U.S. M1 GARAND .30 RIFLE



This my U.S. M1 Garand .30 rifle. It's a Springfield Armory, receiver dated Oct-Nov 1942 and a barrell dated 1951. This is one of my favorite of my semi-automatics.

I handload for this rifle as well using .308" dia. 168 gr. Speer HP-Match bullets, IMR 4895 powder, CCI No. 34 primers (for mil-spec sensitivity) and swaged military brass cartridges.

Receiver Tang	900373	Correct for Oct-Nov 1942
Barell	S-A-1-51	1951 replacement barell
Receiver	D 28291 17 (R33)	No Comments
Bolt	6528287-SA Z-4-A	Post WWII replacement
Trigger Housing	6528290-SA	Post WWII replacement
Safety	SA11	Correct for year
Hammer	SA D5546008	No Comments
Gas Cylinder	K	No Comments
Windage Knob	DRC	No Comments
Gas Cylinder Lock	M	No Comments
Op Rod	NM	National Match
Op Rod	7790722-RA	No Comments

Here's the history lesson on this rifle...

The U.S. M1 Garand caliber .30 is the first semi-automatic rifle adopted by the United States Army. It replaced the bolt-action Springfield M1903 and variants. In fact, it was the first semi-automatic rifle ever widely adopted by any military army. John C. Garand was the inventor and designed this rifle during his years at the government-owned Springfield armory. His semi-automatic design revolved around a gas-operated and clip-fed rifle system. His early designs used a .276 caliber (7mm) cartridge but was later changed to the common .30-06 cartridge.

Though introduced in 1936, with the onset of WWII, the M1 rifles began to be mass produced at the Springfield armory and an Winchester. During this time, 4 million rifles were produced.

"After the end of the WWII, the production of the M1 in the USA was stopped, and some rifles and also licenses to built it were sold to other countries, such as Italy and Denmark. With the outbreak of the Korean war in 1950 the production of theM1 for US forces was resumed early in 1952. Rifles were manufactured at Springfield armory, and also at Harrington & Richardson Company (H&R) and International Harvester Company. Those companies manufactured M1s until the 1955, and Springfield Armory produced the Garands until 1956. With the official adoption of the new rifle and ammunition in 1957, M14 and 7.62x51mm NATO, respectively, for US service, the M1 rifle became obsolete."

"M1 is a gas operated, magazine fed, semiautomatic rifle. Original M1 were using the gas, that was tapped from muzzle by the special muzzle extension, but this was proven unreliable, and since the 1939, M1 rifles were built with gas system that used a gas port, drilled in the barrel near the muzzle. The tapped gas was directed into the gas cylinder, located under the barrel, where it operated a long-stroke gas piston, integral with the operating rod. Long operating rod housed inside it a return spring, and ended with the extension, that carried a bolt operating groove at the left and a charging handle at the right. The groove was connected with the rotating bolt, located inside the receiver. Bolt had two locking lugs that locked into the receiver walls. When gun was fired, hot powder gases were led to the gas chamber and to the gas piston, that drove back the operating rod. The bolt operating grove, interacting with the stud on the bolt, rotated bolt to unlock it and then retracted it to commence the reloading cycle."

U.S. M1 Garand .30 Rifle