“T” and “D” come with me to the range. (Several photos)

[Gibbs505]

Within 400-500 yards, serious trouble for the receving end huh!!

I agree about the cleaning part, it;s what put me off semis when I had one! Along with the finniky ammo needs!

 

[Vimy Ridge]

#4mk1(T), great post and pictures. Lovely pair of rifles as well. You are a lucky man.

 

[thunderflash]

VERY nice pieces indeed !! --"#4", You've motivated me to want to dig my "T" out from the back of the safe for a few 100 & 200 yarders. Having never zeroed the #4 T before , -- which directions do you turn the knobs for windage, & elevation ?----- BTW, the scope is a "Mk 3"

 

[Boom-Boom]

Yup, today was a good day for a M1C Garand sniper range test too.After a lot of searching I finally got the proper receiver bracket and a Griffin & Howe mount for my M1C. I had some difficulty in getting the rings to secure to the base with the 2 screws which pass thru the base from the bottom,and found that I needed to insert a .004 piece of shimstock between the rings and the base to draw them up tight. After getting a 25 yd zero I moved to the 100 yd bench where I fired seven 3 shot groups with using three of my proven Garand handloads.Groups ranged from .5" to 3.1 " with an overall average of 1.41". I was pleased that the scope rings remained secure and that the vintage Lyman Alaskan scope allowed positive adjustment and retained it's zero as well. This level of accuracy is consistent with what I have experienced with my M1D over the past 10 yrs. As Sten says,the sniper Garands are not at all comfortable to shoot due to their offset scope,but it is satisfying to find a good level of accuracy with what was state of the art nearly 65 yrs ago.With the low power 21/2x scope you really don't gain that much over the conventional iron sights,but the added target resolution is certainly helpful. For comparison, I also fired seven 3 shot groups using the standard aperture sight from an Italian Tipo 2 7.62mm Garand that I built on a Breda receiver. Group sizes with this rifle ranged from .75" to 3" with an overall average of 1.5"-just about the same as the M1C.
On the topic of authentic Garand sniper rifles,the M1D is especially difficult to establish as bona-fide military issue, as many were assembled in civilian hands using surplus M1D components. The US Army assembled these on any make and vintage receiver,so You cannot pin them down to make or serial number range.The best way of establishing military provenance is with US DCM or CMP documentation. There are a number of legitimate military M1Ds in circulation in Canada by reason of the imports from Denmark 10 plus yrs ago.In addition to the proper M1D barrel,these rifles will show the rifles serial # stamped on the stock (mine is on the top edge of the stock below the op rod handle,contrary to the normal Danish practice of stamping the serial number on the botton of the buttstock)and will have the correct M84 scope marked with the Danish FKF/Crown/inventory number. The M1C sniper rifles were built by Springfield Armory as a production item and will bear serial numbers in the 3 M range. Only 7971 M1Cs were produced and the serial numbers can be verified as legitimate by the Garand Collectors Association with a high level of confidence.
In addition to the Garand snipers,the M1903A4 Springfield is also highly collectable and can be an excellent shooter with the eternal .30-06.In my opinion these are the equal of the No4 T,their only shortcoming being their somewhat fragile Weaver scope. There were only 28,000 of these produced and they are beyond fakery due to their unique receiver markings.

Correct about '03A4 and M1C: serial numbers are numbers are very well known to start with.
The M1D was a speedy solution to a production and logistics problem and it could be rigged up very quickly.
BTW, I had the opportunity to look a picture of an M1C complemented with a M1D barrel and scope block mounted on the same receiver.
Very unusual and safe as scope could probably be replaced in a cinch.....

I have the chance to own LE pseudo (T) , Enforcer and genuine '03, A4 and M1C and they are really a pleasure to shoot. You have to work certainly harder than with a Rem 700 but the level of satisfaction is proportional to the effort.

BB

 

[#4mk1(T)]

VERY nice pieces indeed !! --"#4", You've motivated me to want to dig my "T" out from the back of the safe for a few 100 & 200 yarders. Having never zeroed the #4 T before , -- which directions do you turn the knobs for windage, & elevation ?----- BTW, the scope is a "Mk 3"

That’s great! At the very least it’s important to manipulate the controls of the No.32 to keep the free and moving.
Increasing elevation is Clockwise as is Left windage.
The rest I’ll let you figure out for yourself.

 

[purple]

Things do get better over time,but not necessarily by a quantum leap. I enjoy the challenge of setting up the older rifles properly in military condition and then developing handloads that will really perform in them.Some of the newer pieces are just so predictably precise that they actually become boring to shoot.That's why I sold my Colt HBAR. It was just a question of drilling repetitive little .81" groups with load A or .85" groups with load B. I don't shoot competitively any more,so what the hey?I've enjoyed shooting a heavy barrel M700 in .308 over the past dozen yrs,but again after developing 5 different loads that will shoot repetitive .61 to .67 " groups with a precision 12X scope,it just is'nt too much of a challenge any more.I suppose I could get a really high quality replacement "truck axle" barrel from my friend Ted Gaillard,true up the receiver face,install a gee-whiz trigger, and get it down to .3.5-.5 MOA,but why bother when the end result is all too predictable. Now refining my 2 groove barrel 03A4 Springfield to the point where it will average 1.7" groups with a 60+ year old 21/2x scope with a big fat recticle that subtends 4 inches at 100 yds; that's just a bit more satisfying. Ditto with a 1903 Springfield which averages 1.73" groups and a Garand that shoots 1.81",both with issue sights.Same story with my 7.62mm Tipo 2 Garand that I described in my first post.My M1D shoots 1.48" groups with one handload and I've just seen a 1.41" average performance from my M1C on its first range debut with a scope.I'd really enjoy tinkering with a No4 T with a sound barrel to see just where I could get with it.Back in the 1970s I was shooting a Long Branch No4 in 7.62 with match bedding and a mock sniper set-up with a lace- on cheekpad and a 4x scope in an S&K mount,and it was getting pretty close to MOA average with handloads.

 

[maple_leaf_eh]

...

Some of the newer pieces are just so predictably precise that they actually become boring to shoot.That's why I sold my Colt HBAR. It was just a question of drilling repetitive little .81" groups with load A or .85" groups with load B. I don't shoot competitively any more, so what the hey?

...

Ah! And here lies the difference between a 'shooter' and a 'gun lover'. The competitor is a student of the game of winning. The collector is a student of the firearm, the accessories, the production process and its use as intended.