Disappointed

I've admired the M1A for a long time, and tonight, I finally had the chance to try one at my local range, which offers hundreds of guns for rent. Since I'm planning to buy an M1 Garand first, I thought it’d be a good idea to fire an M1A to get a feel for it.

Unfortunately, the experience didn’t go as planned. The rifle seemed to have a bad firing pin or rod because every time I loaded the magazine, chambered a round, and disengaged the safety, I’d pull the trigger and only hear a "click"—no fire. I tried troubleshooting while on the range, but nothing worked. On closer inspection, the gun looked pretty rough—beat up and likely never cleaned or greased, which didn’t help matters.

Overall, it was a disappointing experience since I was so excited to shoot this iconic firearm. Hopefully, next time will be better!

If anyone has any advice to better tell in the field, that would be great. I hope to join all you M1A owners soon!!!