School Me.... M1 Carbine

Look for any of the milsurps. (Inland is the most common.)

Avoid any of the non-spec later reproductions. I haven't played with a newer Kahr version.

I would rather find a hammered milsurp that needs a little TLC, send it to Fulton Armory for a checkup and maybe a new barrel, than take a chance on a non-spec one. (A few hundred $.)

+1 on mljdeckard on the milsurps. Avoid the majority of the repros. I have played with a new Kahr and that's about as far as you can go with it. It will shoot but it feels like a toy compared to my USGI examples.

The main thing you want to think about is how much do you want to spend? The prices have risen quite a bit since the CMP ran out of them. They claim that there are no more on the horizon but only Mr. O knows for sure. This time he may be telling the truth.

As mentioned above, Inland Manufacturing was the most common and Irwin Pederson being the fewest. If I ever lay eyes on an IP, I will pawn the kid to get it (just kidding, sort of).

The majority of the ones that you will find these days are total mixmasters (meaning a mix of parts from all the manufacturers and their different contractors). There is nothing wrong since they all had to be done to milspec. The ones that are all one maker and have the correct parts for the serial number range, obviously, go for more money.

If you have time, go over to the CMP forums and read up. There is a ton of info over there just be sure you use the search function because there are lots of people who don't and they usually get ignored.

There are several places that will refurb your rifle like the other poster said. Just be careful and take lots of pics of what you have on your rifle when you send it to them if you go that route. I have heard stories of people not knowing what they have and getting the ol' switcheroo. I personally like Shuff's Parkerizing. Google him, that cat is a master.

Good luck and PM me if you have any specific questions. I usually check here every other day or so.

David

I have a commercial Iver Johnson, and it does well. The ones I have heard are troublesome are 3rd and 4th generation Universals. Other than that it is hard to go wrong with the little carbine that could. .30 carbine out of an 18" barrel is about twice the power of a 4" barreled .357 magnum excluding stuff like buffalo bore.

The previous replies have mostly covered this topic.

A note on the Kahr/Auto Ordnance reprocutions. I actually have one, though mostly because it was such a ridiculously good deal (barely used, with lots of ammo and accessories, for less than half the going price). It shoots just fine, and if I were blindfolded, except for the feel of the stock I couldn't distinguish it from my 1943 Quality Hardware when holding and firing - your mileage may vary. (oh, and of course the blindfolded shooting idea was strictly for purposes of illustration!)

But I agree you should focus on getting a milsurp. I got mine from a local collector, but followed the online sources (Gunbroker, Auction Arms, etc.) for a while prior to that and it seemed there were always a good number for sale.

I did not get any sort of great deal on my Quality Hardware - nor did I care, as I wanted a WWII carbine, and got one in good condition that I can shoot and enjoy. If your budget allows, I'd suggest looking at your purchase the same way. Sounds like you have an actual use for a carbine - mine is purely for historical interest and fun shooting - so buy a nice one and enjoy it for many years.

Mine is nice enough that I don't anticipate having it worked on, but the other posters here correctly point out that you can take a beat-up mix-master and have it refurbed to the level you desire.

I think you're a reloader, which is particularly nice if you're going to be turning money into noise with an M1, as the ammo is not cheap. You can easily roll your own for less than half the price of most factory ammo. I just duplicate the original military round (110g FMJ, H110 - and half my brass is even LC military) - the 30 carbine does not offer as much scope for experimentation and customizing as many other calibers (at least for use in the M1).

You have everything you need to know....if you are not tied to getting one from a specific maker IBM or whatever then pick up the best deal you can find.

Prices are getting pretty lofty, I think I would be safe in saying if you can find one in good shape for under $1k you should pick it up. I really want an IBM (me being a computer guy) but the last one I saw was north of $2000 so I will pass and keep my old winchester.

In my opinion,the most collectable M1 Carbine is a Winchester with an original Winchester barrel and parts. Especially collectable are the older ones without the bayonet lug.

Rockola seems to demand the highest prices tho...I guess they made the fewest.

Inland Manufacturing was the most common and Irwin Pederson being the fewest.

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But for some reason, Rockola is the more attractive to many. Like me, they probably used to feed nickels into one to dance (6 for a quarter ).

I have 3: a QHMC, NPM and Inland. The QH is an old DCM gun, the NPM a Blue Sky shooter I picked up because I didn't like shooting dirty lead bullets (more to follow) in my neat and clean QH, and the Inland a CMP gun I bought a few years ago. The Inland is 2xx,xxx gun made in 1942, original barrel but a mixmaster as almost all are. I love them all - couldn't bear to part with one, and I shoot the dickens out of them. I bought a pile of pulled GI bullets, 8 lbs of WC820, several thousand rds of GI ammo from CMP which furnishes new once-fired brass for my reloading (along with a few thousand once-fired I bought ~30 yrs ago). [You can tell I am into these things... ] I cast an RCBS 120 gr RNGC that shoots like a charm, and confine them to the NPM as a matter of habit - not necessary as all of them will shoot them fine, just narrows the serious cleaning to it.

You can't go wrong with a good GI carbine, and they are out there. Don't know the nitty-gritty going prices, but I would expect you can find a shooter for $500-$700 range. Auction Arms, Gunbroker and others have them, and here are a couple (just remember that what someone wants for a gun is not necessarily what it will bring, or what it's worth). Find one and start having a literal blast...

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=287874571
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=286252098

So far all good advice. I would add avoid like the plague a Universal brand carbine. Inlands are the most numerous and are not as pricey as the S'G', Rockola and Winneys.

Go for USGI if possible. Look to pay between $600-$1000. Look at the South Korean replacement mags. if you can't find working USGI mags.

110 grain lead hollow points are excellent defensive rounds for the carbine.

Good hunting!!!

The Kahr is very well made and given the price of a good quality Mil-Surp today I would give it a lot of consideration. Of course if you can get a decent buy on an original that is in ok shape you can have it made very nice by the folks at Fulton Armory.

With Cor Bon DPX ammo the M1 Carbine excels at being the near perfect HD carbine.

I friend let me shoot his last year. A Universal. I was shocked at the plastic and overall cheapness of the thing. I'd bought two boxes of PPU ammo fo a nice rock and roll session, but after 3 rounds I just quit. What junk!

The only problem I see with the carbine is that they are collectable which makes carrying them kind of risky. I have an all original Oct 44 made Winchester. I'd be afraid to use it other than at the range in controlled conditions. I was tempted to take it on vacation one time as my truck gun but just couldn't bring myself to do it. I have a lot of other more expensive guns but it is the only one I would be heart sick over if something happened to it.

mac66 said:

The only problem I see with the carbine is that they are collectable which makes carrying them kind of risky. I have an all original Oct 44 made Winchester. I'd be afraid to use it other than at the range in controlled conditions. I was tempted to take it on vacation one time as my truck gun but just couldn't bring myself to do it. I have a lot of other more expensive guns but it is the only one I would be heart sick over if something happened to it.

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I agree with you...they are just so much fun, so handy, great size, great feel, light...I think out of all my guns it would be the last one to go if I had to sell.

blarby....using it a lot is not a problem, but you should look at this as a classic car, use the heck out of it, have fun with it, play with it....drive the wheels off of it.....but you are not going to leave it out in a hail storm.

For some reason...and I know this sounds silly, but this little rifle speaks to me more then any other rifle I own....everytime I go out to shoot it always sits in the case and seems to ask me....lets go kill some pop cans.....they are just so much fun.

Find a good, large gunshow, and be patient. I'm sure there will be a few fine, serviceable GI carbines floating around. I latched on to two over a 3 year period. One was a former DCM "club" issue from a club that was disbanded. That means that the club was given the carbines maybe 30-40 years ago for use by juvenile or junior members, the club disolved, and some former members responsible for the guns and club just "acquired" the guns that the Army and DCM had no provisions for the return of. I paid about $500, and it came with ammo and mags that I had to buy in additon to it (all for a modest sum). Both of mine (the other was a CMP sale gun from about 3 or 4 years ago) are fantastic guns, and the only issue I had was a weak extractor spring on one that had to be replaced. Good GI guns are out there.

I'm not worried about collectability. This piece will be used. A lot. In all conditions.

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I don't see a problem with that idea. But given that these guns ARE somewhat historical at least carry it around in a scabbard of some sort. You don't want to abuse it by letting it roll around on the floor of the truck without anything between it and the floor dirt.

As for conditions of use? It was used in the WAR! Treat it like the troops that trusted it. Carry and use it in rain, snow, sleet and heat. Just give it the attention it deserves in order to be trusted to operate correctly at the end of the day before you lay your head down if it saw use in harsh conditions. Many of the collectors may complain. But if it is a rough but reliable example gotten for a suitable price then this is simply a little more history for it to pass on.

Funny so many people like them today but then the only opinion I have of them is of my grandads who carried one in Europe and ditched it every chance he could for a Garand. According to him they were not very reliable in bad weather and not very accurate. He was issued the carbine due to space in the cabs of the supply trucks he drove in italy and Germany. He said he ditched more than one in favor of the Garand.