M1A is not a military designation. It is a Springfield Armory Inc designation for their M14 clone.
Is there a military designation for M1A1? I know there is the M1 Garand and M1 Carbine, but not sure if there is a M1A1. Usually that A1 just means the 2nd Generation.
i know more than i should about the M1A, i mean thats the rifle that is gonna be proplery packed and stored when im buried. -or- its gonna be in a tac sling when they bury me at sea ( i want to travel even after im dead)
as far as i know, the M1 Garands used A-D designations.
as for the second gen stuff, i went to a local gun shop today during lunch, and the guy behind the counter started spouting off about how theyre having supply troubles with the M1A1, and thats where i come in. i ask him and he kept telling that its the civie-14, and being a M1A afficianado, i tell him that Its M1A not M1A1...i think i hurt his feelings. but it went from there, and i thought about it off and on through out the day, and started thinking maybe its a variant of the M1A.....but i still take the stance that hes was full of crap and only knew marginal things about weapons platforms...its a good thing i didnt bring up the M21 systems.
In the AR forum...
yeah yeah yeah i know, if you read the original post admit that i know this is an ar forum. but, being as this forum seems to have high traffic; i thought that it would be a high profile position to help me find out about the M1A1