Convert M1 Garand to .308

[kahr404life]

I have a H&R (1950's vintage) M1 Garand in 30/06. The bore is ruff but the rest of the weapon is in good shape. I would like to replace the barrel in .308. I would like to know how well the .308 works in the Garand platform and who does the conversion.

 

[DMK]

It works beautifully! I had a CMP Garand rebuilt and converted to 7.62x51 by Dean's Gun Restorations. He's not cheap, but boy, he does beautiful work. Mine is not only gorgous, and operates perfectly but it's a real tack driver. I've forgotten about what I paid and I'm just very glad I did it. Good 30-06 is getting hard to find and is expensive, but .308/7.62x51 is everywhere and there's a lot of good ammo to choose from.

www.dgrguns.com

 

[Dienekes]

All of my M1s are .30-06 but if I pick up another CMP rifle some time (getting hard to justify, though) I would love to build up a .308. Have heard nothing but good about them.

.30-06 brass is getting up in price whereas 7.62 is still quite reasonable.

I think if I was just running one M1 and it was barrel replacement time I would make it a .308.

 

[MechAg94]

Is there someone specific who does accurate conversions without worrying about looks? A good looking rifle is fine, but I am too cheap to spend too much money on polishing.
I guess if I am just looking at a straight conversion, there are likely decent people around Houston that can do it. Might be a good reason to buy a rack grade.

 

[DMK]

MechAg94, try Champions Choice. They seem to have a pretty good deal.

http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=159531&highlight=garand+champions

http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=117003&highlight=garand+champions

 

[Swampy]

Guys,

Tim Strait, aka "Warbird" does primo work on M1's, M14's, and Mausers for very reasonable prices. Look him up on the M1 or M14 forums over at American Backyard .com www.ambackforum.com/

Tim has a nice website but I can't find the link at the moment.

Dean Dilabaugh of Deans Gun Restorations also has a stellar rep for M1 work, though his prices are a bit on the high side. Go to: www.dgrguns.com

Both of these guys do M1 barrel jobs by the basket load......

Best to all,
Swampy

Garands forever

 

[chuckles]

As Swampy sez, those are good ones. And you will love a Garand in .308. Great shooter and perfect function.

 

[MAUSER88]

Another vote for Dean's. He put a .308 Barnett match barrel in my CMP M1. Works and looks great!!!! Well worth the money.

 

[CBX]

do regular 30-06 stripers clips work with the .308 ammo?

 

[Swampy]

CBX asked,

do regular 30-06 stripers clips work with the .308 ammo?

The M1 rifle does not use stripper clips. The M1 rifle uses a staggerd row en-bloc clip, which is inserted into the magazine of the rifle and stays there until empty. The M1 en-bloc clip works fine with both 30-06 and 7.62 Nato ammo.

Stripper clips are used to "strip" ammo into a magazine, ala the '03 Springfield, '98 Mausers, SKS, Enfield, etc.... and to load detachable magazines such as the M16-AR15, M14-M1A, .30 carbine, etc....

best,
Swampy

Garands forever

 

[MechAg94]

http://www.warbirdscustomguns.com/
I dug this up on that other site swampy.

 

[Ian]

One thing to be aware of with a .308 M1 is that unless you have a spacer block installed (which I assume is standard practice, but something to check on anyway), a clip of .30-06 will fit nicely into the magazine, and the bolt will attempt to chamber the first round. The spacer simply fills up the extra space at the front of the magazine area that the .308 doesn't need.

FWIW, I love my .308 M1.