pinefd
NES Member
Hi all,
I just purchased my first rifle...ever...a SA M1A, which I got second hand from a fellow forum member. Up until now, I've been strictly a handgun shooter, although I do own a number of other rifles, all of which I got from my dad many moons ago, and all of which are either bolt action or lever action. This is my first semi-automatic rifle.
I thought the M1A would be a fun rifle to cut my teeth with, and besides, considering I already had several hundred rounds of 308 Win ammo, I wouldn't be scrambling trying to find ammo for the new gun. But the ammo I have is all reloads that I got from my dad, that are all approximately 30 years old. And since I've never done any reloading, myself, I'm not at all familiar with the intricate details and nuances of reloading and ammo specs.
Note that in reading through the M1A manual, it says this about ammo:
"The M1ATM is designed and built to specifications to shoot standard factory .308 made to SAAMI specifications or 7 .62x51 NATO ammunition . The specifications for standard military ammunition include harder primers to withstand the slight indentation from the firing pin when the bolt chambers a cartridge . This slight indentation is normal . The use of civilian ammunition with more sensitive primers or handloads with commercial primers and/or improperly seated primers increase the risk of primer detonation when the bolt slams forward . This unexpected “slam fire” can occur even if the trigger is not being pulled and if the safety is on . Use of military
specification ammunition will help avoid this . Every shooter should use extreme caution when loading this or any other firearm . See page 17 for instructions on proper loading to help avoid a “slam fire” . Also see enclosed article on “Slam Fire” written by Wayne Faatz ."
...and:
"Use only recently made high quality, newly-manufactured ammunition of .308 or 7 .62x51 . Old ammunition may deteriorate from age causing it to be
dangerous ."
Here are some sample specs from my dad's reloads, and I'm wondering if some of you experts might have an opinion (that you'd be willing to share) as to whether this ammo might be ok for me to use in the M1A:
Note that this ammo was likely reloaded for use in a bolt action rifle that my dad used for long distance target shooting, although he did also own a M1A, but not sure if he used the ammo for that gun at all. And I've used quite a bit of other 30 year old ammo that my dad reloaded, and it all works just fine.
Thanks in advance for any thoughts you might have on the matter.
Frank
I just purchased my first rifle...ever...a SA M1A, which I got second hand from a fellow forum member. Up until now, I've been strictly a handgun shooter, although I do own a number of other rifles, all of which I got from my dad many moons ago, and all of which are either bolt action or lever action. This is my first semi-automatic rifle.
I thought the M1A would be a fun rifle to cut my teeth with, and besides, considering I already had several hundred rounds of 308 Win ammo, I wouldn't be scrambling trying to find ammo for the new gun. But the ammo I have is all reloads that I got from my dad, that are all approximately 30 years old. And since I've never done any reloading, myself, I'm not at all familiar with the intricate details and nuances of reloading and ammo specs.
Note that in reading through the M1A manual, it says this about ammo:
"The M1ATM is designed and built to specifications to shoot standard factory .308 made to SAAMI specifications or 7 .62x51 NATO ammunition . The specifications for standard military ammunition include harder primers to withstand the slight indentation from the firing pin when the bolt chambers a cartridge . This slight indentation is normal . The use of civilian ammunition with more sensitive primers or handloads with commercial primers and/or improperly seated primers increase the risk of primer detonation when the bolt slams forward . This unexpected “slam fire” can occur even if the trigger is not being pulled and if the safety is on . Use of military
specification ammunition will help avoid this . Every shooter should use extreme caution when loading this or any other firearm . See page 17 for instructions on proper loading to help avoid a “slam fire” . Also see enclosed article on “Slam Fire” written by Wayne Faatz ."
...and:
"Use only recently made high quality, newly-manufactured ammunition of .308 or 7 .62x51 . Old ammunition may deteriorate from age causing it to be
dangerous ."
Here are some sample specs from my dad's reloads, and I'm wondering if some of you experts might have an opinion (that you'd be willing to share) as to whether this ammo might be ok for me to use in the M1A:
Note that this ammo was likely reloaded for use in a bolt action rifle that my dad used for long distance target shooting, although he did also own a M1A, but not sure if he used the ammo for that gun at all. And I've used quite a bit of other 30 year old ammo that my dad reloaded, and it all works just fine.
Thanks in advance for any thoughts you might have on the matter.
Frank