[cslinger]

Any of you Garand experts out there ever have a hard time getting that first round to strip off of the clip. Specifically I was using the Danish import stuff and had a tough time with most of the clips getting that first round chambered. Needed a good whack with the palm of my hand.

That last couple of clips I took the ammo out and oiled up the clips and that seemed to make a world of difference.

So should the clips be cleaned and oiled before used?

I had no feeding problems what-so-ever once that first round was chambered.

By the way I love the Garand. I mean I absolutely love it. I like it much more than the M1A which I also love.

Chris

[DMK]

Have you tried replacing the springs? Sounds like a worn OProd spring to me.

I wouldn't oil clips, mags or any other ammo feeding device aside from the very little bit required to prevent rust.

[hps1]

It is fairly normal to have to bump the op rod on an M1 with the heel of your hand to start the bolt forward on the first round, especially when using new clips. Agree w/DMK.....would not oil ammo or clips.

Some clips have a zink coating on them, others are blued or lightly parkerized. The zink coating is much rougher than the blued/parkerized ones and can be "slicked up" by polishing with fine steel wool and this may be the case with your Danish clips.

Regards.
hps

[Ledbetter]

No oil on ammo or clips. Ever change your op rod spring? Think it was new when you got the rifle?

[Destructo6]

The first round needs help on both of my Garands. Giving the oprod a little shove is just second nature now.

[Chipperman]

That's actually a good thing! Harder to get M1-thumb that way. :cuss:

[Bainx]

Right-on Chipperman

Yup you usually need to hit it a lick to get the first one in.

How true.....how true:)

Still, M1 Thumb can still creep up and bite ya!

[Steve in PA]

I have a bunch of dummy .30/06 rounds (no primer/powder) and was playing around with the en blocs and recently aquired CMP M1, and sometimes I had to "bump" the op rod to chamber the first round.

From all I've read that is normal.

[Navy joe]

First a Mormon, now a Canadian:confused: Garand was a darn genius. Everytime I play with a enbloc I am astounded by the soldier proofness of it all. I'm going to keep buying Garands until I have at least a stack, sure is cheaper than pre-ban mags. Re-loading a Garand I am reminded of how tough the Japanese were. You got to be tough or really stupid to take a stinking Arisaka and duke it out with Garands and BARs without wanting to surrender.

[DamnedDirtyApe]

Supposedly, Springfield Armory worked on that problem until the end of production without finding a complete solution.

Simple fix: bend the clip walls apart a little to relieve tension.

M1 thumb: if you keep your thumb on the high round, the bolt can't close on it. Pull your hand away smartly when the clip is seated fully.

FWIW, there's some good Garand handling, including this "op-rod bump" in both Private Ryan and Band of Brothers.

[Jim K]

I see nothing wrong with a light oil coat on clips. It prevents rust and makes the clips easier to use. Note that this does not mean oiling the cartridges or using enough oil to get on the cases; that will cause increased thrust on the bolt and is a bad practice.

It is normal to have to tap the op rod for the first round; sometimes a new spring will help, but there is no guarantee.

The beauty of the en-bloc clip is partly in the rapid loading of a usable number of rounds, but also in the saving of shipping space and cost. With the carbine, they had a larger magazine, and planned to ship loaded magazines. But some springs took a set and they ended up shipping millions of empty magazines, then shipping ammo in boxes. With the M1, the ammunition was shipped in bandoliers, all ready to be stuffed into the rifle. In theory, it seems slower than just changing magazines, but in practice, there is little difference, even assuming that spare loaded magazines are available.

As far as SPR and BOB go, there were very few real M1 rifles in those movies. Most of them were plastic dummies. Almost as much dummies as guys who would traipse through enemy territory in a line, silhouetted against the horizon, while chatting away discussing philosophy. What garbage! And the whole premise of SPR was absurd.

Jim