M1A Help

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Lou1187

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Tax refunds are here! I have decided to buy a M1A. I have wanted one for years. Now I have the mony and I'm ready. I need your help. I'm looking for a fun/accurate rife for the range. I'm not gona do any compitions. This is just for fun. I have narrowed my choices to the :
1.Loaded/cluster rails 18" barrel. (looks B*!#$in)
2. the 22" Loaded.
3 the scout 18"
My question is, How much accuracy will I lose from going to a 22" to a 18" barrell.
Thank you for your replys!
PS. If this helps, Currantly I have a m1 Garand that has been rebarrelled
Thanks!
 
You won't necessarily lose any "accuracy," but you'll lose velocity with the shorter barrel. If you use the iron sights, you'll lose sight radius with the short barrel gun which can make it harder to shoot well at a distance.

For your first M1A (first...they tend to multiply :) ) I'd go with a full sized model over the shorty railed thingies.
 
I went w/ the std M1A and have been very happy w/ my purchase. She is easy to shoot & very very accurate (even for me!).
 
IMO, get a loaded standard if you want a full sized rifle.

If you want something a tad lighter and more handy, get the scout squad, 18" being a better compromise length than 16", IMO.

Personally, the 16" SOCOM I & SOCOM II don't do anything for me. The SOCOM I has an irregular gas system they had to futz with to get right, and the SOCOM II winds up being 3 ish pounds heavier than the standard rifle, due to the weight of all the rails and garbage they hung on it.

The only thing that keeps the scout squad from being a perfect battle rifle in my mind is the lack of chrome lining.
 
That 18" barrel will produce a muzzle blast that, I for one, find objectionable.

I have shot M1a's for years in NRA Highpower. Maybe I am an old futz, but I really like the full length M1a. It also can be scoped. Superb rifle.
 
I agree with Geek,
Get a SA loaded standard. They have the National Match barrel, trigger & sights. It will be a while before you can out shoot it. I have a loaded standard and I'll be getting another. Pass on the Cluster rail. I understand that it adds nothing but weight, unless you don't mind and like the look. Get a good scope and I recommend the 3rd generation scope mount so you can use either iron sights or a scope. It's the best of both worlds.
 
Decisions, Decisions.....

I'd say calculate exactly what you'll use the rifle for and what your needs are. The full sized M1A is a beautiful weapon - Standard or Loaded. However, there's a lot to be said for a Scout Squad. You didn't list the SOCOM, (I have the SOCOM-16), but if I could pick one rifle that fits the bill of long range accuracy, scope-a-bility, handiness and utility - it would be the Scout Squad hands down. You will not lose much in the way of accuracy and if your shooting centers around 25-200 yards like most of us, you won't miss a beat, (even out to 500). People say the Scout muzzle brake is noisy, (guns have a tendancy to do that), but it's no worse than a bolt gun. You can even remove the muzzle brake and add a NM flash suppressor with the bayo lug removed, (to allow easier access to gas plug).

I'm not sure what your budget is, but I just spent some time with a Fulton Armory Bush Length Rifle - (Super Scout). It has an 18.5" chrome lined Criterion barrel, NM flash suppressor a neat, uncluttered top rail, (not like the SOCOM II cheese grater) and a handy rail/swivel combo on the bottom. The rifle was/is a work of art. Just absolutely beautiful from end to end. Fulton's new USGI stocks are really, really nice and the fit-n-finish was absolutely superb. They ain;t cheap thoug, (about 2k).....The Scout Squad is economically a better buy and just as handy.

If you're going to get a Standard lenght, I'd concur - go for a Loaded.

Good luck!
 
The .308 Win was designed for a 22" barrel. All the short barreled types are marketing things and nothing else.
 
Socom

Not a fan of the 16" Barrel for the Socom. I like the looks but it just seems a bit odd. What is the Major Differance Between the Scout Trigger/Barrel and the Loaded Barrel/Trigger. And what is the Differance between the Barrel option that the Loaded offers.
Thanks!
 
The .308 Win was designed for a 22" barrel. All the short barreled types are marketing things and nothing else.
Click to expand...

Nonsense.... :neener:


Anyway, Lou, the trigger difference between the Loaded and the Standard is match tuning. This is an option you can have done on any M1A/M14 from SOCOM to Standard. The barrel on the Loaded is a medium weight match barrel. In addition, the front sight on the Loaded is a NM blade - the rear sight remains the same. The barrel on the Scout is a standard weight barrel cut down to 18". Despite Sunray's insistance that the .308 only works in a 22" barrel, the velocity loss and accuracy loss will be minimal. Scouts by the way are highly sought after for a reason...They work.
 
I'd recommend that if you can get your hands on a scout and a full-length version and handle them if you can. To reiterate what others said, the shorter barrel is no less accurate, but you do lose about 50fps based on one source I found, but I've not verified this. I figured this difference would only begin to hurt accuracy at 500 yards or more.

Keep in mind that there's bench accuracy and practical accuracy, however. I chose the scout because it felt better, and I felt I could make more accurate shots with it, at least from the standing position.
 
Add National Match to list

You are considering spending a good chunk of cash. Think about spending a few $$$ more and just get a national match with stainless barrel? You're going to keep it the rest of your life, and you'll be happy you got it. They are all great, but SA says to expect a 3" MOA from the others and 1" to 1-1/2"MOA from the National match. I'm sure they do better than that but SA is just covering itself. You will like all of them, but it's nice to know if you ever want to try some really long range stuff you can with the 22" with the standard, loaded, or NM. By the way, after you get one of the 22" you will still want the others.
 
One thing I forgot to mention on the Loaded. They eat almost everything, but have balked on occasion with some surplus. This can be managed easily if it occurs by SAI or a competent gunsmith, but I've heard they run better on match ammo. If it were me, I'd buy a Scout if you can find one. Shoot the bejeebus out of it and then, if you think it's necessary, have the trigger match tuned, (50-75 bucks). Also, pick up the most recent book by Walt Kulek - "The M14 Complete Assembly Guide". It was been a boom of at-hand information and takes what little mystery to this rifle away...
 
metalmachine

No problem - it's literally been an eye-opener. I love Scott Duff's book, but this takes it to a whole new level. Not only do they show you everything, they tell you how to do everything. They take a lot of the mystery out of it....I'll never likely be doing my own NM trigger job, but it's nice to know how it's done.... :cool:
 
Oh, one more point that I usually try to make with any prospective M1A/M-14 owner.

Clarify in your own mind what your expectation of this rifle will be, and what your desire for it is. This platform has two distinct personalities, depending on what you try to do with it, and if you try to serve too many masters, the result will be a muddled mess.

At the end of the day, accuracy and reliability are at odds with each other. Accuracy flows from tight tolerances, and reliability flows from looser tolerances.

The primary default personality of this rifle, which is inherent in its design and manufacture, is to be a battle rifle.

The nature of a battle rifle is to balance the accuracy/reliability tradeoffs so as to provide the user with the utmost levels of reliability under harsh combat conditions, ease of maintenance, while maintaining reasonable levels of accuracy. (2-4 MOA being the norm)

The alternative personality is to trade some of those factors back to increase accuracy to around the 1 MOA mark.
 
National Match

Sorry for my stupid question but, are you saying that the National Match M1A is not a reliable as a standard M1a?
 
i really like the scout but i would go with a loaded standard for my first if i was you. i highly recomend them, they are great shooters with alot of great features.
 
How much is the standard plain jane M1A? im going to have about 600-700 bucks to put towards a rifle this summer and Id like a real nice one...
 
I just priced them, looking for a twin to my M1A "Loaded"

SOCOM I..........$1,589.00 (16" barrel)
M1A "Loaded"...$1,979.00 (On sale for $1,679.00)
Nat'l Match.......$2,250.00 (On sale for $1,869.00)

Note, according to Springfield, if the SOCOM can achieve 3.5" at 100 yards, they feel it is satisfactory. But, $700.00 will not get you even a used M1A. They are pricey firearms.
 
Low1187:Sorry for my stupid question but, are you saying that the National Match M1A is not a reliable as a standard M1a?
Click to expand...

Not a stupid question at all. Match guns tend to be tuned for match ammo. T say tend, as I have seen older Super match guns that would eat just about anything. Though the prices listed seem to be retail, as I have seen Loaded, Standard and Scouts going anywhere from $12-1500.00

A recent example here in Mass was a Loaded Standard for $1479.00 (New).
For people on more of a budget, you can get into the game for under $800.00, but that would require a Polytech or Norinco, (unless you get really lucky which happens). They are generally built well with forged receivers, but many need to be tweaked my a gunsmith and you should have the USGI bolt conversion done.

Back to Lou: Standard or Scout...Pick your poison...My guess is you will get the bug and end up buying another anyway, so start with the one that makes most sense....
 
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