M1A1 good deal?

rmill

Got a buddy that wants to sell me his springfield armory national match M1A1 in .308. I don't know much about these types of guns and wanna see if it's a good deal. Like new (50 rounds through) with black synthetic stock, tapered stainless bull barrel, 10 20 roungs US mags, 300 rds commercial grade ammo, nylon carrying bag, red-dot scope AND ATR night vision scope. He wants $2800 for it. That a fair deal or no? Your opinion is of great value to me, thanks! randy

nmyers

My gut feeling is that this is not a good rifle for you to buy.

First, I'm not really sure exactly what this rifle is, but, more importantly, I don't think you do, either. SA has made a range of NM rifles with various specifications (barrels, sights, gas cylinders, stocks, etc); at the least, you would need to post the information on the original spec sheet that came with the rifle. Ask him to show you the original bill of sale; no one would buy a rifle like that & not keep the bill of sale. That will also let you know what he paid; I suspect he's trying to get all his money out of it.

In any case, a NM rifle is really only valuable to a competitive shooter. (The scopes you described would be worthless to a serious competitor.) It shouldn't matter to you if this is a good deal or not, if you have no need for the gun. You're going to put 50 rounds through it, & then put it in the closet. (Sounds like a story you've heard before, doesn't it?)

Stick with guns that you really know about, & that you know you enjoy shooting.

Neal

haroldchrismeyer

Sounds like the time my buddy sold me his open class pistol. I found out afterwards that it was behind the times, and to get it back to where it would be competetive again would cost a fortune. Not to mention that I found that I really had no desire after spending that kind of money to use it as it was intended. To make a long story short, it sat around until I talked someone else into wanting it. Lost a lot of money, but learned a lesson. Like nmyers said, "Stick with guns that you really know about, & that you know you enjoy shooting". I wish I had asked his advise, and taken it before doing what I did.

select-fire

I would pass. You can buy a new Springfield SUPER Match for around $2200

rmill

OK, thanks guys!

codenamepaul

Find out what rifle it is and what upgrades he's done. If the stock is from SA it may be just a fiberglas. If he bought a McMillan for it, it increases value accordingly. What year was it made and what model? A Whitefeather would be about 1K more than what he asks. Who made the red dot? I have aimpoints and BSA's price difference is huge. I do believe that any firearm you own should be shot as often as possible. I have no use for a gun I don't enjoy.

Blckhrn

The mags and ammo are worth maybe $200. Without a name for the night vision and red dot hard to say on them.

If the rifle looked good to me I might offer $2000, depending on the optics.

cpermd

I am going to assume it is an M1A and not an M1A1.
Sounds high to me.If it has all USGI parts, it would be worth around $1400-1600.
CP

rmill

OK, thanks for the input guys, but now it's not my issue. A gun dealer just bought the gun from my buddy, no debate or hem-hawwin' around for $3500! I don't know what made this one special, but I DID learn that the night scope was 4th generation (?) and cost $3000 alone! My buddy's happy, the gun dealer is thrilled and I'm happy because I don't have to sell my children into slavery to pay for the thing! Thanks!