First Surplus Safety Check Advice Needed

[Thoax]

Hey everyone,
I'm relatively new to military surplus firearms and recently picked up a few rifles: two Carcanos, an M1 Garand, and two Kar98ks. I'm looking forward to getting them out to the range, but I want to make sure they're safe to shoot before doing so.


What’s the best process for inspecting surplus rifles to confirm they’re safe to shoot and mechanically sound? I would consider taking one to a gunsmith but not sure of any? I'm aware of general issues like visible cracks, corrosion, and rough bolt operation, but I’d appreciate any detailed guidance or specific things to watch for with these particular models.


The M1 Garand still needs to be fully stripped and cleaned it’s coated in cosmoline. The Carcanos and Kar98ks have already been cleaned by their previous owners, but I haven’t done a detailed inspection myself yet.


Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated!

 

[SigWig]

The M1 i'd be tempted to keep in the cosmo and find another for blasting.

Not the best with words on your main Q it could take a bit to unwind. Short answer is take it to a smith, long answer explained properly = no smith needed

 

[The_Gun_Boy]

I would recommend If you've carefully checked the outside is take a look at the inside. First to concern is cracks near the where the action sits in the stock channel. Also the bore for bore obstructions like grease/cosmoline and condition faults. Also it maybe best to check headspace, for headspace it requires headspace gauges which can be hard to get yourself but any decent gun smith should have sets that they use. Decent gunsmiths have all the experience and tools to check over milsurp rifles and I recommend finding one if its your first adventure into milsurps.

It may not at all be required but I recommend it as your first time. I rarely do that deep of a check anymore unless I intend to shoot more than half a box through it and put it away forever. Rifles I intend to shoot a lot I'll do a deep dive in.

I too would say if its a Garand in its actual cosmoline I also wouldn't clean it up and shoot it. It maybe something bit more rarer and desirable. That and Garands still in the grease are a somewhat unheard of here anymore.

 

[bearhunter]

OP, unless there is something blatantly pointing to something wrong with any of the rifles, clean them up thoroughly and shoot them.

While you're cleaning the individual parts, look for cracks, they will be pretty obvious as whatever you're using to dissolve the cosmoline will "weep" out of anything obvious after its been wiped down.

If you're really concerned, get a horseshoe magnet and "magnaflux the corners of the bolt lugs and receiver edges, using some iron filings. The cracks, even small ones become visible and easy to see. I will also show up "galls" but it's easy to tell a dent/gouge in the metal from a crack.

As far as headspace goes, I seriously doubt there will be any issues, all of the rifles you mention will have "generous" chambers and commercial gauges may not pass what the milspec gauges say is OK. They weren't intended to shoot reloads. That being said, you can fireform your cases to match the chambers.

Check the bore diameters of your Carcano rifles if they're 6.5mm. Most of them require .268 diameter bullets to shoot well, but standard .264 diameter bullets will usually shoot into 4-6 inches at 100yds.

As for Garands in grease being collectible, that's a very long shot indeed, but it's worth looking at the serial number and manufacturer. A lot of those rifles, especially the Norwegian and Italian rifles came slathered in grease. Many folks just put them in the safe or closet and never looked at them again. Clean it carefully, then shoot it. They've all been shot at one time or another and I've never seen one that hasn't gone through a Factory Thorough Repair, other than in a few in specialized collections and military museums.

Those rifles were often repaired, partially, or stripped down to the bare receiver and reassembled with new parts or whatever was available. They were purpose built to make that process cheap and easy for the average REME or quick field repairs.

Not very much goes wrong with them, if they're well maintained, other than worn bores or the odd broken spring, cracked stock.

 

[Hitzy]

Gunsmith, bring them all to one, have them checked over, too many variables to diagnose over message board if you want to be safe.
It's your face behind them all, your decision, but if you are new to these, just take them to a gunsmith, hands on is the only way to determine is there are any issues if you don't have experience with these things.
Even with experience, I've been caught off guard with some used rifles, commercial HVA 30'06 built on an FN receiver, put some rounds through it, seemed fine to me, went to have it re barreled, Smith noticed serious lug set back when he took the barrel off, said hang this receiver on the wall, it's soft, can't do anything with it.
Don't know what you don't know sometimes, better to have someone look at it that does.

 

[Claven2]

Agree with hitzy, and if you are a newbie and inexperienced in gauging firearm condition and safety, get your local gunsmith to take a quick look at them. Should be cheap and will give you peace of mind.

 

[milsurpo]

Part of safe operation is learning proper disassembly/reassembly techniques. You want to know what you're doing before stripping that Garand—the first few times aren't easy. A good illustrated disassembly guide is invaluable. Another part of safe operation is being aware of the history of the types you own. With the Garand you'll find out the main issues (they're very robust guns) center around use of proper ammunition and greasing of appropriate surfaces. There are other surplus types with potential safety issues that you will only find out about by reading or joining good forums. Many types have no issues at all and it's strictly down to the condition of the rifle in question. If you decide to go to a gunsmith make a serious effort to find one that actually has serious experience with surplus types.

milsurpo

 

[The Wizard]

As for the US Rifle, Caliber .30, M1 the first thing to do with it is to figure out what you got. Who made it? When was it made? Is it in original configuration or is it a mix master? Depending on these and other factors you can maker the decision to shoot it or keep it a safe queen.