Ammo for M1

[A_Navy]

Again, sorry for my ignorance in advance ... i used to be a small bore shooter.

I won an M1 at the All Navy Match in '04 and a few weeks later, was hit by a drunk driver, which put me in a wheelchair, enough about that.

It's a Intl. Harvester M1 and says .30 - does it mean .306 or .30-08?

Again, sorry for the silly question.

Thanks.

 

[ocabj]

Pull back the oprod so that it locks open. There will be an opening between the stock and the rear handguard where you can see the side of the barrel. There should be markings visible. What do the markings say?

All USGI Garands will say something to the nature of "CAL 30. M1" on the receiver heel. To the military, "CAL 30" or "30 CAL" means .30-06 (and .308 is referred to as 7.62mm or 7.62 NATO).

It sounds like this is a Navy trophy rifle. Thus, there is a possibility that it is chambered for 7.62/.308. The barrel markings should indicate if it is chambered for 7.62.

 

[MechAg94]

Stick a 30.06 cartridge in and see if it goes in all the way.

I would assume 30.06, but that may not be the best assumption.

 

[A_Navy]

Trophy Rifle

Yes, it is a SECNAV Trophy Rifle ... Haven't had a chance to look at the markings on the inside of the chamber. When I get a set of hands to help me, I'll take a look. Thanks for the info.

 

[ocabj]

It's definitely a nice piece to have in a collection if it's a Navy Trophy rifle. I wouldn't part with it.

http://www.scott-duff.com/M1Garand.htm

Scroll down to the bottom of the above link and it'll have a short section on Navy Garand variations.

There has also been lots of articles published in the Garand Collectors Association newsletter regarding the Navy trophy rifles. Unfortunately, they don't have an electronic archive of those articles.

 

[Yakko]

I believe all International Harvesters were made in 30.06, this is substantiated by the ".30".

If it was converted to .308/7.62 it would have a plastic block in the rear of the magazine to take up the space that would be freed up with the shorter rounds.

 

[ocabj]

I believe all International Harvesters were made in 30.06, this is substantiated by the ".30".

If it was converted to .308/7.62 it would have a plastic block in the rear of the magazine to take up the space that would be freed up with the shorter rounds.

All USGI Garands that left the Springfield Armory, Winchester, Harrington & Richardson, and International Harvester plants as .30-06 rifles.

As far as the plastic block, I cannot confirm if that is true for Navy Trophy rifles. I know some gunsmiths do this on custom guns, but Navy Trophy rifles were military rebuilds.

BTW A_Navy: Check the bottom of the grip of the rifle. Does it have a letter stamped there?

I'm at work right now, but I have the past several issue of the GCA Journal in my office. I'm looking at an article in the Fall 2005 issue regarding the SecNav Trophy Rifle Call 7.62MM MK2 Mod 1 GR "A".

According to the article, the grade of the rifle's accuracy should be stamped on the bottom of the pistol grip area, "7.62 MM" was stamped/etched onto the barrel (in the area I described in my original reply), among other markings that may be unique to Navy trophy rifles.

Do you still have any of the accompanying documents with this rifle? Such as a hang tag, weapon record book, a DD 1149 form, or packing list.