I.H.C garand

From the pictures the seller showed me I am thinking the bolt has been polished and not plated as the drawing number on it looks clear and crisp. If that is the case I guess I could get it re parked.
 
Winchester-1897 said:
From the pictures the seller showed me I am thinking the bolt has been polished and not plated as the drawing number on it looks clear and crisp. If that is the case I guess I could get it re parked.
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I got the bolt and according to Casey at Tactical Ordnace it is Chrome plated. I dropped it in my Garand and it functions very well and looks great so I removed my display stock (don't want to damage it) and put a working butt stock with some dings and scratches. I think I will take it moose hunting in the fall and impress the guys in camp. They are easy to impress by the way.

 
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purple said:
IHC made fewer Garands than did the other 3 US makers. Yrs ago I used to drive an IHC WD9 diesel tractor and an IHC pickup, so I find an IHC Garand a bit of a memento of having used these other IHC products. M1C sniper rifles are the rarest of all Garands, but they are out there and you never know what might turn up. I had been looking for one for many yrs only to have a very nice one turn up locally without the scope bracket or scope mount a few yrs ago. I have since had it authenticated and procured an original bracket, mount and other accessories to complete it.
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Well Purple, next time we meet I hope we can have a better BS session, as I see we do have something in common.
I had to quit school to drive a TD (Track Diesel) 9 in the bush, logging.
I just hope they did a better job of making the Garand rifles than they did on those diesel engines. Actually, it was a design fault, as far as I am concerned.
Remember, to start them you pulled a lever down, which pushed a small automotive type valve down to lower the compression for starting.
This also opened it up to start on gas, with a spark and spark plugs.
After it had run a couple minutes on gas, you released the lever, which returned it to high compression, shut off the gas ports, grounded the spark and allowed diesel fuel to the engine when the throttle was opened.
Wow.
What a contraption to start it.
There had to be perfect valve setting adjustment on the little valves, as there was almost zero clearance between a setting that held them slightly open, or pushed them too far and bend the heads.
I've had the head off that engine so many times, to repair those valves, that I could do it in my sleep.
 
Winchester-1897 said:
Another pic

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It would be a good idea to check headspace on that chrome plated bolt with both a go and no-go gauge. Chrome plating is actually a build up on the surface. You would not want additional material on the bolt face and rear of the lugs affecting minimum required headspace. Most likely this bolt is out of a non-firing drill or display rifle which was chromed to give it that extra "bling" in addition to the usual "ping". We used to see BRENs and No4s which were chrome plated as trophies or display pieces. As long as you are at least 100 yds away from Bullwinkle he shouldn't be spooked by the extra shine.:p

P.S. It would be good to check the firing pin for free play and protrusion too in case the aperture in the bolt face has closed in a bit
 
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I never operated an IHC kitty-cat, but the WD9 tractor diesel was pretty forgiving. IHC was a renowned farm implement maker and later diversified into making trucks and other stuff, like freezers and refrigerators post WW2. Their trucks seemed pretty reliable too. I've never seen an IHC fridge though. Brand loyalty was a big thing among prairie farmers. There were devotees of Massy-Harris, IHC, Case, and John Deere (paint it green and it will sell for another $5000). There were other odds and sods like Minneapolis-Moline, Oliver, Allis-Chalmers and Gleaner-Baldwin, but most farmers went with one of `the big 4`.

IHC did have a lot of teething problems with their Garands, but anything that passed government acceptance was OK. They had Springfield Armory make receivers for them a couple of times and Harrington and Richardson make a run of them as well. IHC used contract barrels made by LMR which were well regarded for their accuracy.
 
Speaking of IHC fridges they are quite a few In Manitoba relatively speaking. It's seems to be the Canadian Mecca of IHC and John Deere products. There's even General Motors fridges come to think of it. Too bad there isn't a whole bunch of IHC Garands out there too
 
Apparently a lot of the IHC rifles were transferred to Morocco and Iran in the late '50s/early '60s under the MAP program. Chances are there would be nothing much left in Iran as the Ayatollahs often sent their child soldier/martyrs against the Iraqis unarmed because they ran out of small arms for them. The Iraqis killed a lot of them just by grinding them up under their tank tracks.
 
Thanks Purple I'll take it to Casey at Tactical Ordnance befre I shoot it. Also all the moose I hunt are cool and wear sunglasses so the glare from the bolt shouldn't be a hinderance. :)
 
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POMLT3-08 said:
I have an IHC Garand that I believe to be all original. I haven't been able to verify that with the limited information that I can find on the internet, or with Bruce N. Canfield's book. The rifle seems too good to be true so took a bunch of pictures of all the markings I could find. I'm hoping one of you with more knowledge than I can chime in and tell me what I have.



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All the parts have consistent wear and nothing has been refinished, like I say, seems too good to be true. Thanks for any and all help. Cheers!
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Mines almost exactly 1000 out from this serial. All the same parts. Bolt heat lot is even the same.
 
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