here is my 2 cents FWIW....
the things that pop up after owning, handling and shooting both the Havak and x bolt for awhile now are bolt throw, case extraction, magazine feeding and trigger pull. I do not own the McMillan version of the xbolt, so no experience with direct comparison of the stocks.
the bolt throw on the browning is shorter and further away from the scope eyepiece, similar to weatherby mark v (which is one of my favorite actions). the final upward cocking movement on the browning can stick a little on a load that is seemingly lower pressure that where the havak bolt will start getting more difficult to move (this does not happen on the Havak action or wby mk v action); that final load just below or tipping into the over max load zone where you would back down to the safe zone during load development. havak extraction is really good all of the time. the havak cocks half way on the upward motion and 1/2 way on the downward motion, so downward requires a little more force vs the browning, where cocking is all on the upward motion. the bolt on a new havak is a little sticky or rough feeling (not sure how to describe it in words), it smooths out nicely after a few hundred cycles. the bolt handle on the havak is a little uncomfortable to me. it feels sharp in some way. I wear gloves when shooting. the browning bolt handles are more comfortable; better ergonomics would describe it. it looks like the bolt handle on the havak is a screw on so it may be changed. haven't explored this option yet......
when new, sometimes the factory supplied magpul magazine (compatible with any AICS mag) on the havak protrudes below the trigger guard and sometimes causes more friction when pushing the next round (usually the 2nd and 3rd round) into the chamber, making a clumsy next round insertion into the chamber. this seems to become less of a variable as the rifle wears in. i also sanded the feed lips on the mag a little and it seemed to help. if your havak comes with the seekins carbon fiber magazine, they work very well and protrude less than the magpul. the browning magazine works as designed and does not protrude from the bottom of the stock. for me a protruding magazine feels like it is in the way sometimes when balancing the rifle in one hand. I am not a fan of a DBM. I like a hinged floor plate with a spring follower.
the havak trigger is adjustable down to around 1.5 to 1.75 lbs and also has an overtravel adjustment. the x bolt can get down to around 2.5 lbs only with an mcarbo trigger spring replacement. brownings 3 lever system makes a clean break trigger with very little overtravel. the trigger blade on the havak is flat and wide, the browning is narrower and rounded.
havak has a 5r match grade ss barrel, browning is, I believe a six groove.
the scope mount system on the havak is superior, 5 oversized screws with a recoil lug and a 20moa seekins precision rail with a matching precision cut recoil lug groove.
add seekins rings and you have a 0 torque solid scope mount. remove the rail when new, clean up the screws and screw holes with a q tip and alcohol. add some blue locktite and torque the rail mount screws; then mount the seekins rings and scope. the browning will most likely need the rail to be bedded or with the talley 1 piece rings/bases (on my rifle), lapping is needed for a 0 torque scope tube mount.
the bedding on the havak is a tang and recoil lug (fore and aft on the lug) application. it is done very well and very tight, stocks have pillars. the recoil lug bedding on my browning is adequate but a little skimpy with the devcon. my brownings do not have pillars, not sure if the browning McMillan stock has pillars.
the havak recoil lug is machined into the receiver. browning uses the screw on lug of which is my least favorite design for an action (really a barrel lug) recoil lug.
the stocks fit everyone differently, a chance to handle each will help.
the x bolt HC LR duratouch stock on my rifle is inferior to the seekins gen 1 mcmiillan and gen 2 seekins built carbon fiber composite stocks. really like the flush cups on the seekins ph1. I would hazard a guess the browning McMillan is light years ahead of the duratouch and fairly equivalent to the seekins stocks.
for me, not one to use muzzle breaks; another little detail is that the thread protector is better on the seekins rifle. the end is the full diameter of the barrel threads. browning has a finished end with the bore diameter drilled into the end. carbon collects under it and on the crown of the barrel and needs constant cleaning (crappy design). I cant believe with all the engineering innovation in the x bolt that they missed this one.
at the end of the day, the havak is producing smaller groups on target for me.
the havak has a better warranty IMO. no receipt or proof of purchase reqd. something doesnt work right. they will fix it for the lifetime of the rifle; any owner. barrel changes are supposedly simple on the havak (never did one). the Havak PH1 is / has become my favorite go to rifle by a smidge.
well this got wordy, its all that i can think of right now..... hope it helps a little.
others may have different impressions of course.
