to find much info on it.
It has a tang safety, hooded front sight, nice checkered stock.
Any idea what the value of a good .308 Husquvarna rifle.
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I happen to have a husky 11 13/16 between the screws in 308. I saved it from the scrap heap. It was butchered up pretty bad, the barrel had been hacked off, the sights were missing and there was a huge crack through the comb. Someone had taken the time to drill through the comb and glued in a few wooden pins but it still didn't help. The old girl was rust from butt to crown. It is currently in the gun smiths getting a new Montana barrel with a #3 contour, the black american walnut stock has been ordered from Richards Microfit gunstocks. I probably should have just bought a new piece but I hate to see a great action go to waste. I plan on posting a series of before and after pictures when it is done so stay tuned.
 
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