My Dad wouldn't listen me. I feel terrible for him.

[LynnMassGuy]

My Dad bought a Garand. A pretty nice one. He took it down cleaned it and said the barrel looked good. I warned him about corrosive ammo. Over and over I warned him about corrosive ammo. Over and over. I told him how to clean up after using corrosive ammo. I shoot a ton of corrosive ammo. He'd been using surplus ammo for a year. Lately the rifle has been shooting 7-8 inch groups a 50 yards. ( I shoot 2-4 inch groups a 100 yards with my Enfield No.1 so it is not my marksmanship.) My Dad's uncle who is like 80-something years old (don't get me wrong, a very smart guy) and actually has a civil war museum in PA told my father he doesn't to worry about corrosive ammo. My Dad hasn't cleaned his barrel in a year because he really hasn't put that many rounds through it.
Tonight when I went by the house he told me to take the Garand and bring it to the range with me and see if I could figure out why it was shooting around corners. First thing I did when I got home was tear it apart. I took me an hour and a half to get a clean patch out of the barrel and it still didn't look very health to me when I put a light in the receiver end and looked sown the muzzle. Not bright and shiny like all my rifles. Then I looked at the receiver end with a flashlight and got a knot in my stomach. The barrel at the muzzle end is all pitted. Then I looked at the end of the operating rod. Rust. Ugh. Crap. Man.
My Dad really digs that rifle. I WILL NOT take pleasure in telling him, "I told you so." I feel sad for him. I'm sad. I know he thought his uncle wouldn't steer him wrong, I just wish he would have listened to me.
Anyway, anyone know what is involved in putting a new barrel on one of these. Maybe I'll fix it for him for Christmas.

 

[RW_Reagan]

re-barreling a Garand isn't too much of a big deal, but it will be a bit more pricey than usual. Good place to check for barrels/parts would be the following:

http://www.m1garand.com/
http://www.fulton-armory.com/
http://www.garandguy.com/index.html

and of course for a job like this you MUST send it to the Zen Master:
http://www.dgrguns.com/

A good place for Garand info is the jouster forum here:
http://www.jouster.com/index.html
A lot of experience on that board, good place for info.

Hope this helps

 

[jeff-10]

My dad is the same way. He doesn't believe in corrosive ammo. He started his shooting years as a milsurp collector as a teenager in the 50's and he said he has never seen corrosive ammo. He always finds it funny when I clean my mauser with windex or water patches before I use CLP.

 

[mustanger98]

Funny thing about this deal about corrosive ammo and parents- my Daddy grew up with a No1 Mklll Lee Enfield with a less than pristine bore that somehow manages to be accurate. He said when he was a kid he shot 500rds of some surplus junk that was probably corrosive through it- it was loaded with that spagetti-looking stuff and that's probably all that had been shot through it when they got it. When I got into milsurps, he wasn't big on the thought of me shooting corrosive in my Mausers, but I found out about water patches and amonia and all- I run an amonia/water patch through the bore and wash off the bolt face and we haven't seen any problem. I won't run corrosive in my Garand though because it'll have to be taken down further to clean the gas system every time.

The Garand get LC69, UMC yellow box, and handloads. TE/MW are 2 on a SA 1-51 barrel (reciever dates to 12-43).

Oh, on rebarreling, if you have the barrel vise, reciever wrench, and headspace guages, it shouldn't be too big a deal. Midway usually have Wilson barrels in '06 and .308 for a seemingly reasonable price.

 

[Devonai]

I used Fulton Armory when I needed to replace my Garand's barrel. It cost $299 plus shipping and the turn-around time was 4.5 months. Customer service was good, and the guy who actually does the work will call you to let you know where you stand.

 

[Hoploholic]

Corrosive ammo is not really corrosive per se. Using such ammo will not fill your weapon with acidic crystals and start pitting your barrel immediately. What it will leave are salts that are magnets for ambient moisture. If you shoot corrosive ammo and clean moderately after shooting there should be no problem. It sure is amazing what can happen though if you don't do your duty. I used to be deathly afraid of the mil-surp until I started shooting black powder. Regular cleaning after shooting the stinky stuff settled my nerves.

 

[First Person Shooter]

I had a very nice Egyptian Hakim that was ruined by corrosive ammo. I told my brother if he wanted to shoot it( or any of my rifles) that all he had to do was clean them. When I got back from Germany from the Army, the bore was done for.

 

[ALS]

I feel for you and your dad. I was about 20 and at the range and saw an old guy with his cleaning kit doing his rifles at the range. I ask why he just didn't wait to do it a home like I did. He asked how many times have you just put the gun away until the next time you shot it. I thought about it and realized what he was trying to tell me. So from that point on I always pack a cleaning kit and clean at the range after I'm done shooting. It is nice to go home and pop open the safe and put the guns away and not have to worry about cleaning them later. BTW a warm barrel is easier to clean than a cold one.

 

[Dave P]

It cost $299 plus shipping and the turn-around time was 4.5 months.

That is an awfully long time for a quick barrel job! Keep looking for a faster 'smith!

DNP