M1 garand 7 round issue

Jesus.C

Jesus.C

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So my m1 garand is giving me issue on the 7th round, either it stove pipe or in one rare case eject the 7th round and close the bolt on an empty chamber.

Ive read about the 7th issue cause by the way early model were machine and too much material was removed. I dont think this is whats happening here.

My model is a 1941 winchester and I only feed it 150 grain ammo. Im no using any gas kit.

I usually put the last round in a clip on the top right and ive try to swicht it on left since it should fix the early documented 7th round issue but its not working. When I did that I experience a premature ejection where to 7th round is not loaded and simply fly away (only happen once out of 100 rounds). The unfired round also show a little dent on the brass. Malfunction happen about 50% of time on 7th.

Any clue what could cause that and how to fix it?
 
Rifle is clean/lubed & properly maintained?

Your issue happens w/ how many en blocs clips?

Does the rifle operate correctly w/ a single,double,triple,quadruple rounds in an en bloc clip?

Meaning is the timing correct?

If,you have but a few en blocs clips,it's time to acquire some newer clips.
 
I have 3 enbloc, I havent notice if its related to one of them but ill keep an eye on this. They are original usgi enbloc.

The rifle is oil and grease where its required everytime. I havent try partial feeding of enbloc.
 
Ive heard that argument many time. But from what I found its was originaly design around the m1 ball. Later the army adopted the m2 ball. Its was also use with AP round. So without rejecting that the ammo could be at cause the garand do digest a wide range of ammo.
 
Jesus.C said:
So my m1 garand is giving me issue on the 7th round, either it stove pipe or in one rare case eject the 7th round and close the bolt on an empty chamber.
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Does it actually stovepipe or just fail to feed properly?

Jesus.C said:
Ive read about the 7th issue cause by the way early model were machine and too much material was removed. I dont think this is whats happening here.
Click to expand...
This is documented somewhere - I believe serial numbers under 50,000 - it should be easy to check.

Jesus.C said:
Any clue what could cause that and how to fix it?
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Did you check the spring?
What type brand ammo?
You gotta help us to help you ...

Careful with the ammo thing - any ammo will work until it doesn't, usually damaging the OP rod - stick to hand loads, m1 rated ammo (Winchester makes it I think) or get a gas kit.

The gun cycles, unless you are using SP ammo then it's probably not the ammo.
 
It sounds like the magazine follower is not coming up high enough to feed the last cartridge and causes #7 to stovepipe, something binding with all the internal levers or simply a main spring that does not have enough pressure to bring the follower up.
There is a very good video on youtube from the US army 1943, functioning of the M1 rifle.
 
M1-Garand said:
It sounds like the magazine follower is not coming up high enough to feed the last cartridge and causes #7 to stovepipe, something binding with all the internal levers or simply a main spring that does not have enough pressure to bring the follower up.
There is a very good video on youtube from the US army 1943, functioning of the M1 rifle.
Click to expand...

Is it possible he has some .308 parts in there? (I'm assuming this is a .30-06) (are the magazine parts different) or is it .308 with a missing spacer?
 
Here a link with quite a few pictures and a video of it stovepiping. Keep in mind that this issue only happen 50% of the time and only on the 7th round. Ive also added pictures of the only bullet that didnt stovepipe but instead went flying, theres a ding on the case and the tip is deform.

https://imgur.com/a/S6k3Crn

I know the cmp recommend using ammo from 180g and below, but I always fed mine 150g and maybe a box of 165g once. I use remington core lok, PPU M1 garand load, sako hammer head and winchester power point. This issue dosent seem ammo related since it happen with all of them. When I can, I double check and use the chart at the bottom of this link:https://www.garandgear.com/the-m1-garand-and-commercial-ammunition/ to determine if the ammo im using is safe to shoot.

The op rod does seem to have a slight bent halfway near the piston, but the rifle perform the tilt test without issues a seen on the videos posted in the first link.

The main spring measure 19 1/4 inch.

The rifle is in 30-06

I use a little of mobile one synthetic to grease the appropriate part. I believe this is what the cmp is using now.

If you need more pictures or me to perform more test let me know.
 
Brutus said:
It's not just the bullet weight. It's also the powder choice inside the case. Probably what bent your op rod, due to excessive gas port pressure.
I handload and have had zero issues with two decades of ownership.
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Please take time to look at the link ive provided. Most round I use have had their pressure documented by garand gear. At the bottom of this link they are all listed https://www.garandgear.com/the-m1-garand-and-commercial-ammunition/

Also a slight bent in the op rod seem to be the norm according to the cmp forum : https://forums.thecmp.org/forum/cmp-sales/m1-garand/122654-what-constitutes-a-bent-op-rod

According to the cmp an over bent op rod would cause more than a 7th stoppage: https://youtu.be/IuDy74KE5LE?si=DfoP0_9WfF-_Sw-h
 
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Jesus.C said:
Also a slight bent in the op rod seem to be the norm according to the cmp forum : https://forums.thecmp.org/forum/cmp-sales/m1-garand/122654-what-constitutes-a-bent-op-rod
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Yes, normal - they are actually 2 or 3 pieces welded together!


Jesus.C said:
The more I read about this the more a start to believe that the enbloc could be the culprit
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Then you would have 3 bad enblocs ... seems like that's reaching a bit, but can't be discounted. I've had enblocs that would only load one way, some over tight,..... Are these smooth finish (blued) or phosphated?

That 7th round video seems to cover all the bases on what to check - very-very well in fact. (I learned something!)

If everything is checking out mechanically, you are down to:

- Gas system
Seems odd if there were a problem it would only affect the 7th round ....

- Ammo
Seems unlikely since you are using quite a mix there.

- Lubrication
M1 is quite specific. Grease in one spot, light oil in other spots - I forget exactly what/where. But if you have grease somewhere you shouldn't ... could be an issue.

- Enbloc
Can't discount this yet.


FWIW - I have an M1 that does that, from time to time, not always the 7th round (actually I never counted) and occasionally twice from the same enbloc - never thought much of it.
 
Since its random it could be the enbloc I never notice wich one I was having issue with.

What I would do next is to order 3 box of ppu m1 garand load, so thst way I will isolate the ammo factor. Then I will try every enbloc I have and take note. I will report back with the result but its gonna be in a few week before I can carry out thoses test.
 
Did you ever sort this out?

You said "The main spring measure 19 1/4 inch." I would have replaced this. I don't tend to let a Garand go with one under 19.5,

I've had a few Garands where a short mainspring causes the 7th round to eject live, and then chamber the 8th round (after the 6th round is fired)
 
Jesus.C said:
Since its random it could be the enbloc I never notice wich one I was having issue with.

What I would do next is to order 3 box of ppu m1 garand load, so thst way I will isolate the ammo factor. Then I will try every enbloc I have and take note. I will report back with the result but its gonna be in a few week before I can carry out thoses test.
Click to expand...


I don't have any enbloc's but I put a number on all of my magazines with a sharpie or paint pencil so that I can identify each of them if I start to have problems.
 
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