M1 Garand Megathread

Right side top round loading, as taught to me by the gurus at Old Colony. I think most old Marines who know Garands will do this.

Oddly, as far as I can remember, every clip of M2 I've ever bought that came fully loaded in en Bloc clips... came loaded right-side top round...
~Enbloc
 
He missed the one for you righties, blocking the op rod with the heal of your hand while loading clip.
If your going to get M1 thumb/finger its more like NOT going to happen while loading.
It happens when the bolt is not in the locked back position and you push the follower down.
Absolutely. Do lefties do it the same way, but mirror-imaged? I've never watched a lefty load an M1...
 
Absolutely. Do lefties do it the same way, but mirror-imaged? I've never watched a lefty load an M1...
No we just cram the clip in , does not matter top round on left or right,

im not even sure if the round to right is s actual design feature or just how they come off the loading machine.
My recent cmp service grade had some loading issues. Loading the clips with the top round on the left loaded better than on the right.
 
No we just cram the clip in , does not matter top round on left or right,

im not even sure if the round to right is s actual design feature or just how they come off the loading machine.
My recent cmp service grade had some loading issues. Loading the clips with the top round on the left loaded better than on the right.
No, I meant: Do you block the op-rod charging handle with your palm while supporting the rifle with your weak hand?
 
It is a good video, but of all the tips, I only use the clips-on-sling and right side top round loading.

Never have left a 7 round-loaded/empty chamber M1 around. Not sure I would...

Might be useful in a non-wartime Sentry roll where the post required being lethally armed but not locked & loaded.

Not sure it would be useful in a combat theater. (for that period, at least)

I have used the clip latch release, but rarely as I do not compete with it. Those here who do , may offer more info on that...

Putting off the discussion about the "why's" or "why-nots" of storing a firearm in a loaded condition for a bit, I found that procedure interesting. If you are in a combat zone you most certainly would want as many rounds in the firearm as you can get. But this is simply another tool in the toolbox which might be useful in less stressful situations. Such as a rifle you keep over your front door to be able to grab as you go out to investigate something happening outside. Maybe, maybe not.

He missed the one for you righties, blocking the op rod with the heal of your hand while loading clip.
If your going to get M1 thumb/finger its more like NOT going to happen while loading.
It happens when the bolt is not in the locked back position and you push the follower down.

Most likely he left that one out because it is covered in so many other videos and/or discussions. He seems to be comfortable with his method of loading his M1. I will continue to use the edge of my right hand to keep the bolt from closing on my finger(s).
 
Putting off the discussion about the "why's" or "why-nots" of storing a firearm in a loaded condition for a bit, I found that procedure interesting. If you are in a combat zone you most certainly would want as many rounds in the firearm as you can get. But this is simply another tool in the toolbox which might be useful in less stressful situations. Such as a rifle you keep over your front door to be able to grab as you go out to investigate something happening outside. Maybe, maybe not.



Most likely he left that one out because it is covered in so many other videos and/or discussions. He seems to be comfortable with his method of loading his M1. I will continue to use the edge of my right hand to keep the bolt from closing on my finger(s).
No, it's OK- that's overkill and you can load any way you want. LOL if anyone says that, tell them to F-O. Maybe smile when you say it, but say it. I've had my Garands eat my thumb twice- both when being complacent and not using proper form.

Worth mentioning again is to keep one's thumb away from the path of the op rod when shooting offhand. Splattered the end of my thumb like a tomato and split the thumbnail in half lengthwise.
 
No, I meant: Do you block the op-rod charging handle with your palm while supporting the rifle with your weak hand?
No support hand remains in position
Load with left hand.
Cram it in let it fly…..
Not impossible but its hard to get M1 thumb loading a rifle. Its when you fiddle or dilly dally it happens. Or a malfunctioning rifle, loading less than 8 rounds and such
I thought I had my own video
This guy even has the clip loaded backwards🙀
I do it much like this but with left hand.
If my bolt does not close on its own then I use my left hand to give the op rod hook a karate chop !

View: https://youtu.be/iFtouuMyNSo
 
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Needs lobs of grease, yeah more grease

I thought that the bolt going forward was making something of a "grinding" noise.

Last week when my son and I took his Garand to the range we had a similar problem with premature clip ejection. I have a thread on here somewhere where I discussed the problem.
 
I thought that the bolt going forward was making something of a "grinding" noise.

Last week when my son and I took his Garand to the range we had a similar problem with premature clip ejection. I have a thread on here somewhere where I discussed the problem.
Almost always a worn clip latch/spring

“grease” is seldom the issue.
the M1 will run dry and from everything I have been told/read
Oil is sufficient except in extreme wet conditions….like 100% and down pours like rhe south pacific?
 
Needs lobs of grease, yeah more grease
But only if Lubriplate and only 2 of the vintage batches are the good ones. You have to do tons of research and get a chemical analysis verification from Springfield Armory to find out which ones because nobody in the forums is talking. Hundreds of safe queen owners can't be wrong. [rofl] [rofl] [rofl]

Joking aside, NES is actually a pretty good forum for straightforward advice on all things Garand. You'll get advice from people who actually shoot the tar out of these things.

If anyone didn't catch on, it's not grease- clip latch, crappy enblocs, and/or clip latch spring.
 
But only if Lubriplate and only 2 of the vintage batches are the good ones. You have to do tons of research and get a chemical analysis verification from Springfield Armory to find out which ones because nobody in the forums is talking. Hundreds of safe queen owners can't be wrong. [rofl] [rofl] [rofl]

Joking aside, NES is actually a pretty good forum for straightforward advice on all things Garand. You'll get advice from people who actually shoot the tar out of these things.

If anyone didn't catch on, it's not grease- clip latch, crappy enblocs, and/or clip latch spring.
Im not good at taking pictures,
You should have seen the amount of white lube my friend had smothered on his recent arrival…. Told him to wipe it off and put it on his truck door hinges that you can hear creaking a mile away.
 
Im not good at taking pictures,
You should have seen the amount of white lube my friend had smothered on his recent arrival…. Told him to wipe it off and put it on his truck door hinges that you can hear creaking a mile away.
Some people throw brass at other competitors, others slob on the lube so on first shot it sprays other competitors. [devil]
 
“grease” is seldom the issue.
the M1 will run dry and from everything I have been told/read
Oil is sufficient except in extreme wet conditions….like 100% and down pours like rhe south pacific?

You know, you can also run your car without lubrication. Not that anyone recommends it, but you can do it. For a little while.

I've done a lot of reading and study on firearms and lubrication and it's led me to to a few conclusions.

First, no one of any repute (that I have seen) will recommend running ANY semi-automatic firearm without proper lubrication. Almost all (I'm allowing room for a few heretics here) present the same advice on what to lubricate and what to oil. You might want to review the following on this.

This guy delves into the science of lubricants:


And from some M1 fans, backed up by the military:


In short, if there is metal-on-metal contact and movement, lubricate it with grease.

Second, if you absolutely have no grease, oil will work for a short period of time. Just be aware of how quickly it may evaporate/be used up.

Thirdly, over-lubrication is a self limiting problem. Unless you apply an absurd amount which gets in the way of proper operation, like maybe an inch-thick coating on all moving parts, the firearm will work and throw off the excess amount. I wish that I could find the YouTube video where two guys LITERALLY dunked a semi-automatic pistol in oil and then attempted to fire. They got covered with the oil thrown off but the gun fired.

Thirdly, if I ever loaned you one of my M1s and you attempted to shoot it without proper lubrication (probably an impossibility since before I would give it to you it would already be cleaned and lubricated) I would box your ears and and go all Roman Catholic nun on your knuckles for that sin (that of negligent operation of John Garand's fantastic invention).

BTW, none of this is presented as THE reason for the problems experienced in the video a few posts up. It might be a problem with the shooter's care of his rifle, but that's all. The reason I put this at the very end was to see who reads all the post and who doesn't.
 
You know, you can also run your car without lubrication. Not that anyone recommends it, but you can do it. For a little while.

I've done a lot of reading and study on firearms and lubrication and it's led me to to a few conclusions.

First, no one of any repute (that I have seen) will recommend running ANY semi-automatic firearm without proper lubrication. Almost all (I'm allowing room for a few heretics here) present the same advice on what to lubricate and what to oil. You might want to review the following on this.

This guy delves into the science of lubricants:


And from some M1 fans, backed up by the military:


In short, if there is metal-on-metal contact and movement, lubricate it with grease.

Second, if you absolutely have no grease, oil will work for a short period of time. Just be aware of how quickly it may evaporate/be used up.

Thirdly, over-lubrication is a self limiting problem. Unless you apply an absurd amount which gets in the way of proper operation, like maybe an inch-thick coating on all moving parts, the firearm will work and throw off the excess amount. I wish that I could find the YouTube video where two guys LITERALLY dunked a semi-automatic pistol in oil and then attempted to fire. They got covered with the oil thrown off but the gun fired.

Thirdly, if I ever loaned you one of my M1s and you attempted to shoot it without proper lubrication (probably an impossibility since before I would give it to you it would already be cleaned and lubricated) I would box your ears and and go all Roman Catholic nun on your knuckles for that sin (that of negligent operation of John Garand's fantastic invention).

BTW, none of this is presented as THE reason for the problems experienced in the video a few posts up. It might be a problem with the shooter's care of his rifle, but that's all. The reason I put this at the very end was to see who reads all the post and who doesn't.
Car? Not at all the same thing. No, it's not recommended to run a Garand without lube but running it a few times won't hurt it and it will function 100%. Read up on Korean winter use of the Garand. I've also read that they were run dry in North Africa during WWII. Also there is more definitive mil guidelines for operating the M14 in cold temps. It's basically the same system as a M1. For the average occasional range rat, running a Garand dry will probably take 10 lifetimes to wear it out.

Traditionalists recommend Lubriplate, but at extreme low temps it will gum up. I prefer Mobil 1 grease due to its stability at both the highest and the lowest temperatures conceivable for firing the M1. I've let my M1 get down to the ambient -7 degrees F and it fired just fine with Mobil 1. Same day testing Rem Oil on my AR resulted in the Rem Oil turning to gummy chunks.

Now back to your car engine analogy: The power for the 'engine' of the M1 is the op rod piston in the gas cylinder. This system by design runs dry for many thousands of cycles. I don't think anyone knows the exact cycle life and the few that have shown excessive wear are suspected to have had problems with dirt and dust.

That said, there's no excuse to run a M1 that hasn't been properly cleaned and lubed.
 
Some people throw brass at other competitors, others slob on the lube so on first shot it sprays other competitors. [devil]
You know, you can also run your car without lubrication. Not that anyone recommends it, but you can do it. For a little while.

I've done a lot of reading and study on firearms and lubrication and it's led me to to a few conclusions.

First, no one of any repute (that I have seen) will recommend running ANY semi-automatic firearm without proper lubrication. Almost all (I'm allowing room for a few heretics here) present the same advice on what to lubricate and what to oil. You might want to review the following on this.

This guy delves into the science of lubricants:


And from some M1 fans, backed up by the military:


In short, if there is metal-on-metal contact and movement, lubricate it with grease.

Second, if you absolutely have no grease, oil will work for a short period of time. Just be aware of how quickly it may evaporate/be used up.

Thirdly, over-lubrication is a self limiting problem. Unless you apply an absurd amount which gets in the way of proper operation, like maybe an inch-thick coating on all moving parts, the firearm will work and throw off the excess amount. I wish that I could find the YouTube video where two guys LITERALLY dunked a semi-automatic pistol in oil and then attempted to fire. They got covered with the oil thrown off but the gun fired.

Thirdly, if I ever loaned you one of my M1s and you attempted to shoot it without proper lubrication (probably an impossibility since before I would give it to you it would already be cleaned and lubricated) I would box your ears and and go all Roman Catholic nun on your knuckles for that sin (that of negligent operation of John Garand's fantastic invention).

BTW, none of this is presented as THE reason for the problems experienced in the video a few posts up. It might be a problem with the shooter's care of his rifle, but that's all. The reason I put this at the very end was to see who reads all the post and who doesn't.
It was a bit more of sarcasm , i see people with problems just keep putting lube on it.
Yes cars will run with out “lube” for a bit but putting 10 of straight 50 is not going help anyrhing when it needs 5qts of 0-20
Following manufactures/mil spec guide lines is sufficient.

this is about all you need, maybe even a tad less unless your shipping out with your M1

View: https://youtu.be/sKUI-pzLbzA
 
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Interesting stuff. Besides those, one of the importers had a bunch of bonafide BM59's from Italy, but for reasonable $ there are these:

BM 59 Rifle James River Armory - AtlanticFirearms.com

Mac would know, but I think BULA does the JRA receivers? If yes they are top shelf USA forged receivers. I think they are cool but personally I'm good between traditional Garands and M14's / M1A's.
 
Interesting stuff. Besides those, one of the importers had a bunch of bonafide BM59's from Italy, but for reasonable $ there are these:

BM 59 Rifle James River Armory - AtlanticFirearms.com

Mac would know, but I think BULA does the JRA receivers? If yes they are top shelf USA forged receivers. I think they are cool but personally I'm good between traditional Garands and M14's / M1A's.
I dont know if JRA used forged receivers for the BM59s Never looked into them.
I almost bought a BM59 kit and built one out on a pretty rough HRA receiver I have kicking around somewhere.
The BM59 just does not catch my attention long enough.
I was considering a kit and sending the garand receiver off to shuffs, last I heard our local guru said Non Piu
 
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Interesting stuff. Besides those, one of the importers had a bunch of bonafide BM59's from Italy, but for reasonable $ there are these:

BM 59 Rifle James River Armory - AtlanticFirearms.com

Mac would know, but I think BULA does the JRA receivers? If yes they are top shelf USA forged receivers. I think they are cool but personally I'm good between traditional Garands and M14's / M1A's.
Yeah, the video links were more of informational data, and I enjoy Ian, so I thought it would be good in a M1 Megathread for the new Enthusiasts...

I like the .30 Cal Rifle just the way she is... 😍

1627867742000.png
 
Thirdly, over-lubrication is a self limiting problem. Unless you apply an absurd amount which gets in the way of proper operation, like maybe an inch-thick coating on all moving parts, the firearm will work and throw off the excess amount. I wish that I could find the YouTube video where two guys LITERALLY dunked a semi-automatic pistol in oil and then attempted to fire. They got covered with the oil thrown off but the gun fired.
 
I was considering a kit and sending the garand receiver off to shuffs, last I heard our local guru said Non Piu

LOL I heard him describe working on converting the receivers. I don't think he would do another for twice the price. They did look very good.

I like the .30 Cal Rifle just the way she is... 😍

Well good thing you are not an AK guy. You might get bullied if your NES handle was 'Banana Clip'.
 
Yeah, the video links were more of informational data, and I enjoy Ian, so I thought it would be good in a M1 Megathread for the new Enthusiasts...

I like the .30 Cal Rifle just the way she is... 😍

View attachment 508266
I do as well, plus if I get a BM 59 I would have another magazine to deal with, maybe go with M14 mag conversion
 
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