[EdwardDiego]

Rest assured, my opinion on the utility of a semi-auto .308 for hunting was very much obtained first hand across several guns. Hence my comment on the suppressor. That was on a friend's Norinco knock-off of an M14, the difference the extra weight on the end of the barrel made to recoil control was very noticeable.

But as much fun as it was chucking $40 of ammo downrange as fast as I could, it was obvious that semi-auto offered no advantage whatsoever over bolt action for hunting when trying to hit the hilar[0] of a red deer at 200 yards.

Oh, and I should've mentioned the heat issues that .308 being fired rapidly cause to a barrel.

[0]: https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co.nz/f17/hilar-shot-55370/...

[roarcher]

In that case, I think your opinion of 7.62 recoil is colored more by the rifle than the round. The design of the M14 is...less than ideal for recoil control. The bore axis sits far above the point of contact with the shoulder, which creates an upward torque when recoil pushes backwards on it, resulting in excessive muzzle rise.

A large part of the reason AR-pattern rifles are so controllable is because the bore axis is in line with the shoulder. The FAL (and its clone, the L1A1) bore axis may not be quite in line with the shoulder, but it's much closer than an M14.

As far as the supposed heat issues...I think the goal posts are being moved quite a lot. I'm talking about controllability during semi-auto fire, that's all.

[EdwardDiego]

Well, heating up the barrel affects accuracy, and again, I'm judging semi-auto for hunting red deer in the New Zealand bush, a very particular use.

But, fair call about the guns I trialled.