My first Springfield M1a: any advice appreciated

[Hair Trigger]

What do you guys recommend for sights on an M1A? I'm not ready to go with optics, but my "older eyes" make the front sight blurry. I can see the sides pretty well, but it's tough to plant the bull on top of the post with precision. I'm OK at 100 and 200 yds, but 500 yds is a real problem.

That's when I gave up and put a scope on mine. At 68, I can still hit at 200 yards consistently with the iron sights; less so at 300, and forget anything past that. Scoping the rifle opened up 500+ for me. I've hit steel plates to 800 with my M1A, and have gone to 1125 with a custom AR 6.5 Grendel. It doesn't hurt to have a small version of the Hubble strapped to the top.

 

[ISCS Yoda]

We still have the M14 in the Navy

And a good thing, too. Force protection needs the ability to reach out and touch someone in a way that 5.56 NATO in M16s cannot replicate.

 

[flintsghost]

The best mount for optics of any kind on an M1A is the Bassett Tool and Machine mount, made and sold in Dripping Springs, Texas. I did the original R&D for Bassett on his picatinny rail mount when he was developing it. I still prefer the original low that he custom made for me way back when. But I have both. I used to go down to Dripping Springs and visit with him every now and then. His daughters manage the business now but they have somebody else making them. Bill Bassett, past away several years ago from cancer. His mount is the lightest weight and can be removed and reinstalled, going back to within a MOA or so of zero every time.

 

[Baxter6551]

I only have one M14 - an early Armscorp Silver Spring address with all TRW parts. Sadlak scope mount. It is indeed an accurate rifle and creates smiles at the range.

 

[jdlii]

What do you guys recommend for sights on an M1A? I'm not ready to go with optics, but my "older eyes" make the front sight blurry. I can see the sides pretty well, but it's tough to plant the bull on top of the post with precision. I'm OK at 100 and 200 yds, but 500 yds is a real problem.



If you have the standard aperture, you may want to try a National Match, hooded, aperture. There are a couple of different sizes and there are probably other options available from commercial manufacturers.

Some of my fellow shooters changed out their National Match front sights for standard front sights, as they aged. They maintained that the wider, standard front sight was easier to line up and provided better target acquisition.

My guess is that you are aware of "smoking" or "blacking" the front sight to avoid glare caused by sunlight. The iris type aperture, either on the lens of your shooting glasses or available in a separate pair of shooting glasses, is also a viable option.

I always wore Knobloch shooting glasses when I shot service rifles. The lens was "optical center" of my prescription and worked well with exception of the aperture leaving scratches on the lens.

Good luck and good shooting!

 

[Gene L]

Mine weighs 10 pounds and it's not a loaded one.

 

[Nevada Ed]

That rife is well made and easy to field strip, in order to maintain it.

When over seas, we had to check the butt plate for rust, check for carbon build up and the port hole, for proper gas transfer as well as making sure after
a lot of shooting, that the flash depressor, was still tight and not loose.

If it has a sling, it will help in accuracy, when you learn how to use it in all the shooting positions
if you get into that type of shooting.

Enjoy your new rifle.

 

[Model5]

I've noticed with my loaded model it performs better with 168gr plus bullets. It will shoot 150gr reliably but groups will tighten tremendously with heavy bullets. Also my recommendation if you decided to purchase and install a scope. Mechanically zero the scope before taking it to the range. That way when you set all the hardware and Lock the mount into the receiver you can manipulate it to ensure your Mount is perfectly parallel to the axis of the bore. Then windage will be a matter of actual windage not correcting mechanical error in the set up. That's all I have. I've enjoyed both the nm sights and shooting with a scope on mine. It does well enough that a 10" plate at 300 yards becomes boring because it will hit it every time.

 

[BB57]

What do you guys recommend for sights on an M1A? I'm not ready to go with optics, but my "older eyes" make the front sight blurry. I can see the sides pretty well, but it's tough to plant the bull on top of the post with precision. I'm OK at 100 and 200 yds, but 500 yds is a real problem.

I've tried a 0.75 flip down diopter and a Gehmann adjustable aperture. The owner of Shooting Sight suggested a 0.5 diopter, but he's out of stock at the moment. He also makes a rectangular aperture for the rear sight that seems intriguing. I haven't bought that yet either . . . .

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Old eyes and a stiff neck make prone shooting a challenge.

B Jones Sights used to sell a small diopter lens that fit in the NM sight aperture and you could get them in various powers like .3, .5 and .7. It worked well for guys with age related reading glass type issues, as long as they used just enough to let you bring the front sight into focus.

Unfortunately I think he passed away a few years ago.

——-

Jdlii isn't wrong about a larger aperture possibly helping, but it depends on the condition you have.

If it's age related issues with close focusing, then a smaller aperture actually helps as the smaller aperture increases your eye's depth of field.

NM apertures come in two sizes. Most folks use the .0595" aperture size as it works well on bright as well as cloudy days.

The smaller .052" aperture increases your depth of field if you wear reading glasses so it's a plus for old guys.

However, if it is some other eye condition that causes issues in low light conditions, then your best bet is the regular non NM aperture which is .070" in diameter.

——

BJones Sights used to sell a small diopter lens that fit in the NM sight aperture. It worked well for shooters who wore reading glasses provided they didn't go crazy and use more than they needed to see the sight. IIRC it could be had in .3, .5 and .7 diopters. Unfortunately, I think he died a few years ago, and I am not sure if anyone is making anything similar.

 

[dsf]

I had the ARMS18 and it was a disaster as it would not clean ejection and the empty case would get jammed under the mount.

I was really bummed out because it was IMO the best option as it related to size, durability, weight, etc.

Have you experienced such malfunctions?

I haven't had those issues, no. Just guessing, but when I bought the Scout the SA factory extractor didn't work from the 1st shot. I checked it and there was absolutely no edge to it. Struck me as a casting that skipped the final machining process. Having a few Garands and a Hahn Machine M14 I keep GI extractors around and swapped out. It may be that the better "bite" pulls them out at a lower angle and clears the mount?

 

[dsf]

What do you guys recommend for sights on an M1A? I'm not ready to go with optics, but my "older eyes" make the front sight blurry. I can see the sides pretty well, but it's tough to plant the bull on top of the post with precision. I'm OK at 100 and 200 yds, but 500 yds is a real problem.

I've tried a 0.75 flip down diopter and a Gehmann adjustable aperture. The owner of Shooting Sight suggested a 0.5 diopter, but he's out of stock at the moment. He also makes a rectangular aperture for the rear sight that seems intriguing. I haven't bought that yet either . . . .

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Old eyes and a stiff neck make prone shooting a challenge.

I think alot of folks have trouble at 500 yds, not just older shooters - I'm 64.

I've threaded a couple of M14/Garand ladders and use a Merit adjustable with an Alley globe front. The Alley uses inserts - Lyman 17 IIRC. Thicker post front insert may help. I like the round type, my eyes work well with "circle in a circle".





Not an M1A, but the same sight set up -



I don't know if Alley started making them again, but last time I checked they were not. They were making them for the M1 Carbine and a little fitting made them work for me on the M1A.

BTW, thank you for the Shooting Sight reference. Hadn't heard of them, checked the sight and "wow" - great stuff for the Garand, 03, 1917 and M14, etc.

 

[Krogen]

Great information here! Thanks to all of you for contributing your experiences and wisdom!

 

[growr]

Anyone use an Obermeyer 5Rbarrel?

I have one on my SuperMatch....I shot out 4 barrels over the course and am now on my last barrel.....no more High Power matches left in Montana.

Only fired one box of M852....stunning results to say the least!

Randy