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January 26th, 2023

New Howa Hera H7 Chassis Rifles — Under $840 MSRP

howa h7 hera modular rifle hunting PRS NRL HACT trigger

At SHOT Show 2023, Legacy Sports Int’l introduced a new line of Howa rifles that should be popular with hunters as well as PRS/NRL Factory-Class competitors. The new Howa Hera H7 rifles features an internal aluminum V-block chassis with modern composite external stock body. The forearm (aka “forestock”) is aluminum with M-LOK slots. The rear half of this German-engineered stock is fiberglass-reinforced polymer. These rifles are VERY affordable, with an $839.00 base MSRP.

howa h7 hera modular rifle hunting PRS NRL HACT trigger

The stock features a removable cheekpiece plus adjustable length-of-pull with 3 LOP inserts. The butt panel itself can be removed, allowing a bit of internal storage. The rifle ships with two AICS-compatible 5-round magazines.

The Hera H7 is offered in three colors: Tan, Black, or OD Green. Notably there are THREE barrel options: 24″ Carbon-wrapped, 24″ Heavy Contour, and 22″ Light Contour. These all have “suppressor-ready” threaded muzzles. We expect hunters will chose the Carbon-wrapped barrel, while PRS/NRL shooters will choose the Heavy-barrel configuration.

howa h7 hera modular rifle hunting PRS NRL HACT trigger

All the Hera H7 models feature a smooth-running Howa action fitted with the excellent HACT 2-stage trigger (see below). We’ve used this adjustable 2-stage trigger and it is among the best factory triggers you’ll find. These rifles all come with a Sub-MOA guarantee and a Lifetime Warranty. Two chamberings are currently offered: 6.5 Creedmoor and .308 Winchester. We hope Howa eventually offers a 6mm chambering in the future — 6mm Creedmoor, 6XC, 6GT, or 6mmBR.

howa hera h7 stockWe like all the key features of the Howa Hera H7 rifle — the action, the barrel options, the excellent 2-stage trigger, and the very affordable price (MSRP starts at just $839.00). However, we question the design of the lower part of the rear stock section. This starts with a downward angle like a normal hunting stock, but then it angles upward to the butt-pad. That V-shaped design might not work so well with a conventional rear bag. We suspect some owners will add a straight piece of Delrin or aluminum to act as a bag-rider.

howa h7 hera modular rifle hunting PRS NRL HACT trigger
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Hera Arms H7 Chassis System
The Hera Arms H7 Chassis is a modern and easy-to-use stock system for the Howa (short action) system. Made of fiberglass-reinforced polymer, with aluminum V-block and aluminum forestock, this stock system comes with two spacers, a polymer cheekpiece and an AICS-compatible, 5-round magazine. The H7 stock system has M-Lok mount points for mounting various accessories. Shown above is the Tan version with carbon-wrapped 24″ barrel.

howa h7 hera modular rifle hunting PRS NRL HACT trigger

Howa 1600 HACT Two-Stage TriggerHowa 1500 HACT 2-Stage Trigger
Howa 1500s feature the very nice Howa HACT trigger. This is an adjustable, two-stage trigger, set for about 3 pounds (combined stages). Crisp and repeatable, this is an excellent trigger for a factory gun. There is no annoying Glock-style safety lever in the middle of the trigger blade. The 2-stage design and pull weight range works well for a hunting rifle or a rig for PRS competition. Rifleshooter.com says the Howa trigger is “one of the best factory triggers, along with Tikka. I’ve found the Howa trigger superior to a Remington 700 — the Howas doesn’t need to be replaced.”

Writing for the Western Outdoor News, WONews.com, Steve Comus has field-tested the HACT Trigger. Steve writes: “I always liked two-stage triggers, because of the way I could take-up the slack and then actually know when the rifle was going to go off. The take-up on the [HACT] trigger was fast and easy. The crisp, positive release when pressure was put on during the second stage [reminded me] of some of the target rifles I shot through the years.”

Permalink Gear Review, Hunting/Varminting, New Product No Comments »
April 12th, 2019

New Magazine for 6mmBR and 6 BR Improved Precision Rifles

PRS NRL magazine mag 6BR 6mmBr Norma 6 BRA Dasher BRX tactical short cartridge MDT

As the practical/tactical game has evolved, with low recoil and high accuracy becoming ever more important, many top competitors have moved to smaller cartridges such as the 6mm Dasher and its parent, the 6mmBR Norma. These cartridges deliver outstanding accuracy plus good barrel life. However, the “short, fat” 6BR/Dasher design doesn’t feed optimally in magazines designed for the .308 Win family of cases. Yes you can modify your own magazines (Mag Mod HERE), or buy a pricey conversion kit, but now there is a turn-key solution from MDT (Modular Driven Technologies).

MDT’s 6mm BR magazine fits the parent 6mmBR cartridge and all the popular varients including the 6 BRA, 6 Dasher, and 6 BRX. MDT says this new 12-round magazine is a “one-step solution [delivering] smooth, reliable feeding for the most popular rifle cartridges in precision rifle competitions.”

PRS NRL magazine mag 6BR 6mmBr Norma 6 BRA Dasher BRX tactical short cartridge MDT

MDT built this AICS-pattern mag for PRS/NRL competitors and anyone wanting to run 6mmBR-family cartridges in mag-fed actions: “The limiting factor for competitors running 6mm BR variants has been feeding. Until now, the only option has been to purchase an AICS-pattern magazine plus an additional kit to make the magazines work with the shorter cartridges. This solution costs upwards of $100 or more and can require additional tuning to work in most rifles.”

The MDT 6mm BR mag has a maximum internal length of 2.580″, which accommodates pretty much any 6mm bullet you’d want to use. These MDT magazines are crafted from quality steel, nitride-treated, then black Cerakote finished inside and out. To reduce friction between cartridge and magazine body, MDT added two internal ribs which provide a smooth transition from double stack to single-feed.

Magazine Conversion — Use .308 Win Mags with Modified Followers
A decade ago we showed our readers how to modify .308 Win magazines to feed the 6mmBR cartridge efficiently. This procedure, explained by Texas gunsmith, Mike Bryant, is easy to do with simple tools. You can modify most standard magazines, both internal-style and detachable style. CLICK HERE for full, step-by-step magazine conversion article.

The basic procedure involves trimming the rear of the magazine, and creating a rear stop with a block from a Remington .223 magazine. Next the .308 Win magazine follower is shortened and beveled. Some guys tweak the feed lips a bit, but this may not be needed. Many of our readers have performed this simple magazine modification and report their rifles feed quite reliably. One reader, who converted a 7mm-08 hunting rig into a 22 Dasher varmint rifle, tells us his modified mag feeds flawlessly.

PRS NRL magazine mag 6BR 6mmBr Norma 6 BRA Dasher BRX tactical short cartridge MDT

Permalink - Articles, Competition, New Product, Tactical 5 Comments »