my dad's M1a1 - expert may give me theirs opinion?

[Matteo]

Hello! I see here people very fond and expert, so I thought I'd show you a M1a1 to know your opinion on it. I'll be glad to know if you think this will be worth of some restoring, as matching parts to '43, or just let it be as it is.

Here in Italy we can collect weapons, it's a specific license for get guns not to shoot, just have them. Well this one was from that kind of collection (in nice company of a sniper garand really original sniper + a mint korea garand).

Well this is it: serial 2.94X.XXX






















here I see the small cross cannon stamp, faint and hard to see, but seems to be there in sun light.

Ok, my guess is: this may be an original m1a1, restored in Benicia Arsenal where high wood has been machined to low, front band, rear sight, mag catch and safety has been changed.

Inside parts are Inland.

What would you do if this was yours: Would you restore it to sept-oct '43 or keep it as it is now?

Thanks for your time and patience.

Have a great day!

Matteo

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[gsimmons]

Keep it as is. The rebuild is a legitimate part of its history. don't try to make it into something it isn't. It's a nice carbine and lots of people would like to have it in their collection.

[carbineone]

I would keep it as is I think. I do have a question. So you can own firearms in Italy but you cannot shoot them? Can you also own ammunition but cannot use it then? Or are you forbidden to own ammunition? Sounds like some crazy laws there too.

[shadycon]

Hi; It's nicer and more original than mine. I'd leave it as is and enjoy it. GK

[Matteo]

So you can own firearms in Italy but you cannot shoot them? Can you also own ammunition but cannot use it then? Or are you forbidden to own ammunition? Sounds like some crazy laws there too.

Hey Carbineone, I'll be not complete but I try to explain a bit: here we have 4 kind of weapons
1- war (full auto)
2- common (semi)
3- sporty (semi)
4- hunting (semi)
and many kind of license to buy/use them
I have a license to own 3 common, 6 sporty and infinite number of hunting (but I can't go hunting because that's another license).
there are also license to bring a concealed weapon (for very few!!! ppl who run activities with lot of money as jewelries for example), to go hunt in specific places and time, and for collecting weapons (but with this one you can't have munitions, neither 1 single round).

nobody can legally own a war gun, only those who have a license to collect war weapon but they are old guys who got the license many years ago ( +-1975), no more license like that now. Weapons shop that have ppl with building/modifiing war weapons license can have full auto... My girl own a weapon shop this kind, between. (this make me very happy cause once a garand was on the bed close to me and she came on my shoulder, the garand still there )

returning on my answer, it's a bit complicated and with stupid rules, as no 30 rounds on ar15 for example... as in California if I got it right...

have a great day

[blazer91]

Hey Matteo, just curious how your dad found this jewel. Since Italy was a battleground there must have been weapons and munitions scattered from the beaches to the mountains and cleaning up after the war would have resulted in many treasures stashed away.... so a legit story is always good to hear, good pics btw,
cheers Jim
ps. my grandfather was there (Sicily and Italy)

[Matteo]

my grandfather was there (Sicily and Italy)

I Thank so much the memory of your grandfather for being here!
Some ungrateful people here don't understand what fascism, here, and nazism, spread in europe, were. And don't understand how important have been for us in europe what Allies have done helping us liberating from that. Thanks a lot!

I found the m1a1 for my dad, since my gf owns a weapons shop www.traxarm.it. She tells me what they find and I have some sort of first hand choice. So I went in the shop and disassembled the gun, checked it as much I was able at that time, and then gave the advice to my dad who was walking the "camino di Santiago" in Spain. This is the story how this gun was adopted by the family.

For the m1a1 carbine story itself I have no infos, and I'm really sorry for that. Maybe we can try to think about something together.
It seems original to me, no barrel change or receiver, I mean that the receiver was on that stock since the beginning of the story.
The gun went to Benicia Arsenal in California after the war, then she came back. I can't tell you if it has marking of some europe country on it (every gun must be tried and fired by here in EU and when they do they put a mark on the barrel or receiver), but may be I'll check it out within some days.

That's all I know.

Have a great day!

[Patrick Chadwick]

So you can own firearms in Italy but you cannot shoot them?

Not totally crazy. Similar legislation in GB means that you can buy "off-ticket" historical firearms for which the ammunition is defined as being in an obsolete caliber, i.e. no longer commercially available, as items for a collection. If you want to actually fire them, then they must be appropriately registered on your firearms licence. Which makes it awkward for those who have historical firearms that they might wish to try out before consigning them to a life in the display cabinet.

Germany is more restrictive, but simpler in this respect. If it goes bang and uses a cartridge it requires a licence, whatever the age of the firearm.
On the other hand, muzzle-loading single shot firearms are free for anyone over the age of 18 in Mauserland, whether original or replica. In GB a replica muzzle-loader requires a licence!

In short, if you study firearms legislation in various countries you might find this all quaintly amusing, but if you are looking for logic you are going to be disappointed.

...Oh yeah, nearly forgot, getting back on track...Leave the carbine alone. The idea of "restoring" is the "good intention" at the start of the slippery slope that leads down through falsification to fakery. Hence my personal avoidance of the word "correct" in this area. Falsification can never be correct.

[Patrick Chadwick]

I found the m1a1 for my dad, since my gf owns a weapons shop Traxarm.

Thanks for the link. I was in the shop last year, and will be coming to Florence again soon to improve my Italian.

[blazer91]

at that time, and then gave the advice to my dad who was walking the "camino di Santiago" in Spain.

awesome! i saw the movie "The Way" directed by Emilio and starring his dad Martin Sheen,, very cool and inspiring,
thanks for your respect for those that helped liberate your country.
Jim