Cheap .308? Which and Why?

Question

Looking at buying L1a1, cetme, or g3....any suggestions/comments?

Answer 1

How cheap? I suppose you can get these for half the price of a new DSArms FAL.

I do like the CETME and the G3, both are roughly the same though the CETME came first, both have roller locked delayed blowback actions and fluted chambers. The G3 I used to shoot trashed all its fired brass by bending in the side, not important unless you want to reload and right now I don't.

Are we talking L1A1 as in British semi auto FAL? Royal Ordnance, in their infinite wisdom, tightened the barrels to give a bit more life and ruined the accuracy in the process.

I think the FAL is by far the world's most popular 7.62x51 and there's good reason for that, I prefer the gas operated action.

All of them are dependable and effective rifles, I'd be more concerned about condition than model. A good one of any of them would do for me.

Living in the PRK (Kalifornia) I can't buy any of these, apparently they think banning stuff that is seldom used in crime makes them safer.

Answer 2

Difficult question,

For an inexpensive .308 battle rifle your off to a good start,

However be aware that any of the above rifles in the under $500 dollar range will be built from an imported parts kit on a U.S made receiver.

Quality and therefore reliablility and accuracy will vary greatly!

Alot of the L1A1 and FALs were built by hobbyist/home gunsmiths. Some people know what they are doing, Alot don't.

Same for CETME, "G3" HK91 copies

Make sure you buy from a licenced dealer

When assembling a parts gun to a U.S reciever there are regulations. Most importantly U.S. code section 922r

It specifies which and how many parts in the rifle must be U.S made in order for the rifle to be legal.

My advice is to spend a little extra money and buy your rifle for a reputable source.

Try Century international arms, or a local dealer that buys from them, their quality is consistantly good and they make sure their products are legally compliant.

If you can afford a little bit more Armalite's Eagle Arms ar-10s are top-notch same with D.P.M.S with their .308 rifles.
D.S.A's Sa-58 are positively the best FAL types on the market and the PTR-91 is the best affordable non-HK G-3 HK91 type available.

BUY A COPY OF "SHOTGUN NEWS"!!!

It will give you a great idea as to the price[(dealer) expect to pay $25-$50 more.]
and types of semi-auto .308s available.

Generally expect similar accuracy frome both the L1A1/FAL and the G3/CETME.

Felt recoil will be greater with the G3/CETME

Accessories for both types are plentiful an cheap.

Good luck and have fun

Answer 3

I don't think of sem iauto .308s as cheap. If you want a semi, spend some money and get a good one. The new M14 clones are ~$1250.

If you want cheap + .308, look at a bolt action. The aforementioned Savage is a good one. The adjustable trigger and synthetic stock are mucho cool. You can get the Stevens model 200 short action in .308 for $269.99 this month at Turner's Outdoorsman. Both rifles sport floating barrels.

Answer 4

You've been given some good advice, buti have to argue one point, Century Arms International should only be used as a last resort. Their consistancy in overall performance is iffy at best.You might get one rifle that functions flawlessly, then right behind you'll get one that falls apart the first time you load it LITERALLY!Anyone with a general interest in collecting and shooting milsurp rifles knows Century is a toss up, you might get a great gun(rarely) or you might get a problem child(usually)

Answer 5

Boker is correct.

Century International Arms or Century Arms Intl (both C.I.A. or C.A.I.) has been making the legally compliant US built receivers for these and other rifles for years ......and their quality runs from UNSAFE TO FIRE to pretty good.

Be very, very careful with a Century receiver and have someone who really knows the weapon check all components for safety before firing it.

Answer 6

I think that for the money, you can't beat one of the Savage rifles. They are very competitively priced and all that I have seen are very good shooters. You can pay more but you won't find a better or more accurate shooting rifle than a Savage.