My first M1 Garand and some questions about it

[subijitsu]

Hi all. Love the forum and I hope to learn a lot here from the gurus. I tend to get long winded so please bear with me.

I have recently picked up my first M1 Garand. My father has been having medical issues and the outlook is bleak so he is giving his collection away to family while he is alive. I ended up with his Garand (among others) and it has some little problems.

First a picture;


With the wonderful resources available here I have identified it as a May 1943 Springfield. The bolt is a W10A which is Mar 1942 - Dec 1944. The barrel has been replaced which leads me to my first question. It was made by "Blue Sky / Arlington VA". Could this have been a military replacement for a worn out barrel or was this done later? I have never heard of Blue Sky, is this a quality barrel or is it junk?


The stock is quite beat up and is a pieced together rig of 3 different colors. Two of the stock pieces have been repaired with a staple and some brass nails. I am guessing these could have field repairs to get her back up and running. My next question. The front hand guard piece is pretty loose, it moves front to back around 1/4". Is this normal? If not, how do I fix it?

My next question is about a problem with the gas block/front sight. It is kind of loose and moves a little bit on the barrel. Not a bunch but enough for me to notice, and on my ARs this wouldnt be acceptable. Is this normal? If not, how do I tighten it up?

Final question, I promise. I want to turn this into a shooter and I dont think it will take much. The action seems to be solid, the bore and chamber are nice, and it doesnt seem to be extremely worn out. What should I look for specifically as potential problems that tend to surface with old Garands? What info should I know going into the wonderful world of Garnads?

Thanks for reading my ramblings and thanks in advance for any info.

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[browningautorifle]

Simplest answer first. It's probably a good shooter now so try it before you change anything. The marking on the barrel is an import marking not military at all. The gas cylinder generally moves a bit but it's hard to say without seeing it if it's too much. Shoot it and see if it's accurate. The wood can be replaced either by getting some from CMP or Boyd's and both have merit. As for problems, shoot it and see what takes place. There probably won't be any issues. Just get a can of ammo from CMP and you will have a good cheap place to start with ammo you can bet won't do you wrong.

[subijitsu]

Simplest answer first. It's probably a good shooter now so try it before you change anything. The marking on the barrel is an import marking not military at all. The gas cylinder generally moves a bit but it's hard to say without seeing it if it's too much. Shoot it and see if it's accurate. The wood can be replaced either by getting some from CMP or Boyd's and both have merit. As for problems, shoot it and see what takes place. There probably won't be any issues. Just get a can of ammo from CMP and you will have a good cheap place to start with ammo you can bet won't do you wrong.

Thanks Jim. The gas cylinder doesnt move a whole lot, but its more than Im used to having on my other rifles. I was thinking about replacing the whole stock set eventually but in the mean time I will just live with the loose piece. As for ammo I was planning on reloading some M2 clones to run through it. I have a whole ton of 30-06 brass sitting around because thats what I load to hunt with.

I will shoot her and see what she tells me. Thanks for the info.

[browningautorifle]

If you go tho the ammo section here you will find a metric tomme of info on reloading M2 spec. I reload for mine also. I'm in Canada so I can't buy cheap or reliable ball. I use 4895 IMR because that's what they used. The cartridges of the world book calls for 50 grs but I would go a bit lighter than that. I use Hornady 150 FMJ and Winchester large or magnum primers. The major thing in my mind is use all the same brass as I find these rifles a bit picky for accuracy. Mixed brass will give poor results. Trim to length too.

[subijitsu]

If you go tho the ammo section here you will find a metric tomme of info on reloading M2 spec. I reload for mine also. I'm in Canada so I can't buy cheap or reliable ball. I use 4895 IMR because that's what they used. The cartridges of the world book calls for 50 grs but I would go a bit lighter than that. I use Hornady 150 FMJ and Winchester large or magnum primers. The major thing in my mind is use all the same brass as I find these rifles a bit picky for accuracy. Mixed brass will give poor results. Trim to length too.

Sweet, that actually works out nicely. I have a lb or so of IMR 4895 sitting around as well as a few Sierra 150 gr bullets. I would love to use them up. Throw them in some of the once fired Federal brass I have set aside and I should be set.

I came across about half of an ooooold box of FMJ 170gr+/- boat tail bullets a while back. All the the box says is "100 bullets Ball cal .30 M1 Frankfurt Aresnal" Could these be M72 match bullets? They have a cannelure which I found kind of strange for a match bullet. That may be a fun round to load.

Thanks again. I cant believe how much good info is here and that I have never found this site before.

[Ben Hartley]

... It was made by "Blue Sky / Arlington VA".

"Blue Sky" was an import company, and required to stamp its wares thus. Check the side of the barrel under the operating rod; 'SA' would indicate a Springfield barrel.

...Two of the stock pieces have been repaired with a staple and some brass nails. I am guessing these could have field repairs to get her back up and running.

Or maybe not. IIRC, the brass pins were used at armory level to refurbish stocks. I may be mistaken in this, however.

...The front hand guard piece is pretty loose, it moves front to back around 1/4". Is this normal? If not, how do I fix it?

While 1/4" might be a bit excessive, some fore-and-aft play is completely normal. More than that, it's desirable.

... the gas block/front sight. It is kind of loose and moves a little bit on the barrel. Not a bunch but enough for me to notice... how do I tighten it up?

If you can feel/see it, it's too much. There's a process often used which entails peening the barrel splines.

...What should I look for specifically as potential problems that tend to surface with old Garands? What info should I know going into the wonderful world of Garnads?

Make sure that the gas cylinder lock screw is tight. There are a whole bunch of other things! Might I suggest a book or two would be a good investment? I'm partial to Scott Duff's books, and the Kuleck/McKee "Complete Assembly Guide."

HTH

Ben Hartley

[daveboy]

You have received some good advice here already and I will add to it.

The front sight cannot move. If it does, it will be hard to consistently hit a target. The sight is pushed onto the barrel by the gas cylinder lock. Make sure the lock is tight. The sight is prevented from turning by locking into splines cut into the barrel. If the sight is turning on the barrel these splines can be lightly peened to tighten it up.

The upper (front) handguard should "rattle". If it were a tight fit it could induce strain on the barrel as the barrel expands and contracts from heating and cooling. This would destroy accuracy.

IMR 4895 is the only powder you will ever need for this rifle. These rifles only work within a very narrow band of powder burning speeds. Too fast and chamber pressure rises but action won't cycle. Too slow and pressure drops but action cycles with too much force breaking and bending things. Same with bullet weights--stay in the 150-175 grain range in most cases.

Lock the oprod/bolt back and look into the notch cut on the right side of the lower (rear handguard). There you should be able to see the manufacturer and born on date of your barrel. The Blue Sky marking is an import mark. The importer has been required to mark rifles they imported since 1968. Which means that this rifle has been imported from overseas sometime since 1968.

Enjoy!

daveboy

[subijitsu]

Ok, I looked under the op rod and there is the barrel markings. Springfield manufacture with what looks like a date of 10-54.

The gas cylinder lock was tight so I removed it and lightly peened the splines in a couple places and it is much better. I may need to do it some more later down the road as I went pretty easy with the hammer, but it is tight for now.

I will definitely be buying a shop book for the Garand. I am a firm believer in having actual bound paper on the shelf. I may be old school but manuals are an invaluable resource to have whether it be guns, cars, electronics, or whatever. Its a shame that people now days almost cant grab a book and look something up. If it isnt on the computer, it doesnt exist to them. I have found more good info on Chevy parts in a book that my father put together that is a collection of articles he has found over the years. I cant find any of that info online. /rant

Thanks for your help all. I guess human knowledge is the best resource of all.

[Bill Hollinger]

Subijitsu, welcome to the site and enjoy.

[campperrykid]

Sweet
... ( Snip for brevity ).....
Throw I came across about half of an ooooold box of FMJ 170gr+/- boat tail bullets a while back. All the the box says is "100 bullets Ball cal .30 M1 Frankfurt Aresnal" Could these be M72 match bullets? They have a cannelure which I found kind of strange for a match bullet. That may be a fun round to load.

Thanks again. I cant believe how much good info is here and that I have never found this site before.

Sound like bullets for the pre-WW2 load for Springfield '03 and 1917 rifles.
Should average around 172 or 173 . Could be worth some money in the original box.