Sporting Purposes

I HATE the Term “Sporting Purposes”. Wanna know why?

I think we’ve all seen my FAL

That’s my Go-to rifle. Its More-or-less identical to the main infantry rifle of the British Empire from 1954 to limited military application today (The wide-open country of Afghanistan and Iraq has caused countries like the UK and America to dig up their 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles and put them back into service). It has a few modifications and parts changes to comply with laws, and Century Arms who built the upper receiver made a good choice and configure it to eat from Metric Magazines, rather than the more rare Imperial mags.

Of course the muzzle just has a flat crown, which I have because it allows the rifle to easily comply with Massachusetts’ “Assault Weapons Ban”. But besides some minor, and mostly cosmetic differences, this rifle is no different than guns that went into War for the British Forces around the globe. The Brits found the FAL pattern to be too uncontrollable under full-auto fire so they locked out that position on the fire selector, and removed the Auto-Sears on their issued rifles. So really besides a missing flash hider, and bayonet lug, and eating from Metric magazines, this rifle is exactly what the Brits went to war with.

Also I’m totally in love with 7.62×51 NATO/ .308 Winchester (this rifle has a .308 Chamber so it can safely shoot both ammunition loads) as I find it to be a very common round, as well as a great balance between power and recoil. The rifle is VERY comfortable to shoot, and I need to be careful at the range, lest I burn up my ammo stocks faster than I can replace them!

So if things get REALLY bad: Examples Occupy Wall Street/England Riots/ LA Riots, or natural disaster like Earthquakes, fire, or Hurricanes cause a breakdown in law and order, or a Terrorist Attack or full-on invasion, this is the rifle I’ll be reaching for, and I will not feel under-gunned because its EXACTLY the rifle I’d want.

OK my one complaint is I’d like to have a Paratrooper model with a folding stock just for easier transport and storage. Sadly adding a folding stock would make this rifle an “Assault Weapon” for reasons no anti-rights fanatic would ever dare explain to me.

Why do I hate the term “Sporting Purposes” so much? Well besides the fact that Washington didn’t Cross the Delaware to get to his duck blind, I’m interested in trying my hand at white tail deer hunting. Their delicious, plentiful, and horrible pests, and I want to shoot one! So this spring I’ll be taking a hunter safety course, apply for my Maine hunting license where there is land I can rifle hunt (I’m not a great shotgunner and I wouldn’t feel as comfortable taking a shot at a living creature at uncertain ranges with a shotgun as I would with a rifle), and hopefully at least get a few days of hunting in, with luck take a deer.

Here’s my new Hunting Rifle:

Its a reliable, accurate .308 Semi-auto rifle. Its light enough to lug around in the woods, has a carry handle and a sling for easy transport, also the sling allows me to make very accurate shots from offhand positions well past 100 yards. .308 Winchester is one of the most popular hunting rifle cartridges today, and has harvested everything from small to large game in North America.

They look similar, don’t they? Well its because its the same rifle, just with the 20-round Israeli military Surplus magazine removed, and a 5-round new-production DSA Magazine in its place, as Maine requires all magazines hold 5 or less.

This rifle which is not only “Military Style”, but has military surplus parts in it that most likely spent time in a military war theater (the Lower is a 60s era Birmingham), yet with a quick swap of a magazine this is no different than any other semi-auto hunting rifle on the market. Heck compare it to a .308 Browning BAR hunting rifle

Maybe a little length and weight differences, and this mag holds 5 while the Browning holds 4, and the Browning is probably a million times more refined than this workhorse of a rifle. Still they’re both semi-auto, and both have “evil black” furniture.

Everything else is purely cosmetic, especially in the Maine woods where a shot over 200 yards won’t likely present itself.

Oh and if this FAL had a folding stock I could more safely and easily transport it in a truck or 4-wheelers, as well as haul it into a tree stand. Care to explain to me why I should go to prison if I were to add that feature, or simply buy a new one and keep this one as a backup…

Yeah I know, when the phone don’t ring, you’ll know its the Antis!

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0 Responses to Sporting Purposes

  1. 45er says:

    I’ve always said “sporting purposes” is a red herring. I do not think 2A said anything about sporting purposes. I love the .308 as well and have a ton of ammo laying around. I’ve been meaning to sell off a few guns I don’t use and get a DPMS in .308 that I can set up for hunting and as a go-to that is a little heavier than the AR-15.

    • Weerd Beard says:

      Stay tuned here. I’ll just say I’m saving my pennies right now for a rifle currently being developed at York Arms in Maine.

      That’s all I’ll say right now.

      • 45er says:

        Oh, I just can’t wait. I think I just got word that one of my safe-space eaters is about to sell for a little more than I expected. That much closer.

  2. Braden Lynch says:

    My shotgun with a bayonet lug is an issue with the BATFE. How idiotic is that?

    Yes, my bayonet is sharp and deadly, but it is there for after I fire 8 OO buckshot shells. So, the existence of a little metal flange has turned my shotgun into some extra-special, “non-sporting purpose” killing machine. The stupid…it hurts like really bad brain freeze.

    Every last gun control law should be tossed. They don’t work and they distract the focus on the real issue…the criminal and their behavior. If someone uses a firearm to kill someone, the tool is really irrelevant; the murder is important and that is what should be punished.

    • Weerd Beard says:

      The Bayonet lug on my shotgun, as well as my old military rifles is irrelevant to the laws because they are either A: Manually operated, B: Don’t have a Removable magazine (like my SKS).

      Really when you look at it the “Assault Weapons Ban” simply was banning ALL Semi-auto rifles and shotguns with detachable magazines, just there were some extensive angles for companies to comply with.

  3. McThag says:

    The conversion of the L1A1 from auto to semi consisted entirely of changing the selector. It’s got a wing that hits the upper receiver and keeps it from rotating to the auto position. Military L1A1’s retained the safety sear (which retains the hammer until the bolt carrier is fully forward).

    The auto position allows for more trigger travel, thus the nose of the sear (that little rocker thing on top of the trigger) bypasses the sear notch on the hammer. In a gun without a safety sear, this position would allow the hammer to follow the bolt carrier and, most of the time, not fire.

    ATF decided that an upper cut for the safety sear was a machinegun. I’m not sure how they feel about a winged selector, but every one I’ve seen in person is cut so the trigger can be pulled past the notch on the hammer. You can test this by taking the upper off and rotating the selector to the auto position and seeing if the hammer will catch with the trigger pulled.

    Most of the metric semi-auto selectors are not cut for the auto position and have a little hook that catches a pin on the side of the lower that keeps it from rotating to the auto-detent anyway.

  4. McThag says:

    By the way, fire a PARA FAL before you decide that you really have to have a folding stock version (should the legal environment containing you change).

    Many people who like the FAL find out they don’t care for the PARA. It’s, um, different. I simply don’t care for how the stock feels on my jaw.

    • Weerd Beard says:

      Interesting. I’ve shouldered up a bunch of them, but never fired one.

      Now are you talking the bare tube stocks, or the kind that have the leather or synthetic cheek comb?

      • McThag says:

        Straight tubes. One was a South African model with the metal coated in some sort of plastic.

        They recoil different too. I just don’t like the difference. I think it’s because the spring on the folder is shorter and goes straight back to a point just above your shoulder where the fixed stock changes the direction of the recoil impulse down into the center of the shoulder pocket. Shoot them side by side and you’ll notice immediately.

        It may end up that the difference doesn’t bug you and you’re A-OK. I hope so, I think the PARA has a classic look.

        • Weerd Beard says:

          They do look awesome. Also I bought a rifle bag that is all of 30″ long or so. (No wonder it was on sale) an 18″ Para would fit in it, so at least I wouldn’t have thrown my money away!

          Plus they told me I can’t have one…it makes me want it MORE!

          • McThag says:

            Being denied something is a strong motivator to get it to me as well.

            Sadly, I don’t think I own a fully featured evil baby killin’ assault weapon at present. I think all of them are missing one feature or another.

            The NFA items don’t count; otherwise Kaylee would work.

          • Erin Palette says:

            As a fellow Floridian, if you ever do make an evil baby killin’ assault weapon, you really should name her Casey.

            Just sayin’…

          • McThag says:

            You owe me a keyboard.

  5. Greg Camp says:

    But, but, but, your rifle fires rounds that could penetrate a cop’s vest! Oh, no!

    See, it’s all about controlling good people. We can’t control bad people, so we don’t bother, but good people are fair game. And if the good people can be subdivided into competing groups, they’ll never get together and toss out the controllers.

    • McThag says:

      So what if they can penetrate cop vests.

      If they’re not doing anything wrong they have nothing to worry about.

      • Weerd Beard says:

        So does Jonny old-school’s 16th Century Long Bow with bodkin heads.

        That primitive weapon using iron-age materials will go thought any vest my FAL will go through. I believe only a ceramic trauma plate will stop them.

        and what McThag said. If I’m not doing anything sinister there’s nothing for them to worry about.

        And if the cops are going rogue a-la New Orleans PD after Katrina, there are times when they are the Enemy and need to get shot!

        • Greg Camp says:

          Isn’t the gun grabbers’ language interesting? Cop killer bullets, of course, are either standard hunting rounds or hollowpoint bullets that won’t go through a standard vest.

          • Kristopher says:

            Goldielocks gun control.

            This bullet is too hot. This bullet is too cold. This bullet is too large. This bullet is too small.

            Sorry … you can have any bullets because we “accidentally” banned them all!

  6. Wraith says:

    Well…it all depends on what your definition of “sport” is.

    (IYKWIMAITYD)

  7. Pingback: SayUncle » Speaking of ATF determinations

  8. NO1LOCATOR says:

    I LOVE THE WAY THAT GOV WANTS TO SHUT DOWN OUR RIGHTS TO CHOSE WHAT GUN WE SHOOT WITH , TO REVERT THIS BACK TO CAVE MEN TIME, HAY YOU CANNOT THROW THAT ROCK WITH YOUR LEFT HAND CAUSE YOU CAN DO IT FAST AND HARD(ASSAULT RIFLE) , WE ARE GOING TO CUT THAT HAND OFF ,,, SO WHO CARES IF YOU HAVE A STACK OF ROCKS(CLIP SIZE, FULL AUTO) OR JUST ONE(SINGLE SHOT) , THE GUYS THAT WANT TO OVER RUN YOU, WHO CARES IF YOU CAN THROW HARDER WITH LEFT HAND OR YOUR RIGHT HAND , THE GUYS THAT WANT TO OVER RUN YOU , SO WHY DO WE EVEN PAY ATTENTION TO SOME ONE THAT WANTS TO OVER RUN THE FREEDOMS OF THE FREE EST NATION IN THE WORLD, CAUSE THEY WANT TO OVER RUN US ???? IAM SORRY I CAN NOT HEAR THERE CONCERNS AT WHAT WE OWN OR HOW WE STORE IT , AS LONG AS IT IS NOT HARMFUL TO ANYONE, WHO CARES, THE ONES THAT WANT TO OVER RUN US……. I THINK SO!!!!

  9. Mike Paulus says:

    I think the “sporting purposes” case is a reaction to SCOTUS Miller decision. The Second Amendment says “militia” which means weapons with some type of military use. Miller died shortly before his case was presented so his side , dealing with shotguns, was not presented. Only the other side. So we came very close to having firearms used for hunting and other sporting purposes banned. Since then there was a cencerted effort to endear the idea of sporting purposes to the common person. Now only anti-gun bigots advocate elimination of guns, but the pendulum has swung the other way and there is some interest in banning weapons with military purpose. If Miller had lived another 6 months I think we would have much better law.

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