I have whittled down my choices to the Springfield M1A series of rifles. My SKS is getting to be to hard to find ammo for, and I would like to have an American made, .30 cal, semi-auto rifle. My question is what barrel length is appropriate? I went to the range last week and got to shoot a guys M1A scout, which has the 18 inch barrel. I liked how it weighed in my hands, it wasn't too barrel-heavy like my SKS. The other option is the 22 inch barrel. Will a 4 inch longer barrel make a huge difference? I do not need the handicap of a longer barrel for recoil control; I know how to hold a rifle the right way. Usually past 16 inches the only aspect of a rifle barrel that affects accuracy is sheer quality of the part.

 

I dont have any experience with that particular rifle, but I moved up from a youth model .243 (15 inch barrel) to an adult .243 (20 inch barrel) and the difference in accuracy was like night and day, I'd say gor for the longer one uless you for some odd reason carry the gun around in confined spaces a lot

 

I may put a scope on it at some point, in which case the 22 would yield higher velocity at longer ranges. I may have to go to the local gunshop and see how I like the longer one.