[warp2diesel]

Nice M1 A . I can't tell you anything about your scope, but the scope mount looks just like mine.

 

[woodnsteel]

Nice. Bedded too.Heres the mount on my rifle. This type of mount predates the Brookfield /Sadlak style with no attachment to the clip guide. Ar Tel scopes are quite nice..
Those bipods tear up the wood. I will either use a pic rail attached to the front swivel or a swivel stud attached to the hole at the front of the stock if I need to use one.

 

[m1sniper]

I would not really call your scope a "clone" per say. It was made by Leatherwood. The MPC stands for military, police, civilian and was a slightly less expensive alternative to the actual military ART 11. In its day it was a pretty decent scope.

 

[Random Guy]

The rifle is a 13XXX receiver. My goal is to just make it into a fun rifle to shoot. Looking forward to learning about this platform, and also can’t wait to hear what you guys have to say about my rifle.

Nice early SAI rifle. Based on the bedding, and oversized barrel that I see in the op rod cut-out, and the fact that the barrel is marked 'Geneseo', leads me to believe that you have an early SAI Supermatch rifle that was likely made about 1980. Based on the bedding color it was glass-bedded down in Georgia by Glen Nelson or one of the gunsmiths that worked for him.

These early NM and Supermatch M1As from the 1979 to about the 2000/04 era are sometimes called "Glen Nelson" era match rifles. He was a former US Army precision armorer who SAI contracted to build their match rifles, and did nice work. A 5 minute call to SAI customer service with the serial number will validate the configuration as originally sold.

Fwiw, I bought a similar early/original SAI Supermatch rifle in the 14k range back in 2018, same era as your M1A, just different scope & mount, etc. (Wish I could find another one at a nice price with some goodies). This thread covers a lot of ground, so perhaps you will find it interesting since your rifle and mine are the same configuration (excerpt optics):

Bought a circa 1980 SAI Supermatch...with goodies

I spotted a local ad for a guy selling two M1A rifles, one was listed as double lugged rifle w/ heavy barrel and the other was listed as a single lugged Supermatch with heavy barrel and a "3-9x ART" scope. Price was $1200 for each rifle, so I contacted him, as I was looking for a rear lugged...

www.m14forum.com

As noted above, you have a commercial Leatherwood MPC scope, and not the military ART II scope which looks different and has a unique scope mounting system. Enjoy your oldie but goodie rifle. Fwiw, those old M2 bipods ding up the stock pretty good, and so I don't recommend you store the rifle with that bipod. It's just going to ding up that stock more...my 2cts.

 

[KurtC]

Do not fire the rifle with the bipod legs folding forward, as shown in the photo. The bipod jaws are designed to only fit with the legs folding rearwards. To attach the bipod in any other manner than shown in the FM will tear up the gas cylinder even more than when mounted properly.

 

[flanders25]

Thanks for all the info and tips so far gents! No intent to use the bipod, I plan to sell it. One of the legs does not stay locked in place. Just for pure aesthetics until it sells. I plan to use a Harris bipod. Did these early supermatch rifles use a lot GI parts? I’ve been trying not to take it apart due to the bedding. Shot it yesterday, 2” groups at 100 yards, I’m not the best shot so I’m sure I was the weak link on accuracy.

 

[Random Guy]

Did these early supermatch rifles use a lot GI parts?

Not always, as this predated the so-called 'golden era' when SAI got a lot of M14 parts from de-milled M14s beginning in the mid-1980s. If I had to guess, I suspect a 14k SAI Supermatch might have a TRW bolt and probably a USGI op rod. Trigger housings were sometimes commercial, but mine had a USGI unit. Hammers are typically USGI. You can unlatch the trigger group and carefully pull it out to check if it has USGI or commercial housing. . Gas cylinder is probably USGI. Your rear sight appears to be USGI.

What would matter far more to me is the throat erosion reading of a barrel that might be 40 years old or more, but a special 308W throat erosion gauge to required to measure barrel wear. (My 14k SAI heavy barrel had a value of 2 re throat wear, so it has a lot of life left in it, but I have seen some early match M1As with values up to 4.5 or 5, which is indicative of basically a shot-out barrel).

 

[wifetrained]

IIRC, the scope is actually made by Weaver. Look at the turret base and covers. Dead giveaway right there and the mount is the commercial SAI A.R.T. IV that was used with the Burris scope SAI used to sell.

 

[flanders25]

IIRC, the scope is actually made by Weaver. Look at the turret base and covers. Dead giveaway right there and the mount is the commercial SAI A.R.T. IV that was used with the Burris scope SAI used to sell.

Thanks! Do they hold any value or have any historical value to them? Also planned to sell it and upgrade to a more modern optic, but have been holding back as I didn’t really know for sure what it was

 

[wifetrained]

When it comes to the scope it's hard to say. I've seen asking prices all over the map from a couple hundred dollars to over a grand. It'll all come down to what the market will bear. It's a darn good scope though. The mount, IMO, is just another run of the mill single point scope mount. It was marketed with SAI's ART IV scope which was made by Burris.

 

[m1sniper]

The MPC scope has no military ties, so to collectors, most won't even look at them. If memory serves, Shotgun News late 80s, the GI Leatherwood ART II was originally offered for $899 while the MPC was either $399 or $499. At the time (80s to 90s) the Shepard scope was the hot scope to buy.
As wifetrained mentioned, that scope mount is a nothing special single point, commercial made for Springfield Inc, but some like that its marked ART lV and has the ordnance bomb. It used to fool some folks into thinking it was military.
The MPC was a very decent scope for the time, and can make a rifle look like the M21 sniper rifle. There are just so many better scopes nowadays. As for a price range, sellers that think they were adopted by the military, or try to pass them off as genuine military sniper scopes tend to try to sell hi. Best bet for you is to check ebay or gunbroker or any other auctions and see what they sell (closed) at.
As for a comment a few replies above by wifetraind stating the MPC was made by Weaver, I never heard that, not saying he's wrong, but do remember conversations with Bill Ricca discussing the differences between the ART II and MPC, and seem to remember him saying they were made by Jim Leatherwood for the civilian market.
Just my 2 pennies, before you dump it, get a copy of the instruction sheet and give it a try, you might end up liking it. I've always loved my ART ll.

 

[Ted Brown]

I recall that back in the early '80s I traded an MPC and $125 to Jim Leatherwood for an ART II. Heck of a deal since the MPC only cost me $89. They were being sold off by J&G Distributors after Weaver (El Paso, TX) went out of business. The MPC was made using a Weaver scope and they worked very well.

 

[Gunhunter2222]

Good afternoon gents, I’m a brand new member to this forum and pretty new to the platform. I’ve been collecting M1 garands for some years and decided it was time to dig into the M1A/M-14. I recently acquired an early Match Sprinfield M1A on consignment. It came with an M2 bipod, tons of ammo, tons of magazines, and an ART II scope setup. I was looking to hear any info you guys have in regards to my rifle as well as the scope. I’m assuming it’s a clone and not an authentic ART II but I’ve been unable to determine that myself. The rifle is a 13XXX receiver. My goal is to just make it into a fun rifle to shoot. Looking forward to learning about this platform, and also can’t wait to hear what you guys have to say about my rifle.
Thank you!
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The scope is not an ARTll. It is an ART/MPC I have heard weaver built them but sure. The Army ARTII is built around the 6.62 nato round. The ART/MPC is designed to adjust for multiple calibers.