The M14 was not a good rifle.

[maple_leaf_eh]

M14 is the best upgrade you can have from the garand.
Full auto on a this gun shooting the 7.62X51 was a bad idea.
Nonetheless the shape of the stock, the sights, the trigger, make the M14 a good rifle for the range.

The prettiest derivative of the M1 Garand system is not the Mini 14 or the M14 or the M305, it is the Italian Beretta BM59. The first model and the folding stock versions, but the full length and pistol grip models.

I read the whole thread and want to throw in my .05-cents, because pennies are hard to find these days. War and battle have an inescapable way of identifying the worst aspects of everything. The influences of WW1 were still strong when the M1 was reinventing infantry tactics. The M14 tried to fix the faults and weaknesses of the M1, but didn't quite achieve perfection. Compared to what other countries were using, ie G43s, MAS44s, AG42Bs, FN49s, and SVT40s, the M14 is comparable.

However, the clarity of perspective tells us that the whole walnut and steel design path of the M14 was a deadend. The 7.62 versions of the AR needed a bit more time to mature, and really should have been chosen. But like I said before, the WW2 and Korea lessons of the M1 were very fresh in everyones' minds, the hubris of victory, and momentum of a large standing military were inevitable.

 

[LordEvilPepper]

The prettiest derivative of the M1 Garand system is not the Mini 14 or the M14 or the M305, it is the Italian Beretta BM59. The first model and the folding stock versions, but the full length and pistol grip models.

100% .308 with detachable mags, built in bipod, still used more commonly avaliable garand parts. Super well built, Cadillacs of the garand platform.... Well loved by the troops. Had a long service life and a high resale value.

 

[DaveMachine]

This. It excelled as a frontline sniper rifle in XM21 then M21 trim and survived as a DMR in the middle east as a favourite of many DM's. The intermediate cartridge assault rifles have been the preffered frontline small arms because they are a more effecient tool for the job. None of this makes the M14 less cool.

Did it really excel as the M21? It was eventually replaced by the M24 and only now are we seeing widespread use of the AR10 as a precision platform.

 

[BattleRife]

its heavy, the mags are heavy... the feed lips are weak especially the china ones...I'd like to try a FAL, G3/HK91

The M14 was the lightest of the cold war 7.62mm battle rifles. The magazines are also considered one of the strong suits of the platform: relatively light (For a steel mag) yet durable, while the feed lip design contributed to low stripping force and excellent reliability.

The FAL is a great rifle but the appeal of the G3 wears off pretty fast if you get to use one.

 

[grelmar]

The M14 was the lightest of the cold war 7.62mm battle rifles. The magazines are also considered one of the strong suits of the platform: relatively light (For a steel mag) yet durable, while the feed lip design contributed to low stripping force and excellent reliability.

The FAL is a great rifle but the appeal of the G3 wears off pretty fast if you get to use one.

The M-14 was .3lbs lighter than the first version of the FAL, and between .6 to .8lbs heavier than all subsequent updated (and much more common) versions of the FAL.

 

[1-trident-1]

excuse me, I have to go get some popcorn....

 

[zuke]

I've alway's thought the FAL was a better option. I'd love to take 1 hunting!
But it's restricted so the thought is senseless

 

[Tom Morrison]

I've alway's thought the FAL was a better option. I'd love to take 1 hunting!
But it's restricted so the thought is senseless

If they were restricted I’d have a couple of them, sadly they are prohibited.

 

[Mac308]

And yet Randy Shughart carried one over a M-16, regardless of how much of a hard time his teammates gave him......the M14 can't be all that bad.....

 

[Joel]

Bartocci is cool when he talks about the history of Colt stuff.

Soon as he leaves that topic I take him with a huge grain of salt. Kinda like Neil DeGrasse Tyson talking about something besides physics lol.

Could care less what the rifle did or didn't do in military hands, it obviously worked well enough when it had to, in the context of what the troops are issued for a bayonet handle not winning or losing wars.

What I care about is mine have kicked ass.

 

[grelmar]

And yet Randy Shughart carried one over a M-16, regardless of how much of a hard time his teammates gave him......the M14 can't be all that bad.....

And Shugart was killed very quickly after he got into a gunfight on the ground. His M-14 was an excellent designated marksman rifle, but he would have likely been better off with a CAR-15 when he got onto the ground.

Also, Shugart was Delta. What someone at that skill level can get from a rifle, has little bearing on what us mere mortals can achieve. It's like saying Mario Andretti drives a Ferrari, so if I drive one, my commute to the office will be faster. No. It won't. You'll just burn more gas on the way.

 

[Mac308]

No, Randy Shughart was killed after Gary Gordon was killed and he and his M-14 were left to hold off a crazed mob of Somali gunmen until he was overwhelmed by sheer numbers. His death had nothing to do with carrying a M-14 to a gunfight over a CAR-15.

Randy was known for carrying his M-14 all the time, not just a sniper or designated marksman. The rest of the guys used to tease him about it until they found the 5.56 round wasn't as effective on the skinny Somalis because the round would pass right through them without doing what the 5.56 was designed to do.

Does the M-16 have advantages over the M-14, absolutely. Is the M-14 a bad combat rifle? Far from it.

Just my .02 cents

 

[supernova]

Did it really excel as the M21? It was eventually replaced by the M24 and only now are we seeing widespread use of the AR10 as a precision platform.

Was it not used to great effect and earned a favorable reputation amongst those who deployed with them?

 

[mussyhairhillbilly]

well, i like it.....besides i couldn't throw a rock to save my life! just my two cents....

 

[Rule 303]

Somali gunmen? Wrong war, wrong geographical area.

Please delete. I had a seniors moment and made an incorrect statement.
Apologies all around.

 

[Brutus]

Not trying to start a war here but Mac308 might be onto something. The timing of the 6.8 SPC and .458 SOCOM were all post Somalia. Followed by the 77 grain SMK Mod 0, a few years later.

 

[BeaverMeat]

The M14...

The good: It does what the army specified
The bad: It does what the army specified

lol


It’s simple why they still use it. The U.S. built ~1.3 million of them so they were deeply invested in it as a platform. Time and money was spent training personal and armourers. Inventories of whole rifles in storage, spare parts, etc, etc. It was cost effective to just keep using it and modernizing it. It has nothing to do with it being a super fantastic mythical rifle. It’s a good rifle but the “lock, stock, and barrel” design was outdated at that time.

 

[CobraGT]

I agree with most of this. I've always said the AR10 or FAL would have been (and still are) a better choice in 7.62 than the M14 platform. I carried the C1 back in the day and MUCH preferred it to the M14s I've tried since. Not even close.... C1 (FAL) FTW

 

[steamy teabag]

The M14 isn't a good rifle.

It's a great rifle.

The FAL on the other hand is spectacular.

Can't own an FAL so im doomed to the perpetual Hungry classes to make something that isnt an FAL shoot like one.

 

[Chatrbaz84]

Please ,

steel gun has to compare with steel gun ,
plastic gun has to compare with plastic ,



nothing wrong with M14 , FAL is another good choice too ,
each gun has up and down sides,

a bad design doesn't manufacture .