Ran my cmp garand in tactical/practical match yesterday (video)

[1KPerDay]

Mod edit:
Old link removed.
Here's the new link.

Lots of fun. It ran pretty well all day. I'd never put more than a few clips at a time through it. I went through 200+ rounds yesterday. The only issues I had were:

1. I suck at rifle shooting, particularly on the 200+ yard targets; I think I need glasses
2. 3 times I had the bolt close on an empty chamber with rounds in the mag (before you Nazis pounce, the clip feeds the internal magazine). Short-stroking, perhaps? Ammo was HXP in Greek clips.
3. As the day got warmer I gave up my wicked-awesome tactical game bag and began carrying clips in my pockets (with the edge of the pocket splitting the stacked rounds in the clip, sort of "sprung" there) and once when I yanked up the clip to reload the assembly sort of disintegrated and I had to drop those rounds and grab another.
4. My nice new BLO finished birch stock now has quite a few "battle" marks.

Reloads were actually pretty quick (sometimes) and I felt like I wasn't losing TOO much time to reloading on some stages.

The power of the .30-06 M2 cartridge was obvious, compared to more modern rifles running 5.56 and "five seven." On one stage where we had to engage a couple of paper silhouettes at about 1 yard, the concussion completely blew the paper targets off their stapled wooden frames and broke the wood sticks. I can't imagine what it must have been like to use in up-close combat, without earplugs, with 50+ pounds of gear on your back. Those old-timers really were something.

 

[Clint C]

That's funny, everyone elses rifles are going plink, plink, plink, then here comes you BOOM, BOOM, BOOM! Great video, thanks for posting.

 

[Orlando]

Looks like fun.
Did you ever find out what is causing your rifle to short stroke?

 

[nathan]

Best is get a repro ammo belt rig for the M 1 Garand. They can be easy to grab and reload .

http://cgi.ebay.com/US-WW2-WWII-194...391?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aab3c920f

 

[taliv]

very cool!

 

[Walkalong]

Yes, very cool indeed. Pop, pop, pop, BOOM.

 

[content]

Hello friends and neighbors // I enjoyed watching, looks like you had a blast, good shooting too.

 

[Dr.Rob]

Looks like a fun day to me!

 

[1KPerDay]

Looks like fun.
Did you ever find out what is causing your rifle to short stroke?

No... it was clean and greased. I may have not held it tight enough against my shoulder or something. First time I've ever had that issue with any M1.

 

[Orlando]

A few things that "can" cause stroking :
dirty/not properly lubed
Loose or cracked gas screw
Undersized op rod piston
Oversized out of spec gas cylinder
Wolff op rod springs

 

[1KPerDay]

Do you happen to have the specs on piston diameter and gas cylinder bore diameter handy?

 

[Orlando]

Garand Gas Cylinder Diameter Specifications:

Maximun New (or NM) 0.5260"
Minimum New 0.5253"
No Go 0.5250"

Main Body 0.5280" +0.0020"
At Entry 0.5303" +0.0007"
Taper between the two 0.0080" per inch


Operating Rod Specifications

Piston Diameter: 0.5260" to 0.5253" (under .5250" calls for rejection)
Piston Thickness: 0.1900" to 0.1550"
Tab/Lug Height: 0.3200" to 0.3170" (under .3100" calls for rejection)
Tab/Lug Thickness: 0.1000" to 0.0950"
Tab/Lug Width: 0.2650" to 0.2350"

 

[Cosmoline]

Now THAT looks like fun! I had no idea they let you take old war horses into a dynamic match like that. Is this customary at all? Can you do it with local clubs?

 

[rehorne]

Cosmoline,
Some clubs have the Heavy Metal class. You must use a M-1, a 1911 and a pump shotgun. The ones we have here are a lot of fun. You can really tell the difference when the HM guys are up, not as fast but a lot louder...LOL

 

[1KPerDay]

Our local equivalent of "big bore" (he-man/heavy metal) class doesn't specify the rifle, but it must be .30 cal or larger. Pistol must be .44 cal or larger, and you must run a 12 gauge pump.

For this match they just had 3 rifle classes, Irons, optics, and open (open if you want to switch uppers for different stages, etc.). Or you could also run a .22 if you wanted.

I nearly took a 1903 but there was a maximum time limit on all stages and I probably would have exceeded it. LOL

 

[1KPerDay]

Thanks Orlando

 

[Justin]

Jeff, thanks for posting the video, looks like it was a good match, and it's always cool to see people running interesting rifles in matches.

Now THAT looks like fun! I had no idea they let you take old war horses into a dynamic match like that. Is this customary at all? Can you do it with local clubs?

Most local or club-level matches will let you run pretty much anything you like.

For example, even though our match is predominated with AR-pattern guns, we've had people bring other stuff, including Garands and an Enfield.

 

[zeos]

that was sweet, when me and my brother did one of those things in austin the whole time i was thinking it would be really neat to run it with a garand or some other vintage rifle.

 

[nathan]

Garand rules!

 

[jeepguy]

looks like fun & thanks for sharing. i will say that special grade grand looks great.

 

[HavelockLEO]

I ran one of my .308 Garands in a CQB match a few months ago and got the same results as far as peoples reactions to it going off, aint nothin like the thunder from John Garands masterpiece..........

 

[Ruger745]

Beautiful rifle, I thin this is the first time I've seen a rifle like yours actually being used in a somewhat tactical competition.

 

[WNTFW]

Nice! Follow up shots are a bit slower than the AR's and it shows up on the video. When you shot from the low portals I was thinking good thing those Garands don't recoil much. Looks like you did well. Your reloads seem pretty quick.

When I shot a Garand for the first there were 14 other on the firing line. I have never experienced that since.

 

[1KPerDay]

Yeah, on the ones where you can't get the stock square on your shoulder I had to remember not to put my thumb across the wrist of the stock or it busted me in the nose. Follow up shots were definitely slower than the ARs and Mini-14s and even the M1A I've run before. "double taps" were out of the question.

I would like to shoot a formal "garand" match but I'm sure I'd just embarrass myself. I need to go to an Appleseed meet and get trained up a bit first I think. My long range abilities are dismal.

 

[WNTFW]

1K,
I have shot out to 600 with open sights. I now practice at 14yds with a scaled down target and air rifle. Fundementals are the same. Elevation needs to be worked out, but come ups are quickly aquired. The wind, well that is another story for another day.
I have never attended an Appleseed. I am not against them. I just don't see what they offer that I have noT gotten at a Garand clinic. We even have new shooters receive a mini clinic before a match.
If you can shoot offhand (no sling), sitting and prone with a sling, you will do fine. The biggest problem I had was not being able to get into position and acheive NPA quickly. That comes with practice. Shot execution is the same at any range.
Having your sight adjustments work out is probably next hurdle. Wind is always a factor.
Realize the targets scale with range. 200yd is offhand. 300 sitting and 600 prone, unless it is a reduce coarse. FWIW reduced course seems harder that full distance.
If you can't make and Appleseed before a match go to the match anyway. Most of the guys there will get straight to helping you.
Position, Sight pic & trigger pull are what it takes at any range. I'm predict you will do quite well.