looking to buy a M1A for a plinking/hunting rifle and i dont know much about them
I know my best route is to probably go with a SA with USGI parts but i hear bad things about SA quality control on the recievers
do you think a stock polytech is worth the money if i plan on puttin some usgi parts or should i stay away from that all together
let me know what u experts think
thanks

If you could get a Poly , for the right price , i would go with it ,  S.A. are good IMO -  on swappin the chinese parts for U.S.G.I  --  this can get real expensive - so make sure if you swap out the barrel & bolt & gas cylinder , you know how much this is going to cost you ---- it may be less $ to just buy the S.A. ..

are polys reliable tho?
whats a good price on a poly

I have not priced them , but i seem to rem. seeing one for sale on G.N. for around 6 --
lottsa rumors a few years back on the bolt & barrel steel being too soft on the chinese guns ,  probally B.S. ,  - but the price of the U.S.G.I. M-14 parts is real high & will probally go higher IMO-  it is a really cool rifle , one of my favs.  i bought a S.A used & old , from a local G.S. , and it had all U.S.G.I parts on it ---- this would be a ideal thing for you to look for  if you could get one of these for around 1K. or under

The receivers, barrels, op rods, and gas systems on the Polys are almost always good to excellent. Rear sights and trigger groups parts are a problem on SOME--easily fixed. Bolts are the big deal--usually long headspace and/or soft metal. You might get lucky but should prolly count on swapping the bolt for a USGI and this MUST be done by someone who really knows what he's doing. At today's prices, parts and labor, this will run you $300 or maybe a bit more--depends on how lucky you get on a bolt price.

Polys seem to be changing hands in the $600-650 range lately though I've heard of them going as little as 4 and as much as 8. Keep the bolt conversion price in mind and comparison-shop with used SAs.

Oh, figger on a USGI stock, too, but those are cheap. I've bought several at gunshows for $20 each.

Quoted: looking to buy a M1A for a plinking/hunting rifle and i dont know much about them I know my best route is to probably go with a SA with USGI parts but i hear bad things about SA quality control on the recievers do you think a stock polytech is worth the money if i plan on puttin some usgi parts or should i stay away from that all together let me know what u experts think thanks

Buy a real M1 Garand from CMP with actual history behind it for a fraction the price of an SA, it's just not worth it to buy a new SA when there are still real M1 Garands available from CMP.

Quoted: looking to buy a M1A for a plinking/hunting rifle and i dont know much about them I know my best route is to probably go with a SA with USGI parts but i hear bad things about SA quality control on the recievers do you think a stock polytech is worth the money if i plan on puttin some usgi parts or should i stay away from that all together let me know what u experts think thanks

I'm not an expert, but I have a rifle built on a Springfield receiver and another being built on a Norinco.
Whatever you choose factor in the cost of possibly adding GI parts.
Shopping around for an older Springfield safe queen that has some GI parts is also a good idea.

Visit Different's M1A site for all sorts of valuable information.
I have links to 4 other M14/M1A related forums on my web page

HTH ~

Quoted: Quoted: looking to buy a M1A for a plinking/hunting rifle and i dont know much about them I know my best route is to probably go with a SA with USGI parts but i hear bad things about SA quality control on the recievers do you think a stock polytech is worth the money if i plan on puttin some usgi parts or should i stay away from that all together let me know what u experts think thanks Buy a real M1 Garand from CMP with actual history behind it for a fraction the price of an SA, it's just not worth it to buy a new SA when there are still real M1 Garands available from CMP.

In his first post, it states he's looking for an M1A, not a Garand.

I just bought my new Springfield M1A Standard a few weeks ago and LOVE it! I've only shot 140 rounds through her so far, but I LOVE THIS GUN! I put a new Springfield 2nd Gen 4-14X56 scope on there. I just have the Leapers mount on for now, but will likely get the Smith mount later this Spring.