Description
The Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut takes the mechanics of the SOCOM 16 and puts them in wood. The idea is not new: toward the end of the Second World War, American ordnance built a shortened Garand called the T26 for crews who needed a full power rifle inside a vehicle. It never went into production. This is what it would have looked like had the M14 got the same treatment.
Where The Tanker Idea Comes From
The T26 Tanker Garand was a straightforward proposition: take the M1 Garand, cut the barrel to around 18 inches, shorten the stock and hand it to tank crews, paratroopers and anyone else who could not swing a 43 inch rifle in a confined space. Very few were made and the war ended before the concept went anywhere.
The Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut applies the same logic to the M14 pattern. The barrel is 16.25 inches, overall length is 37.25 inches, and the walnut stock is what separates it from the black synthetic SOCOM 16 that shares its mechanics. It is the same rifle underneath with a very different character.
Weight comes in at 8 pounds 9 ounces, which is actually lighter than the composite stocked SOCOM CQB. Walnut is heavier than polymer per unit volume but the fixed Tanker stock carries less material than an adjustable one.
Sights, Trigger And Muzzle
Springfield fits the same fast sighting arrangement as the SOCOM rifles rather than the match sights of the full length guns. An XS post with a tritium insert in a .125 blade sits against a ghost ring rear sight in a .135 aperture, adjustable in MOA increments for both windage and elevation.
A ghost ring works because it is large enough that your eye stops registering it and simply looks through. That makes target acquisition considerably faster than a small match aperture allows, and on a 16 inch rifle intended for use inside 150 yards it is exactly the right choice. The tritium front post is self powered, so it is visible in a dark barn or at last light without any charging from a torch.
The trigger on the Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut is the two stage service unit breaking at around 5 pounds, and a muzzle brake is fitted rather than a flash suppressor. On a short .308 barrel there is a great deal of gas still burning at the muzzle, and the brake keeps the Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut from climbing between shots.
Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut Specifications
- Caliber: 308 Winchester (7.62x51mm NATO)
- Barrel: 16.25 inch six groove carbon steel, 1:11 right hand twist
- Muzzle device: Muzzle brake
- Front sight: XS post with tritium insert, .125 blade
- Rear sight: Ghost ring .135 aperture, MOA adjustable for windage and elevation
- Trigger: Two stage, approximately 5 pound break
- Stock: Walnut
- Operating system: Gas operated with long stroke operating rod, rotating bolt
- Overall length: 37.25 inches
- Weight: 8 pounds 9 ounces
- Magazine: One ten round magazine included
- Model number: AA9622
- UPC: 706397926748
One ten round magazine is supplied; twenty round magazines are the standard M1A pattern where legal.
Why Buyers Choose The Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut
Most compact .308 rifles look like equipment. The Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut looks like a rifle, and for a lot of buyers that is the entire reason to choose it over the mechanically identical SOCOM 16. Wood and steel in a short package is an unusual combination on the current market.
The historical thread is genuine rather than invented marketing. The T26 Tanker Garand existed, the problem it solved was real, and this rifle is a sensible modern answer to the same question: how do you carry a full power rifle somewhere a full length rifle will not go.
Mechanically it gives up nothing to the synthetic versions. Same action, same barrel length, same sights, same trigger. The Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut is a choice of material and appearance, not of capability.
Now the honest caveats. Ammunition selection matters on an M14 pattern rifle, and the shortened gas system here is less tolerant than the full length one rather than more. Stay with 150 to 175 grain loads using powders suited to the platform, or fit an adjustable gas plug, because slow burning commercial .308 will bend an operating rod over time.
The brake is loud, and on a 16 inch .308 that is not a small consideration for anyone shooting beside you. You also give up roughly 200 feet per second against a 22 inch barrel, which shortens useful range. Walnut moves with humidity, so accuracy will drift with the seasons unless the action is bedded. And there is no scope rail, so mounting optics means a side mount or a scout rail purchased separately.
Who Should Buy The Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut
The Springfield M1A Tanker 308 Walnut suits the buyer who wants a compact full power rifle and would rather it be wood than polymer, whether for a truck, a property or close cover hunting. If appearance is not a factor, the SOCOM 16 is the same rifle in synthetic for less money. If you shoot past 200 yards, the 18 inch Scout Squad or a full length M1A will serve you considerably better. And if you want an adjustable length of pull, the SOCOM 16 CQB is the one with the adjustable stock.
Learn more about this rifle from the manufacturer, or see more firearms available at MAG5 Firearms.
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