Kinda - Sorta true. The surrender treaty set limits on the military, to the best of my knowledge it never addressed individual firearm ownership. But before we get into a mulit-page spitting contest on this and hi-jack the thread let me retract my original statement and rephrase it.
I don't like Howa rifles because the action is heavy, the bolt handle is ugly IMO, there is a definite lack of aftermarket accessories, and some smiths will not work on them because of the metric threads. There how is that - it should either settle any controversy or start one.
drover
Not looking for a spitting contest brother, just saying
I like Howas, basically an improved Remmy to my thinking and lower price.
Has a real recoil lug, instead of a seperate piece between action and barrel, like an afterthought.
Has a better extractor, something people pay extra to have custom installed on Remmys.
Dont know what the weight difference is, but it cant be much, IIRC their the same diameter and take the same bases as 700's.
Triggers were lacking, but their supost to have a new adjustable one, which I'll reserve comment on untill I aquire one.
Barrels are excellent and just as good as any production Remmy I've had.
They are metric threaded, which gives some people fits when it comes to rebarreling, but isent as issue for me, just takes a few seconds longer.
I actually like the bolt handle and find it easier to use in prone and on the bench than the stock 700.
Different strokes for different folks
Cheers, YV