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milsurp rifles

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chuwee81

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Apr 20, 2008
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Alright folks, somehow God smiled at me and decided to get the boss man to give me a raise :D. I was skipped off a raise because one of his business properties closed down last year. But since i'm loyal and stayed on, i'm getting a raise effective in June. Net raise probably not too much but let's say it'll be a little less than 5k/ year. Also he said if my performance is going up, then he'll give me another raise at the end of the year.

SOooooo this brings me/ us into the question:
I have been thinking about getting a milsurp rifle (want more than one - but one will do for now because I'm married and mortgage is not cheap).
So to ease her off and to satisfy an evergrowing bug, i;d like to get myself a cheap milsurp rifle (500-600 max). I have been looking at several options but i'd like your superior knowlegde on ammo availability and price. It's no good to find a good deal on a rifle but can't find or can't afford the ammo to shoot it with. So these 2 factors will greatly infulenced the direction i'm taking. Okay so here goes :

1. M1 Garand: 30.06. I think ammo is still available, but never really check how much it is. I'd REALLY love to own a piece of this great American history.

2. SKS: prices have gone up at gunshows (600-700). Might as well spend it to get an American icon like the garand IF i were to spend that much).

3. 1903 Springfield: .30 cal i think. It's a boltie, but still has the classic look.

4. Hakim 8mm: kinda like how it looks.

5. Jungman 6.5 swede (ag 42?): looks pretty neat as well.


SO aside from the ammo availability and price as well as the price of the rifle itself, can you guys shed light on how much these rifles cost ? If you have other alternatives for me to look at, please let me know. Thanks.

p.s: I am really leaning towards the Garand.
 
You seem to be gravitating to the semi-autos. I like my SKS, no doubt, but some of the nicest ones out there are Moisin/Nagant bolt guns. Yes I know, not so very cool, perhaps, as the ones you mentioned, but I have found that the 7.62x54R Russian ammo (very similar to a .30-06) is very cheap right now. The Moisins come in a full sized and a carbine version. Both are known to be pretty good rifles, and pretty accurate.

LD
 
I can highly recommend the M1 – just got back from the range with the boys and we had a great time. There are adjustable gas plugs available to allow the use of commercial .30-06 and some commercial ammo is made to accommodate the M1 system. So ammo availability shouldn’t be a problem – price notwithstanding.

The SKS should be next on the list, a Russian preferably – accurate and reliable these guns are also a joy to use.
 
Hakim's are not the best choice for a starter milsurp. They are known to have issues occasionally.
The Swede Ljungman is what the Hakim is based on, but is a much better made rifle than the Hakim, as a rule. They can be expensive to buy and parts are a little tough to come by.

Of the one's that were mentioned, I would say the Garand then the 1903.

NCsmitty
 
CMP-
http://www.odcmp.com/

192 rounds HXP M2 Ball on clips (Greek military surplus...excellent ammo)...$75.

Field Grade Garands...$495
Service Grade Garands...$595

With the money you saved, you can then get an '03 and shoot the same ammo.

You can't go wrong but you'll have to be patient. :)

Tinpig
 
Don't forget about the Model of 1917 ( aka. Enfield, or P17).
I've got one by Winchester that'll shoot close to 1 moa. I'm not sure how it does it, it's such a god-awful ugly thing.
The metal is pitted here and there, and it looks like somebody carved
its sporter stock with an ax.
My brother gave it to me and its been worth every penny. :)

A plus is being able to shoot _any_ 30-06 ammo you happen to find in it, unlike the Garand as jdc1244 mentioned.

All that being said, the next time I run across a Garand at a good price
I'm going to buy it. I've been wanting one for a long time.
 
Ishapore enfields in .308 are sweet for less than $250! They are super rugged, VERY accurate and the ammo is still reasonably priced (~$.40/round for brown bear) to ~$.60/round for radway surplus ammo.
 
You might also want to look around for the M1 Carbine. It was after all the most used firearm by US forces in WW2.
 
If you want a sks that price seems fair I could let mine go for $699:evil::D

Go with the M1 its the coolest mil surp rifle ever imo. I wish I had one of my own.
 
chuwee81,

Get thee to an M1 Garand, friend.

CMP standards are easy to meet, and the price they sell these historical rifles simply can't be beat. One day they will be sold out and then we'll listen to those that hesitated.

Do a search to see the advice on Service versus Rack grades. My own preference is for Service.

The Greek ammo is superb.

Tomorrow's Memorial Day. I am going to the range with my Garand and a hundred rounds of ammo. I'll remember those that carried this rifle, or perhaps its brother, into harm's way.

Best of luck,
 
Definately check out the CMP
http://www.thecmp.org/

http://www.thecmp.org/m1garand.htm

Field Grade Garands are a good deal at $495, but you should probably stretch a bit and get a Service Grade at $595. Stock up on the ammo, too:

http://www.thecmp.org/ammosales.htm

You might as well get a few carbines, while you're at it:

http://www.thecmp.org/m1carbine.htm

Don't be put off by the qualifications: it's really easy to get rifles from the CMP.

http://www.thecmp.org/eligibility.htm

To quote myself from another post:


Basically, they want to know that you're an adult citizen. They want you to belong to some sort of gun related organization , and they want some suggestion that you've actually fired a gun before. You DON'T have to shoot in a competition anymore. You don't have to be former military.

> For the "Membership in CMP Affiliated Organization" you can join the Garand Collectors Association :
http://www.thegca.org/

Tip:

on the membership form, http://www.thegca.org/images/GCAMemApp.pdf.pdf check off the box that says "I WOULD like my GCA membership confirmation released to the Civilian Marksmanship Program.Initial here please: __________."

Then on the CMP order form, when they ask for proof of membership, just write "GCA: check database" and the CMP can confirm it themselves.

For the "Firearms Related Activity:", if nothing else, you can do what I did. Print out this form: http://www.odcmp.com/forms/marksmanship.pdf and get someone to sign off on it. I put the form on a clip board, along with a pen, and asked the Range Officer at Marriottsville to watch me shoot, and check me off, which he did. Of course, if you're former military, have a C&R license, or shoot in competition, then you're golden. Point is, they make it easy these days. Just look over their list.

Now, print out these four pages of forms:
http://www.thecmp.org/pdfs/OrderFormJan2009.pdf

They want you to include all four pages with your order. Page four is a very convenient checklist that makes the whole thing less confusing.
Page two has to be notarized. Any decent bank will do it for free, if you ask nicely. (BB&T got snooty, and wouldn't do it, although I have 3 accounts there. I went to Susquehanna, where I have no account, and the Nice Lady was happy to notarize it for me, no charge.)

http://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=17150
http://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?p=260141#post260141
Click to expand...
 
Dude....go with the Garand...they are right in your price range and you can also get an adjustable gas plug to shoot commercial 30-06 while you are waiting for your shipment of Greek HXP ammo. Also...it's a Garand. Really nothing more to say.
 
M1 Garand or M1 Carbine. Both still use ammo that is made or at least findable today, and they are quite affordable. just gotta check the pressure on commercial 30.06, though. Some of it will work just fine, but some of it operates at pressures that can be very, veeerrrry catastrophic to the gas system.
 
For a semi-auto rifle that easy to shoot and maintain plus parts are abundant for $600 from the CMP for a SG that has a better bore/barrel and less general wear than a FG you can't go wrong. But you better hurry because they're going like hot cakes.

You need paperwork such as live fire certification,birth certificate,notarized background and club membership such as the NRA,GOA and most state rifle assocotaion will do also. If your X military or LEO that will satisfy the live fire certification also.

When the CMP runs out the garands will JUMP in price.

Marksmanship form
http://www.odcmp.com/Forms/marksmanship.pdf
Other requirements
http://www.thecmp.org/eligibility.htm
 
I have an M1 garand, an sks, an l1a1,hakim,and svt40, and an ssg97(romak3)
The Garand($500 at time of purchase) is the Cadillac no doubt about it, and the CMP is a great place to get it and the ammo.
The L1A1($800) uses 308, both are not cheap.
The hakim($400), shoot good and the blast from the 8mm Mauser is a sight, I gave 400 for it 4 years ago and the ammo is getting scarce. the puff of exhaust gas in the face as you shoot the hakim can mess with a new shooter, always wear eye protection.
The romak3($795) and the svt 40($400) use 7.62x54r I like both rifles the romak3 is an over grown AK, and the svt 40 is like an over grown sks with weaker gas piston parts. But the ammo is powerful and also cheap. I just bought 440 rounds of 148 grain for 89.00 + shipping.
The sks($200 at time of purchase), mine is a Chinese, with a screw in barrel. Good gun, it always works, the ammo is getting pricier.
I also have mausers 8mm, mosin nagant, long rifle and carbine.
The Mausers are good rifles, well made, shoot great, the cost of ammo is getting high.
The nagant are strong rifles, shoot good, only hold 5 rounds, 5th one will chamber on closing the bolt. They are the ugly one at the dance, But she will dance as long as you can pull the bolt, and the 7.62x54r round has been around since the 1800s and is still being used today.
I have 148 grain light ball and 178 grain heavy ball.
A 178 grain heavy ball from a nagant carbine, the fire ball from the barrel is like a howitzer going off.
I hope this helps.
 
Get a Service Grade Garand from the CMP for $595. I got one and it's almost like a new rifle except for a few little dings in the wood. The bore and all metal is perfect and it shoots like a dream.

I too am taking mine to the range for Memorial Day along with a 1911.

I ordered a Service Grade M1 Carbine to go with it. I am still waiting for that one but that's ok. I know CMP will do me right.
 
One thing I will tell you is to take a look at a Swiss K-31. Mine is by far the most accurate mil-surp in my arsenal. I like all my other rifles, but this gun is just a well made jem. The best 190 bucks I ever spent on a surplus. The only negative is ammo availability. The surplus GP-11 is getting hard to find.Prvi and hornaday are making factory reloadable ammo, so if you reload that is the way to go.
 
why not a del-ton kit?
Click to expand...

um cause "Milsurp" means military surplus, as in that rifle was commissioned by or has has served in a military. while i love my Delton rifle, its NOT milsurp. and theres nothing like a fine K31, or an arsenal of Mosins
 
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