by R.K. Campbell | Contributing Editor
The Springfield SAINT™, top, is shown with another of the author’s favorites, a 1903 Springfield rifle. The SAINT is a handsome black rifle.
After years of enjoying excellent service from the Springfield 1911 Mil Spec, Operator, and others, we finally have a quality AR 15 offering from Geneseo, IL. The Springfield SAINT™ bears the proud crossed cannons Springfield Armory crest.
I am a Springfield fan and, while I have retained objectively in testing this rifle, I drove in the rain to purchase the first SAINT I could find for sale within 100 miles.
Springfield Armory is marketing this rifle with a slant toward the young and adventurous and those willing to take responsibility for their own safety. I like that but the older and experienced shooter will also find much to like about the SAINT. For pride of ownership, an exercise of important rights, hunting game from varmints to deer-sized animals, competitions including Three-Gun and for personal defense, the SAINT is an excellent first rifle. Tags like defend your legacy hit close to home and I find the rifle fits the tag. Interestingly Springfield stresses strong and independent women in their ads. I have quite a few in my family and I think that they are going to enjoy firing and using the SAINT. One of the girls said it was as if Springfield tapped them on the shoulder and said “I want you to own this gun!”
For those taking responsibility for their own safety the SAINT is a great choice. Even for those of us that already own a quality AR 15 rifle the SAINT has promise. And if you have not noticed yet, this is a firearm I am far more excited about than usual.
Configuration
The SAINT’s handguard is well designed with excellent adhesion.
The SAINT is delivered with an A2 type front sight and a folding aperture rear sight. The gas system is a mid-length type, ideal for a 16-inch barrel carbine. The barrel twist is one turn in eight inches. This is midway between the popular 1 in 7 and 1 in 9 twists and increasingly popular. I had no problems obtaining good accuracy at 100 yards and no keyholes with the heavy weight bullets. For my use this twist seems ideal. I use the traditional 55-grain weight for 90 percent of my shooting and the 60 to 62-grain weight for critical use. Heavy bullets over 70 grains are used primarily for accuracy testing and confirm a rifle’s usefulness with a variety of loads.
Meopta’s red dot gave good results.
Other particulars are a GI trigger that breaks clean at 6 pounds. The bolt carrier is properly staked at the gas keys. The trigger group features a coating that aids in smooth operation. There is also a tightening device that helps keep the proper tension between the receivers. I like that and I believe this gives the SAINT an advantage in accuracy. Bravo Company supplies a new style handguard not yet available for the aftermarket. I like this three-section handguard very much. It isn’t free floated but offers several attachment points. The lower section contains a heat shield. A stub near the front of the guard prevents the hand from running forward to the gas block. That block gets hot! This handguard is ideal for my use, offering excellent control in short to medium range shooting with the AR 15 rifle. The Bravo Company Gunfighter grip is supplied with the rifle.
The SAINT features a BCM six-position collapsible stock. It isn’t going to collapse when you do not intend it to. It may require more effort to adjust than some, but I like this tightness. It does not rattle when shaken. This hardware is well suited to real world use.
The SAINT is supplied with an impressive hard case, a real bonus.
The SAINT isn’t what I would call entry level but rather a real world working rifle. The approximately $900 price is in a competitive place. The SAINT may be upgraded if needed. A true entry level rifle, in my opinion, isn’t worth the upgrade. There are many less expensive AR 15 rifles and just as many that cost considerably more. The SAINT delivers good performance for the money. Like my personal Mil Spec 1911, the SAINT is proving to be a reliable and accurate workhorse. It isn’t a showpiece but there is considerable pride of ownership. I was excited to have such an interesting rifle to test, but had to wait for the weather to dissipate and my range hands to come together. When it worked to my advantage, within a week, I was firing the SAINT. I learned a lot about the rifle. I first lubricated the bolt carrier—an AR 15 rifle will run dirty but not dry—and then loaded several magazines with the Black Hills Ammunition 55-grain FMJ load from the remanufactured line. The rifle was supplied with a single MagPul magazine. I loaded eight Brownells magazines into a neat eight magazine carrier, also from Brownells, that often accompanies me to the range. Brownells magazines have met stringent military standards and are my go-to magazine.
The bolt carrier is well fitted and finished.
The rifle was initially fired at man-sized targets at 25 and 50 yards for familiarization. The rifle ran smoothly with no failures to feed, chamber, fire or eject. Recoil is subjective and the 5.56mm doesn’t kick very much but the SAINT seemed to kick less than some AR 15 rifles. Springfield volunteered that the mid-length gas system was responsible. The rifle is chambered in 5.56mm so the full gamut of 5.56mm and .223 Remington loads are useful. The barrel features a standard compensator that works as well as any AR 15 “birdcage.” The forend felt good in the hand and allows a trained shooter to use the far forward hand grip to control the rifle. It wasn’t difficult to put center hits in the X-ring to 50 yards. My crew and I put over 200 cartridges through the SAINT the first day, allowing the barrel to cool between firing strings. The only thing a burn out test proves is that rifles get very hot and that powder gases and heat will burn out a barrel.
Accuracy testing
Firing the SAINT was a pleasure. The rifle is accurate and controllable.
I have left my personal rifle fitted with iron sights; however, I have also used the Lucid 6 x 1 x 24 rifle scope to evaluate absolute accuracy. Practical accuracy as may be demonstrated by a trained shooter firing offhand and from a barricade brace is most important but the maximum a marksman may achieve firing from a solid bench rest position at a long 100 yards is also interesting. The Lucid optic provides a good clear sight picture and has advantages a trained rifleman will exploit. Like all quality rifles, the SAINT prefers one load over the other. The accuracy results show that the SAINT is accurate enough for any conceivable chore.
100 yards, 3-shot groups-with Lucid optic
Black Hills Ammunition 60-grain REMAN. 2.0 in.
Black Hills Ammunition 60-grain AMAX 1.3 in.
Black Hills Ammunition 77-grain SMK 1.15 in.
Federal American Eagle 55-grain FMJ 1.9 in.
Federal 62-grain Green Tip 1.5 in.
Federal 62-grain Bonded 1.25 in.
Hornady Steel Match 55-grain FMJ 1.95 in.
Hornady 60-grain A Max 1.25 in.
Hornady Black Ammunition 75-grain 1.2 in.
Mounting a light on the home defense rifle is easy enough with the SAINT.
I also tested a MeoRed red dot on the Springfield. For use to 50 yards this red dot offers excellent hit probability and gets the Springfield up and rolling for Three-Gun Competition. Results were much better than with iron sights. I like the Springfield SAINT. The rifle is reliable, accurate, and has features that many other rifles do not. It is a better gun than most that sell for less and comparable to many selling for considerably more. The Springfield SAINT is going to be a force in the market and a welcome addition to my personal battery.
