Thinking of Picking up a M1 Carbine. Got some Questions First Though.

Ebola

Ebola

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I have the urge to get a full stock non resteicted M1 Carbine. Dosnt really matter to me if new or not.

So my questions are, what ware and tear should I be on the look out on a used model?

Are the new Auto Ordnance ones any good?

What used makes of M1's should I avoid and what ones are known to be good? After initial research I see there are numerous makers of the M1.

I just starded my M1 learning today. I thought I would get some answers from the CGN users. Thanks for responding if you choose to.
 
Most M1 Carbines operate as well as the owners allow them to. They will malfunction because of lack of cleaning or improper cleaning after using corrosive ammo. Most owners have never cleaned the actuator piston in their rifles and this can easily become fouled with carbon residue causing stovepiping and other issues. The bolt hold open pin/detent may be worn away. The bore may be quite worn as well depending on how many rounds are down the tube. Check the extractor and make sure it is not broken or partially missing or that the spring and plunger that operate it aren't broken or missing. The other issue with many carbines are the magazines. The vast majority work well but the odd one just refuses to be tweeked to work.

As far as the newly manufactured Carbines are concerned the few I have used functioned flawlessly other than on one occasion where low pressure handloads were used.

Chiappa makes a very handy and neat little carbine called the M9. It looks the same but operates on blowback rather than utilizing barrel gasses to operate a captured piston which pushes the operating slide in and out of battery while extracting and loading the chamber. Same weight and look but cheaper to buy, easier to find ammo for and cheaper to purchase ammo for with about the same accuracy. Also it takes Berretta 92 ten round mags which can be used legally. The M1 Carbine can only use 5 round mags under our existing laws.
 
All military Carbines were made with an 18" barrel, which means that they are a restricted firearm. A commercial barrel longer than 18 inches means that the rifle can be classified as non-restricted. I cannot comment on the commercially made carbines as I only own and shoot the military ones, incl one with a non-restd barrel.

All military Carbines, regardless of make, passed military QC/acceptance checks. Some things to look for include bore condition, cracks in the receiver, cracked stocks/handguards, proper headspace, tight fitting sights, and proper semi-auto functioning.
 
I had an Auto-ordnance and had absolutely no complaints with it - the guns handle well, point well and are quite clearly a good gun for their time. Naturally you can see where there would be improvements to be made as we have what was developed afterwards, but for a WWII milsurp it's quite a good gun, especially when factored against its alternatives (I love garands, but man, M!'s are so much handier :p )
 
I own a plainfield (restricted) and a Auto Ordnance side folder (NR)

THe NR auto is a very nice production, it works very well and is pretty accurate for a semi auto 30. hitting clays at 100m is a fairly easy endeavor.

However, avoid the 10 round repro mags.. they are jam o matics, get either AO 5 rounders or the KCI 5/30's


I find the mainsprings tend to get week fairly fast causing stoppages because there is not enough force to striup another round off the mag. A wolf spring kit from brownells is cheap and fixes the issue. when you order it get a repro rear sight for $30 bucks... I put it on mine it works great.



THe CHippa... they are CHeap POS in my books, most of the owners I talk to hate them; sighting that they jam, and their inaccurate. and when compared side by side to a AO the AO beats it hands down for quality.
 
Military issue easier to find parts for. But as already stated restricted unless rebarreled. I have one of the Chiappa 9mm after a bunch of months and couple a hundred rds of 9mm its working fine. Had to play with the trigger spring and the sight springs ( replace trigger spring with 10/22 one and shim to prevent doubleing and stretch the sight detent springs to increase pressure).

Like the fact that its cheaper to feed and has the 10rd option but lack of parts suck if there is a issue
 
I was under the impression corrosive ammo was never made for the .30 M1 carbine?The US will not send parts to Canada for the M1 Carbine but will for the Garand.At least Numrich won't.Correct me if I'm wrong..........Harold
 
The .30 carbine round has never used chlorate based primers.

Ditto many of the previous comments, and add: Keep the area around the extractor as clean as possible, flush the area behind the extractor with brake cleaner when carbon gets built up there. As the carbon builds up, it limits the travel of the extractor, and when it's finally unable to move, it will break. G.I. mags seem to work the best, but are difficult to find. If you want non-restricted, the best combo seems to be the military carbines with 18.6" barrels. The A.O. Guns are probably ok, but the parts are cast, and definitely not milspec.
 
If you want a non-restricted shooter, pick up a GI carbine and have it re-barreled, someone like Nick at Vulcan can rebarrel it and give it a check over for you. The carbine is a terrific light rifle and was years ahead of it's time for handling, sights and ergonomics. People knock it for power, but it fits right between the 357 and 44 magnums and no one disses them.
 
Right. No corrosive milsurp .30 Carbine that you can't get anyway. And the U.S. thinks a Carbine is an 'assault rifle'(actually designated as such by some States) and is desired by terrs. ITAR applies to Carbines, but not M1 Rifles.
Real downside to restricted Carbines, especially in Ontario, I believe the CPFO is refusing to issue an ATT to shoot 'em. IF your club is rated for restricted rifles. That and you'd have to make a 5 round mag.
Had a Plainfield(100% parts interchangeability with milsurps.) for 40 some years. No issues of any kind a bath didn't fix. Except the one evil 30 round mag that needed the lips tweaked open a tick to get it to feed properly. IMR4227 and 110 grain bullets are your friend.
Any 10 round mag is aftermarket. No such thing as an issue 10 rounder.
Do not buy a Universal unless it was made before they decided they could improve the design. They're junk. Two return springs, as poor made stamped op handle, that tend to break easily, and a toggle for a bolt hold open indicates 'late model' junk.
 
sunray said:
And the U.S. thinks a Carbine is an 'assault rifle'(actually designated as such by some States) and is desired by terrs. ITAR applies to Carbines, but not M1 Rifles.
Real downside to restricted Carbines, especially in Ontario, I believe the CPFO is refusing to issue an ATT to shoot 'em
Click to expand...

Both nonsense.

M1 Carbines are bought/sold like an other milsurp down there.

M1 Carbines are restricted and getting an ATT is not an issue.

I would suggest doing a little research before you post this sort of thing. We all know you want a big post count, but I think this style of mass posting bad information in every thread is lowering the overall quality of the forum and spreading bad information. Often you don't return to the thread after making one post in it.

Regards,
-Steve
 
Never had a problem with my Auto Ordinance. I was surprised by the accuracy. I picked up a scout mount and mounted a LER scope which increased the accuracy a lot. It is dependable, goes bang every time, light, points like a dream, and it's all NEW parts. Milsurp are great but are restricted without an aftermarket barrel, may have worn parts that need to be replaced, and because of all the different manufacturers parts may need "fitting". The fact they may have been carried and used in combat can make them more desirable, but I'll stick with my new production Auto Ordinance
 
Carbines are a lot of fun to shoot and are quite forgiving to build up from parts as well. I got my first one in the summer of 1965 from SIR in Winnipeg and have owned one ever since. I've enjoyed building them on all of Inland, WRA, Rock-Ola, and Quality Hardware receivers. Mine are all mixmasters with an assortment of military parts, but they function fine and shoot well. You can't do too much to tweak them for accuracy, but the fit of the recoil lug to the receiver is quite important for this. Generally they can be expected to shoot a 2 inch group @ 50 yds with commercial ammo; not bad when you consider that they were intended to replace the pistol in the first place.
 
You can do more tha fitting the recoil lug.

-Install a type 3 barrel band

-test multiple recoil plate. Tight the screw firmly so the barrel is hold 1/8 to 1/4 at the front of the stock so when you put the band it will be a slight press fit .

-Make sure the top handguard doesn't touch the barrel

-Use good quality ammo

-Check the muzzle and chamber for dimension (bullet test)

An operating M1 with good ammo should do a 95-98 on the SR 200 yard target (the standard official accuracy test) so that translate into 7 to 13 inch at 200 yards(X,10,9 ring)
That is just for an "rack grade"

Mine with a criterion barrel and handload shoot 2 inch at 100 yards and 4-6 inch at 200 yards
That's way better than my mini 14 that can't do better than 5-6 inch at 100 yards
 
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