Where should I get my M1 Garande?

Question

And also what should I look for when buying a old WWII one?

Links will be greatly appreciated!

My Dad was thinking of getting one so you don't need to check out my profile!

Answer 1

Where should you get your Garand?

The cheapest place to get a Garand is from the CMP or the Civilian Marksmanship program.

The CMP was set up by Congress to distribute surplus military weapons to the public. As it is non-profit, direct from the government, the guns are going to be as cheap as you can get them. The guns are delivered right to your home with no FFL required.

There are a few drawbacks though.

First, the availablility of weapons is limited by what the CMP gets. Currently, there is a limited supply of Garands (I am waiting to get a nice one myself). The ones they have left are running about $400.

Second, there are a series of "hoops" that you need to jump through to get a rifle from the CMP. First you need to belong to an affiliated club (there is a list on the web site...if you don't belong to one, you can join the Garand club for $25). Second, you need to prove firearm proficiency. This can be done in multiple ways such as military background, participating in a CMP sponsered shooting event, or completing a hunter's safety course with live fire training.

(taken right from the CMP website) "Each M1 Garand rifle sold by CMP is an authentic U.S. Government rifle that has been inspected, headspaced, repaired if necessary and test fired for function"

Check it out. The web site is:

http://www.odcmp.com/


What to look for in your Garand?

It depends on what you are interested in. Personally, I am looking to acquire a "collector's grade" Garand with matching, original parts. A rifle like this will cost around $1500 from the CMP and well over $2K in the private market.

Are you worried about functionality and not about the cosmetics? Take the rifle to a gunsmith to have it checked out. If you buy it from some one or a gun store, see if they will let you test fire the weapon first. Remember, you are looking to buy a rifle that is 60 years old (give or take) that may have been used and abused in a military conflict. Something in a rifle that old may break.

Check the Garand just like you would for any other used rifle. Check the barrel with a bore light. Dry fire it and see how the trigger feels. Work the action...is it smooth or does it stick? Check the wood carefully for cracks. Is there any rust on the weapon or inside the action? If the seller will let you, take it to the range and cycle a clip through it and make sure everything feeds well.

Good Luck!

Answer 2

Bound's hubby here:

First, there are two types of Garand: US government issue Garand and commercial Garand.

Currently, the only commercial Garand I am aware of is the Springfield Armory manufactured Garand. This sells for well over $1000 and the parts used to build the rifles are supposed to be either newly manufactured or new USGI parts.

USGI Garands were manufactured from just before WWII into the 1950s, just after the Korean Conflict. Many M1 Garands have come back into the US by way of importers. The problem with these re-imported Garands is that the barrels that had been marked with the importer's name may have been rebarreled and the quality of the parts on the rifle should be considered suspect.

Your best source for a USGI Garand is to purchase one from the Civilian Marksmanship Program (see link below). The CMP currently has two basic types of Garands available. US issue and Lend/Lease. The Lend/Lease issue Garands have been recently returned from Denmark and Greece. Lend/Lease Garands may have mil-spec parts manufactured by European manufacturers such as Beretta.

If you buy an M1 through the CMP, whether US issue or Lend/Lease issue, all of the rifles come through US arsenal (mine had been shipped from Red River). Before a Garand is released for sale, military armerors inspect each Garand for safe headspace and functioning. CMP Garands are sold complete and safe. CMP Garands, whether US issue or Lend/Lease are sold in different grades such as: field, rack, service, collector, etc. Check out their website and pricing by grade.

You can get a CMP Garand currently for as little as $400. My most recent Garand is a Greek Lend/Lease rifle, purchased for $300. I replaced the stock because I like nice looking wood. This rifle was bought as and is a shooter. The barrel is a little worn and should be replaced to improve the accuracy. As is, this "Greek" Garand can hold the 9 ring at 200 yards. This is decent accuracy for a 50 plus year old rifle that may have it's original barrel. Probably by this summer, it will be wearing a new barrel.

If you buy a CMP rifle, you will be receiving a rifle the same as it would have been issued to a US soldier during either WWII or the Korean Conflict. I would strongly suggest if you were to buy a Garand that you buy it from the CMP. Worries about inferior or improper part would be needless concern.

Good luck.

Answer 3

Look down the barrel, that is always the most important part.Oh and make sure it is not loaded before you do this. put a litttle flash light at the chamber breech and put your eye at the other end, oh and make sure the breech is open before you do this and one more thing, make sure the gun is not......BOOM.....

Answer 4

Check out Cabela's gun library.There guns are usally more expensive, but they usally give a little history on them. Good luck.

Answer 5

cmp.org