The H&R Handi-Rifle for this review was provided by The Kentucky Gun Company.
AAC’s 300 Blackout cartridge has been fairly inescapable in the last couple of years. As much as I try to avoid trends, this one caught up to me. Admittedly, the appeal of a rifle cartridge that’s capable of taking deer, hogs, and smaller game while also offering the option of quiet, subsonic loadings is hard to deny. Especially when the rounds fit in a standard AR-15 platform in the same magazines at the same capacity. Of course, chambering a single-shot H&R Handi-Rifle for this tacticool caliber is bucking the trend, at least a little . . .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkvboafBqvo
And handy (handi?) it is! While the barrel length does just barely exceed the NFA-mandated minimum of 16″, it sure doesn’t look it. This break-open, single shot rifle doesn’t have a lot going on behind the chamber — nothing reciprocating to get rid of empty shells (unlike a bolt action or semi-auto) and no room needed for recoil assemblies, bolt clearance, etc. The result is a barrel that starts right in front of the trigger instead of some 3-or-more inches forward, making the whole gun look extremely compact.
Also contributing to its abbreviated appearance is a youth-sized stock – length of pull is only 12″. For reference, an adjustable AR-15 stock will usually have you at just under 11″ when fully collapsed and reaching 14.5″ or a tad more for the trigger when fully extended. In a more powerful caliber I’d probably want to make some adjustments, but I found this perfectly comfortable for shooting the 300 BLK.
Tipping the scales at a hair under 5 lbs. and measuring only 30″ long, it’s easy to pack around. Front and rear sling studs are there to help. Basically, all of these things combine to make the “Handi” moniker much more than just marketing-speak.
Marketing may be partially responsible for a price tag that’s $75 higher than the rest of the Handi-Rifle line, though. I won’t whine too much, as this rifle has a threaded barrel with thread protector and a phosphate finish instead of H&R’s standard bluing, so you’re getting more for your money than just an AAC logo and a hip caliber.
Those threads are cut 5/8-24, which is more or less the standard for AR-10’s and other modern .308/7.62×51 rifles. They’re nice and clean and the shoulder is plenty sufficient to solidly mount your suppressor.
Side Note: In my case, that suppressor is my Liberty Mystic. It’s technically a 9mm pistol suppressor, but the sweet things about the Mystic are that it’s “overbuilt” and that there are lots of mount options for it. I run a booster for recoil-operated pistols, a fixed mount for 1/2-28 pistols with fixed barrels (e.g. most .22s), that same mount for ARs, the Tavor, and .22 rifles, and a 5/8-24 mount for this Handi-Rifle. Yes, “overbuilt” means that this pistol silencer can stand up to 5.56, 7.62×39, 300 BLK even on full auto, every pistol caliber 9mm or smaller in diameter, and a handful of other rifle calibers. The huge list on Liberty’s site isn’t even inclusive. It’s a little on the large side for a 9mm pistol can, but it’s one of the very quietest on the market, it’s easy to take apart and clean, and it’s also one of the quietest on the market for nearly every other caliber it handles.
AAC’s specs for a Handi-Rifle didn’t include iron sights. Instead, a nice picatinny rail resides on top of the receiver. It put a 4-12×50 scope in just the right place for proper eye relief, and a red dot worked perfectly as well. While the scope was good for accuracy testing, the rifle was an awful lot of fun with the red dot.
Pushing on the tab to the right of the hammer unlocks the action and allows the barrel to tip forward.
As the barrel tilts, an extractor extends out from the breech and pulls your brass about a centimeter away from the chamber. This makes grabbing the empty case easy, and all of the rounds I shot slid out nicely. When you insert a fresh round, the spring tension on that extractor pops it into the case rim and holds the round in place. Lift up on the forearm to close the action and it locks solidly by way of the large locking lug that you see under the extractor in the photo above.
Since the Handi-Rifle is a single action firearm, nothing happens unless you manually cock the hammer back first. Neither opening nor closing the action has any effect on the hammer — if it’s down it stays down, if it’s cocked it stays cocked. In addition to requiring manual input, the other primary safety on this firearm is a transfer bar. It must be up and between the hammer and the firing pin for the hammer to effectively reach the firing pin. As this only happens if the hammer is cocked and the trigger pulled, you can safely carry the rifle with a live round chambered and the hammer down. A blow to the back of the hammer can’t cause it to touch the firing pin. Should you then want to fire, it’s just a cock away.
A scope may very well impede your access to the hammer (see video above), much like it will on many lever action rifles. H&R does make a hammer spur, which extends off the hammer to one side or the other so you can more easily reach it. Another option is cocking the hammer before you close the action. This is great if you’re going to shoot right away, but wouldn’t be recommended otherwise as it leaves only a short trigger pull to a fired round.
In the black corner, weighing in at a hair under 4 lbs, nice and wide with smooth curves, is the Handi-Rifle trigger. I suppose engineering a really good trigger in a single shot, single action firearm is about as simple as it can get, and H&R didn’t drop the ball here. It’s dead solid with zero pretravel. Even more of nothing happens as you approach the break weight — it doesn’t creep at all. Then, a clean break.
For really precise shooting I’d like to lighten it up a bit, but fundamentally it’s awesome, especially considering the purchase price. I’ve been trying to include a slow, close-up trigger pull in my videos to give a better feel for these things, and you’ll find that in this one.
Armed with two supersonic and two subsonic 300 Blackout loads from Gorilla Ammo, plus a box of 147 grain Armscor, I settled down on a sandbag for accuracy testing at 36 yards. That’s right, 36 yards. I broke my dang foot a week before heading to the woods to film the video and do the accuracy groups, and that’s simply as far as I could hobble up into the trees.
With a 1:7 twist rate and 5R rifling, the Handi-Rifle stabilized bullets from 110 to 220 grains, from fast (~2,300 fps) to slow (~1,000 fps), and shot them all accurately. Five-shot group results were as follows:
- Gorilla 110 grn Hornady V-Max: 0.995″
- Gorilla 125 grn Nosler Ballistic Tip: 0.80″
- Armscor 147 grn FMJ: 1.175″
- Gorilla 208 grn Hornady A-Max: 0.91″
- Gorilla 220 grn Sierra MatchKing: 1.454″ (0.44″ w/out flyer)
I’m fairly certain that “flyer” with the MatchKing was my fault — I remember anticipating the trigger break on a shot and pushing the stock with my shoulder. A better shooter with a better rest and a better scope (it’s time I upgrade…this old, cheap one was harassing me with parallax at 36 yds) could almost certainly put some really impressive groups on paper with the Handi-Rifle. Again, especially considering the cost of entry.
The Armscor provided the most solid thump to the shoulder, but, generally speaking, supersonic 300 BLK is in the same power level as 5.56 and you get just a little more felt recoil out of it due to the extra bullet mass. This is still a very light recoiling rifle round and is great for youngsters, beginners, etc. Putting out about 500 ft-lbs of energy, the subsonic loads are pussycats. While the rubber recoil pad on the Handi-Rifle is cushy and nice, it doesn’t much matter in this caliber.
Though the box of Armscor was a good deal — that is, relatively speaking for 300 BLK prices — at $19.99 for 20, I should point out that one of the rounds refused to insert all the way. As far as I could tell, there was something wrong with the brass sizing that prevented it from fully chambering. Bullet depths varied, which was obvious from the amount of cannelure visible, but rounds with a longer overall length than the trouble one chambered just fine (they were all still under the SAAMI max OAL spec) so I think it had to do with the neck sizing.
Now that I’ve shot a bunch of it, I’m glad to see that the Gorilla Ammo appears to live up to its appearance. In response to this post, Gorilla offered TTAG readers 10% off until June 6th if you happen to be in the market. I did pick up some of their .223 and will be adding that to another ~dozen companies’ loads from 40 grain to 79 grain for a full-on Tavor accuracy test (at 100 yards, conducted by a local long-range shooting instructor, then moving out to maybe 400 yards with a couple of the best-performing loads) coming in the not-too-distant future.
Conclusions
Big thanks to Kentucky Gun Company for loaning TTAG the rifle, but big, sarcastic “thanks a lot” to them also since I’m now breaking out my wallet to buy it.
Single shot is actually pretty cool. It’s a lot of fun to shoot, it keeps you from meaninglessly burning through ammo, and it makes saving your brass really easy. The AAC H&R Handi-Rifle is compact, lightweight, and incredibly maneuverable. Well…fine, I’ll say it again: it’s handy.
I’m fairly certain it’s capable of better accuracy than I was on that day, but either way it’s more than accurate enough for hunting and for fun on the range. Great trigger.
Plinking with a red dot was a blast, made even better by the lack of blast. Any 9mm suppressor on the market will handle subsonic 300 Blackout, and it’s definitely a fun round to shoot. Sure, it makes about the same power level as a .45 ACP would out of a rifle like this, but it’s a much sleeker bullet that can stay accurate out to a few hundred yards. Plus, pop in a supersonic round and now you’re deer hunting and extending your accurate range way out there.
That said, I’m still not entirely on the 300 BLK train. Frankly, in a rifle like this (i.e., not a semi-automatic), I’d rather have it chambered in .308. Loading .308 to subsonic velocities would result in identical ballistics to 300 BLK (the same bullets at the same speed) and it wouldn’t change a thing as far as suppression goes. But obviously, the difference in the full-power loads is fairly substantial. Plus — at least as I write this today — .308 is actually less expensive than 300 BLK.
Especially if you already own an AR in 300 Blackout, I think you should give the Handi-Rifle a serious look. It would be a great addition. If you don’t own a suppressor, there really aren’t any reasons I’d suggest this caliber over basically any other one you might want. If you do own a suppressor, a versatile rifle cartridge with commercially-available subsonic ammo is pretty darn cool, which I guess explains why it’s so fashionable.
The H&R Handi-Rifle for this review was provided by The Kentucky Gun Company.
Specifications:
Caliber: 300 AAC Blackout
Capacity: 1 round
Action: Break action, hammer-fired
Build: Phosphate finished steel. Synthetic stock and forearm
Weight: 5 lbs
Length: 30″
Barrel: 16.1″ low profile. Threaded 5/8-24 with 1:7 twist, 5R rifling
MSRP: $359.95
Ratings (out of five stars):
Accuracy: * * * *
Due to the break-open action, there’s no way to free float the barrel. If you’re a better shooter than I, this will be a limiting factor and you’re likely to experience some vertical stringing if you shoot rapidly enough to heat the barrel up.
Ergonomics: * * * *
The length of pull is pretty short, but it works. You could very easily swap the recoil pad for something thicker if you want to. I found the comb perfect for a nice cheek weld without needing a riser on the red dot, and it worked great with the scope on normal rings as well.
Reliability: * * * * *
Single shot, hammer fired. Giant locking lug. Good machining. Yeah, it’s going to work.
Customize This: * * * *
Threaded muzzle and picatinny rail. Stocks can be changed for others from the Handi-Rifle line. H&R will fit a different barrel to your receiver, and there are lots of barrels to choose from — including shotgun barrels — priced from $60 to $145.
Style: * * * ?
Honestly, I have no dang idea how to rate the 300 BLK Handi-Rifle for style. The thing has a pretty cool SBR-like look to it — it really does. Nobody believes the barrel makes the legal minimum. It looks pretty sweet with a suppressor attached and some sort of tactical optic on top. It’s all black. But, on the flip side, it’s pretty pedestrian in many ways, too. A very normal plastic stock attached to a straight barrel. It’s all black. Not much of interest happening. Yes, this is all contradictory in my own head also. It looks both tacticool and boring to me at the exact same time.
On The Range: * * * * *
Much more fun than I would have expected. With 300 BLK prices what they are, it’s even more enjoyable to load each round one at a time. The extractor works great, it’s accurate, it has light enough recoil that anyone can enjoy it, it has a great trigger, and it’s mechanically very simple.
Overall: * * * * 1/2
You have to knock it down a star or two for being single shot, right? But it’s going to make that up by being lighter and shorter than anything with a moving action can be. Plus, that mechanical simplicity pays off in reliability and a low MSRP. I’m hitting it just a touch for the price being $75 higher than other Handi-Rifles, though. I also think it would be cool if it came with spacers for the recoil pad so you can adjust that short length of pull. Still, this thing is better in many ways than its ~$339 price would suggest, and it’s a very handy and versatile little rifle that will probably last generations.
Me likey! Twelve inches is my ideal length of pull, and single shot is one of my favourite actions. I wouls like some back-up irons on it though.
Just out of interest, is single-shot quieter than other actions because there are less moving parts?
Based on my limited experience, I don’t think there’s much difference shooting the usual ammo in the usual way (muzzle blast is probably +90% of the noise), but suppressed, yes: tons quieter because there are no moving parts and no gases escaping out the breech end as the action cycles.
I shot a friend’s suppressed single-shot Thompson/Center in .300 Whisper, and the shot itself wasn’t much louder than the sound of the bullet thumping into the berm. Though you should be able to get the same quietness with a bolt or lever-action; it’s only the semi-auto actions that make all the noise.
Any action that stays closed during firing will be quieter when suppressed (doesn’t much matter otherwise). Meaning break-open like this, bolt action, lever action, etc. Anything “manual.” Or, if you have a semi-auto with an adjustable gas block (e.g. my Adams Arms piston upper) that has an “off” setting, you can put it on that and the action stays locked when you fire. You then have to manually cycle the charging handle (or whatever) to chamber the next round. Getting all of the gasses to leave the muzzle and ensuring that none leak back out of the ‘breech’ is the key.
Thank you, that is a question that has been on my mind for a while now. It also makes me realise why the Welrod silent pistol was made bolt action, not semi.
Loved the review, excellent quality. Makes me want that gun real bad now!
Hey, remember the Nylon 66? The handle to cycle the bolt was a plastic piece that plugged into the bolt. OK, I suppose it was nylon! Here’s the thing; reading your post, I have to wonder if anyone has built an AR bolt carrier with a similar setup, a hole in the bolt carrier and a plug-in handle, so you could turn ofthe gas and use the handle to cycle the action. Face it, using the chaging handle is a pain if you have to do it every shot. What I’m envisioning is unplug the handle, turn the gas back on, and operation is normal.
There are quite a few ‘forward charging handle’ AR uppers out there. You wouldn’t really have to worry about removing the handle, as it isn’t likely to get in the way even if it reciprocates.
Hmm…
Not to plug a product in a review, but how would this compare to one of the Rossi Matched Pair (or 3-barrel matched set) rifles?
You get single shot, beak open action and a shotgun and a rifle barrel (assorted centerfires and a 22LR).
I got a matched pair (20g and .243Win) on a whim – because sticker price was under $200, new. The sights on the ,243 barrel are very nice. I slapped a clamp-on Hi-Viz type bead/tube front sight (about $10 shipped, eBay) on the 20ga and now I have something my middle child can shoot with greater confidence than any of my 12s or any of my .30 cal rifles.
No, that’s a great alternative for sure. I can’t recall checking out the trigger on one of those so I have no basis for comparison there. Pricing these days is right on par with the non-.300BLK Handi-Rifle line. Obviously if you really do want .300 specifically you don’t have that option in Rossi right now. It is cool how the Rossi can be found in stock with multiple barrels included. H&R sells multiple barrel sets also, but in a more limited caliber offering. I think just 44/12g and 357/20g. Or something like that. However, obviously you can get additional barrels for like $106 in any caliber they make (which is a heck of a lot).
I’ve been eyeing the Rossi offerings, and what I like there is that they do them in stainless, not just blued. Here in PNW, it sounds like a good idea for a gun that would be carried in the brush, and quite likely under heavy rain.
Only interesting if you own a 300 AAC AR. Otherwise I would rather have one in 7.62×39.
Yeah, at best it sounds like a coin toss, doesn’t it? At least until you buy some ammo! H&R offers that, don’t they?
Needs a magazine; internal box, detachable box, tube under the barrel or even a revolving cylinder. It needs more than one round…
Nah, then it would need an action, too. Suddenly you’re talking about a completely different gun.
I don’t know why I like single-shot rifles, it is illogical.
If i were to get/build one I would probably get it in 7.62×39, identical performance but much cheaper ammo. Sure, you need to handload subsonic loads but other than that it is much better.
300 BLK only makes sense in rechambered 5.56 firearms, that is semi-autos.
We are in agreement… I have always thought a utility rifle in 7.62×39 would sell like hotcakes, but I may be wrong.
I would shoot the hell out of my Savage 99 if it was chambered in 7.62×39 vs. .300 Savage. In fact, if I had a barrel blank, I might pay a gunsmith to contour the barrel and make it happen.
You could always buy or make a barrel blank. You only live a bunch of times (you technically live every day which is more than once). How is the Savage 99 to shoot? I always hear people say that bolt actions are superior to lever-action due to being easy to shoot from prone. I doubt this but I don’t have experience with lever-action.
I always tought a bolt action, 10-12 inch barrel, suppressed, that takes AK mags would be a good “utility” rifle as you called it (paint it black and call it the General Purpose Survivalists Tactical Marksman Sniper Rifle to sell it to the tacticool crowd). Not any bolt action, some slick and robust action. Something like the Lee Enfield action, or whatever action the Sauer 200/3000 uses. Don’t forget some good peep sights and a good sling.
A company named Australian Arms made exactly what you describe with a 16in barrel. They are a bit on the rare side and expensive though.
I know about, sorta expensive. So if you don’t live in a country with a high standard of living it kinda defeats the purpose of utility rifle. Though they are nice due to being new manufacture.
Problem with the Savage 10 and CZ 527 is the mags. Nothing over 10 rounds available for them. And the Savage has a fixed mag if I remember correctly.
actually I don’t really care for the ’99, but I know there are already bolt-action 7.62×39 rifles (but really, not enough of them), so I thought it would be a unique idea.
The 99 belonged to my uncle so even though I don’t really like it all that much, it will never be sold.
How about using a Mosin in 54R?
Cheap ammo, hard hitting, robust action, and there are magazine conversions out there.
Get one of those machine gun barrels that they convert to the Mosin and shorten it to your preferred length.
There is the CZ 527 in 7.26 x 39. I just picked one up this weekend. That was a fun and relatively inexpensive first range trip, at least in terms of ammo cost. Only wish the magazine on it was larger than 5 rounds.
I’ve been looking for that elusive beast (at a decent price) for the last few years. Every time I find one at a decent price (which might be twice a year) it vanishes before I can order it/get to the store.
Dook, me too. I eventually ordered one on back order from Impact Guns. It came about 6 weeks later. Impact Guns seems to get them more frequently than most. If the back order option is available, do it instead of waiting for an alert that a new shipment is in. That shipment will just go to the guys who back ordered it. Btw, you don’t get charged until the product is delivered.
“Sure, you need to handload subsonic loads but other than that it is much better.”
For the price-per-round difference between .300BLK and x39 ammo, you could buy all the reloading equipment to do that and still come out ahead after just a few hundred rounds…
It is odd that H&R and Rossi both did, but no longer do, make single-shot rifles in x39, though. Didn’t sell well, or were there other problems with that combination?
Nice review, sir. I wound up putting my first 300 BLK together as an AR – at triple the cost. The .308 is obviously a useful caliber, but would also recoil quite a bit more out of a light gun. A 300 BLK in an H&R makes a lot of sense.
My thought when I first saw they were making bolt action and single shot .300 BLK rifles was why? For everything that it does, a .308 can do the same, except with waaaaay more power downrange on supersonic loads. I’m almost convinced on .300 BLK in an AR-15, but it just doesn’t make sense to me in a non magazine-fed semi-auto.
Only thing that makes sense to me right now (ammo prices as they are) is a companion rifle to your .300 AR in the same caliber.
I cant lie, I would love to take a deer or pig with that thing, especially with the can on the front of it. I really do have a soft spot for single shot break open rifles and shotguns for some reason, mostly the nostalgia but this thing isnt made of wood so there goes that 🙂
I REALLY wish it came with some irons on it or some way to mount something like some onto the front end like a magpul BUIS or whatever, at least a little hole to screw in an AR style front post sight.
May have to pick up an 300AAC Handi Rifle, and see how it compares to my 700 AAC-SD in .308 with subs, and AAC Cyclone suppressor.
On the other hand, that may be a little too much AAC. LOL!
I have one and absolutely love it…fast, quick to operate, and accurate, it’s a nice little rifle and fun to shoot…
H&R might be the only part of TFG/Remington that Cerberus hasn’t FUBAR.
You can’t screw up a single-shot rifle. Seriously.
Additionally, fantastic review, you hit all the points…thumbs up…
The AAC handi-rifle is a great idea with poor execution. The fit and finish on mine is lacking. The action release is loose and has an annoying rattle to it, and the AAC logo engraving looks like it was done by hand and just feels unfinished. The matte phosphate finish is ok but certainly not high quality. The best features are the rail and the threaded barrel. Worth the extra premium? Probably not, but most people don’t get into .300 Blk to save money.
I thought fit and finish was fine for the price. In line with what I would expect. The AAC logo on mine is maybe a little shallow but it’s clean and precise and consistent — definitely doesn’t look like it was done by hand. A phosphate finish isn’t my favorite finish choice but it’s perfectly even and seems to have been done properly. The action release does wiggle but it doesn’t bother me at all; it works perfectly. I could see that being annoying to somebody else, though. Overall I think my OCD factor on a $339 rifle is fairly low. Especially one that’s intended for packing around and not receiving velvet glove treatment. …and yeah, .300BLK isn’t the budget operator’s choice…
The fit and finish on mine is great, if not just a tad on the tight side, but one has to wonder, if the quality and or fit and finish is as low as you claim, why did you accept it and take possession…??? Are in the habit of accepting sub-standard, or…??? In the end, I think the problem is not with the rifle itself, but your inability to say something is of unacceptable quality…you have nobody to blame but yourself…
Incidentally, 300 BLK is a loaders/reloaders dream cartridge, brass availability is unequaled, as well as the choice for projectiles, all the way from 110gr to 220 gr, and all components are mainstream from soup to nuts…300 BLK is very inexpensive to shoot, IF you’re doing it right…
On second thought, maybe “poor execution” was a bit heavy-handed, but for a fairy simple design, I do feel that it was deserving of a better finished product. As @jeremy noted, none of my gripes related to function, even the action release. Maybe mine was a bad apple with the logo work, but as a special order I didn’t think it was worth refusing the entire rifle. I added a Weaver micro red dot and a 51-tooth Blackout, and it is pretty cool even with my few misgivings.
FWIW – I believe that I would rather have one of these chambered in .357 (Magnum…possibly maximum if brass were still readily available)
Can go from mild to wild
Can get bullets that expand properly
Can use the same supressor as mentioned in the article.
Cheaper to shoot and much, much more versitile considering the ranges and loads and bullets.
If you’re going to shoot beyond 100yds, you’ve just wasted your $$$ buying it in a .357 Magnum…
Why do you say that?
I’ve shot my .357 Mag 6″ revolver at 250 yds repeatably. 😉
That’s at targets, though, so I would agree it totally depends on what you are shooting AT.
In my neck of the woods…anything over 100 yards would make you an unethical hunter simply because of all the hills and scrub.
Also…Hunters aren’t really known for being thrifty…not worrying about saving money with 10+ rifles in the safe, a $300 cooler, a $50,000 truck, a $500 hunting lodge, $5000 in gear.
Hunters use having a 357 and the need for a 100+ yard gun as an excuse to the wife to go out and buy another gun.
If I had a silencer for it (like many of the .45 ACP silencers available) I’d rather have .44 Mag over .357. Subsonic is a huge deal for me, as the difference in volume level between sub- and supersonic is massive. With the .44 Mag I could load 300 grain bullets at a bit over 1,000 FPS. A 158 grain .357 doing 1,000 FPS doesn’t have the same punch (nor does a 220 grain .300BLK, but again that’s a sleeker bullet so it’ll probably be accurate to a farther range). Then, if you’re willing to go supersonic, obviously full house .44 Mag loads are going to be capable of a lot more if we’re talking hunting and blowing up cinder blocks and stuff.
But again, .308 at subsonic velocities is identical to subsonic .300BLK and, when supersonic, can be accurate and deadly at long range sniper distances that I never shoot at, or can deer hunt to multiple hundreds of yards.
Anyway, this is one thing that makes the Handi-Rifle cool. LOTS of caliber options and you can get multiple barrels… you aren’t stuck with just a single caliber.
The barrel accessory program is no longer an option, so no, you can’t have spare barrels in different calibers.
Man, I really want one of these to pair up with the AAC MPW. I’ve heard some reports of vertical stringing, but not really seeing that from your groups. This is kind of a niche/fun gun – that you can also hunt with in PA. With the phosphate finish, threaded barrel and rail, it’s a pretty cool upgrade over your standard Handi rifle. Did you happen to have any issues with the rail coming loose (also a previous report on this rifle)?
Thanks for another great review.
I too read the reports of “vertical stringing” but have not experienced that issue, and after reading the reviews of others, the 1st thing I did was pull the rail off, clean it and it’s mounting surface up, and use Blue 242 Loctite, hundreds of rounds later, not a budge…
Good info. Thanks, WI Patriot
Nope, I didn’t touch anything — shot it as it came out of the box — and the rail is still solidly in place. It even got rained on a bit while I was shooting and the temp outside went from like 45 degrees to 70 degrees and sunny and back to cold during the range session. Lots of rounds downrange, multiple optics swaps, and the rail is still there. Now if I had purchased this rifle for myself rather than received it to review (and I always review exactly as it comes out of the box), I probably would have taken those bolts out and loktited just to be safe.
Least expensive way to start shooting 300 BLK. Also the cheapest way to shoot expensive subsonic ammo…one at a time lol. Very quiet with silencers since there’s no action noise or moving parts, much like a bolt action. Everyone thinks it’s an SBR at first glance 🙂
My only gripe with the Handi Rifle is the hammer height when decocked. Generally you’d want a scope mounted as low as possible to the barrel, but the hammer will limit those low options. Or you could move up the scope so the eyepiece sits forward of the hammer.
I too was concerned with scope height and the hammer, I used Nikon’s P Series scope mount, but what I found was that with the youth stock, you have to push the mount AND the scope as far forward to get the proper eye relief, granted, I’m using the Nikon P-300 2-7×32, so a different scope may have different eye relief, and as the author mentioned, I opted to put a hammer extension on, makes it much easier to draw the hammer back…
I’ve had a 300 blk Handi-Rifle for about 18 months. I use a Gemtech can and subsonic loads. I gotta tell ya guys if you’re bringing wives and children out to shoot, this is the way to go! Light, easy to handle, simple to operate and a delight to shoot. Everyone giggles after the first shot because it is so quiet. Then they laugh their faces off when they shoot an exploding target. Now that’s good, clean Murican fun!
I have a NEF .410 shotgun my grandpa gave me as a teenager for popping grouse during deer hunting season. It works great and still looks brand new. It’s the same design as the H&R and they just plain work. I’ve seen a few around town but they were in .223.
I have a NEF .410 that looks and operates exactly like this. I have to say, it is a fun gun to shoot! There’s something about that wood stock and the click of the single ejector that just makes me happy.
On the topic of one of these in .308, doesn’t empty case space lead to inconsistent pressures and velocities? I think that subsonic .300BLK could be more consistent than subsonic .308.
I own one and love it. With the AAC SDN-6 suppressor mounted and 220g subsonics, it’s as quiet as a squirrel fart.
Really cute rifle, if 300 was more available I would be tempted.
Hopefully they will make this rifle in 5.56 or 7.62×39, or even pistol calibers.
How about in 45ACP?
H&R makes standard Handi-Rifles in .357 and .44 magnum, but not in this AAC version with short, threaded barrels. I have a rimfire version of the H&R where I personally shortened the barrel to 16.5 inches. Perhaps you could get the regular 22″ model and shorten it, or maybe have a gunsmith shorten it and thread it for you. Of course, that would certainly up the price.
Yeah, browse their website. They make it in over a dozen rifle & pistol calibers plus a handful of shotgun calibers. Plus different configurations like thumbhole style stocks, wood stocks, stainless steel, etc. But like Michael said, I think this is the only one with a threaded barrel. You’d have to have a gunsmith with a good machine shop do it.
A 4-12X50 scope and yet no mention of the industrial strength fail when one pivots the action to the open position when loading/unloading the behemoth. A far far better iteration of this concept would be to use a falling, tilting or even a rolling block action in a common caliber, say 30-30 but then that would not sell marginal firearms or look tactical now would it?
I’m not sure what you’re saying. I found the scope perfectly pleasant on the rifle. The balance point and where the pivot is caused zero issues for opening and closing the action with the scope on. It was easy and worked perfectly. The only problem is that, just like on a lever action or other rifle that has an external hammer, the back of the scope can make it hard to reach the hammer. That’s why they make hammer studs. This was mentioned in the review.
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Did you have ay issues with the subsonic loadings making the “sonic crack”? I have heard a few complaints about the sub-sonic 300BLK in handi-rifles. The theiry is that manufacturers are making it for a semi-auto in mind, and the gs-port is letting off the little bit of pressure to keep it sub-sonic, if you take the gas-exhaust away, they aren’t sub-sonic anymore. just curious if you shared this experience. I know it’s a fine balance between keeping it sub-sonic in an AR platform, and getting the action to cycle fully.
I have a Handi Rifle purchased Nov. 2014, chambered in 7mm-08. It shoots 6 to 10 inch 3 shot groups at 100 yards, tested with Norma and Hornady factory ammo and my reloads. I sent it to Remington for repair, they diverted it to one of their contract repair shops in Paducah, KY. They fired 3 shots through it at 50 yards and sent it back saying it was fine. I took it back to the range Saturday and it shot 6 to 10 inch groups again. I used a known good Leupold 3-9 VX-2 on an Ironsighter base with Durasight rings. When I chamber factory ammo the bullets are engraved by the rifling. Not a SAAMI spec chamber.
It is going back to Remington. If they can’t get it to shoot 3″ groups at 100 yards, I want my money back.
BTW my trigger breaks cleanly at about 8 pounds.
For contrast I was testing loads for a Ruger #1 in 280 Rem (Yes I like 7mm). I had Winchester Supreme 140 gr factory ammo, and 4 new Hornady 154 gr SST handloads to try. All the handloads shot 5 shot groups into 2 inches, except the H4831 load which shot under 1 inch. The Winchester ammo shot 3 shots to 1 1/8 inch. I do know proper bench technique, breath control, trigger squeeze, and follow through.
Even with a variable scope mounted, when broken down it fits in my standard laptop backpack WITH THE LAPTOP!
I did pull the hammer and weld on an extension so it reaches past the scope.
Nice review. I just wanted to correct that the Liberty Mystic is NOT rated fro full auto 5.56. Per their product page:
“There has been a lot of interest in using this unit on 223 rifles as well as the intended caliber. It can be used on 223 under limited conditions. Low rates of fire with cooling periods and no mirage covers. The use of a mirage cover will hide the obvious indicator of the unit getting hot by producing mirage. This is a great indicator to let the shooter know that the can needs to cool off. Also, in 223 the barrel must be at least 16″ in length.”
Yes, you can download a .308 to these velocities, but you will probably give up a lot of accuracy in the process.
I have this gun and considering what I paid for it, I am very satisfied. There’s just something about a truly compact rifle that can take a deer if needed (i.e. not just a .22). I wonder about loading .312 lead bullets for bunnies?
Yeah, it is crazy small, toy like in size, but the AR-15 seems toy like to me as well.
The AR-308 I’m putting together seems more correct in size and feel.
I have so many rounds of 7.62X54R, I wish I could have an accessory barrel in that caliber, but even when the program was up and running, it was not available.
I’m making my own 24″ accessory barrel to fire my surplus 7.62X54R and I have everything to build it except the chamber reamer.
If you go to Manson Reamers and buy the chamber reamers, then get something like a GreenMountain barrel in .311, I’ll fit one for you when I fit mine, but you pay shipping for your parts and I keep the reamer when we are done.
I can be reached at xt2qdx at gmail dot com,
I only check that email once a week, though will give you my main one from there.
I’m in Illinois.
I have owned two of these HR 300 blackouts and both guns started misfiring. That’s exactly the reason they no longer make the HR 300 Blackout. HR has been bought out by Remington and they have already refunded my money from my first 300 Handi Rifle. I’m returning the second rifle ASAP. The company says they are refunding numerous customers their money back.
So, what was the reason for why it was misfiring?
There is not much that could cause a misfire other than the firing pin being a little too short or not striking hard enough.
There is a transfer bar for a safety so that could have something to do with it.
You speak as if it is a common issue and this is the first I have heard of it being mentioned.
None of my H&R guns has ever had an issue other than not being heavy enough for the recoil it produced.
The 300 AAC Blackout is powerful for such a small package.
I have one of these guns, it’s fun to play with. But for deer hunting, the same gun in .30-30 would make more sense. You could load spitzers and get a lot more range out of it than you can in a flat nosed bullet.
You all don’t see the bigger picture about this gun.
For about $100 you can buy and fit a generic barrel blank in any caliber you want, like 30-30, and my favorite that I have everything already purchased for except the chamber reamer, 7.62x54R, and with the thousands of rounds I have in that caliber for my PSL and my Mosin, I’ll not be running out of ammo any time soon.
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