best all-around rifle in .308

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A scoped M1A with the proper mount is hard to beat. I hunted with one for many years. That said, in a weal moment I sold it. I now have a Enterprise built FAL "Scout". The trigger is not as good as the match M1A, but it is good enough, and the shorter barrel is a lot handier in the woods. Also the ergonomics of the FAL makes it easier to handle, thus "fells" lighter.

If I had to have only 1 rifle it would be one of the above.

My favorite hunting rifle is a BLR in 308. It's handy, easy to carry, (and it's the older all steel model), very accurate, and has a detachable magazine. Yet it slides under the radar in the "peoples republic states".
 
M1A/M14 for sure.

My PTR 91 is indestructible but uncomfortable to shoot and it and the FAL look to "unpolitically correct" (yes i know thats not a word).

Normally I actually prefer to look that way, but there are times when going under the radar is nice.

Wood stocks and no pistol grips seem to be acceptable for whatever bizarre reason as far as not scaring the "sheep".
 
I love my FAL but it isn't a "perfect 308". The problem is mainly weight, the basic rifle with a scope is a pig. If i had the cash I'd go for a lightweight stock, aluminum lower, 18" bbl, and a compact scope. My current setup weighs 12 lbs with scope, way too heavy for a non-long range rifle.

atek3
 
My FAL weighs around 11 pounds, loaded, with a scope. I don't find it to be heavy at all. Firearm weight, in my experience, is very subjective.
 
Hmm, I'd say that firearms weight is very objective... you put it on a scale and weigh it... what's subjective is your appreciation of the weight. Given that most average rifles weigh between 6 and 10, 11-12 pounds is a lot, especially if it's not a safe queen and you actually have to carry it...

atek3
 
The M1A is beast, but if you don't want to shell out quite that amount of money an Armalite AR-10 or other .308 AR derivative would do well...they're very accurate and easy to use. An FAL or PTR-91 would certainly be good guns to look at as well.
 
Atek, I have two shotguns. One weighs 6 pounds. The other weighs 16 pounds. I have a skewed sense of what's "heavy" (and what "recoil" is, that 6 pound gun is a 12 gauge). Also, the FAL was my first centerfire rifle I actually purchases. After that, a Mosin. When I bought my Saiga .223, it was downright light.
 
Aren't these all bolts or am I missing something? A bolt is nice but too specialized, a semi-auto is what I am looking for
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FALs, PTRs, and M1As are pretty much all I've seen discussed here.

Frankly if you don't know whether those 3 rifles are bolt or semi maybe you should hold off on the shopping.......

Seriously, no offense intended. If that is really where your knowledge level is at you should hold on to your money for a while. You're likely to make a big mistake without a lot more information.
 
H&K 417. But you will have to wait a few years.

The HK91 is probably the most brutally reliable .308 you will find. Some find its ergonomics bad but, hey I think they are better than the M1as which has the safety IN THE TRIGGER GUARD!!! and has, otherwise, a similar mag and charging system to the AK (the AK and the M1a (obviously) are highly derivative of the Garand). The HK91's safety isn't as well placed as the fal, but you won't need to leave it on because the trigger weighs 10 pounds. Oh, and you will need baboon arms to work the 91's charging handle.

The FAL never did much for me, the ergos are the best of the three, but I have never found one with a trigger I could stand. The HK91's trigger stinks too now that I think of it.

In the end, I chose to get the M1A scout. Why, because I am getting patriotic in my old age. Oh, and scope mounting on the M1a is unnecessarily complicated to, so look forward to that.
 
Bah, yo are from Texas, you could shoot .375 H&H out of a derringer! Seriously, all 308s are pussycats. Even my uber-lightweight Steyr Scout is a joy to shoot.
 
Texas Rifleman says: My PTR 91 is indestructible but uncomfortable to shoot
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How so TR? :scrutiny: Mine has some modifications to it, but it is hands down the most comfortable rifle to shoot I own. The recoil impulse is a bit stout, come to think of it. Maybe that's why I installed a muzzle brake on mine! :evil:

The PTR series is a neat rifle, and with a $55 Bill Springfield trigger job, a very shootable platform. That said, I guess mine has been modified to ameliorate the recoil impulse, to improve accuracy and ergonomics. The safety was a concern to me as one could hardly get to it with the right thumb, so I installed a Williams ambi safety which is easy to manipulate with the right trigger finger.

Come to think of it, maybe the Saiga is the better choice for out of the box performance. ;)
 
Texas Rifleman says: My PTR 91 is indestructible but uncomfortable to shoot
Click to expand...

How so TR? :scrutiny: Mine has some modifications to it, but it is hands down the most comfortable rifle to shoot I own. The recoil impulse is a bit stout, come to think of it. Maybe that's why I installed a muzzle brake on mine! :evil:

The PTR series is a neat rifle, and with a $55 Bill Springfield trigger job, a very shootable platform. That said, I guess mine has been modified to ameliorate the recoil impulse, to improve accuracy and ergonomics. The safety was a concern to me as one could hardly get to it with the right thumb, so I installed a Williams ambi safety which is easy to manipulate with the right trigger finger.

Come to think of it, maybe the Saiga is the better choice for out of the box performance. ;)
 
How so TR?
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The operating system of the HK doesn't reduce any recoil at all, so you have that massive chunk of metal in the bolt slamming backwards and the stock butt pad isn't much. It's the nature of the G3s too that the ergonomics are not the best.

Don't get me wrong, I love my PTR91, it's an extremely well built copy and I enjoy shooting it a lot, but it hits the shoulder harder than any semi I own between the recoil and the ergonomics.

I would not remove it from my list of possible choices though, just be aware of it. As you say there are 3 or 4 things that need to be done right out of the box...... I need the trigger job on mine.
 
The operating system of the HK doesn't reduce any recoil at all, so you have that massive chunk of metal in the bolt slamming backwards and the stock butt pad isn't much. It's the nature of the G3s too that the ergonomics are not the best.

Don't get me wrong, I love my PTR91, it's an extremely well built copy and I enjoy shooting it a lot, but it hits the shoulder harder than any semi I own between the recoil and the ergonomics.
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I purchased a PTR end of October and I can second that it has a harder recoil than my Garands, FN's, or M1a's. And my buttstock is too short. Lots of creep in the trigger, hard to cock the action, and the rear sight is a pain to adjust when zeroing the rifle. I shot my PTR after a "Garand" match, this Saturday, and I was flinching more after 10 rounds with it, than after 58 rounds with my match 30-06 Garand.

The PTR91 excels in ease of manufacture and ease of maintenance. It is first and foremost a battle rifle. It would be a great rifle to hand marginally trained troops, whose life expectancy is NTE 9 months. It is simple to operate, it will go bang.

The absolute best semi auto rifle for iron sight and scope use is the M1a. A match accuratized M1a is MOA accurate all the way to 1000 yards. You can put in a 5, 10, or 20 round mag, makes it easy to carry. The rear sights are the best ever put on a battle rifle. The trigger is easy to tune, lots of instructions on the web. The scope position is higher than a bolt gun, but there are mounts that allow you to see your irons, if you want.

The Remington semi autos are functional, cheap, but not that accurate. But they are popular for hunting in heavy brush where a 100 yard shot is a long shot.
 
Another option might be the Venerable M1 rifle. I have shot several Navy M1 rifles chambered for 7.62 NATO and they shoot great. Also It is not hard to rebarrel an M1 from .30-06 to 7.62 but with the cheaper prices of surplus .30-06 I would go with the .30-06. The M1 has many of the same good features of the M1A and several of its own. Also it only has an 8 round clip so its probably new jersey ok. And there is nothing you can do with an M1A that you can't do with an M1 other than shoot 20 rounds down range without reloading, But id rather have 8 well aimed shots than 20 misses. Another thing you can do is build up an M1 from parts not exactly cheaper than buying one, but you learn the ins and outs of the rifle better. Plus its amazingly fun and extremely rewarding. You can also Match grade condition an M1 and in some instances they can shoot better than an M1A. But it won't be as cheap as the Saiga. Im not sure what the laws are in new jersey but if I lived in california I would definitly own an M1 over an M1A because of the limit to 10 round magazines. 8 is close enough to 10 and in my opinion high capacity magazines are overated.

Just encase anyone was wondering I own a M1, M1A and a Saiga .308 so I am giving my feelings on all three rifles that I have actually shot and worked on. The M1A was definitly the most exspensive I paid $900 for it and then had it rebarreled with a Match grade barrel for $125. Its got all USGI parts except the barrel and receiver and it came with 2-20 round mags so for $1025I did pretty good. I got very lucky on the M1 which was custom built I bought it for $400 from a very close freind. And Saiga I did an even trade on an SKS model M that I paid $200 for and recently added the new SVD style stock that cost $65 plus traded the original buttstock. So I only have $265 in that rifle. I plan to add a combloc posp 4-8x42 soon which cost $230 so I will have almost as much in the scope as I do the rifle.... Stuff adds up quick doesn't it.

Brother in Arms
 
How about the Remington 7400 or new 750 woodsmaster, you can get 10 round mags for them, they're accurate, reliable, come with iron sights, and you don't have to play with legal loopholes.
 
I finished my M1A conversion. Here's a before and after. I plan to mount an AimPoint CompM3 or M4 on it after xmas. Just a cheap red dot on it now.

m1a-olive.jpg


m1a_scout.jpg
 
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