Hello, I have an M1A in 308 it has the short barrel with flash suppressor on the end and I was told that a scope wont hold 0 on this rifle because of the short barrel and kick of the gun. Does this sound correct? If not what are some scope options for this model rifle? Also is this a rifle that can produce sub MOA groups?
BBean
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Well, legally, your barrel is at least 16 inches. A M1A is a civilian copy of a M14 less the select fire option. The difference is the M14 was designed for 7.62x51 NATO and the M1A is .308 Winchester. The .308 is a tad more powerful than the NATO, however, I have fired .308 in an M14 and never felt any substantial difference in recoil.
I was issued a M14 in the USMC in the Fall of 1962 (The year of the Cuban Quarantine Operation) which many Marines had no prior experience shooting them. After returning to San Diego harbor a few weeks later aboard the LSD 31 Point Defiance and back to base of Camp Pendleton our yearly qualifications came up still with no prior experience shooting them for qualification. The only notes(aka DOPE... Data Obtained from Previous Engagement(s) I had were from the last weapon I qualified with which was a M1 Garand. We did have a familiarisation day before. Then someone brought up a very interesting question...hey Sarge, where`s the ammo? It`s supposed to be here tomorrow, he said. The government pays for it tomorrow...I paid for it today. He passed out the said .308 he bought in Oceanside from someone he knew in a gun shop. There was only 5 of us that had to qualify so it did not exactly break him. I was just a PFC and could not legally buy beer in California so I did not know nor care about ammo in a military weapon...if it broke...I would be issued another one. Simple as that. It shot fine...less recoil than a M1...more accurate and I earned an Expert medal with a score of 227 and next year after a 241 out of a possible 250.
Not much difference in performance the next day with NATO ammo.
So, what kind of scope? I did mount a couple of Griffin and Howe scope mounts on M1 Garands for officers that obtained them...again, I asked no questions. Their scopes held up under the .30-06 or I would have heard about it. There is a felt recoil difference between .308 and .30-06. So I say buy a scope made for .308 or .30-06 and not some cheapo and don`t worry about breaking them nor holding 0. I do believe a scope that repeats mounted on a bolt action will hold up on a semi-auto M1A with shorter barrel.
W
The short barrel and scope have nothing to do with it. It is most likely to be the bedding of the barrel, or even the stock itself. Many wooden stocks tend to react to the heat of a barrel and can put uneven pressure on the barrel that will cause the impact point to change as the barrel (and stock) get hotter. You can either seek a better stock or free-float it (not familiar with the M1A. Remember the old saw: 'The barrel shoots, the stock hits.'
garry
good for 100 yards , after that you miss a shoot .scoops are god if you have bad eyes , but 100 yards the wind be carry your shot , .
JOHN B
It can produce sub MOA but it's going to take $$$$ and time and experimentation to accomplish. It was designed as an easily disassembled battle rifle. This produces loose tolerances between stock and action which is the first expenditure. To bed stock by a professional may start at $300. It only snowballs from there and your particular skill level must be in the realm of expert. Join this group.
https://www.m14forum.com/threads/socom-accuracy.507711/
Russ in NOVA
LOL. Most decent quality scopes will hold zero at much higher recoil than a 16" barrel .308 win rifle.
I would not bet on sub-moa out of the box. Probably between 1 and 2 MOA.