Need to decide soon...M1 carbine questions

C

cornered rat

Moderator
I had once wanted to get an M1 carbine because of how well it fit me and how handy it was. I got a mini-14 instead with availability and power of ammo in mine (at the time, penetration was an issue). I find that I can't hit much with the mini off-hand, even though I do well with both smaller .22 bolt and heavier and larger .303 rifles.

So, a few years too late, I decided to get a carbine. However, no one here has any, so I can't look at one and handle it. One store said they'd get me an IMI new one for $440 (ouch!). I see new 15-rd magazines available for $10 ea.

1. Would IMI be as good a choice as any?
2. How hard are they to take apart compared to the mini-14?
3. How reliable are they out of the box? With the mini, I had a lot of trouble with mags, partly because I used to bend the feed lips trying to load them like Sten mags. What are known weak points?
4. The gun is gas operated: every how many rounds does it have to be cleaned?
5. Anything else I should know or get in accessories?
6. Who might have ball .30 cheap? I found $230 for 1000, anyone knows of a better source?
 
There is a site called "Another M-! Carbine Site" Just type that into Altavisa and you'll find it. They have just about every thing you could ever want to know.

A word of caution. There are "collectable" guns and "shooters" Don't pay collectable prices for a shooter. There is a discussion form at the site, they can advise what to get and what to pay. BTW-Steer clear of the Universal Carbine. It seems they were not that well made.

JG Sales generraly has good prices on ammo. So does Georgia Arms.

I clean my rifles everytime I use them. The M-1 is easy to take apart. I usually swab down what I can and give the inaccessable parts a quick shot of break cleaner. Sounds strange but it works. Just relube when you're done.
 
I dont have much experience with the rifle, but what little I have had.......lends me to believe that the only problem is the cartridge...it seems enemic to me....but I still would like to own a couple more, someone more up on it then me could go over the dozens of manufacturers and the quality of the different rifles...fubsy.
 
I have reservations about the round. I got the mini14 especially for its capability on vests and related obstacles...back in my paranoid days. At this point, I find that I handle it so carefully and gingerly that I am afraid to use it. It isn't accurate enough for sniping/target work and too fragile for house work. I just ordered spare rear sight, just in case. I tried Ruger 9mm and it was heavy and awkward. I think 110gr at 1400fps is pretty close to .357, but bullets are less efficient. So, all in all, I am not sure why I'd want one...except that I *like* the design a great deal. Wish somebody made it in .44 mag...
 
Hmmm...seems IMI doesn't get very good comments on reliability, and I am leery of ordering one sight unseen. Can anyone help me with locating a GI M1 carbine (ugly cosmetics are fine as long as it functiones), either in Minnesota or where they live (maybe someone knows of an M1 sitting at a local store and can check it out for me).
 
The .30 carbine round pushes a 110 grain bullet about 1900 feet per second. That's hotter than a .357 magnum out of a carbine length barrel. The problem is bullet design. A full metal jacket will zip through with minimal tissue/organ disruption.
I don't have any proof of the pudding, but Winchester makes a factory load with a 110 grain soft/hollow point bullet at 1900 fps. I'd just bet that ought to work. It feeds through my WW-II era GI carbine and is good for 1 1/2 inch groups at 100 meters.
If you want one for pest control or home defense, this might be the ammo for you.
Cat
 
I mean this in a nice way, but a lot of carbine people are nuts. If a carbine does not have every part exactly right for the manufacturer and date, etc., they think the gun is complete junk. They spend years and tons of money seeking perfection.

If you want a shooter, it is best just to ignore the folks who scream and run because the extractor plunger isn't "right". Don't worry about who made the parts - they are all interchangeable.

Carbines are easy to take down, but there are a couple of tools you may need. One is a gas piston nut tool, the other is a bolt takedown tool.

But do avoid the non-GI carbines. They have no historical value and are simply a low power semi-auto, although more politically correct than some other rifles.

Jim
 
Has anyone here had experience with IMI M1s. They are "made of US parts" but not sure how they compare to GI stuff. Reliability is more important than accuracy for me.

I am debating getting a single-shot heavy-barrel rifle to use up my .223 stocks...so I will have something for small groups.
 
IMI's have a reputation for unreliable feeding. Check out Riverbank Armory for GI Carbines. George Liakos seems to have a good reputation. His web site is http://home.att.net/~ra-carbines/home.html

[This message has been edited by EOD Guy (edited August 12, 1999).]

[This message has been edited by EOD Guy (edited August 12, 1999).]
 
Most all M1 Carbines are made of US parts. That's how the Universal and Iver Johnson started out. They used surplus USGI parts until the supply ran out on each part then designed their own part to fit. As posted before, the quality is not on a par with mil. weapons. As Jim K stated, there are collectors and shooters, don't let a seller talk you into a more expensive collector weapon if you're looking for a shooter. Re-imports are the least expensive types out there. Most times they have non-matching numbers, late model parts mixed in with early model parts etc. But that won't matter in a shooter. Good luck.
 
CR,

Northern Bubba, I've had 3 USGI types as collectables, and have competed with various of them in the old DCM program. Used to be one of the "nuts" that enjoyed digging thru old boxes in the back of gunsmiths shops, surplus stores, friends' garages and the occasional fellow collector's mismatch box. The "right" parts were indeed a meaningless but fun Quixotec endeavor, which included a lot of socializing along the way.

The carbine is a nice little gun and was my primary "assult rifle" in the '60s. It is a much maligned cartridge that is misunderstood and more often mis-applied. Ring me up on the email, and I'll fill your ear (eyes?) full of 30+ years of personal and professional experience with the piece.
 
CR:

What Jim K said. He is one of the people over at the www.gunandknife.com M1 carbine forum who's opinion I look for.

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RKBA!

[This message has been edited by Lucas (edited August 15, 1999).]
 
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