Typical M1 Garand Accuracy

driller212

driller212

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Hey guys im just curious as to how accurate the typical every day M1 garand is? would it be any good past 500 yards?

thanks guys,

J
 
I am in the process of working up a load using lead bullets in my Garand. right now the best is 1,1/4" to 1,1/2" at 60yds. I usually shoot at 60yds to test new loads with iron sights because my eyes are getting older.
 
My friend and I went up north for a little camp and shoot this winter break, 1000m + M1 Garand = a good number of holes punched through a 2'x4' metal target with irons to boot. At 100m my friend can usually group 2-3" with the irons on it I believe (when he's not dumping en blocs down range). They are great guns and the ones I have seen used are very accurate, I am trying to source one at the moment but funds seem to be an issue (so many guns so little money).
 
Gunslingr said:
My friend and I went up north for a little camp and shoot this winter break, 1000m + M1 Garand = a good number of holes punched through a 2'x4' metal target with irons to boot. At 100m my friend can usually group 2-3" with the irons on it I believe (when he's not dumping en blocs down range). They are great guns and the ones I have seen used are very accurate, I am trying to source one at the moment but funds seem to be an issue (so many guns so little money).
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yea man i hear ya. are there scope mounts for them out there? (i know it would butcher the m1 garand bla bla bla.) but im thinking of using one as a hunting rifle.
 
There are aftermarket sidemounts. Has to be a sidemount because of the loading. The scope is offset to the left quite noticeably. Another option is to use a rear sight replacing clamp-on top mount, leaving a clip in the action, and top loading single rounds into the magazine.
Basically, M-1 rifles are not too scope friendly.
 
Gunslingr said:
My friend and I went up north for a little camp and shoot this winter break, 1000m + M1 Garand = a good number of holes punched through a 2'x4' metal target with irons to boot. At 100m my friend can usually group 2-3" with the irons on it I believe (when he's not dumping en blocs down range). They are great guns and the ones I have seen used are very accurate, I am trying to source one at the moment but funds seem to be an issue (so many guns so little money).
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+1

They are great rifles, and with a decent shooter behind it, you can be very accurate out to a long distance.

Next time we go out to Algonquin we are loading tracers so we can see what we are hitting.
 
A few years back, before I owned a bolt action target rifle, I actually used my Danish M1 at Bull Meadow range in NS.
The furthest range was 800 meters. And I did okay considering the other dedicated target rifles that were present that day.
I think my final score was 134. Not too bad considering the good ole' Garand was out of it's league.
 
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My first Garand was a 1943 dated gun with a 1945 SA barrel, with a nearly mint bore. The best group I got out of it was 1 1/16" at 100 yards. I have recently been working on an a later gun with a LMR barrel. It has had a few things done to it according to the NRA book on accurizing the M-1. It consistently shoots under 1 1/2" groups and has broke the 1" size on several occasions. These are all 5 shot 100 yard groups.
The best way to wring out maximum accuracy from a Garand is to reload...study first then work up some loads. Bear in mind you are not out to hunt grizzly bear with the Garand, just to punch targets and ring gongs. There are lot of guys on this forum who have considerable experience reloading for the M-1...I am sure they can guide you to the best components.
My suggestion though would be to stay with a 150 to 160 grain bullet...nothing heavier then that.
You sir, are going to enjoy shooting the M-1!!!!!
Cheers
 
Wow guys didnt expect these great responses! thanks alot!!!

I am hoping to start reloading soon as i have a friend with all of the necessary equipment all i need is dies primers powder and bullets and im set.

again thanks for the great responses!!

J
 
If the barrel is sound (good crown and muzzle wear .302 or less), stock and handguard fit are correct,and op rod fit is good, one can expect 1.5-2 MOA accuracy off the bench with good quality handloads. For handloads stick to 150-168gr bullets and IMR 4895/4064 powder. Keep brass trimmed,always FL resize,seat primers below flush with casehead and don't try to get more than 5 firing cycles out of your brass. Match bullets work best,but the 150gr Hornady FMJBT is surprisingly accurate for a cheaper bullet.
 
5{4240641]Looks nice but, it appears that this mount is designed to completely cook any optic you wish to mount on it.
I know all scout mounts are overtop the hottest part of the barrel, but this model, takes it to a whole new level.[/QUOTE]

Have you used one? Do you know someone who has experienced a "cooked scope? The local dealer can't keep them in stock.I have never heard about a cooked scope yet, but have only been using this mount for 4 years. Personally, I would be worried about cooking a scope on full-auto using M-4's, M-14's in combat. Has anyone experienced, or have heard of a failed optic system due to heat?
 
No I have not. Just saying from my experience with target rifles, a few well positioned ventilating holes, would be a better idea perhaps.
Thirty calibre gunfire throws off alot of heat in a short period of time.

My opinion only.......
PS: Brain fart, my Tanker Garand copy in .308, has a forward mounted scout scope, and it can get warm quickly.
Alberta020-2.jpg
 
My M1 is a Korean-war era 1953 International Harvester. It is in "as-is" condition, with no accurizing done to it (I refuse to "butcher" nice old military rifles). The bore is somewhat rough for the first five or six inches.

It shoots about 4 MOA. This is with crappy old FMJ bullets, and also with real match bullets (Sierra 168, Sierra 155 etc) loaded with the the utmost of care. There's nothing obviously, visibly wrong with the rifle, but then again I am not an M1 guru.

I once took it to the range and shot it at 800 yards, I recall hitting the target pretty much all the time. I got a lot of fives (24" circle), but not all shots were fives. I think I was able to keep all of my shots inside the 48" diameter black aiming mark.
 
driller212 said:
so what about accurizing this rifle? what can be done?
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Like a bolt gun, you want to bed it, free float the barrel, and possibly install a match quality barrel. I don't know of any Garand/M-14 accurizing processes that aren't part of either bedding the action into the stock or free floating the barrel (not saying there aren't any)

Whereas free floating a bolt action's barrel is pretty darn straightforward, there's a lot more to it in a gas operated semiauto. In some ways you can't completely freefloat it, so you work on improving things instead (making the un-removable contacts with the barrel consistent).
 
rnbra-shooter said:
I don't know of any Garand/M-14 accurizing processes that aren't part of either bedding the action into the stock or free floating the barrel (not saying there aren't any)
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I'm new to the Garand game, so I've been busy reading about what can be done to achieve the best accuracy with these rifles. From what I've read, any binding of the gas oprod with the stock, handguards, or barrel can cause accuracy problems. There is a standard "drop" test where I think you remove the bolt, reassemble the rifle, pull the oprod back, hold the rifle muzzle down, and let the op rod drop --- it should do so without any hesitation. If not, you can use inletting black/smoke/chalk to figure out where the oprod is rubbing and remove a little bit of wood.

There are tons of resources available describing accurizing tips, so have at 'er.
 
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