M1A National Match

GT-40 GUY said:

Everyone that I know that shoots theirs in competition tell me that you need to re-bed them after about 1,500 rounds to keep them competitive.

gt40

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jmoser said:

Problem is there is nothing to bed. Top match shooters weld lugs onto the receiver so there is a bedding surface; without this the receiver will always move in the stock.

I have resisted the urge to buy a 'modern' M1A as Springfield could easily enhance the platform. I would love one but I just don't see $1600 - $2000 worth of content given the alternatives in AR10 / FN platform vs the Scout / SOCOM variants.

Give me an 18" plain threaded bbl with front sight on rail, receiver lug/stock design upgrade, and integral optics mounting rail. Needs to be a $1000 max real world price.

A 'service class' M1A for nostalgia / collecting is another story but I can't get over the hump for a 'tactical' style gun in M1A.

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GunnSmokeer said:

National Match m1A from Springfield Armory? I've had one for 30 years.

I scoped it, with an old fashioned scope mount that only mounts to the side, not also to the stripper clip guide slot.

Scoping it made it MUCH more accurate in my hands, under almost all conditions. Sure, I still take the scope off every few years and shoot NRA and CMP service rifle / highpower rifle matches with the iron sights, BUT I'd get much tighter groups if I could use some kind of optics. Even a red dot, or even a low-power scope. A fixed 4X scope with a 32mm front lens is what I have on my M1A most of the time.

AMMO SELECTION IS CRITICAL.

My rifle shoots .7 moa most of the time, and I've gotten 1/2 MOA, with Federal Gold Medal 168 gr. BTHP rounds.

On the same day from the same bench rest, through the same scope, I used some Indian and Portuguese military surplus FMJ (147 or 150 gr.) and got 3.5" and 4" groups at 100 yds.
Premium hunting ammo groups better, more like 2", but nothing is close to the 168 BTHP match ammo in my experience.

P.S. Don't shoot premium commercial .308 Winchester ammo in this rifle, made for 7.62 NATO ammo. The pressure curve is different and the timing of the pressure increase and decrease is different. The operating rod can break. Mine did, after I'd shot about 500 rounds of 7.62 NATO and only 60 rounds of commercial .308 Win. Did ammo cause the op-rod failure? I don't know. But it's something to think about, and I'm going to be really careful about what .308 ammo I use in it from now on.

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