Been enamored by the rifles as of late. Very expensive to get into one. About $1500. I am thinking of getting a Scout/Squad, which is an 18" barreled version. I am sure I would be better off with a new bolt rifle, a Leupold and ordering a new barreled for a custom build project for the money, but I will only have this much cash to burn once. (home sale)

I have a good number of bolt guns. Most semi custom, as I am a lefty. I thought an autoloader would be a decent woods bumming rifle or truck gun. Also serve double duty as a behind the door gun for the family while I am away. Also thought it would fill a niche as a logging road walking gun/berry picking gun during bear season for decent firepower for blackies.

I've surfed on some M1a/M14 sights. Almost all are former Service men who bleed M1A and claim it's the best rifle ever designed. I am sure it's a nice rifle, but it's a bit like finding a Dodge forum and asking if the Cummins engine is a good one.

Personally I carry an AR in various calibers as truck weapons. I"ve shot the M14 in matches since 1989 or so. I love the guns and have a couple in the safe. Wife has one also. I take mine deer hunting now and then but have never considered to use it as a truck gun though it should work just fine as one. I happen to think that the AR, with the dust cover closed might be a bit less susecptible to gunk though. And I've got ARs from 22 up to 50 beowulf and some between currently with more to come.

Ain't no bad on a good M1A though.

My SOCOM 16 was with me in my Jeep for a couple years. I thought it was the perfect choice. The only downside was the weight when I took it with me on hikes. I had carried it in my Phantom pack by Eberlestock, which helped alot but ended up switching to an SBR Krinkov. While it doesnt have the accuracy, it makes up for in a much smaller and lighter package. The SOCOM 16 still comes with me for 4 wheeling/road trips/camping....ust not when I knowI'll be on foot for any length of time.

Yeah, I know they are heavy. And I am fan of the Eberlestock stuff as well. Have a smaller daypack with scabbard I am quite fond of for scouting and predator calling.

I know one of the big names in coyote calling, Boddicker, chose a G3 for his calling. Moving to WA which is thick with black bears, thought this may make a decent calling rifle?

Overall NOT a black rifle fan. Work with many that are and seem to need to buy every "assualt weapon" that hits the market just to watch cop movies in their Fruits while stroking their weapons. Not that kinda guy. Wouldn't mind having one before you can't though.

Had an AR once. A big, heavy SOB. DPMS with 1" dia tube. Sniper grip and such. Thought it would be the ultimate coyote rifle. Think I took it once. Was plenty accurate, I just never warmed up to it. Was a PITA to carry, hand guard was aluminum and brutal cold.

I think the firepower of the M1A a much better thing vs the 223.

G3 I think will be as cumbersome as your AR. I got rid of my 24in AR upper for the same reason. I would choose the M1A platform over a G3.

Jesse, I have some experience with the original M-14.

Looking over the specs of Springfield's M-1A, I would go with the full size basic M-1A for your needs. My original M-14 had a walnut stock, my second M-14 had a fiberglass stock, of the two I preferred the walnut as the overall weight was better distributed.

If you used the M-1A very little I suppose the short version would okay but the short version and the standard version both weight about the same. I can tell you once you start using the
M-1A you will be shooting it all the time. If you have good eyes and with the 10 round magazine the M-1A will be your go to rifle more often than not for just about all your hunting needs.

Don't bother with the 20 round magazine it's not worth it. The rifle will be easier to carry with the 10 round magazine. Not that this should be a problem for you but the 20 round mag can only hold 16-18 rounds to work properly plus it adds weight.

Hope this helps.

10-4 on the 10 rnd mag. If I can't get it done with a 10rnder I am in trouble.

Man, it's hard to burn $1500 on one gun. We shall see.

Appreciate the input.

As I mentioned I am not a Die Hard assault weapons guy that has a billion ARs and everything else that comes along.

But I like what I see with the shorted M1As. I can swap out the front sling stud for a picatinny under rail. Just a 2" piece to mount a Sure Fire or similar.

And the new mounts for scope are shoot through meaning you can still use irons with the scope in place.

Sounds like and all around good investment.

I think behind the door of the rural home is where it will rest when not in the field. With a wife and 10 and 12 year old boys, I would feel much more comfortable with a rifle/light combo around the home than the Glock.

I mentioned "Why bring the fight into the home"? on another forum when I was begining to get shelled on the shoot through power of the .308 I would rather my family intentionally shoot through the walls of my home to stomp a POS out before anything else.

Not many real M14's out there...

I have an M1a Bush rifle, the camo version. I added a tritium front sight (SOCOM) and a ghost-ring rear aperature with the stop stoned off so that I can dial it out easily if I want. I had a tactical light mounted on it for a while too, and it was my main home defense rifle... just awesome.

KILLER rifle.

Now, is it a good truck gun? At that price, for me, no. I'd choose a beater used $250 bolt action or 30-30 or whatever.

Lefty here also. I have a 16" Socom M1A and really like it. Robust and very accurate with the iron sights. Far more compact than the full size and this makes it much easier to deploy from a truck.
JtP

Loud though, huh? I think my Bush rifle is 18" and it's still a loud mutha....

I got a M1 garand and a M1 SOCOM i love them i bought the first for my old military collection about 10 years ago got the other simply because I liked it i dont hunt with them but theyd work

Agreed about the 10-rounders, especially with a Bush rifle (I've also had a full-size one).

But, I've never seen a single problem with a 20-round magazine and I always load they with 20 rounds. What problems are you talking about Tim?

I have a SOCOM and it is one heck of a rifle. Just remember that a lot of states only allow rifles that use removable magazines to hold 5 rounds if you are going to hunt deer with it.

Our 20 rounders would sometimes not load the last two or three rounds or worst yet cause a jam. Of course, the 20 rounders I had were military and had probably been mistreated. They were also the same mags we used for full auto on those M-14's that had the selector switch.

I think the 20 rounders were original intended for the auto M-14's because in many ways they were a PIA for infantry work. Try shooting prone or from a fox hole they could get in the way if one wasn't careful. A 10 rounder flush with the bottom of the rifle would have been just fine. All my personal opinion though and we know I don't know much.

Would love a Bush Rifle, but they are semi hard to come by. Plus Springfield with help me out with a little LEO "incentive". So kinda a no brainer to grab an NIB Scout.

Jeff-sounds like we had/have similar thoughts on the door gun?

Been a few years since I was in WA. Not sure of the hunting regs. Anyone know if M1A is legal with a 10 round mag?

That will be the part of leaving NM I will not like. No one really cares what you do and the gun regs are about non existant.

From all the reading of the game regs in WA state, there is no limit on mag capacity for big game hunting.
I don't find the SOCOM to be all that loud, much less noise than my braked 300 RUM and 338Lapua.

The gun regs in the PNW are not bad... open carry, concealed permits aren't tough to get, etc.

In Oregon, you can't have more than a 5-round detachable magazine for hunting with a semi-auto. They make them, I have a couple.

Cool guns. Haven't shot mine in a while. Better remedy that.

Sold my Scout-Squad, which shot into sub MOA with a Scout scope, to buy my daugher a car. Filled with remorse...but she is happy.

As long as you don't leave it IN the truck (think auto burglary) it'd be great. But they are pigs to tote very far.

A 1.5-5x leup would be ideal on a Scout Squad.

I'm the goofy bastard that still thinks a 30/30 lever is great 'truck' gun.

You're not that goofy, I tend to agree with you but that's not what the original poster asked or I would have said get a 30-30.

Or almost as good get a M-1 carbine.

Don't doubt the 30/30 either. This may turn out to be one of my dumber purchases, but with so many M1A people that are adamant about how great the rifle is, hard to give one a rip

Well I must be a goofy bastid as well. I know its a new toy but for a nice truck gun/hiking gun try a Marlin 336 in 30-30 or 1894 in 357 or 44 mag. A used one will run you about 20% of the cost and you can use the extra cash for your other projects. With a little practice, the lever guns make quite a home/self defense weapon.

If you just want one, then go for it though in my limited experience, I like the M-1a better.

FWIW, the only rifle that gets left in my truck/Jeep is a MN M38. The SOCOM only came with me if I knew I was 4 wheeling or hiking. For 75 bucks I wont cry when I find rust or if it happens to get stolen.