A little over a year ago I ordered a service grade from the CMP and agreed to take first available manufacturer.  I received a Springfield 6 digit, 377,xxx from 10/41.  Overall condition is pretty good, muzzle 1+, throat 2+, a great shooter, but a mix of parts.  I was really happy to get that early of a receiver with a decent barrel in the rebuild.

Now my question:  The stock has no external stamps or cartouches, but when I stripped it down to do a light clean on the stock and rub in a couple coats of Tung oil, I noticed a 4 digit number in the barrel channel, 2434.  A little googling and it looks like this is an IHC stock?  It has the notch on the right side, and the "wide back porch" I read about.  I also read that there are often milling marks opposite the grain which this stock has as well.

Second part of my question:  I am a shooter, not a collector at this point.  With the current excitement about the IHC release from the CMP would this stock be better off in someone else's hands or should I just continue to shoot it.  Does the lack of cartouches make it undesirable?  I don't care about making this rifle "correct," but I would probably be happier with a stock that had some sort of historic markings, maybe even an SA to match the receiver and barrel.






Please forgive the crappy photography, lighting, and repro Amazon sling!

Wthout DOD stamp it really has no collector value

Thanks for the input,  I will just keep it as is then.  I like the look of it, and it locks up fairly tight, so it's good for my purposes.

I got one of the IHC M1 garands from the CMP and it came with a brand new stock.

I would happily trade you for yours.

I appreciate the offer,  but I do prefer the used look on this rifle as opposed to a factory new stock.  This stock is also in pretty good shape and functional compared to some originals i have seen.  If it is not a collectable piece I will probably just hang onto it.

When/if you ever take the the lower hand guard off, look at the lower left hand corner(the edge that butts up against the receiver) and see if there is a small "O" stamped into the wood.  If so, that would be an Overton made hand guard, which would be a match for your stock.

Ugh, I had the hand guard off when I was cleaning it up and didn't notice anything,  but I didn't really look either.  Getting that thing off and on was a PITA, so i won't likely take it off again till its time for some serious maintenance.   I didn't realize they were marked,  thanks for the info.

I have been looking over the stock trying to find the remains of any external stamps that might have been sanded away, but I just don't think there are any.  Why would a stock not have been stamped during a rebuild?

The Julian dated stock is worth some money, regardless of the missing outside cartouche.  Nice score.

I'm waiting to get my account approved on the CMP forums then I'll see if anybody is interested in a trade over there.  Maybe I should put it on the equipment exchange here, I just figured there would be more interest at the CMP.

Not really sure of the value or what a fair trade would be.  I definitely don't want to step down in quality or functionality, this rifle is a shooter for me.  Any thoughts?

You "might " get $90 -$100 . All stocks have value but without the DOD it does not have a big collector value. You might find someone to trade you a SA stock with no DOD stamp. You may as well keep what you have