Two M1 Carbine Questions

[Norton]

I received my CMP update today and saw that they are now offering some M1 Carbine stripped receivers for sale.

www.odcmp.com/rifles/carbine.htm

Two questions:

1) From a functional standpoint, are there any substantial differences in the quality of the different receivers? There are wide ranges of prices but I'm unclear as to whether this related to quality or quantity/collectibility.


2) If I bought one of the receivers, what would be a good source for being able to purchase a complete kit to build up the carbine? Furthermore, is this a gun that is "buildable" by a DIY'er?


Ok.....technically that was three questions

 

[DMiculek]

Authentic USGI carbine parts are climbing quickly in price. Just do a search on e-pay and see for yourself. And some shady s.o.b.s are passing off cheap repro parts as USGI.

For the price of all your parts, (unless of course you have your own stash) you could buy a really nice carbine from a reputable dealer.

I recently bought two complete carbines, an Inland ($400) and an import marked Underwood w/B code (Singer) receiver ($300).

From a functional stand point all USGI receivers are made from forgings. All USGI parts interchange. Some makers are more desireable from a collectors standpoint.

 

[dfariswheel]

"is this a gun that is "buildable" by a DIY'er?"

Depends on whether you're willing to invest in some tooling, and learn how to use it.

In general, the cost of the tooling and gages is too much for a one time job.

As a good investment, if you're going to buy a Carbine, is to buy a copy of Jerry Kuhnhausen's book "The U.S. .30 Caliber Gas-Operated Carbines: A Shop Manual".

This is the finest gunsmith's manual on the Carbines ever written. It covers EVERYTHING about the Carbine, from full disassembly, to fitting new parts, to full gunsmithing of them.

Even if you don't plan on building one, this is a great information source on the Carbine. Even if you don't plan on doing more than field strip, it's well worth the $30.00 just to know when somethings wrong with a Carbine.

 

[Norton]

In general, the cost of the tooling and gages is too much for a one time job.

This was my major concern....thanks for the confirmation.

Even if you don't plan on building one, this is a great information source on the Carbine. Even if you don't plan on doing more than field strip, it's well worth the $30.00 just to know when somethings wrong with a Carbine.

I love these shop manuals.....I'd definitely get one if I buy a carbine.


Edited to add: That was my 2000th post!