[Black Majik]

Well... damn...

after taking apart the rifle last night, I noticed theres a significant gap between the handguard and the stock on the right side, probably 1/4 inch wide. I can see the internals of the rifle by looking thru the gap.

I bought the rifle brand new 5 days ago. Its a standard M1A Synthetic.

I dont remember seeing this, do you M1A owners experience this? Its with the POS synthetic stock. And of course, its starting to chip already after 5 days of ownership.

The gund does shoot great though, but damn... this huge gap is disheartening

Ive tried to twist and turn the stock to fill in the gap, but no such luck. I stopped by a local shop to see if it was suppose to be there, but the rifles on display did not show a gap between the handguard and stock.

...damn...

Any advise to get rid of the gap?

Thanks for your help

__________________

 

[Cooter]

Stock fit

This just a thought, but you might contact SA. They are good people. Give them a ring. Can't hurt.

 

[dighawaii]

Aloha Black Majik:

I don't think the synthetic stock will last that long... and if you decide to repaint it, trade it, etc. then simply get another handguard.

I have large amounts of material taken off the bottom on the handguards that are on my match rifles, usually about 1/8" to 1/4" or so.

But I did not have the amout of gap as you described on my new M1A's. In fact many of the new rifles have the handguard almost touching.

Try contacting Springfield Armory and see what they say. They may just send you another handguard.

Aloha,

Tom O.

 

[Black Majik]

Thanks for the replies so far.

Dighawaii. You sir have a nice collection.

Here's a pic of the gap for reference.

 

[dighawaii]

Aloha BlackMajik:

One pic sure beats a thousand words... now we can clearly see what you were describing.

That is very close to the amount of gap that I like on my Match rifles. If this was my rifle, I would make sure the same amount of gap was on the other side as well...

This is another thought. It appears that the handguard sits in the front band correctly, is the front band able to be rotated by hand counter clock wise looking from the front? The front band, foremost should sit bottom dead center on the front ferrule, but on standard rifles, it is not unitized and can move (or rotate). If it is off center, and can be moved, it will straighten out the gap (or possibly make it worse).

Just some thoughts... But in any case, it doesn't appear really out of whack or ugly.

Aloha,

Tom O.

 

[Oxmix]

I might add to Tom's post. If the gas cylinder is tight against the front ferrel you may have to loosen the gas cylinder a little to turn the ferrel, then re-tighten the gas cylinder.
Other than that, I think Tom has hit the nail on the head.

Regards

Ox

 

[Black Majik]

Thanks tom for that insight.

Though as much as I try to tell myself that's "normal" I suppose, just looking at it makes me think "damn thats an ugly looking gap.

Its just so unsightly to see, all the SA syn. M1A's I see at the shops dont have the same gap as mine.

 

[huntinghawk]

And my Bush rifle came the same way. Half the gap was easy to fix. I found that inside the forend cover there were pieces sticking up from the moulding process. Cleaned those up & it took out half the gap.
I had swapped parts from other, older M1As of mine & it sure seems to me that its a problem with that cover.
HH

 

[maddie]

Black Majik, mine has a gap, but it's maybe half as narrow as the one you described and pictured. I haven't had any chipping at all.

 

[TEA]

FWIW, you don't want the handguard to contact the stock and so some gap is desirable. If the handguard contacts the stock, it will cause the POI to shift as the barrel heats up. Filing and sanding the handguard so that it doesn't bind on the stock is one of the cheapest and easiest match mods.

 

[Twiggy]

I have about 5 different handgrds and three different stocks. Every combination of stock/handgard yealds a little different gap. Some have a slight natural bow to them leaving a gap in the middle and disappears at the end. some are wide some are tight.

The SA stocks are made over synthetic stocks and when I stripped mine it was pretty rough. I redid it in a very coarse finish and bedded it to tighten the thing up. That stock Is my field stock. It grips great and the bedding works well But it is not attractive. If I had to use the gun in action that stock and finish would be my choice. The other stocks are also bedded but have more of a show finish and have Hawks dummy kits on them They look good but are too slippery for my taste. On one of them My bedding required building up the reciever support at the front of the reciever to get the "draw" right when I swing the trigger guard up to lock everything in.. That stock has a bigger gap but all the bedded stocks and handguards work well in combo with one another.. The gap you have could be the stock OR the handguard............