OK men, tell me what you think (M1 Carbine)

dheffley

I've about decided to buy an M1 Carbine. I'm leaning towards the GI version, but maybe an Israeli or commercial model. What do I need to know, and what should I pay?

How you doin'!

njretcop

USGI and money, LOL.

Another dang gun that we can't own in NJ. Looks to threatening!



Charlie

"It's the stuff dreams are made of Angel"NRA Certified Firearms InstructorMember: GOA, RKBA, NJSPBA, NJ area rep for the 2ndAMPD. njretcop@copmail.com

groundhog devastation

heff, I have mixed feelings about your intended purchase! First off, if you want one then you should be able to get one! Second...for what? The 30 carbine is "legal" in VA to hunt deer with. However, nobody better show up at a GHD controlled lease carrying one, at least for the purpose of hunting! 223,22-250, 220Swift and a few others are "illegal" for deer hunting in VA. However the tin can killer and people wounder 30 carbine is legal! Go Figure! If all you are goiing to do with it is use it at the range or for target practice at your home range and that is the extent of it, get yourself one! As for myself, it would be a hard decision between one of them and a case of the c...!!!! [:D]GHD

p3skyking

They are a pleasant weapon to shoot. Right now the GI version is at a preminum so expect a tag of $450 up.

If you decide to go GI, try to find one that:

Is not an import.

If it is an import, a small marking.

Has good wood, metal (the standard stuff).

Has early features (push safety, flip sight, no bayonet lug, no M2 cutout, flat bolt.

Good luck Danny!

...honor is important only when dealng with honorable men.
You asked if I have reverence? I have reverence for truth, but I do not know what truth is. I suspect there are many truths, and therefore, I suspect all who claim to have THE truth. L'Amour

TOOLS1

I love mine[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D]
TOOLS

General TOOLS RRG

Don't go blaming the beer. Hank Hill

So much Ice, So much Beer. So little time. Shooter4

I don't have an anger problem. I have an idiot problem. Hank Hill

When I was a child, I thought as a child. But now that I am grown, I just wish I could act like a child and get away with it.

Warbirds

Sky King has it down I'd say, one other piece of advice, try not to buy the beat up used Garand I saw at the fresno gun show, for a mere $1800.00 I don't think it sold. But it did come with a custom spray paint cammo job.

R/

Dave


How different the world would be if we could consult the veteran instead of the politician. - Henry Miller

n/a

Inland, General Motors, Stay away from Universal (Miami Florida) a genuine GI one look to pay 350 and up, most go here for around 700.00 in excellant shape, I will check the Gun show this weekend as I got a couple friends that have em.

Larry



"I dont care how thin you make a pancake, it still has two sides"

"A wise man is a man that realizes just how little he knows"

whiteclouder

It's a toy. If you go in remembering that you will not get hurt. Now, how much do you want to pay for the toy? 300 will get you a good import that will spit copper all day. 1500-2000 will get you a Saginaw or IBM collector that will spit copper all day. None are worth anything other than being a blast to shoot. Only one more fun is the full auto but then that ain't an M1.

Clouder..

dotcom_guy30

if you can find and afford get a rockola or winchester [:D][8D][:D]

the thing that scares me is that we could be living in someone else's own reality

dheffley

Larry,

Let me know what you find.

How you doin'!

Hangfire

I have thoroughly enjoyed shooting one for 40+ years.I now own several[GI ONLY-stay away from commercial ones]If it were not for these carbines, our Country would have long ago been overrun by tincans and rocks!

Heres a couple of threads for some info
Glad to see you're feeling better!! Bob

http://forums.gunbroker.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=83123

http://forums.gunbroker.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=82597

http://forums.gunbroker.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=80428

Gun control is a steady hand

wundudnee

quote:Originally posted by groundhog devastation
heff, I have mixed feelings about your intended purchase! First off, if you want one then you should be able to get one! Second...for what? The 30 carbine is "legal" in VA to hunt deer with. However, nobody better show up at a GHD controlled lease carrying one, at least for the purpose of hunting! 223,22-250, 220Swift and a few others are "illegal" for deer hunting in VA. However the tin can killer and people wounder 30 carbine is legal! Go Figure! If all you are goiing to do with it is use it at the range or for target practice at your home range and that is the extent of it, get yourself one! As for myself, it would be a hard decision between one of them and a case of the c...!!!! [:D]GHD


GHD, Don't hold back, let it out, tell us how you really feel.
[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D][:D]

....................
Old? First you forget names; then you forget faces; then you forget to pull your zipper up; then you forget to pull your zipper down.

Rebel_James

I've got a USGI, made by the Underwood typewriter company. The M-1 Carbine is a lot of fun to shoot, but only for plinking. It's useless for hunting.

Whatever you buy, stay away from commercially made carbines. They're all junk.

"If they won't give us good terms, come back and we'll fight it out."
-- Gen. James Longstreet

dotcom_guy30

i must say i have a winchesster carbine never used to hunt but is a good plinker

the thing that scares me is that we could be living in someone else's own reality

RancheroPaul

Your mention of an "IAI" gun may not be what you want. The problem with these are that they are "no longer in business!" Obviously, they won't be able to furnish any service. They are supposed to be made with a "New" cast and machined receiver, then assembled with all GI parts except for the stock, which is a new "look alike" which is of nice qualiy. Before they went out of busines, they started making their own barrels and they had the key slot for the front sight 3 degrees off center......made for a very difficult gun to sight! They do look nice, but then, "pretty is as pretty does!:

I Miss The World I Grew Up In!

Rosie

Say what you want about the carbine but I carried one through some damn rough times and it never failed me. It is a close range gun, (100 yards) and does the job very well at that range. 50 and under is better. My son in law in West Virginia has taken a deer every year for the past twenty years with one. It would NOT be my first choice for a battle rifle but I sure as hell would not curl up my nose at one either.

Phillybilly

go with the GI one you will be happier. had an inland and it kept jamming. excellent tin can killer.[:D][:D]


Say hello to my little friend

searcher5

I've got a Universal and an Iver Johnson that I picked up in trade some time back. Ive shot them both, they function fine. I would not make any claims for them being target rifles, nor would they be my first choice for hunting. I am a big man, and the little carbine does not fit me well. They are fun to shoot, though. I have not had them apart to make a side-by-side comparison, but it looks to me like the Iver Johnson is the better put together of the two.

Proud member of the NRA

When I do good, I feel good; when I do bad, I feel bad, and that is my religion.
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gunnut505

Finally! After all thet worryin' you put us through, you're lookin' to getcha an M1 Carbine!
They are lightweight, fun to shoot, easy to reload for (stay clear of nickled Rem. cases), and ANY BRAND will do for plinkin'!
If you just HAVE to have a GI model instead of one of the many fine commercially made ones; get a Saginaw or Rock-ola. It'll cost you 3X what a Universal or Iver will, but you'll have the satisfaction of knowing that ANY parts you need won't be easy to find[}:)].
My Universal ($200) has been around the block several times, and still shoots everytime I pull the trigger, takes GI mags, hits where I aim it (thank you PDP2!), but won't quite take the bayonet (not enough carpet-dwellers near my house!).
Get it, shoot it, have fun!

If you know it all; you must have been listening.WEAR EAR PROTECTION!

offeror

I think they are a nice piece of history and a blast to own, handle and shoot. Unlike the Garand or the M-14, which have a sort of feel of trying to hold an I-beam straight out in front of you ([:D]), the carbine is light, quick, and takes cheap 15 and 30 round mags that are readily available. I've heard that the 15s are all reliable, but try to buy GI 30s in order assure the most reliable operation. The GIs are harder to find -- I have one that came with my Blue Sky imported Underwood M1 carbine, and it shoots like a house afire.

I don't know anything about the quality of the $400 Israeli guns, other than that they are new. Old M1s hold up well though, so if you find a good example it will last your lifetime and spare parts are easy to get.

Commercial models: Iver Johnson is apparently more true to the GI design, while the Universals are infamous for changes that were designed in, and their stocks look like veneer, but my dad has a Universal that has always shot well. On the other hand, why buy commercial when GIs are in such good supply? I saw several at the gun show last weekend. They have Character!

Prices? Winchesters and Rockolas (the juke box company) bring the most as I recall, but the other brands are all desirable, without exception. I saw an IBM last weekend, and the Underwoods are plentiful and should be among the least expensive. You can sometimes make out the brand name on top of the receiver just behind the rear sight (or under it). The flat bolt guns are the oldest, rarest, and most expensive. You don't "need" a flat bolted gun unless you want a correct WWII model. My Underwood has the rounded top bolt and it works fine. In fact, that may be the best part. These things tend to be very reliable with good springs, like an AK. They feed well. They are a true carbine, designed as an alternative to the 1911.

I'd say, get a GI gun. If it's a re-import, just look it over well. There's nothing mysterious about them. You can tell an over-used one from a good used one in most cases. The rap against the Blue Sky guns was that some were stamped so hard on the side of the barrel that the barrels slightly bent, but I've seen no evidence of that with mine.

Since new IMIs and used GIs with "character" start around the same price, why not find a favorite oldie and enjoy a little tradition with your purchase. Footnote: In my case, I disassembled the stock and hand-sanded it smooth and clean as new. It was relatively easy to do. If you want a better looking gun and dings or initials in the stock are the main concern, you can always do the "home project" thing and have that much more to love about your purchase.

T. Jefferson: "[When doing Constitutional interpretation], let us [go] back to the time when [it] was adopted. [Rather than] invent a meaning [let us] conform to the probable one in which it was passed."

mudge

Mine's an Inland. I've put a few thousand rounds through it without a problem. Like most have said, and as far as I'm concerned, it's a "plinker". I can understand why, as a battle rifle, the troops may have liked it. You can put out a lot of lead, quickly. Most of what I've seen lately are WAAAYYY overpriced. If you do get one, be very selective about the wood. A lot of the rebuilds have some pretty crappy wood on them. I call it "monkey wood". When I was helping rebuild at Arlington Ordnance, I'd throw that junk away. Yeah, finding one with good wood ain't gonna' be easy but do you want "fast" or "good". You might even try to bargain with someone who has nice hardware and crappy wood. Then go buy some nice wood somewhere else.

Mudge the Garand fan

I can't come to work today. The voices said, STAY HOME AND CLEAN THE GUNS!<BR>

gruntled

With a bayonet on the end they make a useful short range spear.