M1A/M14 stock Question

[votery]

I have a Loaded m1a rifle with a M21 stock (It’s the walnut stock with a cheek riser), and my weapon shoots horrible groups. I know this is because I don’t have the gun glass bedded to the new stock. My question is, are those Sage EBR stocks worth the buy? How can those be more accurate then mine? It seems there would be a lot more movement between the stock and the weapon. I would like to purchase one before I glass bead my stock so I can resale. So any advice would be great.

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[ron]

Bedding will improve accuracy a little but a seasonably tight fit wood to stock it should shoot very good to great. It sounds like 'horrible' groups
you have some other problem. Is the ammo match ammo. My M1A shoots OK with Black Hills match ammo but shoots my 168 SMK reloads
under an inch at 100 yards. Is something loose like scope rings or mount? The stock should spring at the front end between the stock and hand guard.
In my experience bedding will improve accuracy a little.

 

[votery]

I was shooting 150 BT's non match. I have some 168's that are match I will try those but with powder shortages I only have cfe223 and I haven't heard anything on that powder. But I am still debating on if I should buy that expensive stock.

 

[Benny503]

I tried Vtor stock because it was light but I did not like it. I got sage ebr stock and in love with it ever since. Yes the sage ebr is good stock to have!

 

[votery]

Benny would you say the ebr stock has good groups? my dad has the same stock as me and is bedded and shoots 3/4- 7/8 inch groups at 100. I am looking for that sizing or better before I make a decision.

 

[Benny503]

Yes it does good grouping but all I shot was from the bench. The other thing is that it make the rifle lots more heavier. If you try to drag it around the wood and hills then it is not recommended

 

[votery]

yeah I assumed that. but the gun is pretty heavy as is. but the stock will cut down on the kick so u can have very good follow up shots.

 

[dracozny]

if the gun feels heavy, your out of shape in all seriousness the EBR was adopted by the Navy for use in sniper situations with the Seals, so I would say its got some sort of street cred to back it.

 

[BillCh]

votery,

If you are planning to load some of your ammo for your M1A stick to the basics.

The standard match load for the M14/M1A is 41.5 gr of H4895 in IMI or LC brass topped by A Sierra 168 gr. MatchKing. Use a good hard primer like a CCI BR-2, or a #34 for extra safety if you're concerned about a slam fire. Do not use a Federal primer. Alternative powders would be IMR 4895 and Accurate 2495. IMR 4064 is the upper limit for powder. If you can't find 168 MK's use 175 MK's and adjust the powder charge accordingly. Seek a MV of around 2500 for the 175 and 2550 for the 168. Dispense with the notion of using that CFE223. No Varget, no anything else. Work up your load using care and caution.

Bed your stock. There shouldn't be any expectation that your rifle will preform to its potential if it isn't bedded to the stock. IIRC McMillan won't even guarantee one of there M1A/M14 stocks unless they do the bedding. If it were me I'd have it done by a reputable professional, especially being that its in a wood stock. I like the look of a nice wood stock but a problem with them is that they can move around, expand and contract, with temperature and humidity changes.

I put my Scout Squad is a Sage Mod 1 stock. This essentially takes the bedding factor out of the equation. I've also done some minor upgrades to the machinery. My load is 41.5 gr. H4895 under a 168 MK. I don't have anything bad to say about the Sage with the exception the look. It's not very traditional. Once I get behind it and start putting rounds down range I forget all about that. I didn't build it to look at.

So,
Try some M852 ammo or some hand load equivalents as described above
Try bedding the stock or put it in a Sage

B

 

[votery]

I will most likely bed it. The wait for a sage is to long for me not to shoot that gun.

 

[madcratebuilder]

To much emphasis is being placed on bedding. How much preload is on the front stock ferrule? Is the cylinder screwed and glued? Do the basics before bedding.

 

[308]

I have a Loaded m1a rifle with a M21 stock (It's the walnut stock with a cheek riser), and my weapon shoots horrible groups.

How many rounds are you shooting in a group before you let the barrel cool down?
Once the bbl gets hot your rounds are going to walk all over the target.
Some shooters are not aware of this and start making adjustments to the sight which compounds the problem.

 

[votery]

I was shooting 3 to 5 shots per group. I didn't make any adjustments because the groups where bad. I think I did 3 groups. the best group I had was probably 1.75.

 

[speeddemon94]

In Afghanistan, with a Sage EBR M14 I was shooting rapid fire, full magazine groups at 300 meters, they measured just under 3 inches.

I vote Sage.

 

[votery]

Yeah I would really like to get one but there is a long wait and I already bought this stock.

 

[speeddemon94]

Can it be free floated?