308 Semi-automatic
- Thread starter Davidfl
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lobo9er
Member
So meny choices
And everyone loves helping spend others money! If I were to be buying a semi-auto .308/7.62 rifle and had a decent budget it would be a DSA Fal of some sort. Fals have great rep, milled reciever, gas regulator is adjustable to run dirty or run with with a variety of ammo and mags are easy to come by right now. That would be my choice lots of options though. Its intended purpose and amount you want to spend would help narrow it down a little.
And everyone loves helping spend others money! If I were to be buying a semi-auto .308/7.62 rifle and had a decent budget it would be a DSA Fal of some sort. Fals have great rep, milled reciever, gas regulator is adjustable to run dirty or run with with a variety of ammo and mags are easy to come by right now. That would be my choice lots of options though. Its intended purpose and amount you want to spend would help narrow it down a little.swiftak
Member
M1a, BAR.
General Geoff
Member
In the arena of .308 autoloading rifles, a better question would be, which ones to avoid? At the relatively expensive price point of most of them, lemons are few and far between. Just a few of the available platforms:
M14/M1A
FAL
HK-91/PTR-91
AR-10/LR-308
And there's also a new kid on the block, the Kel-Tec RFB. Prices can range from $800 up to $1500+. Or if you're on a string budget (which is comical given you want a .308 autoloader and you'll spend many times the cost of the rifle on any sizeable amount of ammo), you can look at a Saiga .308, which last I heard had a street price of ~$400 to $500.
1stmarine
Member
You will get so many recommendations that you might go crazy.
There are many good ones and the good thing is you do not need to spend a lot of money to get some very good performance.
Think first what is going to be it's primary use. If for that purpose you need a special type of round and this might narrow the posibilities. Think about the rifle as if it was USPS and the bullet your package. First decide on what do you wan to do with those bullets and then decide about the best delivery method for that type of 'package'.
- The M1A is hard to beat but you pay for them. I have the SOCOMII and the Scout and they are superb. The SOCOM is heavy and bulky but it runs like a charm like all M1As.
- The FNAR is finicky with the loads. Mine is the 20" light barrel and only likes low grain and high grain bullets. Average loads do not do so well. It is also hard to take down and maintain but when you get the right load they are very accurate. It is based on the Browning BAR rilfes but "tacticalized". MAgs are expensive around $80 each.
- AR-10, DPMS, RRA are good systems. The light barrel ones are manageable but if you want more accuracy the start to get really heavy. Stay away from the 24" and 26" barrels. It is totally unnecessary.
- SAiga .308 in 16" barrel they are affordable and extremely accurate for the money.. I posted this link about one conversion I did... http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=567005
I am getting same and better accuracy with this one than the M1A which is crazy for an AK type of rifle.
- All the surplus FAL, Cetme, G3s are ok for some people but they are heavy, not that accurate, and they are OLD designs. Maybe more for a collection type of interest although some people have retrofit them sometimes quite well to their needs.
Think first what you need it for and what you really want, then this might help you. Be honest to yourself. Sometimes I do 'compulsive buying' and then I end up not using some of the rifles that much. For me accuracy and reliability is the first thing I look for. For me more important than looks but other folks have other preferences like looks(wood), size, weight, etc...
Cheers,
E.
There are many good ones and the good thing is you do not need to spend a lot of money to get some very good performance.
Think first what is going to be it's primary use. If for that purpose you need a special type of round and this might narrow the posibilities. Think about the rifle as if it was USPS and the bullet your package. First decide on what do you wan to do with those bullets and then decide about the best delivery method for that type of 'package'.
- The M1A is hard to beat but you pay for them. I have the SOCOMII and the Scout and they are superb. The SOCOM is heavy and bulky but it runs like a charm like all M1As.
- The FNAR is finicky with the loads. Mine is the 20" light barrel and only likes low grain and high grain bullets. Average loads do not do so well. It is also hard to take down and maintain but when you get the right load they are very accurate. It is based on the Browning BAR rilfes but "tacticalized". MAgs are expensive around $80 each.
- AR-10, DPMS, RRA are good systems. The light barrel ones are manageable but if you want more accuracy the start to get really heavy. Stay away from the 24" and 26" barrels. It is totally unnecessary.
- SAiga .308 in 16" barrel they are affordable and extremely accurate for the money.. I posted this link about one conversion I did... http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=567005
I am getting same and better accuracy with this one than the M1A which is crazy for an AK type of rifle.
- All the surplus FAL, Cetme, G3s are ok for some people but they are heavy, not that accurate, and they are OLD designs. Maybe more for a collection type of interest although some people have retrofit them sometimes quite well to their needs.
Think first what you need it for and what you really want, then this might help you. Be honest to yourself. Sometimes I do 'compulsive buying' and then I end up not using some of the rifles that much. For me accuracy and reliability is the first thing I look for. For me more important than looks but other folks have other preferences like looks(wood), size, weight, etc...
Cheers,
E.
Dionysusigma
Member
Best overall mix of accuracy, reliability, and price is the Saiga .308. Lacks the style of the M14 and the history of the FAL, but it's the one I'd go with to handle anything I'd use a semi .308 for.
W.E.G.
Member
1stmarine
Member
Hold on! snoopy has a FAL!! Take cover!!!!
lol
Take cover!!!!lol
dawico
Member
Scar 17s. Hasn't been out long enough for any long term testing, but everything I have read about them is excellent. FN makes some great guns, just ask our military.
lobo9er
Member
......................
Last edited:
1stmarine
Member
Nobody said that in this post.
Lets read the post again....
- All the surplus FAL, Cetme, G3s are ok for some people but they are heavy, not that accurate, and they are OLD designs. Maybe more for a collection type of interest although some people have retrofit them sometimes quite well to their needs.
DSA fal are supposed to be great rifles. The surplus ones are the ones to question so read carefully before you reply.
Also as I said before anyone makes any more recommendations it would be nice to know what the purpose is. Davidfl can provide that if he wants better advice.
Roughneck08
Member
M1A Scout
Easy! M1A Scout. Could not be happier with mine.
Easy! M1A Scout. Could not be happier with mine.
Roughneck08
Member
There is an M1A on the trading section of this forum with an M1A standard for $1200. Claims it is unfired.
Roughneck08
Member
Crud he sold it today, just checked. Sorry. Good luck on finding a rifle that suits your needs!
I have a PTR-91 GI on order, should hit my LGS for the transfer this week. I should have bought an HK-91 back in the 80's when I wanted one, now they just cost too much $$. The PTR-91 GI is getting very good reviews on HKPro, some claiming to get 1.5 MOA with them. CDNN and Atlantic Firearms both have them for $899.
1stmarine
Member
Davidfl,
What do you want the rifle for? target, hunting, home defense, etc...?
Weight is a factor, magazine options (preban, postban), etc...
I think this will help folks give you a better idea.
Cheers,
E.
What do you want the rifle for? target, hunting, home defense, etc...?
Weight is a factor, magazine options (preban, postban), etc...
I think this will help folks give you a better idea.
Cheers,
E.
birddog2
Member
Nothing wrong with an old Rem 742? Mine will shoot under an inch with anything. Should be able to find one in the 300.00 range
lobo9er
Member
re read the thread and edit 1st post. You were giving more ideas than just M1A, the saiga route is another option that should be explored as 1stmarine said.
jpwilly
Member
DPMS LR-308 will fit your budget and is lighter than most of the choices listed at 8.5lbs without optic.
http://www.dpmsinc.com/firearms/firearm.aspx?id=16
http://www.dpmsinc.com/firearms/firearm.aspx?id=16
I will say, I can't recommend the PTR-91 right now, because they have switched to making in-house bolts for them (versus using German surplus parts due to new export restrictions in Germany, IIRC), and there has been some reports of them cracking due to improper heat treatment. My recommendation, if you like the PTR-91, do some digging, and decide yourself.
Saiga .308 is a solid and accurate choice, some finishing and familiarity with a house-hold power-drill may be required to get it to its "proper" configuration. DPMS LR-308 seems to be the best bang for the buck as far as getting you into a ready-to-roll out of the box .308 platform. Be aware a 16" carbine versus a 22" rifle will shave off about 200-250 yards of range. That said, .308 from a 16" barrel will still be supersonic out to about 780-820 yards with factory loads, and perhaps 850 with handloads. You may also find accuracy better due to a stiffer barrel and better barrel harmonics from a 16" heavy-weight barrel.
Saiga .308 is a solid and accurate choice, some finishing and familiarity with a house-hold power-drill may be required to get it to its "proper" configuration. DPMS LR-308 seems to be the best bang for the buck as far as getting you into a ready-to-roll out of the box .308 platform. Be aware a 16" carbine versus a 22" rifle will shave off about 200-250 yards of range. That said, .308 from a 16" barrel will still be supersonic out to about 780-820 yards with factory loads, and perhaps 850 with handloads. You may also find accuracy better due to a stiffer barrel and better barrel harmonics from a 16" heavy-weight barrel.
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