Auto Ordinance M-1 .30Carbine

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loose noose

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Recently found the above described rifle at my LGS at a price of $645.00 +tax. Noted it had a bayonet stud but the stock looked like it was a hardwood, possibly beech wood or the like. It was in excellent condition, and looks like it had been hardly fired, my question is did Auto Ordinance ever use anything other than walnut on there stocks.
 
I have never seen an AO with a Beech stock. Or a bayonet lug. Does it have early rear sights and safety?

On a side note, I like mine. I like the USGI better, but the AO is good to go.
 
Odd. The AOs I have seen have been early config.
-No bayo lug
-Flip rear sights
-Oops, my mag just dropped safety.

Is it an (early) flat top bolt or round bolt?

I wonder if an A-O reciever never got marked as an Inland, which has the features you list (except the beech stock.) Did you buy it? Not a bad price with late features at all.
 
When Auto Ordnance first started producing M1 Carbines, they produced M1 carbines the first year with Birch stocks (likely left over after IAI went bankrupt and had to cease production of M1 carbines). I believe this was around 2004 (models AOM-110 and AOM-120). Originally, some of these had the metal ventilated hand guard while others had wood, an adjustable rear sight, bayonet lug, and a rotary safety switch.
 
Ah thank you Mr. Flintstone the one they have has the metal hand guard, No I didn't buy it Max, Mr. Flintstone described much better than I could. BTW I have a M-1 Carbine but it is a Iver Johnson, (after market) that I installed in a walnut stock and handguard, as well as the stock mounted magazine pouch, as well as the bayonet stud and bayonet. I've shot well over a 1000 rounds without any problems especially once I purchased some new Korean magazines. The reason I asked about it was because I saw that sitting on display for some time, and knew it wasn't a WWII model, so I asked the clerk to see it, and noticed it was a AO, but without the walnut stock and handguard, and it just didn't register with me. I do thank you folks for letting me know the scoop.
 
I have never seen an AO with a Beech stock. Or a bayonet lug. Does it have early rear sights and safety?

On a side note, I like mine. I like the USGI better, but the AO is good to go.

I am in this camp....I like the "real" GI versions.....not saying the "new" ones are this or that, but you can say one thing about them....with out any shadow of a doubt they have zero history behind them.

I have seen GI versions still selling for $800 ish from time to time if you hunt....true most are $1000 plus, but even at that we are only talking about $400.....not that much more.....and another thing you can bank on....that 1943 version will not do down in value if you take care of it.
 
BTW fpgt72, I paid $400.00 OTD for the Iver Johnson, the only thing I did to it was replaced the bolt return spring which was military spec. The cheapest M-1 .30Cal Carbine that I found was an older Winchester that they were asking $1100 for and it was really beat up. Would love to find one around here for $800-900.00 that is in shootable condition.
 
Considering how expensive the USGI guns are now, you would think there should be a market for new copies that could just be fun low-recoil shooters. But all the commercial copies have problems of some degree.
 
All the aftermarket manufacturers have been relatively small outfits, maybe not the greatest R&D. Need someone like Ruger to step up, as long as they don't try to cheapen the product. And it's not like Ruger hasn't copied other designs before......
 
Considering how expensive the USGI guns are now, you would think there should be a market for new copies that could just be fun low-recoil shooters. But all the commercial copies have problems of some degree.

I came close to buying one of the new Inland 30 Carbines and heard they had had some bolt or receiver problems. I called Inland and they told me that above serial number 1200 the problems had been corrected. And I don't understand why more guns weren't built around the round as popular as it once was with all the cheap surplus ammo. I think a single shot break open like the old H&R style guns would be cool.
 
The Inlands and the Auto Ordnance carbines have the same receiver made by Lamothermic but marked with each company’s own logo. The barrels are made by Green Mountain Rifle Barrels. The only difference between the two is the care each company takes in assembly and the amount of care taken in the finish work that is done when completing the assembly. Right now, Inland does just a little better job at the fit and finish work.
 
The Inlands and the Auto Ordnance carbines have the same receiver made by Lamothermic but marked with each company’s own logo. The barrels are made by Green Mountain Rifle Barrels. The only difference between the two is the care each company takes in assembly and the amount of care taken in the finish work that is done when completing the assembly. Right now, Inland does just a little better job at the fit and finish work.


Well, that and the upgrades. I have already replaced the rear sight in my AO, will install the bayonet lug (for accuracy reasons.). Will probably leave the early safety though.
 
I purchased my Auto Ordnance a few years ago, and had to send it back because of a poorly fitted stock, and a crack in the stock where the recoil lug is. When I got it back, the gas piston nut kept coming loose, and the magazines wouldn’t stay in correctly. I ordered a piston nut tool, GI piston nut, and an M2 style magazine catch. After staking in the new nut, and putting in the new mag catch it ran much better. It took about 150-200 rounds to break in, and now it runs flawlessly with everything. The only other mod I’ve done is to add a rotary safety because I kept dropping the magazine instead of taking off the safety. That was just a personal choice since I’m not interested in making a new production carbine period correct. I also intend to replace the flip sight with an adjustable one, and replace the type 1 barrel band with a type 2 at some point, but I’m in no hurry.

Overall, now it’s one of my favorite guns to shoot; fast, light, and accurate. It took a little work, and about $50 worth of parts, but now I like it a lot.
 
It took a little work, and about $50 worth of parts, but now I like it a lot.
Im finding thats about par for the GI guns too. Thats about what my GI guns cost me after I bought them. Every one of them needed the bolts rebuilt and thats what the parts cost. Not counting the bolt tool and other tools.

I have one rifle that had the piston nut staked. The rest were loose, or easily loosened with the tool. I actually prefer that, as I can clean the piston too. I just put a small drop of blue Loctite on the nut when I reassemble.
 
for me the real deal or non at all, I went thru the copies years ago and was not satisfied with any of them. I would hold out for a original GI carbine, you will not lose any money on it.
 

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Fulton Armory has probably the best quality M1 Carbines. You can get them with an original USGI receiver, or new machined receiver made to USGI heat treat and geometry. All other parts are new and mil spec. The bad part is that they run $1600-$2000. It’s not original GI, but it’s as close as you’ll get in a new manufacture rifle. As I’m not a collector, my AO is in the good enough category.
 
for me the real deal or non at all, I went thru the copies years ago and was not satisfied with any of them. I would hold out for a original GI carbine, you will not lose any money on it.
That’s a good looking rifle. I’m always on the lookout for a good original M1 carbine, but they seem to run $2000+ locally for an average condition rifle.
 
Decent GI guns around here on average, run around $1000. When you actually see them. Ive bought and traded for five in the past year, across a number of shops, and the lowest was $800, and the highest was $1200.

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I wouldnt mind finding a decent commercial gun, especially in the $500 range, but you hear so much negative about them, Im not sure Id do it. Not that you see many anyway. You dont see the GI guns around here all that often. The copies, even less.
 
Some how I knew eastbank would chime in with a beautiful carbine, I would dearly like to see his entire collection of firearms. Around here the M-1 .30Cal Carbines are going anywhere from $1000-1500.00 in really rough condition, if I saw one worth its weight I'd gladly give $800-850.00 for it.
 
Some how I knew eastbank would chime in with a beautiful carbine, I would dearly like to see his entire collection of firearms. Around here the M-1 .30Cal Carbines are going anywhere from $1000-1500.00 in really rough condition, if I saw one worth its weight I'd gladly give $800-850.00 for it.

Yep. I've been interested in an M1 Carbine just to have as a plinker, historical provenance doesn't mean anything to me. It's either pay $800 for a commercial gun that will barely run, or pay $1200+ for a beat up GI gun. Heck of a market to be in.

A buddy of mine has a 1945 one that he doesn't shoot. The rear sight is hanging on by a thread and shifts from left to right just as you shoulder the carbine, and then it had a habit of doubling/tripling like a machine gun burst at random. Fun but not too safe... we loaded 3 rounds in the magazine until we shot up our box of 30 Carbine, then retired it from service.

As a gun, it's basically unusable right now, and would require a fair bit of work to get up and running again. From what I've seen of the market, that project / parts grade gun is still probably worth around $900.
 
Yep. I've been interested in an M1 Carbine just to have as a plinker, historical provenance doesn't mean anything to me. It's either pay $800 for a commercial gun that will barely run, or pay $1200+ for a beat up GI gun. Heck of a market to be in.

A buddy of mine has a 1945 one that he doesn't shoot. The rear sight is hanging on by a thread and shifts from left to right just as you shoulder the carbine, and then it had a habit of doubling/tripling like a machine gun burst at random. Fun but not too safe... we loaded 3 rounds in the magazine until we shot up our box of 30 Carbine, then retired it from service.

As a gun, it's basically unusable right now, and would require a fair bit of work to get up and running again. From what I've seen of the market, that project / parts grade gun is still probably worth around $900.
The rear sights being loose seem to be an ongoing issue. At least for me. Every one of mine was loose when I got them, and it looks like someone intentionally drove them out of their staking. Once I got them back where they belonged, and restaked them, they have been pretty good about not moving, for the most part. Although I did have to restake the one I was shooting today, as it was a tad loose, and shifted a little left on me. A couple of good whacks with a heavier hammer and punch fixed that. Now I have another reason to take it back out and check zero. :D

These things are just to much fun to shoot. :)

As far as parts for getting things fixed, if you have troubles, Numrich/Gun Parts has pretty much anything you need, and at fairly reasonable prices. The one Winchester I have, a "Blue Sky" gun, had the slide break within 100 rounds. As best as I could tell by its few markings, it was a Korean part. Had a USGI replacement in less than a week from Numrich, for around $70.

I really haven't seen any "rough" Carbines among the guns I have seen. Ive seen a couple that were refinished, which to me is a bit of a red flag, but for the most part, they have all been in pretty decent shape. Most of them have been rearsenaled too. The couple that I have seen that were at the higher end of the price range, were those that we still early war original, and still had the flip sight and no bayo lug.

Personally, I do prefer the less beefy, early stocks over the "pot bellys".

I dont know why, but I wasnt into these when they were "cheap". Now Im paying for it, literally. :confused:

Although I dont think 30 Carbine ammo was ever really cheap, even when there was a lot of surplus around. I think that was some of it, and I was more into the M1's and M1A's at the time.
 
All this talk has made me want to shoot mine again. I think I’ll break out a box of ammo or two, and go kill some paper, rocks, cans, and miscellaneous other other offenders.
 
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