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Top Fighting Rifles
Much like my list of Top
Hunting Rifles, this list is my top picks for battle and assault
rifles. Rifles that Civilians in a Free American State can purchase.
Lots of questions about two rifles that didn't make this list... the
FN SCAR and the Bushmaster ACR... reason being, they are not
actually on the market yet regardless of however many articles you
read about them. Once they are available, and I get my hands
on one... maybe my list will change. Don't piss and moan and
get all emo about it... you can't actually buy them yet and that's
the criteria I'm going on here. The most important thing...
you can buy these. This list is not fantasy. You could,
if you had the means, buy one of each or more. So lets get to
it:
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Springfield M1A.
This is a civilian legal, semi auto copy of the classic M-14
rifle as used by the US military. Chambered in .308, this rifle
has multiple applications. From hunting to home defense, this
rifle can do it. I prefer the standard version with the wood
stock. It looks great. The way a fighting rifle should look.
While the M1A is more problematic for mounting optics, the
upshot is that it has the best iron sights ever invented. This
weapon is of course the direct descendant of the M1 Garand,
which Patton claimed was the best battle rifle every invented.
That was simply because Patton died before he got to shoot the
M-14. I think it's easy to say that Patton would have been all
over this rifle.
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SIG 556. We can't
easily acquire the SIG 552... the numbers in the states are
quite few and since they are select fire, more difficult to
obtain. Well, SIG took their classic fighting rifle, changed the
receiver to lighter weight aluminum, and changed the mag well to
take US GI M-16 type mags. And of course, made is semi auto
only. What we get is a rifle that is leaps and bounds more
robust and reliable than the AR-15. Accuracy is acceptable.
Above average and when using heavier bullets, very accurate.
Another advantage the SIG has, is stability. While shooting
quickly, the rifle stays on target. Double taps are fast and the
second hits is very close to the first. I also think this is one
of the best looking EBR's out there. (Evil Black Rifle)
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HK 91. The
accuracy is above average, the reliability is solid and the
caliber is .308. These factors go a long way to make the HK 91 a
top choice for anyone looking for a serious fighting gun. The
roller action makes this gun unique. HK takes the design from
the Spanish CETME rifle, which you can get for a lot less. There
are several companies that make HK 91 clones and some are better
than others. If you want one of these, shop around carefully and
do not just buy the cheapest one you find. One of the reasons I
like this one is the iron sights. I like the dial on the rear
and the easy to see front sight post. This makes hitting your
target easy.
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The M1 Garand.
This is the Daddy of Battle Rifles. Chambered in full house
.30-06 it can take down most anything, from an elk to the Third
Reich. It has a ballistic advantage over the .308, that .308
shooters will argue about. They will say that you can load the
.308 up to what the '06 can do and really hot rod it. Same is
true for the '06 and you can load it up to levels the .308 can't
touch. This makes the Garand the most powerful battle rifle on
this list. The only downside to it is the 8 round clip and the
loud “sproing” announcement that you've just run dry. The upside
is that the Garand can be reloaded very fast. Another downside
is this is where we get the term “M1 Thumb” from. If you don't
know what that is, you will find out if you spend time with it.
You generally will find out what it is, once, and never
experience it again.
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MSAR STG-556.
This is an improved clone of the Steyr AUG rifle made famous by
the Austrian military and the movie Die Hard. The AUG was ahead
of its time. The bullpup action makes the rifle easy to handle
and maneuver. Slower to reload, sure, but I'll take that trade
off since it has 42 round mags, integral optics, and a vertical
fore grip for added stability. Microtech took the AUG design and
cleaned it up... giving us a Flat Top option and a bolt hold
open. They also made the gun a bargain compared to an original
AUG. Cheaper and actually better... brilliant. Accuracy is
fantastic.
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FNH FS2000. This
is another bullpup rifle, but this one is unlike anything else
on the planet. It uses AR type magazines, which is great, but
what makes it most unusual is that it ejects spent cases
forward. This bullpup actually improves over all other bullpups
in that it is truly ambidextrous and can be used left or right
handed. Mount any optic you want on the flat top version. The
version that comes with its own optic... that optical gunsight
sucks quite a bit. Get the flat top and put an EOTech gunsight
on it. You will spend some serious cash on this package, but you
will have something truly remarkable.
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AK-47. Chambered
in 7.62x39mm, the AK packs a lot of punch. They are reliable,
simple, tough, and easy to use. They get a bad rap for being
less accurate, but really that is not quite the case. On some
better examples, the AK can be just as accurate (in practical
terms) as an AR. One of the reasons of the bad rap is the AK's
rudimentary iron sights. They work, but they take some time to
get used to. Also the cartridge has a lot of arch to it compared
to the 5.56mm... these two factors make guys used to the AR
think the AK sucks and is inaccurate. The other downside is that
it is difficult to mount a decent optical gunsight to the AK.
There are solutions out there, but few sources. However, once
you get your AK set up the way you want it... you will have
spent far less than on a typical AR. What you get in return
however is a weapon that hits harder and is more reliable than
your AR. Last downside is of course, the lack of Ergonomics. If
you want to know what Ergonomic means, show them the AK and they
will get it because of the obvious lack of ergonomics...
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FN FAL. This
rifle has a long and proud history outside of the USA. While
eastern countries picked up the AK-47, the US took the M-14 and
Germany took the G3... and just about everyone else took the FAL.
It's a big battle rifle to be sure. It's heavy weight gives it
some disadvantage, but this is made up by having one hell of a
rugged and easy to use action. Accuracy is good, but not quite
there with the G4 or M-14... close, but it is 3rd
place here. It's also cheaper than the other ones thanks to the
fact that there are so many examples out there. I prefer the
British version called the L1A1. It has a couple improvements
that I like such as cuts in the bolt that move dirt and grit out
of the way of the action... and the folding cocking handle that
keeps it out of your way. The .308 cartridges are fed from
tough, cheap, and plenty 20 round magazines. Lots of aftermarket
for the FAL... Lots of love for it. It breaks open like a
shotgun without pulling any pins, bolt carrier comes right out,
so cleaning takes about 2 minutes if you take your time. Gotta
love that.
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AR-15. I know I
wrote the book on hating the AR, but it has some distinct
advantages. The familiarity since its been our service rifles
for longer than any other battle rifle in history save for the
Brown Bess. There is a whole industry making parts and
accessories for the AR. You can dress it up into so many
different configurations that this rifle is like a militant set
of legos. It is wonderfully ergonomic, comfortable, and easy to
use. Hitting with it is very easy and the rifles tend to be
extremely accurate. What more could you want? Well, you could
want few small parts, easier to clean, quicker to clean, and
less sensitivity to a lack of cleaning. Every AR fan always says
“they work if you keep them clean”. Sure. But the AR gets dirty
fast and is the
least reliable weapon tested by the US Military in dusty
environments. (The M-4 is just one variant of the same platform.
Swap uppers and you go from an M-16A2 to an M-4.... they are all
the same to me)
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Saiga .308. This
is a big .308 AK type rifle. FBMG has 20 round mags for it which
puts it on par with other top .308 battle rifles. It also does
so at a fraction of the cost. Reliability is there, accuracy is
good, and you can get a conversion to a pistol grip and folding
stock by Tromix (or FMBG?) or a replacement stock with a fixed
pistol grip from Choate. This really is a great rifle for the
money. You can certainly do a lot worse. Now, if you want to go
all out and get the Tromix conversion with the folding stock,
get some rails on it for mounting all your AR type goodies...
man, you can build one hell of a serious weapon system out of
the Saiga... and you would still be less than a base M1A1.
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Copyright
G H Hill 1999-2012
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The 4 Rules of
Firearms Safety:
1. Handle all
firearms as if they were loaded.
2. Never point
the gun at anything you're not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your
finger off the trigger and out of the trigger guard until you have made the
decision to fire the weapon.
4. Know your
target, and know what is beyond the target.
Utah
Concealed Carry Permit Classes:
Contact
Larry Correia Contact Steve
Ting
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