Stevie-Ray
New member
My choice over 2 decades ago was the FAL over the M1A and G3. I've never been sorry, though today I would probably opt for the RFB or AR10. I must say that my FAL is still my favorite rifle to shoot, though.
.308 / 7.62x51 The "other" rifle
- Thread starter SHNOMIDO
- Start date
there are a couple of others out there, like the FN49, the FNAR, and the SCAR17
i believe the RFB is actually a bullpup FAL, also the G3 is a inproved CETME so most parts should be interchangeable
of the ones you looking at i think the FAL is the best choice, unless you want to spend the money for the SCAR17
i believe the RFB is actually a bullpup FAL, also the G3 is a inproved CETME so most parts should be interchangeable
of the ones you looking at i think the FAL is the best choice, unless you want to spend the money for the SCAR17
UpstateGlocker
New member
DSA FAL
For an occasional shooter they offer reliability, decent accuracy, and easy breakdown for cleaning. They are also fun to shoot and scope mount. DSA has had a few hiccups but quality control is overall good. Spare parts are easy to find. If you win the lottery you can go SCAR or one of the other modern superguns vying for some military contract, but the FAL will still be there as the Chevy of 7.62 semis.
For an occasional shooter they offer reliability, decent accuracy, and easy breakdown for cleaning. They are also fun to shoot and scope mount. DSA has had a few hiccups but quality control is overall good. Spare parts are easy to find. If you win the lottery you can go SCAR or one of the other modern superguns vying for some military contract, but the FAL will still be there as the Chevy of 7.62 semis.
Out of the 3 choices posted by the OP, I consider the FAL the best choice. You could also consider an AR in .308 format.
The high quality M1A's (Smith Enterprise) are extremely expensive. Most of the common M1A's like Springfields use cast receivers. The Chinese M1A''s have good barreled receivers but not-so-good internals.
Anyway, I like a number of the FAL's over the M1A. The ones I like are the original Belgian FAL's, Israeli import FAL's (made on Belgian forgings), and the DSA Para. I believe the Aussie FAL's are supposed to be pretty nice as well, but I've only seen pictures of them.
The high quality M1A's (Smith Enterprise) are extremely expensive. Most of the common M1A's like Springfields use cast receivers. The Chinese M1A''s have good barreled receivers but not-so-good internals.
Anyway, I like a number of the FAL's over the M1A. The ones I like are the original Belgian FAL's, Israeli import FAL's (made on Belgian forgings), and the DSA Para. I believe the Aussie FAL's are supposed to be pretty nice as well, but I've only seen pictures of them.
No, but I've never seen my 20 year old Jennings J-22 fail either because it is made of ZAMAK.
M14's were designed to be constructed on forged receivers. The better M1A's are made on forged receivers. That's just a fact. Likewise, the Belgian, Israeli, and Australian FAL's are all constructed on forged receivers. The DSA FAL's are made on forged receivers, and I think Imbel is even forged. Other FALs may have forged receivers as well, but I don't know for sure.
When dealing with .308 rounds, I think forged receivers are preferred for a reason. Springfield receivers are cast because it's a cheaper process, not because it s a better process. I'm sure that it's good enough for semi-auto fire....However, I wonder how those cast receivers would hold up to full-auto fire.
well i for one do love my M14. a fine rifle that outshoots me.
however i also enjoy my .308 Galil. i prefer the sights to the M14 by a slim margin, but the M14 soaks up the recoil better (i have replaced the buttplate with a recoil pad)
i love the design and story of the FAL and one day will have one....oh yes it will be mine!
however i also enjoy my .308 Galil. i prefer the sights to the M14 by a slim margin, but the M14 soaks up the recoil better (i have replaced the buttplate with a recoil pad)
i love the design and story of the FAL and one day will have one....oh yes it will be mine!
curmudgeon1
New member
Has anybody personally scoped an M14? How much work/$$$ involved?
I love the platform.
I love the platform.
Yeah, but Jennings also has a track record for being crap. How many Springfields are out there? How many rounds have been through some of those rifles? They've been making them since the seventies. So for about 40 years now, SAI has been casting those receivers, without issue. I've yet to hear of one failure due to the receiver being cast rather than forged. We're not talking about full auto applications here, so the fact of the matter is, you will damage your op rod long before you crack the receiver.
The more expensive M14 pattern receivers are forged. I think that's the real fact there. Sure, I get that if you have money to blow, and you can build a custom M14 patern rifle, it's sort of like the custom 1911 scene, you want to get the forged receiver, but for practical use, If the SAI castings don't have accuracy or function issues, what's the major difference besides bragging rights? I'm not knocking those that want to buy a forged receiver for their build, I'm just saying that an SAI receiver will do all you could ever ask of the rifle and then some. That receiver will long outlive its owner. There is really only one shortcoming to the SAI receivers, which is that the left side of the receiver is not always milspec in dimensions, causing minor fitment issues with certain mounts. There is nothing wrong with the steel though.
Jason
scoped M14
curmudgeon1
i scoped mine (personal and issued), tried a few mounts and all. it wasnt too difficult nor too easy. i had to remove the flash hider assembly to borescope it but thats not too difficult.
ARMS makes a really nice solid nearly Soldier proof mount but its not see through, does make for a nice tight package though. i dont recall off the top of my head which is currently on my rifle. but it works fine and i used the same mount during a tour in iraq.
curmudgeon1
i scoped mine (personal and issued), tried a few mounts and all. it wasnt too difficult nor too easy. i had to remove the flash hider assembly to borescope it but thats not too difficult.
ARMS makes a really nice solid nearly Soldier proof mount but its not see through, does make for a nice tight package though. i dont recall off the top of my head which is currently on my rifle. but it works fine and i used the same mount during a tour in iraq.
