Starvin Larry

This is a post I wrote for Springfield Armory’s Blog, “Armory Life”, back in August.

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A Self-Defense Precision Rifle (SDPR) should have a number of qualities, the highest of which is pinpoint accuracy at realistic ranges (max distance you can ID a threat). As a survivalist, I consider a realistic range for a self-defense rifle to be a good deal less than what one would suppose the operational ranges of a military sniper would be.

Requirements

My standard for a precision rifle is 1 Minute of Angle (MOA is approximately 1 inch at 100 yards, e.g. 200 yards = 2 inches) groups at any realistic range. Beyond precision, attributes of a SDPR would be reliability, durable design, and comfortably ergonomic. All of these features are embodied in the Springfield Armory Loaded M1A, and at a reasonable price.

The Rifles

I have owned a 7.62×51 NATO caliber Loaded M1A for…