M1 Garand, ammo, etc.

[onebohemian]

Finally got myself an M1, but went with a 1942 Garand in purported excellent shape. (Don't have it in my hands yet but hopefully by week's end.) I need to do a lot of reading and research to figure out this new area and hopefully toy. Am excited to be starting something new that is gun related.

Assuming I will be able to shoot it, looks like I need .30-06 M2 Ball ammo. Sounds also like I will need to join an approved club to be able to order surplus ammo from CMP. Any advice anyone here can provide about clubs and buying ammo for these rifles locally would be much appreciated.

Thanks.

[bofe954]

Find some of this:

http://www.federalpremium.com/products/ ... spx?id=810

http://www.ammunitiontogo.com/product_i ... tal-jacket

[Sprouticus]

For the CMP club membership requirement, I joined the Grand collectors association.

http://www.thegca.org/

They put out a nice quarterly magazine.

The CMP just upped the price of the HXP recently but it is still the cheapest M1 ammo around that I know of.

I also bought all my enbloc clips from them as well as a sweet bayonet.

I have shot some very good groups with the PPU m1 Garand ammo, it runs about .80 a round. http://www.wideners.com/itemdetail.cfm?item_id=8822&dir=18%7C830%7C850
I have seen it as low as $335 a can but not recently.

[Sprouticus]

Some other items to consider.

The first book I would get is The M1 Garand Complete Assembly Guide by Walt Kuleck.
It's very informative with lots of hints for taking your rifle apart and reassembling it.

For every Garand I bought I installed the complete spares kit from Orion7, it has all new springs and pins, the items that wear and tend to cause problems.
http://www.m1garand.com/store/m1_complete_recommended_spare_parts_kit.html

Also a cleaning rod muzzle guide to protect the crown is a good idea.
http://www.fulton-armory.com/cleaningrodmuzzleguidedeweym1.aspx

[Doc Harvey]

Any chance you're a veteran? You can waive all the club membership requirements if you have a DD214.

[Rip Van Winkle]

Unfortunately, the days of the DCM and cheap M2 ball are long gone. As already mentioned, the CMP is going to be your best bet for (fairly) cheap ammo but be forewarned, you will have to wait for it for 2 to 4 months for it. An even better bet would be to roll your own. Load up on 150-168gr bullets and as much 4895 as you can get your hands on. Be mindfull of factory loaded ammo, most is loaded with powder which is too slow for the M1's gas system.

For a CMP affiliated club...
<<<--- I happen to know a guy who runs one.

[grimbeaver]

I have a friend is looking at this as he just sent his order in to the CMP for a M1. Said he found the American Eagle at Gander but it was really expensive. If you are willing to buy a case the guys at Capra's told me they have a supplier with the American Eagle in stock, I think they said $25 a box so $250 for the case.

[OldmanFCSA]

Ihave a bunch of korean 30 06 loaded ammo in nato boxes, and some emblocks if anyone is interested.
I will get a count and pictures if anyone is interested.

Can't today, at hospital again, like going to my favorite resort, ????????? Cute nurses wait on me.


I have 30 06 brass, 147 grain FMJBT bullets, primers, and IMR4895 powder, if needed. Load at my place if you want for a small equipment use donation.

[onebohemian]

Thanks, everyone, for the information and offers. Lots to read and think about.

[2in2out]

Congrats are maybe a little premature, but still in order. You won't regret it.

I joined the GCA, get their magazine and also picked up a copy of the DVD they sell (got mine for free with membership, but I don't know if they still offer that deal). At the very least, they're a good resource, even if you do join some other organization.

The wait times for CMP-related stuff is pretty long, but still worth it, in my opinion. I've seen ammo boxes of M1 Garand appropriate M2 ball at Cabela's, and wouldn't expect to have trouble getting it most other places that sell ammo. If you find ammo, be sure it's okay to shoot in the Garand. Ammo destined for modern .30-06 rifles will not be good for your new gun.

One book I bought was Hatchers Book of the Garand, but I think the GCA's DVD is a better resource, because they take you through a full disassembly process.

Another thing that I found entertaining was to re-watch Band of Brothers after you've gotten a chance to shoot your Garand and clean it once or twice. That may sound silly to most people, but after shooting teh gun, I realized how much practice the actors in BoB must've had, because they made rifle operations look much easier than I have found it to be. I think I enjoyed the series more afterspending time with "the greatest battle implement ever devised"

[AFTERMATH]

I went through the CMP for my M1 and ammo - could not be more happy. Actually, that's a lie, I wish I'd done it years ago when the ammo was cheap! Bought a meager supply of ammo - half on clips, half in boxes. Now I've got enough to keep me going 'till I set up for reloading.

[Ranger01]

You can always get an adjustable gas plug that will allow you to run ammo other than M2 ball/ Garand spec ammo.

[eldo]

Ditto on an adjustable gas plug or ported gas plug for shooting economic commercial ammo such as Core-Lokt.
Be sure to also join the CMP forum if you haven't done so already. There is a wealth of information available on that forum.
http://forums.thecmp.org/index.php

http://www.garandgear.com/ has some good articles on detail stripping and maintenance of a Garand and they also have a ported gas plug which does not have to be adjusted.

[Eric Marleau]

I have had my Garand for a tad over a month now, and have done a pile of research on the net and by emailing to some very smart fellows. As usual, I am going the reloading route.
I am waiting for better weather but I have reloads of 168 gr Nosler Custom Competition HPBT Bullets using IMR4895 powder. I have loads going from 45.5gr-47gr doing it in .5gr increments.

Until I can test these, I am shooting the Federal for M1 30/06 purchased from Gander Mountain.
You can also get any extra Garand supplies that you will need from Midway USA.
I should be receiving some 2 and 5 round clips and a Garand bore cleaning brush that I ordered from Midway tomorrow.

I would also advise you to join the National CMP Forum and the Minnesota CMP Forum.
The Minnesota CMP Forum has information of all CMP Shoots being held in Minnesota.

Feel free to contact me for any more information that I may come across.

Eric

[onebohemian]

Thanks again, everyone. I have been doing a ton of research too. I have joined a bunch of new sites. I have learned a lot already. Got a long way to go though. Considering ordering a second rifle but this time directly from CMP. Caught the bug.