CMP M1 Garand Service Grade

Here's what mine looks like after cleaning the grease off the stock.


I stripped it down and ran a couple of patches through the bore, and it looks shiny as a new dime. The receiver is a 1954 Harrington & Richardson, and the barrel is a H&R 1955, which looks hardly used. The bolt and Op Rod are by Springfield, and the trigger group is from International Harvester. The GI stock has the post 1953 Eagle cartouche, so it's period with the rest of the parts. The bayonet and spam can of ammo on bandoliered clips came boxed separately, but all arrived together.
Since I originally ordered this back in December, I feel like it's Christmas all over again.

hey sappnasty-

I'm heading for the South Store Second week of February! Maybe I'll see you there! Actually, maybe that wouldn't be so good because I'm after a shooter too, and we'd have to duel or something over the best one.

Anyway, good luck and if you beat me there, leave one for me. I'll try to do the same.

sappnasty said:

Dude, I am so jealous! What a rifle. I would almost have to say that I would be a complete idiot if I didn't buy ammo and a bayonet as well. Have you opened the ammo can? If so how does the ammo look? Overall nice rifle man. If you get a chance get some close in ones of your metal and accessories. How does it feel? Like Christmas!?

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This is what it looked like right out of the box. The stock was sticky with cosmoline.


The ammo in the Spam can is bright and shiny Greek HXP, dated 1972. It looked so good, I went to the estore and ordered a couple more.


The finish on the metal is uniform, and doesn't show a lot of wear. I looked up the date of production for this one, and it came up as 1954.


I was surprised to pull back the Op rod and see that the barrel was also an H&R, dated 1-55. I'm wondering if the barrel and receiver aren't original to each other. You can see here that the stock is considerably more dinged up than the metal, but it's walnut, and there aren't any cracks or repairs.


The Op rod and bolt are marked SA, and the trigger group is marked IHC. I couldn't get a clear shot down the bore, but it looks to have been fired very little, and cleaned well before being put in storage. I'm pretty happy with it; if I get a bit of a tax refund this year, I think I'll get a SA to go along with it.

That's great! Nice pics. Congratulations.
That's good news on the quality of the ammo too.

sappnasty said:

Congrats Burner! That ammo looks awesome...so now the big question. What are you gonna name her?

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Depends on how she shoots!

Daniel Boone- It is extremely rude to bad mouth a seller without having any personal experience with them. Especially when you are wrong.

I purchased my service grade from the South Store back in November when I was home on leave. It has new wood but the rest is older. Leon said the trigger group dates back to WW2 and was happy to point out the lack of wear on ANY part of the rifle. The rifle I got was not fired hardly at all. Wear on muzzle and throat is neglible. The only reason it is not a "higher" grade is becasue it's a bit of a mix master but mostly Springfield. Just call and ask what they're currently shipping.

Grab some of that ammo too. The stuff in the spam can looks new and gives you a supply of the clips. PITA to get the can open though.

As my first Garand, the Service Grade was picked out by a friend who took part in the Camp Perry matches last July-Aug. It seemed better than simply mailing in paperwork from the club here.
This friend is extremely experienced with guns, won lots of Garands over the years as prizes in matches (two iron sight AR records:200/600), and so I always trust his judgement and decisions regarding guns.

Even though the wood has some normal dings and is fairly dull, the metal looks just as clean and new as what you see in the photos by GCBurner and FlyinBryan.
The bore is much brighter than I had expected, and reminds me of the chrome lining in my SKS.

If you can somehow justify the cost and time for an Anniston trip, you might be glad.
Even veterans of the huge Dallas gun shows tell me that walking into the room with long racks of Garands is truly a sight to behold.

Leaky Waders said:

Pic in post #26 is awesome...rifles that defend democracy and the dog that defends the family..or at least it's feet...creeping in the pic - a lab?

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Yeap, she is a pure bred Yellow lab. All 75lbs of her (big for her size, the hormone inbalance after getting her fixed cause her to gain a lot of weight). My other lab is 3/4 chocolate, 1/4 golden retriever, and also weighs 75lbs. He's very lanky and lean.

Oh and I was thinking about driving up, picking them out and having them shipped back...I wonder if that cancel's the sales tax?

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It does in Ohio, and I would assume it would there too. They'll tell you at the store what is cheaper if you ask. Ammo should be cheaper to drive home.

I really wish people who OBVIOUSLY don't know what they are talking about would stay out of threads posting inaccurate hearsay or worse, inaccurate, mumbling speculation. -You know who you are.

OP, the Service Grade HRA's and SA's are excellent rifles in excellent condition. There are even Winchesters left that are in fine condition, being more rare but not in as good of shape parts wise as the HRA's and SA's.

Your best bet is to go to the store, however, don't totally discount ordering online. Waiting for your luck of the draw can be really satisfying. Here is my SG Winchester that I ordered through the e-store last fall. I got one of the better rifles by all accounts with a far higher percentage of Winchester parts than most folks received.





Here is my 70 pound hunting girl.

I got mine in last night, and I need to get pics up. Looks like it's a 1943 SA, GI stock; 21769xx. Congrats, GCBurner.

Here are a few Garands that came from CMP. A couple of mine were purchased indirectly, but they all originated from CMP. I've purchased several Garands, bolt rifles and surplus .22's from them and their service has always been top-notch. Any issues have always been handled quickly and courteously with little or no inconvenience to me.

Winchester LEAD Letterkenny rebuild


HRA Correct (click on pic for slideshow)

SA Correct (click on pic for slideshow)

I have 4 Garands: 2 Correct Grade SAs, an HRA Special Grade and a SA Special Grade. Three of the four appear to be factory proof-fired only, while the used one is my shooter. They're wonderful.

As a boy, I'd listen to my Dad (PTO '43-46) and my uncle (ETO '42-45) talking about their experiences with their Garands...my first two were in their memories. CMP and their rifles are the best rifle experiences I have ever had...and the Garands were how my old man and his older bro' made it home from WWII.

FH

Here are my two CMP Garands (SA 1940 and 1942). Service grades from a few years back...



And here is the full CMP family:

Assembly and Disassembly

My HRA is my first Garand, and I had the adventure of stripping it down completely for cleaning and inspection before taking it out to the range tomorrow to sight it in. The little booklet that came with it from the CMP was helpful in taking things apart, but here's a tip for other Newbies to Garand maintenence: Take pictures of how everything fits together before taking it apart. I wish I'd had a picture of my expression when I took out the little pin that holds all the parts of the follower assembly in place, and had them drop out on the bench and disassemble themselves. Thank God for the Internet, and some Garand specific websites with clear pictures of how to put the puzzle pieces together again.

On my first try, I neglected to slide the pins on the follower arm into their slot on the follower, so when I retracted the bolt, the whole follower popped out like an ejected clip. Oops!

I've taken it apart and put it back together several times now, and greased everything that needs grease, and dug the old grease out of everywhere it wasn't needed, and now everything is functioning smoothly. Weather permitting, I'll get to see how it shoots tomorrow, and try my hand at adjusting the sights.

I ordered a SA Service Grade from the CMP last year and it arrived at my door in August 2010. At that time there was an estimated delivery time of 90-180 days if I recall (It was closer to the 90 days for mine). I notice that today the wait time is only 15-30 days.

I ordered mine sight unseen but I sent in a letter stating that I had a preference for accuracy/performance over historical value. I'm a huge history buff but this was my first rifle and so I wanted it to be a good shooter.

When I recieved my rifle, I couldn't have been more thrilled. It appears to be a Greek return (thus the darker look of the metal over the lighter parkerized parts) but has a September 1943 receiver. It has a TE of 3 and a MV of 2 and shoots wonderfully. The barrel was an HRA from '53 and the stock is clearly a replacement (though I suspect it is a Greek replacement and not a new CMP stock).

Simply put, I couldn't be happier with ordering from the CMP and with my first rifle. I'm likely going to refinish the stock but for now, I've just really been enjoying it. I'd say you can't go wrong ordering from the CMP. Good luck with your order and I hope you'll enjoy your Garands as much as I have mine.

P.S. The Greek HXP ammo is nice stuff (I've picked up a few cans and I haven't been able to find a better deal anywhere else). It definitely attracts a magnet though.

Thanks, sappnasty...I'm very happy with it. I'm pretty sure there is a limit. I remember reading somewhere on the CMP site that you can only buy 12 in a year (which works out well for your 1 a month!). I can't seem to find it but maybe someone more familiar with the site will.

I also noticed they're now shipping in a hard case which is just another added benefit to going through the CMP. When I bought mine, they also had a postcard you could send it to get a free trigger lock. I did so and got a nice Pro-Lok, Gunlok in the mail free of charge. If I had the funds, I'd order another one today but for now all my funds have to go in getting ammo.