M1 carbine brands

[Fonzie2k]

I'm very interested in finding an M1 Carbine. I'm not really sure which brands are looking into, and would like to know which brand sells a quality budget minded M1 Carbine. I do not need one to be mil spec, I will not be upgrading it either. If possible I would like to keep the price under $500, however, I understand that may be unrealistic.

Thanks!

 

[Sam1911]

There's two things to consider here:

1) The U.S. military issued M1 Carbines made by a variety of companies -- Inland Manufacturing (a subsidiary of GM) made the largest batch, but Winchester, Saginaw Gear (also GM), National Postal Meter, Underwood Typewriter, Quality Hardware, IBM, Standard Products, and Rock-Ola Jukebox company all made several hundred thousand. They are all just fine guns and many are highly sought-after by collectors.

Considering that until recently the CMP was still selling surplus real M1 Carbines for a bit over $500, you can probably find one for that if you're patient and keep your eyes open for a few months.

2) There have been a few commercial gun makers who turned out lesser copies of the Carbine. Iver Johnson and Plainfield are brands you might see for cheap, and some say that they are not too bad. "Universal" was another maker and they probably should be avoided. These are not exact copies and aren't worth much at all.

Auto-Ordinance also now makes some very nice Carbine copies, but they are (justifiably, I guess) very expensive.

 

[HorseSoldier]

I'd look around for a USGI one, gun show prices can be all over -- I paid $400 for my '44 Inland, another guy at the same show was selling pretty much the same carbine (another Inland, nothing especially collectible about it) for $800.

 

[joed]

A few years ago I had the inclination to purchase one myself. I found prices around $600 on up. For that price I bought a used AR. They're neat guns but I fail to see why they are so expensive.

 

[Steve Marshall]

I bought an Inland last year for $375 at my favorite gunshop. The only bubba about it was the front sight ears had been milled off. Great fun and a fair to middling shooter. 10 shot groups at 100 are in the 5" range with iron sights and 60 year old uncorrected vision. Camp Perry- no, Camp fun-o-matic- yes.

 

[gun addict]

front ears of M1 carbine would be bought off Numirch for $15, they are VERY easy to replace, just drive a pin out and walla, thus making the $375 carbine a steal.

As to Joed, M1 carbines, USGI ones anyway were the War Babies our Soldier Sailor Airman and Marines carried in WWII all the way up to Vietnam. They are valuable historical relics as well as good range toy/defensive carbines

 

[FMJMIKE]

Look for a USGI Inland M1 Carbine. Inland produced 2,394,510 of them during WWII. The quality is good and better than any commercially made Carbine. Just make sure the barrel is not shot out. The CMP was selling rack grade ones for $419 and most of them were in really good shape. You see original CMP purchasers resell them on gun forums and Gunbroker. Good Luck............
My CMP Winchester................

 

[HOWARD J]

Here is my Iver Johnson M-i carbine--It is an almost identical to the military carbine--it even uses military parts.
Johnson is long out of business--it may be hard to find one for sale.
It is not a bad shooter--I don't push full loads on it very often. I redid this rifle with some new parts & made the stock look purdy.

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[Maverick223]

IMO there is only one way to go for a good M1 Carbine...a USGI model. My copy (a "National Postal Meter" actually made by Union Switch & Signal) has been flawless, and has tons of history to boot. That said, some of the others are alright (while others are awful and downright dangerous). The new AO/Kahr carbines are decent, but have had their share of problems. That said, they have excellent CS, so I wouldn't be afraid of one. The ones to avoid are the later model Universal Carbines with a stamped charging handle...they slightly altered the operating mechanism and deleted a safety feature inherent to other designs. Early Universal Carbines are alright as they were composed of mostly USGI surplus parts...but nothing beats the real thing.