M-1 Carbine ........yes or no

gunpaq

In the year 2002 is the M-1 Carbine still used for any practicle application such as law enforcement, military, home defense, survival or hunting? Was trying to decide wheather or not to keep it on my list of guns to get.

Pack slow, fall stable, pull high, hit dead center.

JudgeColt

Of course it is. The .30 Carbine round is a LOT more potent than any of the pistol cartridges offered in the various pistol cartridge carbines, such as the Ruger, Colt, Marlin, Kel-Tec, etc., and people buy those thinking they have value. Anything a pistol cartridge carbine will do in on-target performance, the M-1 Carbine will do better. (Accuracy may be the only area of possible weakness, but none of the pistol cartridge carbines are tack drivers either.) It is suitable for any of the applications mentioned, within reason of course. (Do NOT hunt elephant with it!)

A big plus is the ready availability of 15 and 30-round magazines at very inexpensive prices.

An M-1 Carbine should be in every "gun nut" collection of important guns.

Texas Jaguar

You might look at the practicality of the 30cal M1 carbine the same way the army did in the early 1940's. They wanted a simple, light weapon to be issued to officers, vehicle crewman etc that, unlike the 1911a1 pistol, could be fired accurately enough to hit a potential target without the amount of training and practice it took to become competant with a pistol. In that regard they succeeded. As long as your dealing with close range and don't need awesome knockdown power or tack driving accuracy the M1 should work well.

flinch

Speaking of that are there any brands to avoid or to seek out. I see Iver Johnsons for $500 around town. Seems high to me.

bama55

I prefer the military M1 Carbines. I had a bad experience
with a Universal model, so don't ask me about them.

1FMJ

I have a Universal 30 cal. carbine, and have taken 15 whitetail deer with it it makes a great still hunting gun and most of my shots were 80 yards or less.
No problems with it as long as it is assembled right as the two op-rod springs can be assembled wrong.I load my own ammo using a 110 gr bullet with a max charge of IMR 4227
I never wanted an Iver-Johnson they rattled to much when being carried.

Nighthawk

The m-1 carbine was developed for the U.S. goverment,and seen action during two wars before it was replaced.I have a friend who uses his for hunting White tail deer. Its not the most accurate round I have ever seen but it will do.As for L.E. use recently our department participated in a survey by police magazine to find out what carbine and caliber was most common.Needless to say the .30carbine was stuck in there at a low percentage maybe6% of departments surveyed carried it. An even smaller percentage carried the Lever action30-30 yes thATS what I thought to! First place was the AR-15 223 next the good old Mini-14 223.But the .30 carbine is still very much alive and still very useful as a self defense round as well as other purposes.

Rugster

Der Gebirgsjager

gunpaq-Let me take a swing at this one too! To directly answer your question; Yes, the M1 Carbine is still a good tool for early 21st Century man. Given the restrictions of semi-auto and 10 round capacities that most of us are constrained to live with, the M1 Carbine offers the following: (1) Semi-auto is semi-auto. The Carbine can be fired just as fast as any other semi-auto, regardless of when it was manufactured; and therefore is as modern in that respect as an semi-auto M-16 or AK-47. (2) Because it was so widely produced and used for so many years, high capacity magazines are still readily available in quantity. The 15 round mags are reasonably priced, and the 30 round mags not out of reach. I've seen them recently 5 for $100. (3) Parts are readily available. (4) The cartridge is accurate to 300 yds. and has an effective range of 150 yds. for most shooters, much better than the 9mm used in many light defense weapons. I've never owned one that wouldn't shoot all rounds into a silhouette target at 100 yds. and an 8 inch paper plate at 50 yards--and most do considerably better. (5) Ammo is widely available and will continue to be produced for many years to come. Most of it is reloadable, and the M1 Carbine is one of the few semi-autos that functions well with cast lead bullets. (6) Lots of neat and useful accessories available. (7) Time and combat tested action in every climate and circumstance existing. How many of these new carbines of different design require detail stripping and cleaning every 200 rounds to continue functioning? Marlin's Camp Carbine comes to mind.

I own several, and in fact I have an Iver Johnson-made model in the closet by the door as a home defense weapon. My wife has been trained to use it quite proficiently. As we are rural, it has taken its share of 4 legged pests, and when viewed with a "banana clip" would certainly give a 2 legged varmint pause for thought. I must express a preference for the genuine military article though, both for quality and durability. There is little to choose from among the various military manufacturers (other than price and collectability) as all were made to govt. specs. and standards. You will find civilian models that appear identical to the military models under a lot of names, the most common being Plainfield, Iver Johnson, AMAC, and Universal. No offense meant, 1FMJ, but Universal went through a steady decline in quality control, and is considered the least desirable. To your good fortune, you seem to have acquired one from their better period. Further, it was redesigned to the point that many parts, including even the stock, are not interchangeable with the military and those true to the military design, which creates a parts replacement problem.

I guess you can tell that I like the M1 Carbine. BUY ONE! (I bet it won't be your last).

thunderbolt

They are great guns, but both guns and ammo are priced on the high end of the up down cycle just now. I've seen some Universal carbines priced higher than AK47's. Some .30 carbine ammo is priced higher than .308 and there is no comparison in power there. AK47's and ammo are at their lowest price in months just now, so they present a better bargain. Wait a while and get the carbine when demand drops a little.

gunpaq

Always wanted the M-1 Carbine and just making up my mind on ivesting in one or the Ruger PC-9. I appreciate all the input. Thanks.

Pack slow, fall stable, pull high, hit dead center.