Bbj270

the new weatherby's that are made in the USA are just as good as the old german WEATHERBY'S. the japan made ones are ok but is not as good as the USA or German made ones. my weatherby xxii made in itlay shoots good and looks good.

bigbulls

A vanguard is not a Weatherby. It is a Howa with minor cosmetic changes so as to not look exactly like a Howa, made in Japan, and they stamp the Weatherby name on the rifle for them.

IMHO the Howa/ vanguard is a better rifle than thereal Weatherby rifles of today.

Briman

I don't like the styling- they look fat and gaudy, I prefer something more trim and subtle like a Win Mod 70.
Price- Is way too high, unless you like the styling and speed.
Speed- The weatherby cartridge ballistics are itneresting, but not necessarily practical considering the cost.

I'd take a weatherby/Howa in 30-06 any day.

Briman

As for Weatherby shotguns (Athena and Orion), they are very nice shotguns for the price, but once again those are Japanese made by SKB.

DM

I'm going to comment on the Mark 5's, as i've owned a few of them over the years but no longer own one... I always thought of them as a dangerous game rifle, as that's what Roy said they were, and that's what i bought them for...

What i don't like about them is, the action is heavy... The stocks are gaudy and although the wood may look fancy, it's almost always a poor grade of wood. I'veseen several broken stocks because they are laid out all wrong in the first place. They aren't as accurate as they should be for what they cost, and you never see one win any match at a shoot. The multi locking lugs can freeze up when snow or small sticks gets into them AND, it's the only rifle i ever carried into the field that failed on me! And, it was because of poorly designed bolt stop. I know of a guy that lost his bolt on a hunt because his bolt stop on his rifle also failed...

NOW, other than that, i like them... ha ha ha

Now, if you like your's, that's just fine with me, as that's what makes the world go around...

DM

James B

I have also had a couple Mark V's. They were the most expensive rifles I ever owned and probably the two poorest overall performers that I ever had. The triggers were very poor and accuracy was nowhere near where it should have been. There is no way I would ever spend another dime on them.

DGH

In bolt action rifles, I own a Rugar M77, A Remington BDL, A Winchester Model 70 with the pre 64 Bolt, and three Weatherby Vangurards (one Standard, and one SMOA). All of the the rifles are in "standard calibers", and I love the Vanguards. In fact, they are the only rifles I shoot anymore.

I would not purchase a Weatherby Mark because you have do come chambered only in Weatherby chambered calibers;and they are expensive to shoot.

So, having said very little ina long winded sentence; I not only like my Vanguards; any and all rifles I buy going forward will be Vanguards. For the money, they are one of the best rifles made -Nice trigger, they have a natural rise to my shoulder, they come with all the whistles and bells, and they shoot great hunting groups.

Ruddyduck

As a former MKV owner I'd say the stock was a poor design because of the way the action/barrel married to the stock. Cracks would develope in the pistol grip. Both of my mine deloped this crack and personally seen others with cracks in the same place and spoke to a few others that had the same problem. This design flaw was finally corrected.
As far as accuracy all MK V's shot well. They didn't leave the factory without shooting under 1 1/2" groups and targets were provided with NIB purchase to show what the gun shot before shipping. Both of my300 mags gave 1" or better groups with Wby 180 noslers and 150 psp.All guns had good factory triggers comming in at 4 -4 1/2 lbs and broke crisp and clean. That was (Japan) guns made some 30+ years ago. Unless they changedsomething with MKV's over the years I can't see why the new ones don't perform as well as old one.
I agree with the "gaudy" finish but as far as function the design was good for managing recoil but I went to MacMillan stocks when they were first offered in the Mid 80's rather than replace the wood with wood. I also agree the ammo was pricey with nosler's running around $38 way back then. IMHO the other "drawbacks" posted are just so much B.S. and sour grapes.

Briman

LOL. I always thought the 1 1/2" 3 -shot guarantee was the gayest thing ever. It might have been impressive 40 years ago but today it would be like trying to sell a BMW by highlighting that is has an AM/FM radio. If I'm not mistaken, Tikka rifles which cost 1/2 as much or less guarantee 1" or less.

falcon

Never had anything specifically against Weatherbys except that they were somewhat heavy. Myleft hand Weatherby MK V was accurate. Traded it square up for the best rifle Weatherby ever sold: A left handMathieu. Weatherby soldthe Mathieubefore they developed the MK V gun. It has a 28 inch Buhmiller barrel thati hadset back and re-chambered in .300 Win Mag.