Nosler M48 Heritage rifle, any good?

[sestoppelman]

Looking for opinions on this rifle, a little pricey but attractive. Anyone here have personal experience with one?
TIA

 

[Mike Van Horn]

Are they any good? NO!!

 

[sestoppelman]

Are they any good? NO!!

Care to elaborate?

 

[bruce moulds]

are they any better than a howa?
bruce.

 

[Mike Van Horn]

Howa action is good
Howa action to Weatherby spec's for the Vanguard is good
Howa action built to Nosler spec's, not so good

 

[Von S.]

Hey mike

Please elaborate

 

[LivingTheDream]

I have 2 of the nosler M48s (not the heritage) and love them and doubt I will ever buy another rifle.

But for what it is worth they hate Barnes bullets.

 

[KEC]

I feel there is better choices in that price range. Fierce, Cooper and Christensen have built a solid reputation. I have sold several Fierce and Christensen rifles and each customer has been satisfied. My main rifle is a Cooper 52 .300 WM and it has been outstanding.

 

[dchamp]

I have a M48 in 7X57 and I love it. It has become one of my favorite rifles. It was a package deal with scope and mounts that I bought on sale. I find it very comfortable ergonomically and the action is butter smooth. It shoots Nosler factory ammo sub MOA. I have found it to be easy to develop hand-loads for, my current load using 165gn Sierra TGK.

 

[sestoppelman]

Howa action is good
Howa action to Weatherby spec's for the Vanguard is good
Howa action built to Nosler spec's, not so good

How about some reasons besides, not so good.

 

[Rick Cox]

I have a Nosler 48 in 35 Whelen. Mine has a synthetic stock. I had ordered the Heritage but thanks to a falling out between Nosler and Grouse River I ended up with the one I have. Long story...
At any rate I have mixed feelings about this gun.

The Bad:
- the safety is unsafe. Don't trust it. I tried twice to alert Nosler about this and was ignored both times. I emailed and phoned. The call was handed off to a tech who wasn't there, leave a message etc. No call back. Maybe it has been improved.
- Recently at the range, I had a case rupture resulting in a broken ejector rod. Nosler had it fixed on warranty but it is the only time anything like this ever happened to me. I had to mail the bolt across the country to a appointed service centre to get it fixed.

The Good:
- The gun is well balanced, and reasonably light.
- It is accurate. my gun shoots most bullets well, including Barnes. I took this rifle using Barnes bullets to Africa a few years ago and except for the safety everything worked well.
- The trigger is great. Crisp and fairly light.
- The action is slick and smooth, if more susceptible to dirt and oil than my '03 Springfield, CZ550, or Winchester M70's. Got to keep it clean but give it a drop of lube.
- It is very robust. I had a bad fall on a kopje in Namibia. Landed on top of the gun. The rifle, Leica scope, and Nightforce rings held up great. Although everything was scratched up, point of impact was dead on.
I have another 35 Whelen now, in a Model 70. Real pretty gun. I am going to use the Nosler for mountain hunts that may involve foul wheather.

 

[AES]

I have a Model 48 Long-Range Carbon in 300 WM. It's a great gun and I like the action. Only complaint is they are a shorter LOP. Shoots .5 MOA

 

[Goose Cracker]

I have 2 M48s, a Heritage in 7mm-08 and a Liberty in 35 Whelen. Both guns are accurate and appear to be well made. I love the triggers and the factory cerakote. My Heritage 7mm-08 has nice wood. My safeties both work fine. Not a single issue with either, and I've taken the 35 Whelen to Africa in the heat and Saskatchewan in the cold. I own rifles from Kimber, Christensen, Remmy, CZ, and several others.

I'd buy another M48 in a heartbeat. For $1600 for the Heritage and $1200 for the Liberty they are good value for money in my opinion. Not in the same price range as a Fierce or Cooper.

My Liberty:

Nosler M48 in 7mm-08

• Goose Cracker
• Jun 1, 2020

 

[sestoppelman]

Thanks for all the replies and as in many cases folks may have different opinions and experience with a product. Mike Van Horn did reach out to me in a PM with his thoughts, and its appreciated.

 

[sestoppelman]

I feel there is better choices in that price range. Fierce, Cooper and Christensen have built a solid reputation. I have sold several Fierce and Christensen rifles and each customer has been satisfied. My main rifle is a Cooper 52 .300 WM and it has been outstanding.

Not familiar with the Fierce, but both the Cooper and Christensens are about another grand over the Nosler I believe.

 

[CBH Australia]

So if they are made by Howa are the year a Howa 1500 action like the Weatherby S2? Smith and Wesson 1500 or Is action changed someway?

 

[CBH Australia]

Howa are cheap and reliable in Australia. There are aftermarket options to personalise them

 

[Rick Cox]

I have 2 M48s, a Heritage in 7mm-08 and a Liberty in 35 Whelen. Both guns are accurate and appear to be well made. I love the triggers and the factory cerakote. My Heritage 7mm-08 has nice wood. My safeties both work fine. Not a single issue with either, and I've taken the 35 Whelen to Africa in the heat and Saskatchewan in the cold. I own rifles from Kimber, Christensen, Remmy, CZ, and several others.

I'd buy another M48 in a heartbeat. For $1600 for the Heritage and $1200 for the Liberty they are good value for money in my opinion. Not in the same price range as a Fierce or Cooper.

My Liberty:

Nosler M48 in 7mm-08

• Goose Cracker
• Jun 1, 2020

Intersting that you are happy with your safeties. Mine will just slip off while carrying it. This was also observed by my PH who borrowed it as 'insurance" to take some pictures of elephants. I guess they have corrected the issue, or maybe it is just my gun.

 

[Rick Cox]

I have 2 M48s, a Heritage in 7mm-08 and a Liberty in 35 Whelen. Both guns are accurate and appear to be well made. I love the triggers and the factory cerakote. My Heritage 7mm-08 has nice wood. My safeties both work fine. Not a single issue with either, and I've taken the 35 Whelen to Africa in the heat and Saskatchewan in the cold. I own rifles from Kimber, Christensen, Remmy, CZ, and several others.

I'd buy another M48 in a heartbeat. For $1600 for the Heritage and $1200 for the Liberty they are good value for money in my opinion. Not in the same price range as a Fierce or Cooper.

My Liberty:

Nosler M48 in 7mm-08

• Goose Cracker
• Jun 1, 2020

Nice wood on that rifle.

 

[Goose Cracker]

Intersting that you are happy with your safeties. Mine will just slip off while carrying it. This was also observed by my PH who borrowed it as 'insurance" to take some pictures of elephants. I guess they have corrected the issue, or maybe it is just my gun.

I haven't experienced that with either of mine and have toted my 35 Whelen all over the place. My 7mm-08 hasn't left GA yet, but I'm sure she will at some point.

But if either of mine did have that problem I'd be wary of her also!