Springfield Armory M1A rifle 308 Winchester

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Reloadron said:
Here is what I believe you will discover. Rifles like the M1A or even the M1 Garand are rifles that share a love / hate relationship with most shooters. There are shooters who love the rifles and those who buy one and within a year sell the rifle for numerous reasons. mljdeckard in post #46 is a good example. While he doesn't hate the rifle but saw it as not what he really wanted. There are others who buy these rifles with a specific purpose in mind, they may be members of a club that host and participates in NRA rifle matches. Different matches require different equipment under different rules. So if I want to shoot NRA Service Rifle I won't be doing with Tika T3 for example.

So what it really comes down to is a shooter buying a rifle for their intended application and use combined with their individual taste.

Ron
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Basically with me my purpose is I love the lines of the rifle and it's like buying a piece of history but in brand new condition. i.e. I love the 1911 despite its an old design and can be very finicky with type of ammo it prefers such as hollow points or FMJ bullets. It doesn't give me alot of problems or is high maintenance and I am not afraid to shoot it on the range unlike a trophy gun. For all intensive purposes the one I have is reliable and accurate. It isn't a Kimber or one of those high priced 1911's but a Armscor RIA 1911 which is very affordable. If it gets scratched I am not going to have an anxiety attack like I would with a Sig Sauer P-220 Equinox model. Another plus with this RIA is that its accurate right out of the box. I enjoy shooting it and it feels so good in my hands.
Now perhaps it the M1A is not comparable with a Mini-14 as these are two different kinds of rifles (Mini is a carbine) but if it shoots as sloppy and erratic as my Mini-14 Ranch with scope then I probably won't want it especially since it is a higher cost rifle. If I can hit targets at 100 yards and beyond on paper or bullseye then I want one of these reliable accurate rifles that has history behind it and can be used today for anything from personal protection to target shooting on the range just like a 1911.
 
highpower said:
The sights on a M14/M1A are exactly the same as the sights on a Garand.



Trying to compare a Mini 14 to a M1A is like comparing a cheap car to a luxury sedan. Their is no comparison except that they both shoot bullets. You get a little closer if you compare the M14/M1A to other 7.62X51 battle rifles of the era, like the G3 and FAL. I have owned all of them and hands down, the sights on a M1A are better than the others. Maybe because of that, I find that the M1A is easier to shoot accurately at longer distances using the issued sights.



The M14 was never designed to be a long range precision rifle. Their intended purpose was the same as the rifle they replaced (M1 Garand) to be a battle rifle pure and simple. The fact that with some tweaking they can be made to shoot well at longer ranges is a tribute to the way they were designed and manufactured. Long after they were pronounced dead as a service rifle, they keep being dusted off and are brought back to life as a specialty weapon.

I have a early one that is truly one of my grail guns that I will never sell.

View attachment 710914
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These rifles you have are beautiful and in great condition. "Battlefield" rifle that's the term I was looking for. I don't think a M-16 or AK-47 are considered battlefield rifles in the same terms or in the same class as this MIA rifle.
 
Why did the military stop using these M-14rifles? Was the M-16 the replacement?
 
The army realized that most of the range and power from a battle rifle was wasted on most of the men who carried it. The rifle can shoot eight hundred yards, but most marksmen couldn't, and most engagements with rifles were at shorter range. It made more sense to issue a lighter rifle with lighter ammunition. They also adapted to the German squad model, of having riflemen support the crew-served weapon in an infantry squad. The M-14 was only issued for a few years, the M-16/M-4 has been our issued rifle longer than any other in the history of the army. It is just more adaptable to more soldiers in more situations.
 
mljdeckard said:
The army realized that most of the range and power from a battle rifle was wasted on most of the men who carried it. The rifle can shoot eight hundred yards, but most marksmen couldn't, and most engagements with rifles were at shorter range. It made more sense to issue a lighter rifle with lighter ammunition. They also adapted to the German squad model, of having riflemen support the crew-served weapon in an infantry squad. The M-14 was only issued for a few years, the M-16/M-4 has been our issued rifle longer than any other in the history of the army. It is just more adaptable to more soldiers in more situations.
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So it was not a negative reason on the discontinuation of the M-14 use in the military.
More for using the right tool for the right job?
 
The expression is- "For All Intents and Purposes"

I have various battlerifles that I really like, but it's the Garand and the M14 that really tug at my heart strings
 
stinger 327 said:
For all intensive purposes the one I have is reliable and accurate...If I can hit targets at 100 yards and beyond on paper or bullseye then I want one of these reliable accurate rifles that has history behind it and can be used today for anything from personal protection to target shooting on the range just like a 1911.
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I didn't see this asked, so just how much accuracy are you wanting and expecting? "Just hitting targets" at 100+ yards is pretty vague.

And what type of target shooting? Informal and on your own? Official High Power rifle matches?
 
MrBorland said:
I didn't see this asked, so just how much accuracy are you wanting and expecting? "Just hitting targets" at 100+ yards is pretty vague.

And what type of target shooting? Informal and on your own? Official High Power rifle matches?
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Target on paper (bullseye) shooting. Not into the Match competition shooting especially at the prices of those rifles.
 
A standard rifle shot with factory ammo or better yet handloads can compete very well in many local High Power events. Once guys get off a bench or bipod or supporting rest, mechanical advantages diminish substantially in importance as compared to skill.
 
Gee....Iwonder why troops in Afghanistan and Iraq asked for this weapon again....the puny .223 didn't work against these enemy at that range wearing so manylayers of clothes.....the M16 was a failure in Viet Nam, the m4 failed in Afghanistan....the M14 stands alone
 
I have put a few 308 battle rifles through their paces. The m1a rifle stacks up well against any I have shot but a caveat is that I have not shot a FAL.
 
Count me as another big fan of the M14 platform, as well as Project Appleseed. It's a great experience and really good instruction on rifle shooting.

I really, really need to find a long-distance range to take my M1A out to play on. I chose the "Scout Squad" model, which just has a little shorter barrel. No optics for me, in fact I removed the rail and put a standard handguard on there.

I'm glad I bought my M1A before I found a certain board dedicated to the M14 platform, I'd have been scared to settle for a Springfield gun after reading on there...though I do see an increased number of posters sharing in my experience, that the Springfields are fine guns for the $$$.
 
TexasPatriot.308 said:
Gee....Iwonder why troops in Afghanistan and Iraq asked for this weapon again....the puny .223 didn't work against these enemy at that range wearing so manylayers of clothes.....the M16 was a failure in Viet Nam, the m4 failed in Afghanistan....the M14 stands alone
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M1A, M-14, .308
M-16, AR-15 .223, 5.56mm
But
What is a M4?
 
Wow, that's a lot of answered questions in three short pages. I'm surprised it didn't come up... what about ammo?

I don't own an M1A, but I've always heard people saying something about only using certain ammo in it. Never was sure what that was all about.
 
Gee....Iwonder why troops in Afghanistan and Iraq asked for this weapon again....the puny .223 didn't work against these enemy at that range wearing so manylayers of clothes.....the M16 was a failure in Viet Nam, the m4 failed in Afghanistan....the M14 stands alone
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I don't think the troops asking for something has anything to do with what they get, rather, there was a recognized need for something with better downrange ballistics.

The re-appearance of the M14 had everything to do with the number of rifles that remained in inventory, and nothing to do with how it stacks up against modern offerings. They needed a solution and they needed it immediately. Testing and sorting out a new rifle wasn't in the cards.

Now, when we take a look at what 7.62 NATO rifles are passing recent military trials and winning the contracts, none of them are M14s. They are either Stoner based designs, such as the LMT MWS and Knights Armament SR25, or the SCAR 17.

The M16 and M4 are a failure? The design has had its hiccups, but it has proven time and time again that it is a superb weapon for the types of wars that have been fought in the past 50 years. The only thing they fail at is serving as a hard-hitting DMR. There is a reason why Uncle Sam has not found a suitable replacement yet, although they seem to try every few years.
 
Bobson said:
Wow, that's a lot of answered questions in three short pages. I'm surprised it didn't come up... what about ammo?

I don't own an M1A, but I've always heard people saying something about only using certain ammo in it. Never was sure what that was all about.
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The action is rather hard on brass, and for those who reload, case life is limited to usually about 3-4 reloads at most before case failures begin to appear, If you only shoot factory loads, most anything will run through it. There's a "sweet spot" for bullet weight, too. 147grains to 178 grains are what you'll see, usually nothing heavier. Mine will shoot any commercial .308 ammo without issues, but I rarely shoot anything I didn't reload myself. In order to maximize case life, I use military once-fired cases, which have slightly thicker case walls than .308 commercial ammo. I mostly load 168 grain bullets, occasionally 155's.

I have a Standard SAI M1A, and it's my favorite rifle to shoot. Recoil is relatively mild compared to a bolt gun and the same ammo loads. It has its own distinctive sound, the cycling action gives a nice "ring" to go along with the muzzle blast. I have mounted a scope since buying it, I want to do some shooting past 300 yards, and my old eyes ain't what they used to be (and they never were all that great). But, the gun will shoot under 2 MOA right out of the box, the Loaded and Match versions even better, but only if the trigger-puller is also that good. This is mine at 100 yards on a typical range day, with the iron sights:
 
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