Which Springfield M1A?

Synthetic or wood M1A?

  • Wood with 22" stainless barrel

    Votes: 65 68.4%

  • Synthetic with 22" stainless barrel

    Votes: 30 31.6%
  • Total voters
    95
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Styrofoam underneath your M1A's on top of a down comforter, those must be your pride and joy eh? Nice E2 stock btw
 
Gunfighter123, did you make that stock on the SOCOM? It looks lie a mod'ed wood stock with a wood PG attached- I'd love to know where the PG came from.

It also looks like that setup might break if you butt-stroked someone with it....but cool none-the-less.
 
The stock/grip came off a BM-59 Nigerian that I had laying around --- I had to mod it a bit as it was close but not a exact match for the M1A ---- can't see it but I used a steel rod about 1/2" thick to reinforce the grip/stock area ---- Just in case I have to butt-stroke some butt-head with it !!!

BTW --- this photo was before it was sanded/stained/polyed.
 
I'm gonna get a Scout with synthetic once I get the $$ together. Man do I want one. I voted synthetic, but either way, you can't go wrong.
 
My M1A shoots smaller groups with a synthetic stock, so the nice pretty wood stock is leaning against a wall somewhere in the basement and has been doing so for several years now.
 
I'm another one in the "buy it with the walnut, then purchase a synth beater stock for the sloppy or rough days"

for range use or "just having", to my mind wood is what belongs on M1A/M-14 style rifles. and for regular range use or match types where there isn't a high likelihood of the rifle getting "beat up" i'd keep it in wood

that said, if i had, for whatever reason, wanted to hunt with an M1A, or use it in a 3-gun match, or somewhere else where the odds of it being battered around were fairly high, or if it's simply a wet, miserable, nasty day. I'd have it in a synth stock. probably one of the old brown GI fiberglass ones.
 
With all this stock changing does it affect accuracy? It seems that changing a stock to go hunting or because the weather is a little rough might change the zero with pressure being different due to screw tension and warped wood.
I have guns with both types but none that I would consider changing over without re zeroing before hunting or any competition.
 
My Vote is also "Have Both" Why not? I picked up an Old Camo synthetic for 40.00 and like em both just fine. It's the rifle underneath that really matters anyway...:D
 
Do you guys really switch stocks back and forth for purely aesthetic reasons?
Do your rifles hold zero?
 
Do you guys really switch stocks back and forth for purely aesthetic reasons?
Do your rifles hold zero?
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you;re talking about a Battle Rifle design, not a sniper/target rifle

For the most part, the rifles being discussed here are intended to be "battle accurate" (aka Minute-of-deer/man,). Not 1/2-1/4MOA capable bolt guns. additionally many of the folks talking about switching stocks (me included) are speaking of doing so on rifles shot using iron sights not scopes.
given those points, they will "hold zero" after a stock change better than most M1A owners can hold, period.

that said one should if possible check their zero after any change to a rifle.

but for the typical, (standard/loaded)M1A owner using Irons, they'll most likely never notice the POI change from swapping stocks, if there is one.
 
So the benifit of keeping a pristene stock for show and a beater for go on a Battle Rifle design is?
I don't have a spare stock for mine nor will I so I will not be able to test but I expect no less than 1.5 moa from mine and using my experience from other rifles I would be surprised to not see that change with a switch out of a stock. At the bare minimum a serious change in zero.
I am only curious since there are so many saying the same thing here and I can't say I have heard of this in other rifles except a few rare times I have heard of a guy changing out a fancy checkered stock on a bolt for hunting which I never quite believed or understood simply because of the trouble and cost of rezero using Weatherby ammo.
To me the whole dual stock thing is like having the Punisher skull grips on a 1911 when at the range but switching back to stock to carry, just doesn't make sense.
 
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Synthetic, but get a GI fiberglass. It will hold up better than wood, is not effected by the elements and is lighter. There's a reason the military went with fiberglass. My rifles are working guns. Wood is for range queens.
 
I look at it as one or the other in which case I have to say synthetic, for all the reasons I would want it on any gun.
Strength, weight, durability, moisture resistance, consistancy I'm sure there are others with looks being the most subjective.
 
As of now it's 51 votes to 18 votes in favor of wood. I find it interesting that it started out 6 to 1 but Syn gained a lot of votes later to make it 2.8 to 1.

thanks to all who voted, if anyone else wants to vote go ahead.
 
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snakeman said:
I would get two stocks a synthetic you can paint and a wood when you want to dress it up.
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This is what I did, got two synthetics from Fred for not much, Krylon'd em up, and now I can beat them up chasing pigs and coyotes. I also prefer the synthetic's wrist, the wood stock that came on mine isn't as comfortable to shoot for me, too fat (the stock, not me...well, me too).
 
Where did you get that gorgeous wooden stock? Standard issue? Nice!
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That is a standard SA stock that I refinished with Fromby's Tung oil finish. Fromby's well give you a moderately glossy finish, straight Tung oil well give you a flat finish. What I like most about Tung oil is it really hardens the surface of the wood making it resistant to dents and dings. If you get a scratch it touches up very easy and well disappear.

Thanks for the compliments.

crop7.jpg
 
I was looking at M1As and got wood. :D

Personally I like the 22" with a Walnut stock but the stainless just doesn't do it for me.
 
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