Poll - Favorite Battle Rifle

[HorseSoldier]

Since getting out, I have purchased an M-1 Garand...and next to my wife and kids, this is the love of my life (at least until the military starts selling off M-14s to civilians). A sweet, sweet rifle.

Never going to happen, barring a complete rewrite of US gun laws -- even though most M14s weren't issued with full auto capability enabled, the receivers are still set up for it, and so BATFE takes the "once a machine gun, always a machine gun" view on the matter.

If you can find an older M1A (back when Springfield Armory was basically just assembling USGI M14 parts on their receivers), or get one from a higher end manufacturer than SA today, you can get something that is about as close to the real thing as will ever be available on the commercial market, though. (Well, I'm told there are some transferable Class III M14s out there, but I think I've heard upwards of $15K price tags if you can even find one . . .)

[dragoon500ly]

Never going to happen, barring a complete rewrite of US gun laws -- even though most M14s weren't issued with full auto capability enabled, the receivers are still set up for it, and so BATFE takes the "once a machine gun, always a machine gun" view on the matter.

If you can find an older M1A (back when Springfield Armory was basically just assembling USGI M14 parts on their receivers), or get one from a higher end manufacturer than SA today, you can get something that is about as close to the real thing as will ever be available on the commercial market, though. (Well, I'm told there are some transferable Class III M14s out there, but I think I've heard upwards of $15K price tags if you can even find one . . .)

I know that the likelyhood of M-14s being sold to civilians is somewhere in between "never going to happen" and "when pigs fly"...but it is a sweet rifle and I have a lot of fond memories.

But the M-1 is the next best thing, and in spite of the armchair wiz-bangs talking out of their fourth point of contact about the amount of noise that the clip makes...after over three years of shooting it, I'm happy!

[Matt Wiser]

I'll take the G-3. In Europe, you're likely to find G-3s or FALs, but I'll go with the G-3. There's a greater likelihood of picking one up off a corpse than an M-14. (2nd choice) Given that's probably how replacement weapons and ammo are found, beggars can't be choosers.

[dragoon500ly]

All too true...but I'm willing to bet that a lot of GIs will be toting AKs!

[Legbreaker]

I've got to admit that the AK with it's curved mag certainly looks very cool and it's likely to get picked up for this factor if nothing else.
As far as a practical and accurate weapon, there's plenty of better options out there IMHO.

[HorseSoldier]

The gunner on my first Bradley crew had (as a PFC or so) carried one he picked up on day one of the ground war in the '91 go-round. Chain of command eventually told him to get rid of it, on or about the last day of the ground war.

These days I can't imagine anyone with quality, current-state-of-the-art weapons training reaching for an AK because, as suggested, it's just not a very good gunfighting weapon, but in the Twilight War it'd probably happen even before necessity enters the equation. Big Army didn't get serious about gunfighting until . . . well, okay, they're still not very serious about it, but they started trying to get better only within the last five years or so.

[Legbreaker]

That'd be the US military then. Us in the rest of the world have looked upon marksmanship in a positive light for a very long time.

[HorseSoldier]

Not marksmanship. Gunfighting. Related but very distinct fields of study.

[dragoon500ly]

I've got to admit that the AK with it's curved mag certainly looks very cool and it's likely to get picked up for this factor if nothing else.
As far as a practical and accurate weapon, there's plenty of better options out there IMHO.

It have the accuracy of a Brown Bess, it can get hot enough to burn your hand under sustained fire, say what you will, drop it in sand or mud, take it from the tropics to the artic and back, lose parts and have some 3rd World blacksmith beat out a replacement part, but the AK has one thing going for it...its works under any and all conditions. Something that can't be said for a lot of high tech wonders that the West/NATO issues to its troops.

[Cpl. Kalkwarf]

You know, the more I think about it. Im going to go with an SVD as a combo Battle Rifle and DMR. Its kinda limited with the 10 rd mag though. But still its one heck of a rifle, and its sexy to boot.

[Legbreaker]

I can't imagine nobody has produced an extended capacity mag for the SVD....

[Tegyrius]

I can't imagine nobody has produced an extended capacity mag for the SVD....

I've seen some homemade 20-rounders for the "AK-54" (Romanian PSL with AK furniture), but they seem to be two 10-round bodies welded together. Wouldn't want to bet my life on one.

- C.

[95th Rifleman]

The SLR is a great Battle rifle. It has a good, heavy round and is proven in combat to be a deadly weapon in trained hands.

The Falklands proved something else about the SLR/FAL, it's a blody pile of heavy crap in the hands of half-trained conscripts and is useless as a fully automatic weapon (which is why the British/Commonwealth SLR was semi only).

The M14 is lighter, easier to control and arguably a better piece of kit for militias and units with little training, it's almost idiot-proof. The M14 is also a good latform for further conversion and tinkering, which makes it such a great DMR thst is still in use today.

We Brits need some tissues and a quiet moment to ourselves when we see the SLR because the British where (and still are) a relatively small and highly tained military with very high standards of marksmanship. A British soldier could make 600m killshots with an SLR because that is what he was trained to do, day in and day out on the ranges come rain or shine.

Nations with larger militaries can't put that much effort into the average soldier. America is a good example as they are required to spend less time on individual training compared to the British (with the exception of the USMC who have a similar focus on marksmanship).

It comes down to doctrine. The British is geared around the idea of individual, aimed shots to make best use of limited numbers and ammo conservation.

The US army is geared around putting serious lead downrange to make the enemy keep their heads down as US troops advance andpush the enemy out.

In a way the Bits are more defensive in style as their advances tend to be slow and steady affairs in a tried and tested fashion that has won many battles. The Americans are fast and furious and their choice of weaponry matchs this philosophy of rapid advance under heavy and sustained fire.

Heh, this has become something of an essay so I apologise. In short, the SLR and M14 are two different weapons with different tactical doctrines inspiring their development and use.

[James Langham]

While the British in the 20th century (after bad experiences in the Boer Wars) have always prized marksmanship, there are two other reasons that the British prize marksmanship so highly:

1. Northern Ireland had given us an environment when shots had to be carefully placed.

2. Defence cuts never gave us enough ammo!

Preference between weapons is highly dependent on what you are trained on/national pride. SLR is still the best though :-)

[Targan]

We Brits need some tissues and a quiet moment to ourselves when we see the SLR because the British were (and still are) a relatively small and highly trained military with very high standards of marksmanship. A British soldier could make 600m killshots with an SLR because that is what he was trained to do, day in and day out on the ranges come rain or shine.

And we in the antipodean Dominions have proudly inherited these doctrines.

It's funny you've mentioned 600m killshots because on my very first range qualification shoot with an SLR, once I'd zeroed it, I didn't miss a single shot on the 600m pop-up range. I was far from being the perfect infantryman but I'm proud of my marksmanship.

Edit: Oops, just realised I said the same thing about accuracy 24 posts above