Anything fishy about this m1 carbine

[Awsomepossum]

Hello,
I am looking to buy one of my grail gun and was wondering if anything stuck out at any m1 carbine experts. Stock is Trimble Nursery, which is cool because they made baby furniture. One thing that pops out at me is the rear sight, looks like a flip sight, but should'nt be there? It is a mixmaster, but has rockola barrel and reciever. Thanks in advance.

 

[Slamfire]

A Rockola?!

You better get it because Rockola's are very rare.

As for the rear sight, my recollection on my non-Rockola's my rear sights hung over the rear of the receiver such that I could not easy see the manufacturer.

But, given that the carbine is a Rockola, who cares?

You can always buy another rear sight.

 

[Reloadron]

Rock Ola produced 228,500 which isn't many as was posted, making them sought after. Your serial number falls in the 4,532,100 to 4,632,099 block assigned to Rock Ola. On the barrel picture some Rock Ola barrels were dated (prior to June 43) and some not (post June 43). I see on the side of the barrel what looks to be importer markings? What is that small print?

If the price is right I would buy it. You aren't likely to find a minty collectable M1 carbine so how much of the rifle is correct is likely here nor there. If it looks good and the rifling is good I would buy it. You don't mention a price.

Ron

The stock has the later oval cut for the oiler (not the I cut). Those with a cartouche would have it just forward of the oiler cut. Your rear site looks to be the early L type (milled) which would explain why Rock Ola is plainly visible with the serial number. The later stamped adjustable rear sights covered the manufacturer name (I think and am not sure on that note).

 

[Jim Watson]

That IS the adjustable sight.
A picture on the carbine site shows the Rock-Ola trademark far enough back to be visible, unlike most of the other contractors.

Stock looks kind of shiny.

 

[VA27]

The serial # is correct for Rockola. They made 228,500 guns total.

Unless a gun is a vet bring back it's gonna be a mixmaster, cause nearly all were rearsenaled after the war. They took the guns apart, binned the parts that were in spec, refinished everything and just grabbed parts out of the bin to rebuild the guns. They also dumped the flip sight for a milled adjustable sight, which is what is shown in the pix. Later rebuilt guns got a stamped adjustable sight.

Rockola made their own stocks.

Some guys make a hobby of chasing parts and trying to return a gun to it's 'original as issued' condition. A harmless enough endeavor I suppose, unless they are trying to pass the gun off as an 'original' original, instead of what it is, a 'rebuilt' rebuild.

The gun looks good to me and if the price was right, I'd get it.

 

[Awsomepossum]

price is 850 with a bayonet and 250 rounds of ammo, I probaly will pick it up.

 

[GBExpat]

Anything fishy about this m1 carbine

Other than what looks like Lacquer/Polyurethane/ShinyHardshellCrap on the stock, it looks legit (and nice) to me.

 

[cfullgraf]

The bayonet lug also indicates a late war or post war rebuild.

Looks like a nice carbine. As said, the Rockola is one of the sought after carbines.

 

[big boom]

get it. Thats more than a fair price

 

[Reloadron]

price is 850 with a bayonet and 250 rounds of ammo, I probaly will pick it up.

With bayonet I would buy it now for that price. Still curious as to the small print on the barrel that looks about where an importer stamp would be. Not that it matters at all but if it is an import I would be curious as to who the importer was. Anyway, in a heartbeat I would buy it.

Ron

 

[rondog]

That's a high wood stock too! Buy it, that shiny finish can be removed.

 

[Awsomepossum]

Allright, I do believe the census is to get it, which I will. The wood is shiny which everyone said, the seller claimed up and down that there was no import mark on the barrel. Gonna have to tear it down and see, will pick it up if the importer is not blue sky

 

[Hacker15E]

I'd likely buy it at 850, depending on how the bore looked/gauged, how the rest of the parts looked. Tough to tell based on the photos.

 

[Hacker15E]

Gonna have to tear it down and see, will pick it up if the importer is not blue sky

If it were Blue Sky, you'd see it clear as day on the left side of the barrel.

If it is, I wouldn't sweat it -- I've owned several Blue Sky import carbines, and most of them were just fine outside of the park thickness/color and the billboard import mark.

If you know what you are looking for, Blue Sky imports can be a superb deal for a shooter (mostly because of how hard they are scoffed by collectors).

 

[rcmodel]

The rear sight is NOT a flip sight.

It is a later replacement adjustable sight.

The stock has been damaged beyond repair by the high-gloss finish + maybe sanding and grain filling.

You will never make it look GI again, if that's what your grail gun looks like in your head.

rc

 

[Awsomepossum]

how can I tell if the wood is a repro?

 

[GBExpat]

how can the wood is not a repro?

Pardon?

 

[Jim K]

The handguard is a 4-rivet, so not original. The op slide is not original. The Type 3 band and bayonet lug is not original. The stock has been (badly) refinished. The recoil shield looks like a replacement and, as others have noted, the rear sight is an upgrade, not original. I can't tell about the bolt, but if it is round it is not original.

It is a decent carbine, and about in the same combination of replacement and upgraded parts seen on almost all carbines. Those guns served from roughly 1941 to 1965, later in some units, so it was a long serving weapon. Replacement parts and upgrades are to be expected. The stock (spray polyurethane?) would have been better left without refinishing.

Jim

 

[hentown]

When my dad died in 1981, he left a mint-condition, folding-stock paratrooper M1 carbine. When my brother and I divided up the firearms, he wound up with the carbine. Could kick myself on that one, as my brother later sold all the firearms that he'd inherited for dimes-on-the-dollar, when he was in a financial bind. He was too embarrassed about his finances to tell me that he needed the money.

He probably sold the carbine for $100-$150. Also sold two pristine 70 Series Gold Cups and a Match Target Woodsman. Had no idea what any of those firearms were worth.

 

[armabill]

What are those markings of the left side of the barrel?

 

[303tom]

Looks good to me & thats NOT a flip sight................Had to go take a picture, this is the flip sight & yes it belongs there, this is a Winchester......They had fixed & adjustable rear sights on the M1 carbine.

 

[Reloadron]

As to the rear sight. Rock Ola was the fourth firm to commit to production of the M1 Carbine. When it comes to the rear sight (from the factory) as was the case with Underwood, most of the carbines left their birth place with the early non-adjustable rear sight which is the "L" type rear sight. Call it a flip sight or whatever but it was the "L" type rear sight. However, some of the later guns left the factory are believed to have used the adjustable rear sight. The exact time of the change is really unknown as they ran with the "L" type till depleted then went with the adjustable version.

The adjustable real sight that followed the "L" type came in two versions. There was a "Milled" adjustable and a "Stamped" adjustable version. The early adjustable version had a shorter base lengthwise. The latter stamped version extended back on the receiver covering the manufacturer stamp but not so far as to cover the serial number.

The initial pictures of the Rock Ola carbine posted clearly reflect the early milled adjustable rear sight of the three rear sight designs used. Thus the manufacturer's name is clearly visible as well as the serial number.

As to the sight being original? My guess is there is a good possibility the rifle was born with those rear sights. My reasoning is when these rifles were reworked all of the ones I have seen got the stamped version of the adjustable rear sight. This little rifle has a milled version. Just a guess on my part.

Ron

 

[Dr.Rob]

I'd buy it at that price. Then I'd strip the stock back to an oil finish.