Where were you in '65? An Interesting M1Garand Rebuild by Springfield

6167

6167

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Super GunNutz
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SW Ontario
I was really happy to get this rifle!

It started life as about a 1954 H+R.

It would have been issued, used and then came back to Springfield for a Factory Refit in 1965 for Vietnam.
It obviously did not go over there, and came to me without a stock!
Kit bag length without the stock???

The sight is the original H+R and the top and front wood is period USGI.
I replaced the missing stock with a modern replacement finished to match as close as I could get and using correct period metal. I still have a few grease spots to clean up!

Springfield replaced the bolt, op rod, trigger group, gas cylinder etc and refinished everything in a nice rich parkerizing that looks awesome.

The SA Armourer scribed their logo and date of 11/65 which was correct for the marking of a rebuild of this time period.
The barrel is dated 10/65 which is the month before the rebuild.

The barrel gauges awesome and is mint.
I do not know if there was anything special about the barrel but it is really tight like the nice VAR's we have grown accustomed to in Canada!

Here are some pics of a rifle I am very glad did not go to South East Asia to rot! Cheers Paul

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Nice looking rifle Paul. The s/n dates it to approx mid 1954. Springfield Armory was closed in 1968 and was winding down for several years before this. Your rifle would have been near the end of Garand overhauls done there. It fits the mould for an Armoury rebuild-new replacement barrel and any other required parts plus a freshly parkerized receiver. The receiver was re-parked before the new barrel was installed-note the bright, unparkerized breach ring. Note the older style gas cylinder lock. You normally don't see these on a late rebuild unless they are marked with an "H" or an "M" to indicate specially hardened steel.

My latest dated armory rebuilt Garand was done in the spring of 1969 by Letterkenney Arsenal and is marked LEAD along with month/year on the receiver leg to indicate this. This one has a 1966 dated Springfield barrel. I bought it in unused condition in the mid-1970s.

The S. Vietnamese Army was a big user of both Garands and M1 Carbines in the early yrs of the war. many of their Garands actually had the stocks shortened to better suit the smaller stature of the troops. We had some of the ex-Vietnamese rifles come into Canada some years ago. A lot of them were pretty beat due to poor storage conditions.

There are never ending whizzing contests about which of the 4 US makers produced the best Garands. All of them passed quality/acceptance checks, but the H&Rs are generally thought to be the best followed by Springfield Armory, International Harvester, and Winchester. All IHC rifles, and some H&Rs, were originally fitted with LMR barrels which have an excellent reputation for accuracy.
 
Thanks for the closer date info Purple!...not too easy to date the H+R's without more detailed reference material.
I thought it was pretty cool to have the barrel date so close to the rebuild date.
 
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