rebarreling M1 Garand
- Thread starter lorne19
- Start date
How bad is the barrel, is it the one from P&S you showed us? If it is the description said the barrel was good. (I was looking at it as well). If the barrel still is bad, you can get a new kreiger mad barrel fr around $400, not really worth it if you barrel still has life left. Original barrels do pop up, but they get snatched up pretty quick.
But honestly if the barrel still has any life left, you should leave it one for historical reasons.
But honestly if the barrel still has any life left, you should leave it one for historical reasons.
The major cost will be the barrel itself. Expect to pay $150-$200 for a used GI one in servicable condition. A new GI barrel will go $300-$400. Ditto for a commercial barrel. You need to find someone with the appropriate tools and experience to do the change. A proper fitting receiver wrench and barrel vice or contoured barrel blocks for the Garand are necessary for barrel removal and installation.
Headspace gauges are also required as is a finishing reamer for a new barrel. Barrels must be timed correctly to top dead center when installed. I use a Badger Ordnance fixture for this. One part mounts on the receiver flat between the rear sight "ears". The other mounts on the gas cylinder with front sight removed. A length of aluminum angle is installed in both fixtures and the barrel is rotated to a vertical position until the bars are parallel. I also use an angle finder to confirm parallelism.
Be advised that selective fitting or some alteration to the barrel shoulder may be required to establish the proper degree of offset before the barrel is installed. This is not a big job,but does require the proper tools and experience to do it right.
Before deciding to replace your existing barrel you should establish that replacement is really necessary. Replacement would be required in the event of a bulged or deformed barrel,pitting,or excessive wear as indicated by throat and muzzle wear gauges. In some cases excessive headspace ,which cannot be corrected by installation of a longer bolt, may also require the barrel to be replaced. I've re-worked many Garands and installed quite a number of used and new barrels and have not yet encountered an excess headspace situation which I was not able to correct with a longer bolt.
Headspace gauges are also required as is a finishing reamer for a new barrel. Barrels must be timed correctly to top dead center when installed. I use a Badger Ordnance fixture for this. One part mounts on the receiver flat between the rear sight "ears". The other mounts on the gas cylinder with front sight removed. A length of aluminum angle is installed in both fixtures and the barrel is rotated to a vertical position until the bars are parallel. I also use an angle finder to confirm parallelism.
Be advised that selective fitting or some alteration to the barrel shoulder may be required to establish the proper degree of offset before the barrel is installed. This is not a big job,but does require the proper tools and experience to do it right.
Before deciding to replace your existing barrel you should establish that replacement is really necessary. Replacement would be required in the event of a bulged or deformed barrel,pitting,or excessive wear as indicated by throat and muzzle wear gauges. In some cases excessive headspace ,which cannot be corrected by installation of a longer bolt, may also require the barrel to be replaced. I've re-worked many Garands and installed quite a number of used and new barrels and have not yet encountered an excess headspace situation which I was not able to correct with a longer bolt.
You could also consider a Krieger 7.62 Nato barrel change if your barrel is being done anyway...much easier to find ammo for.
If you bought one of the P&S Garands I've found them to have sound barrels and OK headspace. Box score on 5 of them shows muzzle wear @ .302 on 3,.303 on another,and .3015 on another. .302 or better is fine, and even a .303 muzzle will still shoot if the crown is OK. Throat erosion ranged from 3015 to .304-all good. I did buy one that was marked down because of a boogered barrel and replaced it with a nice tight maker/date correct barrel from another CGN member(thanks again Barney).
I think these rifles came in from Jordan. The Jordies were a major Garand user and did a lot of Brit style square bashing as evidenced from the buttplates. These ones are "dry" of preservative without much rust, but a lot of the fine "sands of Arabee" caked on the innards.
I think these rifles came in from Jordan. The Jordies were a major Garand user and did a lot of Brit style square bashing as evidenced from the buttplates. These ones are "dry" of preservative without much rust, but a lot of the fine "sands of Arabee" caked on the innards.
fat tony
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
If you are not reloading, you probably should get a Mccann plug from epps. I use 150 grain Winchester Powerpoint with mine, but I will have to start reloading sooner or later to keep costs down.
fat tony
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
a Hollow gas plug that is tapped for various sized bleed off apertures, you keep firing / changing the jets until your Garand operates reliably but does not beat up the brass too much.
here is a pic :
Brownells used to export these to Canada, but they don't anymore, but I heard from other cgn members that Elwood Epps has them in stock.
information link:
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=1538/Product/M1_GARAND_ADJUSTABLE_GAS_SYSTEM
here is a pic :
Brownells used to export these to Canada, but they don't anymore, but I heard from other cgn members that Elwood Epps has them in stock.
information link:
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=1538/Product/M1_GARAND_ADJUSTABLE_GAS_SYSTEM
