.308 Garands

O

orsogato

New member
Anybody have experience with m1 Garands in .308? The originals in 06' are just superb rifles as far as everything goes accuracy, reliability, etc.

But, I was thinking about getting one in .308 due to commonality of ammunition w/ other rifles/ Ammo availability,

And a slightly better accuracy that is somewhat inherent to the .308 cartridge.

Is the function and reliability the same w/ these rifles in .308 as they are in the old 06'?
 
Reliable. Fairly accurate, but absolutely no more so than the '06. (None. Not one bit. Not even a little bit. Nope. Nuh unh. Don't even play.)

Boring, really. Dad ended up buying one off a buddy who needed the money. It's a "Tanker" version, that's been lopped off some, too.

Some problems: Shorter sight radius with the coarse sights makes it less fine to aim.

Still very (very) heavy. Seems almost more so than the original Garand, because it's all localized. Seems denser. (Not really, but it *feels* that way.)

Less punch.

Not quite as much fun, for some reason.

But very reliable. The "Navy Block" has been around for years and years and years, and only requires a broken shell extractor to remove it. You might want to get one of those and put it in a regular M1 for more versatility.
 
We used the "Navy" 7.62x51 Garands on our boats. They didn't give us any trouble and shot fine.
I got nostalgic a few years ago and tried to buy my buddy's full size 7.62 Garand. He wouldn't sell it so I picked up a "Tanker" in 7.62. My buddy's son-in-law took a hankerng for my "Tanker" and we ended up swapping. I'm happy, his son-in-law is happy, he's sad.
Both of these Garands were rebuilt by Arlington Armory. Decent wood, new barrels, refinished metal. Nice rifles.
Cat
 
I have a full-sized garand that had been rebarreled to .308 by the previous owner. It works great. There is also a lot of surplus ammo around unlike 30-06. I also kicks noticeably less than the original.
 
There's a standard drill size (perhaps a number drill) used to open up the gas port for more total reliability in .308 M1s. I can look it up this weekend if you wish.

If you want to use the chamber insert, never shoot where you can't find your brass, because the insert has been known to come out on the neck of a case once in a great while.

If you want to keep gas pressures on the piston within spec when going back to .30-06, you would be wise to leave the port untouched and use .308 reloads with very slow powders.
 
thanx for info,

I don't have my eye on a "tanker" or one with a chamber insert. What I have in my mind is a full sized rebarreled with a .308 barrel. I'll have to check on that gas port thing. But I would think that the .308 throws enough gas pressure as an 06' to work the action reliably? If anyone has info on that it would be helpful

thank you
 
This is strictly second hand, since I don't have any experience with 308 M1's, but I've heard from people who generally don't BS much, that the longer bolt run in an action like the M1's which was designed for the full-length 30-06, contributes to the possibility of slamfires when used with the shorter 308 case. The M1 is a great rifle in 30-06, and you can still get lots of surplus ammo for one by going to CMP matches.
 
I have fired approximately 750 rounds through my 7.62x51 Garand. Not one problem. Either military surplus, reloaded 150 gr. or 168 gr. match ammo.
Cat
 
Stay away from chamber inserts. They have been known to work loose. Best to have a barrel which is chambered for .308 rather than converting a 30-06 barrel.

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