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What Value for Fulton Armory Polytech M14s?

1K views 16 replies 6 participants last post by  jreifsch80 
#1 ·
Years ago I found a Polytech M14s which was fun. I got a nice tax refund and decided to let Fulton Armory redo it. This was back in the late 90's. I eventually got it back and realized my ambitions might be competition but my eyes aren't. It is nice. I took it to a couple of CMP matches and 200 yards and out it is all fuzzy to me. I've never shot it that much. When I'm in the mood for a battle rifle my SAR48 with a SUIT scope goes to the range. I've had great success with the M14S at 100 yards but my eyes need glass to go further. Last night I was looking at it and realized I probably haven't fired it in over 8 years. Maybe it needs a new home.

This was his Chinese conversion package. NM rear sight, NM flash hider, medium weight barrel, great trigger. He basically replaced everything but the receiver with GI parts. It has a GI fiberglass stock with a hole where the naughty bits were. Being done during the ban, it has no bayonet lug but someone with better eyes than me could have a great match rifle. I have a pile of mags, including some 5's. Back in the 90's Fulton Armory had a real big internet awareness and lots of people praising them. There seems to have been something of backlash but this seems solid and has never failed in any way.

I'm thinking of putting it up on Gunbroker or trying to do an FTF sale in Colorado. I'm just trying to get an estimate.

Steve
 
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#4 ·
$1,100 - $1,600 if you have the Fulton Paperwork...

$800 otherwise....
Mags are always extra.
It is a shame that the Chinese part is a devaluer. I do have the paperwork, since I never throw anything away. The paperwork shows the Chinese Upgrade Package with list of parts replaced (all of them).. It also has the Upgrade medium weight NM barrel, NM as system, NM sight & NM trigger.

Steve
 
#12 ·
I heard the US machine story but also have never seen a real source - just quotes of this real source but never the actual source. What I went on was that Walt Kuleck and Clint McKee made the claims of the proper forging of the Polytech receivers. There were also people doing well at matches with them.

There are gunners and people who like guns. Unfortunately, I'm in the second group. I brought this rifle to the first of two CMP matches and mostly hit the paper but badly. The local gunnie there, an ex-marine sniper tried it and thought it was great. He found my match ammo poor and tried some of his and proceeded to do a bunch of 'X's at 200 yards.

I know the Chinese were (and are) big in the fake market. I have some of their M1 carbine ammo that has the headstamps looking exactly like Lake City. The story I heard was that it is corrosive and was going to be packed like CMP LC but they got caught and it was imported in Chinese boxes. Another story with no real source.

Steve
 
#13 ·
i have a friend up in ft collins that has his own machine shop, also he know's m14's very very well in fact even qualified expert on the m14 back when he was in the army (early 60's) anyway he has a chinese m14 with all gi parts like you but he won't change the receiver because it shoots so darn well lol also he told me that his receiver is all in usgi spec as far as tollerances AND the hardness. from what he understood it as there were some rifles that actually did have soft receivers but it was probably a small amount that gave all the chinese m14's a bad name.
 
#15 ·
ok i'll have to check it out. after talking alot with my machinist friend i think i'd rather have a chinese receiver m14 than a newer cast one (though a friend of mine and i do have a hand full of cast 80% m14 receivers lol)
 
#16 ·
I also hang out in the cannon world and know well the problems of casting. Even with hardening it is virtually impossible to guarantee that it is solid. That's why the patron Saint of cannoneers is St. Barbara - for people afraid of sudden flaming death.

The Garrand and M14 receivers are cool but almost nostalgic. There is so damned much work in them to make them function. When they are right they are marvelous but so easy to mess up. Over the years a lot of people have tried, and often failed, to reproduce these commercially. Compare them to an AK receiver where you bend a sheet of steel and harden a few pieces.

Steve
 
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