We have a new contender for the crown this week from Seekins Precision, an absolute stunner in the bolt action category. Seekins has already impressed us with the Havak series, but the new HIT model is something else completely. Hold onto your hats, this one is going to create some waves.
The HIT looks like a chassis-style bolt action, albeit a very good one. And while we are going to talk about that, it isn’t the magic. The magic is the fact that the HIT is a switch barrel rifle, using a singular tool. At a base price of $2100. Yes, American dollars. Both of which are amazing developments.
Switch barrel tech has been the holy grail of military bolt actions for a very long time. The GWOT showed a need for configurable sniper rifles for multi-mission roles that was unprecedented in our history. Why? First was ease of logistics. A rifle requires many add ons, such as scopes, bipods, lasers- all of which add up in cost. The bigger problem is limited aircraft lift capacity. The United States is the King of the airlift, but we still have limits. A 3-pound barrel that is swappable takes up a lot less space than 4-5 rifles when we are talking about pre-staging on the far side of the planet. That is not a small deal.
So the defense sector attempted to give us solutions. Most notably the MSR and PSR from Remington Defense, and the AICX from Accuracy International. And while they were okay and fielded in small numbers, they were not an ideal solution. Barrel swaps were still not all that easy, and the price tag was outrageous. A base rifle from AI can still be had starting at $8,000, with not cheap proprietary barrels. The Remington Defense kits were around $14,000 last time I looked at them, and good luck finding one today.
A simple barrel swap rifle at $2100 is unheard of. Much less one that works well. And then we really get into the special sauce that Seekins has put into the HIT. First of all, the simplicity of changing a barrel. The barrel is retained by a single cam lock, held in place by a T-15 screw. There is no requirement of torque, a simple screwdriver does the job. Loosen a single screw and the barrel threads on or off by hand. Which is so insane to contemplate from a world of previous rifles it’s hard to fathom.
The bolt obviously requires a head swap to go between calibers. 308 has different case head dimensions than say, 6.5 PRC. Is this where they get you? No. Somehow, Seekins has also created a bolt that lets you swap bolt heads COMPLETELY TOOLLESS. If you have ever taken apart a Remington 700 bolt, you know how preposterous that sounds. But they did, and it works. After you do it once or twice, the Seekins bolt head change takes about 30 seconds with just your hands. Insanity.
The best part? Seekins has made the barrels open source. You are in no way limited to the barrel offerings of just Seekins, they will send the prints to anyone you like. Which for me is absolutely massive. I have particular tastes in bolt actions, which often means I am stuck at the custom shop. In my usual environment, I prefer a barrel length that is very short compared to factory offerings. I actually like 6.5 Creedmoor out of 16 or 18-inch barrels, which no one has on the shelf. With my new HIT, I can reach right out to my barrel master at Craddock Precision and have one made. Seekins guarantees the barrels to headspace by just screwing them on as long as your barrel maker can follow the specs and hold the tolerances.
Which opens up incredible frontiers with possibility. I can have a short 6.5 CM for training here, and a full 22-inch barrel for times I need to maximize velocity. I can have a heavy barrel for longer range days and a light one for hunting the mountains. Any of which I can swap in about 2 minutes.
What else is in the package? Arguably the best chassis system I have seen to date. Seekins has some straight hitters on the payroll with both PRS and military experience. Which is deeply reflected in the chassis of the HIT rifle. The stock is a folder and locks up like a bank vault. It also wraps around the bolt, preventing it from moving. Not a small detail. The stock features tool-less adjustments for both length of pull and cheekpiece. No more spacers you put in with screws, another huge bonus. The bottom is flat for barricade shooting, and the grip is AR compatible.
Out of the box, the HIT wears a Timney trigger set to 2.5 pounds. Fully adjustable, this is a fantastic trigger. But it is also Rem 700 compatible, which means aftermarket options galore. Such as channel favorite Trigger Tech, the leader in PRS.
How well does this rifle shoot? Amazingly. The test targets included in our box showed a group of .37 for 6.5 Creedmoor. Now we didn’t have any true match ammo on hand, only Hornady American Gunner. I was, to be honest, a little concerned about our accuracy test. Hornady AG is fantastic ammo and has given us some incredible groups over the years. But it isn’t Hornady Match, and it’s a bit unfair to pretend it is. Still, our HIT gave us a .51 group with ease, which makes the Seekins .37 factory seem very, very likely.
The amazing part for me, however, wasn’t the raw accuracy. It was how easy that was to get. Many times, with a test rifle, I will shoot it a lot just as an adjustment to the gun before we group it. Get a feel for this particular gun and its quirks. I needed none of that with the HIT. With just a few stock adjustments, on the range, the HIT felt like it was custom built for me. Our .51? That was the second 5 rounds I ever shot with it, after taking 5 to adjust the scope. Having done a lot of this over the years, that alone is near unbelievable. I am blown away by what the HIT offers for $2100. This one is near impossible to beat where value is concerned.
Click HERE to see more pictures of the Seekins Havak HIT
Seekins is shipping Havak HIT’s now. Learn more by visiting Seekins Precision.
MSRP $2100
Our GA Editor doing a barrel and bolt swap on Seekins Havak HIT.
Enough of the stylized, skelontized, minimized prc rifles And stocks with tacticool handguards at redonkulous prices. BTW, they be spelling havoc wrong, but i guess when its already been used in firearm parts related patents and you want to sound cool you take poetic license, unlike a few i know that havoc was their actual call sign and dropped bombs using it. #tacticool_life
Do you have the weight of the action and chassis without the barrel installed? At 11.5 pounds total, I think this rifle could *maybe* pull double duty as a hunting gun if one threw a lightweight barrel on it. That really has me looking hard at it, especially if I could get a 7mm SAUM barrel or .300 WSM barrel made up for it. Or .338 Federal? .375 Raptor??? The possibilities could be endless.
I would love to know that as well.
Where are Caliber conversions Listed, Like 204 ruger to 6MM BRA ??
You said .51 groupings at how many yards? I was getting about a .25 at 50 yards, which is the same ballistics at 150 yards on my Savage 111 bolt in 7mm Remington Mag. But I must disclose… I hand reload using Hornaday 150 grain red ballistic tips and a floated barrel. And did pretty much the same with my Remington 770 off the shelf 7mm Rem Mag using 139 gr soft tip boat tail hand loaded ammo and the stock scope. I just don’t have 150 yards in my yard to do sighting in there. But they are deer guns. Great informative articles. Thank you!
Isn’t this similar to Desert Tech HTI multi-caliber platform? I’ve got the HTI 50bmg and 375cheytac and can switch btwn calibers in seconds.
Do they forsee making a left handed version of the hit rifle?