What would it mean if my stock didn't have arsenal rebuild stamps on it?

[mjanway]

Like the man inferred earlier, you NEED to buy 'U.S M1 Carbines, Wartime Production', 7th Edition, by Craig Riesch. You can get it on Amazon for about $20 delivered (recently, I think) and it will be the best $20 you will ever spend on this affliction.

I didn't realize the 7th Edition was out, Thanks. Just ordered it.

[ABPOS]

Thank you ChipS. I might just do that. So you guys don't think much of Canfield's book?

I have to admit something though, and I've said this before but I'll run the risk of saying it again. I have kind of a love/ hate relationship with my Carbine. On paper and in theory, the M-1 Carbine was and is my all time favorite shoulder fired weapon of history. I'm a smaller guy, I love the handiness of it, and I think the cartridge is good enough. And it's quite possible my Grandpa carried one in WWII. Although I'm not sure about that. But furthermore, it's a hoot to shoot.

But there is a flipside to that. Once I got mine, it's been a battle to actually like it because of the malfs I got. And there seems like there are so many areas to figure out. Like are the mags good, because they're all so old, and is the headspace OK? Is my barrel shot out? Is my ME and TE anywhere near what it should be. How about that crown, looks like one land might be a little worn down, which might account for it's strange way to shoot right and then shoot left at distance. Which it does and is weird.

And then the malfs themselves. And the stupid bolt tool busted after the third or fourth use, which really irritated me. And now, someone is telling me that my brand new recoil spring that I bought from Fulton, if my memory serves me correctly, is 1/4" too short. When I know I haven't shot more than 1k rounds through it. Maybe more like 400-500. And all these parts, if you need a part and buy a USGI part, I don't know if it will be so used that it's no good also. After emptying your wallet for it.

It is all sort of overwhelming and frustrating. And if I wanted to trust a gun for hunting, plinking, Self Defense, SHTF, my carbine gets a ZERO confidence. I guess there is a reason AR's are so popular. I mean, I've shot the crap out of mine and don't get malfs. I got malfs early on when I starting shooting because I had some old mags. Well, easily remedied. Buy good USGI mags and feed it. I mean, if I can't get my carbine to run on a range, what is a good for? Looking at??? And I'm just not all that interested in guns that don't work. So then my thought is, do I buy one of these repros from Auto Ordnance or Fulton to fulfill my desires. Well, fulton's cost more than I think I'm willing to spend and then I'm not sure about the quality of the Auto Ordnance one. Well, should I buy a different USGI barrel and receiver. Don't know if they'd be any better than the ones I have after dropping a ton of dough on it.

So...... Maybe it's not meant to be. My 03A3 and Garand are boringly good shooters. My garand took a little bit of tweaking, but once it was done, it's like a tank. But I much prefer a smaller, lighter, handier weapon. Even at the range.

What to do....

I don't know.... I'm about ready to chuck it. If I can't get it to run good after this go around, I'll really be frustrated with it. And I know some of you might be saying, well just go shoot your AR's. Well, what I REALLY want is a carbine that works. Hehehhehehe

[USGI]

I didn't realize the 7th Edition was out, Thanks. Just ordered it.

The 6th edition had a table at the back showing 18 changes that were made from the 5th edition. Let us know how many changes this new edition has when you get it. - Bob

[mjanway]

The 6th edition had a table at the back showing 18 changes that were made from the 5th edition. Let us know how many changes this new edition has when you get it. - Bob

I was very curious about that myself. My 6th Edition was looking pretty worn and was accumulating quite a few handwritten notes and corrections so it was good timing. It would be nice if there was a War Baby III out in time for the holidays.

[USGI]

I checked out the table at the back of the 7th edition, and there are 11 items listed. The table is on page 224 and it can be viewed on Amazon.com. The cover of the new edition uses the term "expanded" rather than "revised and expanded." I think I will look over a copy at the next gun show and decide whether to purchase. The description of the new book on Amazon.com is as follows:

The 7th edition of this best-selling bible of the World War II M1 Carbine has been revised and expanded to include new information regarding adjustable rear sights and their period of use, additional manufacturer's codes, new information regarding the importance of rebuilt M1 and M1A1 carbines, and Israeli, Italian reimported carbines, and a new table showing manufacturer's shipment's by dates.