International Harvester

[ArtPahl]

What does the LMR stand for on an IHC barrel?

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[Bob Seijas]

Line Material Company, Birmingham, Alabama. My personal theory is that the R stands for Rifle. Their contract was initially for Carbine barrels but was changed to M1 Rifle before any were made. I theorize that their code would have been LMC but became LMR after the contract was changed. It is pure speculation on my part. They were absorbed into the Power Systems Division of McGraw Edison.

[Mark in Rochester]

I thought it meant Love My Rifle



Walter David Ehlers (May 7, 1921 – February 20, 2014) was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the US armed forces' highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in World War II.

[Bob Seijas]

Ha ha, well the guys at Line were gun nuts and determined to make the best barrel possible. They developed a couple of procedures that made their barrels very accurate, including a more precise method of rifling and a way to better align the barrel to the receiver. When SA was scrounging the system for barrels for the NM program in 1958, they specifically requested LMRs.

[twh]

Interesting in that I have a six digit national match with an LMR barrel that I thought was kind of an anomaly.

[Bob Seijas]

Not an anomaly, SA loved them when they could get them. When Ordnance found a bunch for them, they leaped on it but when they got them they found that the Army team had gotten there first, picked them over, and taken the tightest ones. Ordnance asked if they still wanted the lot and SA said no, they would wait for some that had not been picked over.
Attachment 109382
Here's an interesting one that was upgraded twice.

[Bob Seijas]

When the barrel shortage got desperate in 1958, Ordnance asked Line Material to see if they could restart and make NM barrels. They did some preliminary work on it, but the problem was solved when 50,000 high-quality new 1953-1955 barrels were found at the Schenectady depot. Evidently they were made on newly reconditioned machinery because SA tested a sample of the 1954 barrels and jumped up and down with delight. They grabbed 20,000 of them, which is why 1954 barrels are common on Type 2 Match rifles.
Attachment 109383
Barrel on 1960 T2 NM 1723872

[ArtPahl]

I ran across an IHC with an IMR barrel. What would be a far price for that rifle in average condition?

[AFJon]

Depends on the heel stamp (postage, gap, arrowhead)

CMP prices assume postage configuration unless noted.
IHC Rack Grade $750.00
IHC Field Grade $980.00
IHC Service Grade $1080.00
IHC Gap letter-4 mil $2000.00
IHC Gap letter-5 mil $1500.00

CMP Rifle Prices - CMP Forums

[m1903rifle]

Line Material Company, Birmingham, Alabama. My personal theory is that the R stands for Rifle. Their contract was initially for Carbine barrels but was changed to M1 Rifle before any were made. I theorize that their code would have been LMC but became LMR after the contract was changed. It is pure speculation on my part. They were absorbed into the Power Systems Division of McGraw Edison.

Line Materials also had a plant in Zanesville, OH ( home of the Y bridge ). It was a McGraw Edison transformer plant when I visited it in the late '70s.