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Thread: Can't decide which rifle

  1. #1
    Boolit Master
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    Can't decide which rifle

    I have a Springfield Armory M1A. Thinking about trading it for an AR 10. M1A is not all matching, but I got the history on it, date of manufacture and so forth. Which one do ya'll like the best??
    My mother always said I was the Flower of the Family, The Blooming Idiot

  2. #2
    Boolit Buddy
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    I love my AR-10 in 308 super accurate handles great but I would love to have a good M1A also , I think I have room for two

  3. #3
    Boolit Master
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    Depends on what I would be doing with it.

    I don’t like ar10s because they are too heavy compared to an ar15. I would much rather have an M1A.


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  4. #4
    Boolit Buddy
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    I have had both- The Sig 716 was a beautiful piece of machinery, very smooth and accurate. But at heart I will always be partial to the M1A. I have owned the standard, a Socom and the standard again. Don't know that I will get rid of this one as it is gorgeous to look at and shoots out of this world. While the 716 was a great rifle, it lacked the "soul" of the walnut and blued steel.
    My .02
    Zingger

  5. #5
    Boolit Master
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    Me; for my money; I would stay with the M1A,

  6. #6
    Boolit Buddy Rapidrob's Avatar
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    If I had to choose which to replace the M-14 with I would go with a metric FAL, the STG-58 would be my first choice. I shoot mine at 800 yards with very good results and have won our match using it.

  7. #7
    Boolit Master Ithaca Gunner's Avatar
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    Yup, M1A.
    Liberalism is a cult divorced from reality.

  8. #8
    Boolit Grand Master


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    Quote Originally Posted by sukivel View Post
    Depends on what I would be doing with it.

    I don’t like ar10s because they are too heavy compared to an ar15. I would much rather have an M1A.


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    The M1A is just as heavy as an AR10. There's actually lighter AR10's out there. My M1A is about as light as they come, and it's somewhere around 9 pounds.

  9. #9
    Boolit Grand Master


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    Trading or not is completely up to you. The prices of M1A's seems high, but it's really not that high compared to inflation. If anything, the M1A was worth more before 2020. I'm not a huge AR10 fan just because I prefer the M1A. I like the looks, the feel, the operation. That said, the new Ruger SFAR has really caught my attention. It's basically an AR15 that shoots 7.62x51. It's not the first superlight AR 308 on the market, but it is the first what I consider reasonably priced. I consider the M1A the best all-rounder semi-auto 308 from hunting to lots of shooting, but I have to admit that SFAR is probably the best semi auto 308 hunting rifle on the market. It's probably not the nicest for shooting all day, but it should be at least as accurate as an M1A, and it's under 7 pounds.

  10. #10
    Boolit Buddy tigweldit's Avatar
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    Springfield M1A NM, with a few (or no) whistles and bells.

  11. #11
    Boolit Master



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    I don't need no teenage queen, all I need is my M14!
    Blue steel and walnut!
    JMHO

  12. #12
    Boolit Grand Master


    stubshaft's Avatar
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    Stick with the M1-A
    Old enough to know better, young enough to do it anyway!

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  13. #13
    Boolit Master Linstrum's Avatar
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    What is "not all matching" about it? The only part on the older M1A rifles with a serial number is the receiver. The rest of the parts were purchased from government inventory, so couldn't have numbers matching the receiver serial number, which never had serial numbers to begin with. The numbers on all the other parts are blueprint drawing numbers and heat treatment lot numbers, like on the M1 Garand.

    Many of the earlier M1A rifles were National Match, with National Match op rods, bolts, trigger groups, and barrels. The barrels are stamped "NM" on the underside up by the front sight, but can otherwise be identified by having a one turn in eleven inches rate of rifling, instead of one turn in ten inches. You can determine the rifling twist yourself, by slowly pulling a bore brush on a marked cleaning rod through the barrel, and measuring how many inches it takes to make one full turn. That is, if your rifle has a 22-inch barrel, not including the flash hider in the 22-inch length.

    I've owned a Springfield Armory, Inc National Match M1A since 1984, and it is one of my most accurate rifles. It has a low serial number, 030XXX. One feature I like about the M1A is the gas operating system can be turned off, making the rifle into a straight pull manually operated repeater.

    Hey! Either rifle, the M1A or AR10, are both fantastic rifles. The choice is yours.
    ~+:/&\:+~+:/&\:+~+:/&\:+~+:/&\:+~+:/&\:+~+:/&\:+~+:/&\:+~+:/&\:+~+:/&\:+
    There is no such thing as too many tools, especially when it comes to casting and reloading.
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    Safe casting and shooting!

    Linstrum, member F.O.B.C. (Fraternal Order of Boolit Casters), Shooters.com alumnus, and original alloutdoors.com survivor.

  14. #14
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by megasupermagnum View Post
    The M1A is just as heavy as an AR10. There's actually lighter AR10's out there. My M1A is about as light as they come, and it's somewhere around 9 pounds.
    I didn’t articulate my thoughts properly.

    If I am to carry or use a semiautomatic .308 that is on the heavier side, I would choose a wood stocked M1A, and the FAL before the AR10.

    My buddy put a heavy 6.5cm barrel on an ar10 and it’s so heavy you almost need a vehicle mounted tripod for it!


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  15. #15
    Boolit Bub 460S&W's Avatar
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    Not to throw a wrench into anything, but if weight is a concern scar 17 has served me well and is absolutely amazing. I had the same dilemma as you. I’ve owned Socom 16, Ar10, M1A, Galil 308, and the Scar and the Scar has been my keeper.

  16. #16
    Boolit Grand Master


    Larry Gibson's Avatar
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    "I have a Springfield Armory M1A. Thinking about trading it for an AR 10."

    Big mistake.......
    Larry Gibson

    “Deficient observation is merely a form of ignorance and responsible for the many morbid notions and foolish ideas prevailing.”
    ― Nikola Tesla

  17. #17
    Boolit Buddy
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    Interestingly the M1A is classified as a battle rifle, where the AR-15 and AR-10 are "intermediate" small arms. Someone with more knowledge of the taxonomy might be able to describe the extent to which the distinction matters.

    The AR/M16 family of rifles was known for being high performance and high maintenance.

    The M1A might be a more versatile choice for cast–I'm just speculating given the Armalite Rifle's reputation for being unfriendly with cast boolits.

  18. #18
    Boolit Master



    MUSTANG's Avatar
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    M1a All the way.

    Personally biased as I have more than one and have given one to all the Sons. The only M1a that I have parted with was a Chinese made copy that went down the road in the late 1980's when I shot some surplus/way marked down water damaged Hornady factory ammo in it. The sides of the case had 1/2 long corrosion striations down each brass case. After 20 rounds I inspected the chamber when I noted that a couple of cases had the sides "Burned Through". Chamber of the Chinese M1a had been scored where burn throughs occurred. Had a Marine Buddy who wanted it (even though I showed him the damage); so we agreed on a price & it went down range. Would NEVER get rid of any of my M1a's unless I was absolutely broke and could not feed myself and the wife.
    Mustang

    "In the beginning... the patriot is a scarce man, and brave and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot." - Mark Twain.

  19. #19
    Moderator


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    I'll be keeping mine. Never owned or fired an AR-180, so my testimonial is limited to what in this case is a M14-SA.

    DG

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  20. #20
    Boolit Master
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    If I had an M1A and it shot well I'd just keep it. I loved my M14 mainly cause I shot very well with it. These days, if I wanted another semi rifle, I'd get the Ruger or SCAR (if I could afford it).

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check