M1A vs M14

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MtnCreek

MtnCreek

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Is a M1A and a M14 ’semi auto’ the same thing? Assuming they are different (that’s what I was told), what do you think the value of a M14 would be? Rifle looks to be in good condition, stock has a few scratches, seems to shoot good groups (looked to be +/- 1.5” @ 50 yds). I'm pretty sure this is a stupid question, so I apologize in advance!
Thanks!
 
Is a M1A and a M14 ’semi auto’ the same thing?
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M1A is the name used by Springfield Armory for their semi "clone" of the military M14 rifle.

A "real" M14 is full auto, but there are lots of other clones out there using the M14 name. Fulton Armory, LRB, and several others that are semi only but still bear the name M-14.

What you need to find out is who made it.

A "real" M14 that's transferable will sell in the $30,000+ price range. That's probably not what you are looking at. If I were going to guess blind I would guess that you are looking at a Polytech M14 since they are telling you it's not an M1A.
 
Some more info on who made it would help
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I'll try to find out tomorrow; until then, that's all I got. A guy at my local range had one this weekend and he's looking to get rid of it.
 
A guy at my local range had one this weekend and he's looking to get rid of it.
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If it's a Polytech you will want to get the headspace checked before you fire it. They can be great bargains and solid reliable rifles but many of them shipped at the ragged edge of headspacing.
 
If it's a Polytech you will want to get the headspace checked before you fire it
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I'm pretty sure someone called it by that name, but I'll find out for sure. Assuming headspace is OK and rifle is in good shape, what would be the price range for a riffle of this type?
Thanks!
 
a M1A is a type of M14. the term M1A is a brand name of a civillian type M14.

your question is like asking, "what is the difference between a pop soda and a cherry coke?"
 
I see Polytechs go for anywhere from $800-1000. Anything much less than $800 would be a pretty good bargain, depending on condition of course.
 
TexasRifleman said:
M1A is the name used by Springfield Armory for their semi "clone" of the military M14 rifle.

A "real" M14 is full auto, but there are lots of other clones out there using the M14 name. Fulton Armory, LRB, and several others that are semi only but still bear the name M-14.

What you need to find out is who made it.

A "real" M14 that's transferable will sell in the $30,000+ price range. That's probably not what you are looking at. If I were going to guess blind I would guess that you are looking at a Polytech M14 since they are telling you it's not an M1A.
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A "real" M14 is actually select fire. Full auto or semi-auto by a selector switch.

Dan
 
A "real" M14 is actually select fire. Full auto or semi-auto by a selector switch.
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Right, but from a legal standpoint select fire doesn't matter. It's either a machine gun or it isn't. The question was whether or not he had been shown a real M14. If it was real it would be classified as a machine gun and need to have a tax stamp to transfer.

In his post he said "semi only M14". Real M14 receivers are classed as machine guns even after being converted to fire semi only. Late in the M14's service history the full auto capability was removed but they were still "machine guns". Whether the selector switch works or not doesn't matter from a legal and selling standpoint. If he had been shown a "real" M14 that was semi only there would have been a very good chance that it was not legal. It's not legal to reactivate a DEWAT M14 as semi only but I have heard stories over the years of them popping up now and then.
 
TexasRifleman said:
Right, but from a legal standpoint select fire doesn't matter. It's either a machine gun or it isn't. The question was whether or not he had been shown a real M14. If it was real it would be classified as a machine gun and need to have a tax stamp to transfer.

In his post he said "semi only M14". Real M14 receivers are classed as machine guns even after being converted to fire semi only. Late in the M14's service history the full auto capability was removed but they were still "machine guns". Whether the selector switch works or not doesn't matter from a legal and selling standpoint. If he had been shown a "real" M14 that was semi only there would have been a very good chance that it was not legal. It's not legal to reactivate a DEWAT M14 as semi only but I have heard stories over the years of them popping up now and then.
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Gotcha. I understand now.

Thanks for clarifying.

Dan
 
Common manufacturers of semi-only M14 rifles or receivers -

Springfield Armory - owns and uses the trademark name 'M1A'
Fulton Armory
LRB Arms of Long Island
Smith Enterprise, Inc.
7.62mm Firearms, LLC
Armscorp
Polytech
Norinco
 
The rife is a Polytech and the reciever is marked Made In China. $900 is too much for anything from china IMO; Passed on purchase.
Thanks for the info.
 
Yeah, I think $900 for a polytech is too much.
Show around. If the M1a is what you want, there are alot of great used non-Chinese M1s out there. But, the prices are around the $1000-1500 area.
Now, if you can get it down to around $600, and the headspacing is good that would be a good deal IMO. You can swap out some of the items that are made from softer metals with USA or USGI parts and have a good rifle.
 
Prices on the Chinese M-14s are still going up since US importation of them was blocked, partly driven by people who want to build their own rifle from parts kits using the nice forged steel receiver, rather than a cast receiver like SAI and most of the other US makers use. A basic US made LRB forged steel receiver goes for over $900 all by itself, while a basic LRB rifle with USGI parts runs $2600.
 
Pass on the Poly. Save up for a S-A, look for matching TRW made receiver parts.
Not an expert, just what i recall from reading about them a long while back
Will run you about 2+K
 
There are a few, real M14's out there, that are unregistered.

When there was such a thing as the DCM, the DCM lent real M14’s to State Associations for use in State Rifle Teams. These were real M14’s. Our state association lost one. The hand receipt holder lent one to a new shooter, and at the end of the day, with all the confusion of running the match, that shooter managed to leave unnoticed. With the rifle. :mad: That serial number was reported to the FBI.

I am certain there are other ones out there.

I suspect those unregistered machine guns would be worth about 5 to 10 years in the pokey.
 
chineese m14s. why would you want a gun that was made to kill communists to be made by communists? an m14 should never say made in china. just a thought.



:banghead:
 
Man, I missed that. I have no real experience with an M-14, but I was always under the impression that the only difference was the Happy Switch and the auto sear. I thought the receivers were more or less identical. School me on this?
 
I dont know if it's true but when I bought my M1A in 1996 there was a polytech on the rack too. The price difference was quite noticeable. I wasnt aware there was a Chinese copy so I asked more about it and the salesman told me about it and told me some of the threads were metric...might make a difference if it has metric threads in it somwhere when your deciding to buy or not...
 
to skipbo

because they're reliable, forged receiver, chrome lined barrel, and priced right? Still could'nt get over the whole cold war thing huh?
 
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