UPDATE...my 3 Garands just showed up...why is the trigger guard not lifting up?????

UPDATE...the correct grade HRA came out of the case with shitloads of cosmoline all over it. It does look real perty as far as the wood and metal goes. I was trying to take it apart for more thorough cleaning and the trigger guard will not budge. What am I doing wrong. Looking at the manual it says to slightly move the trigger guard back and then lift up. There is zero movement...I even tried a couple of light taps with a small nylon hammer. No luck!!! Can someone diagnose the problem? Thanks so much. Want to get this bad boy up and running.

BTW...the 2 HRA service grades both have really good metal and finish but the stocks are pretty "seasoned". They look to have no cosmoline. Why do the service grades have no cosmo and the correct grade is slathered with it? Glad I ordered the correct grade as they are now showing out of stock.



Been on the fence for awhile about diving into the World of Garand. Being a USPSA and 3 gun competitor, I am not just wanting to get some Garands for putting away in the safe. I want to get some "while the getting is still relatively good", and may do some competitions at our local range when they come around. Also, now that I have a son, I want to have some "special things" to teach him about and to pass on down the road just as my Dad and Grandpa did for me. I have made the following list....

(2) HRA service grades
(1) HRA correct grade
(3) cases of the greek M2 (for now)

I am thinking of the 2 service grades just to get 2 and be able to compare which one is better. I figure I can always sell off the "loser" of the two for what I have into it and hang onto the best one. The correct grade will be the long-term "investment" that will be more of a safe queen and be "put away" for my son.
Ammo...I know....buy tons of it @ .50 per round
Where is my best bet on stocking up on some enblocs?

Anything you would change about my plan or other sage advice you could offer? I am a total noob to M1's so I appreciate any help you could offer to set me straight.

One more thing...I have a number of boxes of sealed Lake City marked M2 Ball ammo that was my Dad's....this is THE stuff to use in Garands, right?
Any other recommendations on buying spare parts or aftermarket gas regs to keep on hand?

Thanks in advance

****UPDATE TO OP*****Just sent in my order forms....got the notary done at my CU for free and stayed with my HRA models I was leaning towards. Can't wait to get the presents on the porch!!!!

ALSO....just to confirm, the Lake City marked 20 round boxes of M2 ball ammo is the correct stuff to feed the Garand, right? I have 10 sealed boxes of the stuff that was my Dad's so I would be glad to put it to good use down the road. I am thinking when my son gets old enough, we can hit the range to introduce him to Garands and use ammo that was his Grandpas!!!

As much as you are going to spend, I would make a trip to the store. I haven't been there... but if I were spending 2K on CMP Garands I would probably go hand pick them.

Diversmith––

Looks to me like you are optimizing your chances for "minty" Garands by going with the H&R's.

Check in at the CMP forum at ODCMP.com and you can usually get a sense as to what sort of Garands the guys are getting lately.

The Trader/For Sale section would be a great place to acquire some clips, as well––the CMP guys are swimming in them.

I might want to hand pick a "Correct" if I was spending that kind of money––but there is no guarantee that after you make the trip (Airline $/Hotel $) and get to the South or North store that the "Corrects" in the rack will be as nice as you are hoping for. All told––I do trust my luck, and my personal luck of the draw with service grades has been absolutely mind-boggling.

Good luck.

I've rescently made a similar order, one hra correct and three hra service grades. The rifles will be kept in the family for my two sons, father and of course myself. I went the hra route hoping for the best possible quality shooters. Good luck with the rifles I don't think you can go wrong with this choice.

Update to OP....all paperwork complete and order forms sent!!!!! yeehaa
Can't wait for the presents to arrive!

I sent an order for a SG HRA, a few weeks ago, can't wait!

Armstrong

Sent mine in last month (2/16) for a SA correct grade. I 'll show you mine when you get yours .

Picked up a HRA on consignment from LnL in September last year. Very clean , in fact I just beat Ron to the punch by buying it . He called and told Andrew to put it in the back for himself while NICS was being processed . Belonged to a Old Veteran that needed money for medical bills.

The guys told me they would tell him it was going to a good new home.

Planning on making a trip to the South store to pick out one personally this summer trip .

Let me know when yours comes in .

Chris

Hey bro!!!!
Can't wait to see yours!!!!
I am really chomping at the bit to get these in and see how they look. You missed a good match this month

The greek ammo has been shooting straight in my rifles. Good velocity and well running.

I have been saving my lake city (66-72 vintage) for gas system testing. The ammo works well but seems to be less hot than the greek or even the once available danish M2 ball. My boxes of LC bring out boarder line function issues, gas leak, feeding, etc.

Run a new Orion 7 oprod spring in your rifle too.

The wait on CMP delivery seems like forever, every time, but it will get to you soon

Damn !! I really wanted to go too. Cheryl is already half way through her Phd and she had a big project due, so I took the kiddos out that morning. Not bad for a Daddy Daughter - Daughter day.

I should be soon for mine. Almost as bad as waiting for the suppressors/Sbr 's forms to come back.

be safe and we need to shoot together soon.

Chris

Update in my original post....3 Garands just showed up!

Requesting help on dissassembly...trigger guard does not budge!

You should be able to pull back on the rear of the trigger guard to release it. If you can't by hand, you can use a screw driver. DO NOT Pry on it, but rather slide it in front of the back end of the trigger guard such that the shaft sits flush with the guard perpendicular to the bore axis, then grasp the handle and the other end with opposite hands, and pull to the rear. That should release it.

Some Garands pop right off and on some the trigger guard can be a stinker

Mine showed up on Thursday. My trigger is very tight too. Havent been able to open either. Planning on taking it to Brentwood for cleaning and function check.

My SA CG came like yours metal in great condition. Stock has a couple of rub marks but is very tight and not lose.

Very happy.

Take a section of GI cleaning rod (or any other round steel rod) and insert it into the hole in the back of the trigger guard. With the sights up and trigger down, rotate the rod toward the muzzle. This forces the guard to the rear and swings it open.

The hammer has to be cocked. Cycle the action, place the safety in the "ON" position (i.e. to the rear), then try it again.

When you swing the trigger guard to the front, it cocks the hammer. This is another of the design features to cock the hammer if the bolt is stuck forward.

I use a thick shoe(boot) lace.

Correct, but it is much easier to just cock it using the oprod. Some rifles, especially if they are gunked up with cosmoline, are especially hard to cock with and especially tight trigger group.

HOLY CRAP!!! What a PITA

Just finished stripping it all down....obviously I finally got the trigger group out thanks to the tip here. I just used a medium phillips screwdriver to pull back on the guard. It was stiff as a board. Had a mother of a time getting the oprod out as it didn't want to slide up and out at the notch...cussed up a storm on that one. Took apart the trigger group, bolt, pulled off the gas block and pulled out the follower components. The bolt was another PITA to get the ejector back in. All in all, I used every cuss word at least 87 times each thru all of this. I guess the correct grade must be a little tighter. i noticed there were lots of stampings on numerous parts. All HRA marked. I don't think there was a matching serial number on anything, but everything looked pretty damn nice

Thanks for the tips...arfcom comes thru once again

All the parts with have drawing numbers, not serial numbers, and each drawing number is specific to the part, and when it was made. I would say since you have made a pretty serious investment in Garands (I have three also) get a good book that will educate you on the weapon, the parts, and the history. The Poyer/Reisch book "The M1 Garand 1936-1957 is a great resource for me, and a good start. The Duff Blue Book for Post WWII Garands is also a good one to have if you have only Post WWII Garands.

Diversmith––

If you want the best possible accuracy out of your shooter Garands, do consider replacing the "seasoned" stocks with new wood.

The cheapest route to a really nice-looking stock is to pick up a couple unfinished stocks from Dupage. Going with an unfinished stock only saves you $10 or so, but you save yourself a lot of elbow grease removing the quick stain/finish job they put on their stocks. Spend a night or two in the shop sanding and finishing them––and they'll be gorgeous.

Consider buying a complete set of hardware for the stock (minus the buttplate and sling swivel), so you can leave the USGI as is.

Dean's Guns (DGR) offers a fitted/unfinished which I personally think is a real good value––and the fitting Dean does will really show up downrange.

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