I think I may have fallen in love, (.308 H&R Handi Rifle)

[kd7nqb]

Today I went to the local sporting goods store and well I may have fallen in love. Luckily it was the kind of love that only gets me in a little trouble with the lady in my life. But my hunting buddy who was with me thinks I am nuts so now I turn to THR for some help.

The sporting goods store has an H&R Handi Rifle for $299 it has the synthetic stock in a camo finish and a scope included in price. Chambered in .308 its also available in .223 for the same price.

Right now the only centerfire rifle I own is is a Mosin M44 and frankly its not serving my needs as a deer rifle (not that it doesn't have the knock down power). Also right now the only big game I hunt is deer but can see myself eventually trying out elk and even bear hunting.

This gun seems to serve all my needs and gives me room to grow in my hunting future.

So what is the downside to the handi-rifle? I really dont mind the break action and I do like that it comes with the scope and its all "field ready"

 

[R.W.Dale]

So what is the downside to the handi-rifle? I really dont mind the break action and I do like that it comes with the scope and its all "field ready"
__________________

the fact that you can buy a Stevens 200 or Marlin xs7 bolt action repeater for less $$$ if you shop around. That quite frankly 9 times in 10 will shoot circles around the handi.

I bought my last stevens 200 at academy for $239 clams! Now this is sans optic, but you gotta remember package guns typically come with the absolute cheapest optics and mounts mankind has yet to devise. You really aren't gaining much by buying such a firearm.

 

[Fremmer]

Interesting gun to fall in love with.

 

[chains1240]

I am not as experienced as most of the people on this board so maybe I am wrong in thinking this way. If you LOVE the rifle there is no downside. Even in love there are compromises, but YOU are the one in love with the rifle. I happen to really like the handi-rifles. But I like the ones wearing wood. Good luck with the rifle.

 

[thunder173]

The H&R Handi -Rifle is a very good gun. Don't let anybody tell you otherwsie. They are bulit like tanks,...and are an excellent rifle for youth and new starter folks. There's a whole camp of us out here that just simply "like" a single shot. Add the fact that with the rifle receiver,..you can get interchangeable barrels.

Be aware however,...these little numbers CAN be addictive

 

[Birddog1911]

The handi rifle isn't a bad rifle. I myself do still appreciate a single shot. My flavors are the Ruger #1, however. If you look hard you might find one for just a little more than the H&R.

 

[Al Thompson]

Only down side (other than that price seems high) is the trigger. Generally speaking, what you get on a H/R is what you get. They are not easy to adjust.

 

[Abel]

I'd say that you should go for it. You can always upgrade later. The H&R Handi-Rifle will suit your needs better than a Mosin, that's for sure. I'm not a fan of field-ready package deals because of the scopes that come on them. I'd switch the scope out or find one without a scope and add the mounts & scope yourself.

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

Downsides:

1. May or may not be very accurate - probably will be capable, but never know. Like all break actions, it is subject to potential vertical stringing if the lockup is not tight, and/or if you reload cases that stretch during firing without properly resizing them to get headspace back to 'just right'. Most people get quite good accuracy from these when they try to - put a little effort into it. May or may not also have forearm pressure / bedding issue here.

2. Cases sometimes can stick in chamber with hot loads, or even normal loads if the chamber is rough - this can be remedied by polishing it up. The issue is caused by lack of forceful extraction.

3. Not as user-friendly to shoot from a bench as a bolt-action, due to having to pick it up, and manhandle it / break it open between each shot.

4. Life is too short to shoot ugly guns, and synthetic stocks are ugly! (But I'm a hypocrite on this - I have a few plastic-stocked guns - it's just that I don't prefer them)

5. To whatever extent the price has been jacked up to include the scope, you are paying too much, because the very first thing you will want to do is pull that one off, and put on a better one, in good rings, IMO.

Other than that, no - I say go for it. It'll do the job, but as I say, I'd definitely want better optics & rings than the stuff that usually comes on the package deal.

On trigger, yes and no.... I've had a couple of Handis that actually had quite nice/decent triggers - not fantastic of course, but nicer than say, a Ruger.

 

[kd7nqb]

3. Not as user-friendly to shoot from a bench as a bolt-action, due to having to pick it up, and manhandle it / break it open between each shot.

I did think about this and it was a consideration but I think I am ok with it.

4. Life is too short to shoot ugly guns, and synthetic stocks are ugly! (But I'm a hypocrite on this - I have a few plastic-stocked guns - it's just that I don't prefer them)

Funny thing about that, I cant stand wood guns, recently got a great deal on an 870 with wood furniture and replacement stock kit was included in the price as far as I was concerned.

As for the scope thing, I will have to go back and see what scopes these come with chances are they do come with some pretty cheap stuff and that wouldn't surprise me at all.

 

[Al Thompson]

I've had a couple of Handis that actually had quite nice/decent triggers

Same here - but my point is that the trigger is not readily adjustable, so you get what you get. Try the trigger before you buy it.

May or may not be very accurate

I've only shot or seen shot about six, but all shot well. The H/R seems to have a very good barrel, so even if it's not a tack driver a bit of tweaking should fix it up.

The other great thing is that spare barrels in different calibers are inexpensive.

 

[CoRoMo]

I think I can relate. I hunt deer, elk, moose, pronghorn, etc. with my .270s and I added a Handi Rifle to the group a year or two ago. I killed an elk with it last October, and I think I'll take it back out again this year instead of the other rifles of mine that cost several times what this little thing cost. It's so light and tight; it makes the mountain trekking a breeze. I'd probably have to develop a specific handload to get better accuracy out of it, but it shoots my pet load under 1.5" and I'm happy with that for the use it will get. Plus, if one of my .270s were to get destroyed on an elk hunt, I'd want it to be this, inexpensively replaced one.

 

[SqueegeeBob]

If you haven't yet, be sure to check out the H&R Forum over at Greybeard's site. These guys used to hang out at the official forum before Marlin decided to kill it. They know more about these guns than anybody else on the planet!

http://www.go2gbo.com/forums/index.php?board=126.0

 

[jmortimer]

I am a big fan of the Handi Rifles. Sure you probably won't shoot sub-MOA groups but it is still beautiful in my eyes.

 

[Kentucky_Rifleman]

I've owned 3 handi-rifles, and liked them all, but traded out of them into things I liked better All were accurate, and two of them had good triggers, clean breaking at 4 pounds +/- which is fine for a hunting rifle. The third trigger, the one on the 45-70 broke very cleanly, but was stiff at 6.5 pounds on a pull scale. Also, the 45-70 in the short-barreled HR kicked like a mule, but I expected no less

The only downside was that the .223 I owned didn't like to extract surplus ammo. I was shooting brass-cased, boxer-primed stuff, and the little HR just refused to extract every 3rd or 4th case. It did just fine with premium ammo though. The .308 might have the same issue.

The 45-70 and .30-30 both extracted flawlessly, but I think the rimmed brass made a big difference.

I'd buy another one if the price was right, and it was in a caliber I wanted, but I'd definitely try the trigger first, and I'd try to stick to rimmed calibers.

KR

 

[SqueegeeBob]

I've owned 3 handi-rifles, and liked them all, but traded out of them into things I liked better All were accurate, and two of them had good triggers, clean breaking at 4 pounds +/- which is fine for a hunting rifle. The third trigger, the one on the 45-70 broke very cleanly, but was stiff at 6.5 pounds on a pull scale. Also, the 45-70 in the short-barreled HR kicked like a mule, but I expected no less

The only downside was that the .223 I owned didn't like to extract surplus ammo. I was shooting brass-cased, boxer-primed stuff, and the little HR just refused to extract every 3rd or 4th case. It did just fine with premium ammo though. The .308 might have the same issue.

The 45-70 and .30-30 both extracted flawlessly, but I think the rimmed brass made a big difference.

I'd buy another one if the price was right, and it was in a caliber I wanted, but I'd definitely try the trigger first, and I'd try to stick to rimmed calibers.

KR

Stuck cases used to be a pretty big problem with them back when they had spring ejectors, but I'm pretty sure they've swapped to using a positive extractor now, so it shouldn't be an issue.

I've owned two, a .223 and a .243.

The .223 was the first rifle I ever bought, and it shot dime sized groups at 100 yards right from the word go. The .243 was nothing but trouble from the day I bought it till the day I sold it.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

If you LOVE the rifle there is no downside.

I agree.
I have a Handi Rifle in .280, black synthetic and like it a lot. It does have a couple of things I don't love, but I'm happy with it.
The trigger isn't great.
It's picky about ammo. I handload now though, so I'll be able to work something up.

All in all, it's a good little rifle. If you love it, go for it.