Value of this Garand??

What does "numbers matching" MEAN on a Garand?

Only part on mine which has been NUMBERED is the Receiver; everything else has Manufacturer's marks and Drawing Numbers.

Of course, then, mine is "just" a 1953 Springfield with less than 400 through it since new.

PARTS in Garands just click together. Even though CNC machinery did not exist, they were able to tighten up tolerances sufficiently to ensure 100% interchangeability of all parts, among ALL manufacturers. Once that job was done they went on to the M-14: first-ever industrial product manufactured completely on CNC machine tools.

Of course, we ALL know that everything modern comes from Japan!!!!! Americans were "only" about 30 years ahead here.
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Serial numbers fall into known date ranges which are better defined for the WW2 production Springfields and Winchesters than for the post- WW2 models.
Quite a few of the parts bear drawing numbers with various revision numbers and manufacturer's codes which can also be related to a specific production timeframe. Some parts, which are un-numbered, can also be dated based on their configuration which was changed periodically through the production period. There are other more subtle identifiers for un-numbered parts, such as the Rockwell hardness test dimples on a lot of the Winchester parts.

The key to unlocking this and determining if a rifle contains parts which match the production date for a specific receiver, is to use the Scott Duff books which provide a cross reference for all of this. This can be a very satisfying exercise for the highly anal collectors among us. The fact is that virtually all Garand parts, with the exception of some early gas trap model parts, are interchangeable and can be used on any rifle regardless of maker or manufacture date.

A lot of these rifles saw hard use and were overhauled/refinished/rebuilt one or more times while in military use. These repairs and overhauls used any and all parts w/o regard to maker or manufacturing date. Some of the more fast moving/most replaced parts on these rifles included barrels, stocks and handguards, rear sight components, gas cylinders, op rod and clip latch springs, op rods, gas plugs, safeties, trigger guards, bullet guides, and op rod catches. Parts are parts and, if servicable they got used as they were picked out of the spares bins or after being refinished.

If one is looking to restore a rifle to "matching condition" on the basis of getting parts which were made by the maker of the receiver during the same time period, then the best choices would be to start with either a 1943-1945 or 1950s dated Springfield with it's original barrel. These rifles were made in the largest numbers and parts are more abundant for them. IMHO most "matching rifles" which are seen today got that way by a civilian owner/collector sifting through various parts to make it so. At the end of the day I would tend to value these rifles more on the basis of their condition and functionality than on the extent to which they contain the correct parts by maker and date. Folks do seem to be prepared to pay a premium for a WW2 vintage Winchester or Springfield though based on their historic appeal. Bona-fide parts-original and un-refinished rifles will command a top value as there are precious few of these in circulation.
 
@PURPLE:

Thanks very much for this. I was afraid it might be something like that.

If we got that anal with the SMLE or the Number 4, there wouldn't be a correct rifle in existence!
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