Comments

1. On July 26, 2018 at 1:21 pm, moe mensale said:

   @Herschel,

   But then it wouldn’t be an M1A!

   I owned several M1As years ago including one with $3,600 into it (just for the gun) that still wouldn’t shoot sub-moa on a regular basis. They’re all gone now.

2. On July 26, 2018 at 1:28 pm, John said:

   I just can’t get generally excited over the 6.5 Creedmoor.
   The old .270 Winchester (depending on the load) is ballistically
   almost as good and sometimes better, available anywhere
   and is relatively inexpensive due to its’ high volume manufacturing.
   I agree that for the money MI A sub MOA performance should be
   the standard. I did love that M 14 back in the day; though I bumped
   into some wandering zero problems.

3. On July 26, 2018 at 2:30 pm, Georgiaboy61 said:

   @ Herschel

   “It appears to be a sturdy and aesthetically pleasing gun. But honestly, for the money I would have expected a sub-MOA gun.”

   There are M-14s/M1A’s capable of sub-moa performance. The one you tested apparently isn’t one of them.

   Because of the basic design of the rifle, and the relatively-large reciprocating mass cycling back-and–forth on each shot, the M14/M1A platform (and its parent M-1 Garand) can be tough to match-condition and accurize. Typically, such efforts include bedding the action to the stock, something not offered in the “M1A Loaded” series – which has a NM barrel and trigger – but not a bedded action.

   It may also be the case that the rifle – specifically, the barrel – wasn’t sufficiently broken in for optimal accuracy. As well, it is possible that you did not test the particular 6.5 CM factory load most-preferred by that particular rifle. A skilled hand-loader might be able to develop a sub-moa recipe for your test rifle.

   Fulton Armory, who are direct competitors of Springfield Armory, Inc., guarantee 1.5 moa from their M14-pattern rifles chambered in 6.5 CM, using Federal Gold Medal Match ammunition.

   If looking for a long-range platform capable of exploiting the excellent ballistics of the 6.5 Creedmoor to the full, consider something like a Savage MSR 10 Long Range, which is based upon the AR platform – inherently a very accurate design. It offers a true free-float 22-inch barrel – and Savage Arms Corp. has long been renowned for the quality and accuracy of their barrels. According to the testing I’ve seen written-up in industry publications, this rifle ought to be capable of consistent moa or even sub-moa performance, if match-grade ammunition is used.

   As a disclaimer, although I once worked in the retail firearms industry I am not affiliated with any of the manufacturers mentioned above. Over the years, I have simply been impressed by the accuracy of Savage rifles, right out of the box, and thought I would pass that along here. Savage rifles often out-shoot rifles costing 3-4 times as much. Why pay more when you do not need to do so?

4. On July 26, 2018 at 2:33 pm, Herschel Smith said:

   @Georgiaboy,

   Of course, I didn’t do the test. NRA writers did.

   I don’t have a Savage gun, but the next long gun I buy will be Savage. I make decisions for my next purchase months in advance.

5. On July 26, 2018 at 9:37 pm, Georgiaboy61 said:

   @ Herschel

   Re: “Of course, I didn’t do the test. NRA writers did.”

   Yes, of course…. apparently, my cup of coffee had not yet kicked in when I penned that post. Mea culpa. You already know about Savage Arms…. why am I not surprised?

6. On July 29, 2018 at 1:58 pm, MTHead said:

   The nature of the world we live in dictates that every weapons system imaged. Is at best a series of compromises. Technology chips around the edges of those compromises, and has made wonderful inroads. Bullet technologies, alloys, platings. just to name a few. But we rarely see these true upgrades in the military.
   But the laws of physics will not be denied. You can’t have a laser powerful enough to disrupt the structure of the atom, without the power source to drive it. and if you made it lite enough to carry, it probably wouldn’t last very long.
   I believe the AR system in most of its incarnations is the most viable. But, like many good things in life, bureaucracy chokes the life from it. or in its quest for power and payola, it creates a “desperate” need for something new!
   Theirs a reason the Russians went from a 30 caliber bullet, down to a 22 caliber in their 39mm cartridge, after seeing what our 55gr. did in Vietnam. You might also note bullet weight on that cartridge has been dropped from 80gr. down to 60gr. as of late. An acknowledgment that smaller, lighter bullets that tumble on impact incapacitate humans as well as can be expected.
   All in all, I guess its somewhat pessimistic of me to not believe in a “magic bullet”. Or that the M27 is going to fix anything. when the real problem is the one nobody is going to fix. Welcome to the Pentagon!

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