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M3A1 Grease Gun Submachine Gun
It always amazes me that guns like this one. Which was designed to be quickly and cheaply have lasted as long as they have. In my mind its just a tribute to the makers and the Troops that handled them. That they have lasted as long as they have. Grumpy
What happens when an over 225-year-old firearms manufacturer builds a rifle using what has become one of the hottest modern cartridges? The Sauer S100 Fieldshoot, that’s what. This is a match-meets-target-meets-hunting rifle. It’s fully customizable, eye-catching, and chambered in the 6.5 Precision Rifle Cartridge (PRC). It’s fast, flat, and accurate – What’s not to like? Guns.com gets the details.
THE SAUER S100 FIELDSHOOT
The J.P. Sauer & Sohn Model 100 series of bolt-action rifles is not new. But several of its variants are, and what really reaches out and grabs shooters shopping for a new rifle is the appearance of the Fieldshoot. That laminated beechwood stock, finished with dark oil, features major-league adjustability on a non-synthetic stock. Partner that with its availability in not only .223 Remington, .243 Winchester, .308 Winchester, 6.5×55, but also 6.5 Creedmoor and 6.5 PRC, and all eyes are peeled.
The Fieldshoot, based on its weighty build, is considered a target, competition, and varmint rifle. Although, some of the available calibers are more than capable on larger game. There’s a 24-inch match-grade, hammer-forged barrel with a 0.87-inch taper built for precision shooting. The double-stack magazine holds either four or five rounds, depending on caliber.
The single-stage trigger is adjustable from 2.2 to 4.2 pounds and breaks with exceptional regularity on our Lyman digital pull gauge at just under 3 pounds. Of special interest, the S100 Fieldshoot is fitted with twin ejectors that are intended to expel spent casings low (away from the scope) and with authority. The Fieldshoot carries a $1500 MSRP. But the crazy thing is that real-world prices have seen these fine rifles selling online just over a grand before the pandemic pandemonium. That’s a heckuva lot of rifle for the price.
6.5 PRC CHAMBERING
To fully appreciate our test rifle, we must delve into the cartridge as well as the firearm. German gunmaker Sauer worked with ammunition specialist Hornady to chamber a rifle in Hornady’s proprietary 6.5 PRC, and our test rifle is our first time working at length with the round.
The 6.5 PRC was developed for competition match shooting but works well for longer-range hunting. It functions in short and medium-length actions. Current options from Hornady include both Match and Precision Hunter. Per Hornady’s Communications Manager Neal Emery, shooters should “think of it as the big brother to your 6.5 Creedmoor. You’re looking at 200+ FPS velocity advantage … built from the ground up for those long, heavy, high-performance bullets.” We know the 6.5 PRC chambering was built to perform, and the Sauer S100 Fieldshoot gave it the perfect platform to excel – and that it does.
FIELD WORK
While the Sauer Fieldshoot wears one of the most unique-looking stocks, that wild design makes it one of the most adjustable on a bolt-action hunting rifle. There’s a synthetic cheekpiece and customizable buttpad system, built for customization and comfort. The curved rubberized recoil pad hugs the shoulder.
Sauer uses what they call EverRest action bedding paired with a free-float barrel to drive accuracy. If this rifle weren’t so heavy, I’d carry it on just about every hunt. The Fieldshoot proved to be the perfect companion for the ½ miles walk to our luxury Whitetail hunting stand, where the rifle could rest on a sill. At 9.6 pounds bare and almost 12-pounds decked out, this is no backcountry rifle – though there are other Sauer models that could fit that need.
The Fieldshoot is fitted with a pair of forward sling swivel mounts, allowing easy attachment of a bipod. That wide and flat forend makes for steady resting on bags or even a backpack, which proved plenty useful in the field. The oversized tactical bolt knob allows for quick cycling, and there’s also a clear cocking indicator. The three-position safety is becoming an expected addition to quality rifles. While all the features are sweet, the real beauty of the rifle lies in its performance.
ACCURACY
To the accuracy end, we grabbed the only 6.5 PRC ammo we could find in mid-2020, and that was Hornady Precision Hunter 143-grain ELDx and Hornady Match 147-grain ELD-Match bullets. The Fieldshoot comes drilled and tapped. In a nice move, it also accepts standard Remington 700 scope bases, which means a wide selection of available mounts. We used two-piece Rem 700 Long Action bases, and with a dandy Meopta Optika6 scope in place, we set out to dominate the range first and the deer woods second.
The Fieldshoot carries not simply a three-shot, but a five-shot MOA guarantee. The 60-degree bolt throw on the three-lug bolt is slick and keeps shooters in the action. Our 6.5 PRC barrel has a 1:8 twist rate and did a bang-up job punching small holes with the Hornady ammunition we used.
We fired both three-shot and five-shot groups at 100 yards, and the results were nothing short of amazing. This rifle was barely getting warmed up at that range. Measuring a three-shot group most often meant measuring a single enlarged and ragged hole. Even out to 300 yards, the Fieldshoot was holding stellar accuracy with both types of ammunition.
THE ONLY NEGATIVE, MINOR FOR MOST
There’s only one fly in the ointment when we discuss the Sauer Fieldshoot, and that gripe only applies to serious shooters who may wish to rebarrel after a high round count. The S100 is built using the company’s Heat Lock mating system, which permanently affixes the barrel to the receiver. This creates an incredibly strong connection for excellent accuracy, but it also makes the barrel impossible to replace. That carbon steel receiver and bolt, however, are built for longevity. It’s no surprise that the vast majority of Fieldshoot rifles will never come close to a round count that would require rebarreling.
DIGGING INTO SAUER
Not all American hunters and shooters are familiar with the Sauer brand, but they should be. In fact, Sauer is part of the Blaser group along with Mauser. Sauer-USA has headquarters in San Antonio, Texas, and the group does quality work, period. Even those not overly acquainted with the European Sauer name may recall that Sauer produced early Weatherby Mark V rifles and Colt-Sauer bolt actions, both famous here in the States for looks and quality. For those not wild about the adjustable stock and heavyweight barrel on the Fieldshoot, check out the related Sauer 100 Pantera or Cherokee, with black or camouflage synthetic, respectively.
BOTTOM LINE
The heavy Sauer S100 Fieldshoot may not be the rifle hunters want to carry around all day. But it is, hands down, a highly adjustable, incredibly accurate rifle with unique looks and top-notch features. Throw in the 6.5 PRC chambering alongside classic options like the 6.5×55, and we consider this rifle a big win for hunters and long-range shooters alike.
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1914 Hotchkiss HMG
A History of the M1 Garand
During World War I, the United States Army experimented with a number of different machine gun designs, and the news reports of the tests got a young inventor thinking about, and eventually designing, a machine gun of his own. His initial attempt was a primer-actuated light machine gun he submitted to the National Bureau of Standards, which had instructed him to make a model of it. That design became the basis for what would, eventually, become the M1 rifle—commonly called the “Garand” after its inventor, John Cantius Garand.
Garand, who became a Springfield Armory employee in 1919, had an extensive background in design and production. Once at Springfield, he was tasked with designing a semi-automatic shoulder rifle based upon his earlier machine gun. He worked on and improved the design for the next 17 years. The now-familiar M1 was finally adopted on January 9, 1936, the rifle was adopted as the “U.S. Rifle, Cal. .30, M1.”
Early production rifles used a “gas trap” instead of the later “gas port” design and initially did not perform as well as expected, but once the “bugs” were worked out, the rifle was favorably received. It was fed by an eight-round en-bloc clip that was ejected along with the last spent casing, locking the bolt back and leaving the receiver open for a fresh clip to be inserted. User-friendly, accurate and chambered for the powerful .30-’06 Sprg. cartridge, the M1 gained a reputation as a hardy and well-made service rifle.
World War II was the rifle’s baptism of fire, and it performed admirably. To a man, the G.I.s put their faith in their M1 rifles and took them from North Africa to Okinawa. Along the way, Garand made more improvements to the rifle based upon field experience and soldiers’ comments.
Although late to adopt the rifle, the Marines liked it, too, and found it well-suited for jungle fighting. America was the only country to equip its fighting men with a semi-automatic rifle as a standard shoulder arm. The venerability of the rifle was further established in the Korean War.
The M1 rifle is not without faults. At just under 10 lbs. it is heavy and the en-bloc clip does not allow for easy “topping off.” Because of those drawbacks, America sought a high-capacity, fully automatic rifle for individual soldiers. Reliability and accuracy were paramount, however, and the M1 was the measuring stick. What later became the M14 was based upon the M1.
Combined, Springfield Armory and Winchester Repeating Arms manufactured more than 4 million M1s during World War II. International Harvester and Harrington & Richardson manufactured them as well, and, during the Korean War, more than 500,000 were made.
The rifle is considered one of the finest ever produced by American armories. Its popularity is evidenced by its representation on the firing line at Camp Perry and other highpower rifle matches to this day. It is accurate, robust and its service record speaks for itself.
Disassembly
Disassembly of the unloaded M1 rifle begins by pulling the bolt rearward until it locks back. Visually inspect the chamber to ensure it is not loaded, then press down on the slide and follower while holding the operating rod and ease the bolt forward. Do this carefully or you will end up with a case of “M1 thumb”—a highly unpleasant condition!
Fig. 1
Once this is done, disassembly can begin. Pull rearward on the trigger guard (53) and then out and away from the stock. The entire trigger housing (54) and assembly will separate from the rifle (Fig. 1). Lift the receiver (44) and assembly away from the stock.
Disengage the follower rod (22) from the follower arm (20) by moving the rod toward the muzzle. Remove the rod and operating rod spring (40). Next, push out the follower arm pin (21) from the receiver’s left side. Then lift away the bullet guide (5),
follower arm and operating rod catch (39) (Fig. 2). Reach down into the receiver and lift out the slide and follower (46).
Fig. 2
Continue disassembly by pulling the operating rod (38) rearward until the rear surface of the handle is directly under the forward edge of the windage knob on the rear sight. Disengage the guide lug on the operating rod through the dismount notch on the receiver with upward and outward pressure on the handle of the operating rod (Fig. 3). The rod should now come free from the receiver. Remove the bolt (4) by grasping it and sliding it forward while lifting upward and outward with a rotating motion (Fig. 4).
Fig. 3
With a large, blunt screwdriver, unscrew and remove the gas cylinder lock screw (30). Unscrew and remove the gas cylinder lock (29). Next, remove the gas cylinder (28) by sliding it forward and off the barrel. If the gas cylinder is tightly attached, rap on the bayonet stud with a nylon hammer or piece of soft wood to loosen it. Do not burr or damage the internal splines. The front handguard (23) may then be moved forward and off the barrel.
This is all that is needed for basic cleaning. All other bolt and trigger housing disassembly and parts replacement should be done by a competent gunsmith. Reassembly of the M1 is in the reverse order.
A few precautions: The operating rod for the M1 has a bend that is intentional, and it should never be hammered on or straightened out. The crown of the operating rod should also be kept bright by using a solvent and nylon brush. Do not scrub with a metal brush or other harsh abrasive. The tolerances within the gas operating system are quite close and nothing should be used that can affect the system.
All operating parts should have a light coat of lubrication except the inside of the gas cylinder. This should be free of carbon deposits and other fouling, but should be kept dry