Desirability Question

[Colt Smith]

I have a friend who is selling off his late fathers guns. Word is that his father's guns were all very good condition and well cared for as he was a collector and gunsmith for a very long time( I guess that doesn't guarantee anything). I feel comfortable assessing the handguns myself but I'm not versed in the minutia of military long guns. In particular, I will be interested in the M1 Garands and M1 carbines that are available. There is a small handful of each model but I don't know which manufacturers made how many during which conflicts/wars. Can some of you who are immersed in this area give me a basic list of the more desirable makers and maybe some details for which to look. Are there any to stay away from, condition not withstanding?

 

[hiawatha]

For M1 Garands, Springfield Armory is the only manufacturer who made them the whole time they were in production. Winchester made them during WWII, but not later. Harrington & Richardson and International Harvester made them during the Korean War (or whatever you want to call that activity), but not earlier. No "real" M1 Garands were made after 1957. There are some with commercial receivers, especially National Ordnance. I had one of those. It was beautiful but I could never get it to cycle properly. I would avoid Garands with commercial receivers. If your friend has any M1 Garands with all the parts matching (barrel, receiver, trigger group, stock mainly), grab one! That condition is becoming less common. If he has one marked as a National Match rifle, that's worth considerably more than a standard Garand. Collectors like M1s that are not Springfields, because there are fewer of the others. If you're a shooter more than a collector, condition should be the determining factor. Pick one that looks like it's in good shape and go with it!

As for M1 carbines, I yield to others. I don't know as much about those as I do about Garands.

 

[ball3006]

Go to the CMP web site and see what M1 Garands are going for. They are sold out of M1 carbines but they were selling in the 5-600 buck range while they had them. Unless you are a collector, manufacturer isn't a big deal. They all are pretty much the same and all the parts interchange. If the rifles are all matching that is a big premium....chris3

 

[Colt Smith]

Thanks.

Does anyone have information on the Carbines?