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Posted: 1/14/2003 7:14:29 PM EDT
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What can I expect from a service grade Garand from the CMP? From the description, it doesn't sound like a very nice rifle at all. Has anyone ever had a problem with a CMP rifle? Would I be better/worse off getting a Danish one? |
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I was very, very leery about spending the money myself. I finally did, and was very, very pleased. Great gun, loads of fun. No regrets, other than I haven't ordered another one yet. I did end up replacing the stock, mainly because it was cheap and easy to do it, but I would have been happy even with the gun in it's purchased condition. I can't comment on the Danish ones. 
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I know quite a few people who've ordered M1s from CMP. NOT A SINGLE ONE regrets it. I'm expecting mine in the next few weeks. They all have dings and dents in the stock, but should be in excellent mechanical shape. Of course, the 'rack grades' usually have less barrel life left. The service grade Danish VAR rifles often have NEW or NEAR NEW barrels, but their stocks are often more worn too. You can refinish the stock yourself (not that difficult) or send the whole rifle off to someone like DGR (dgrguns.com). They can make a stunning princess out of any peasant. |
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I have ordered three service grade M1's in the last two years. All have been well worth the money. They all had minor "battle scars" but they all function perfectly. One even came with the early lock bar sight and uncut op rod! Now the M1903's are a different story! |
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As a rule the US service grades are a bit nicer than the Danes, but its really just luck of the draw. Both will be solid, servicable rifles. Do not expect new in the box. The 03's seem to vary more. The Remington A3's seem to be the best, followed by the Remington 03's. But, again its luck of the draw. It seems the worst of the 03's are worse than the "bad" M-1's if that makes any sense. The 03's will definitely require more clean up, the Greeks really went overboard on the grease. |
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For the money you can't go wrong. I bought the first one in October and had to have two more. I was fortunate enough to get some really decent looking and shooting ones. They're all US SA Service Grades and for $520 shipped to your door ... you can't beat 'em. Not only that, they're great examples of our American history. http://members.aol.com/sbak1320/3M1sFull.jpg |
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While it is partially luck of the draw, there are a few guidelines. The Service grades are for those looking for a great shooter in nice condition. You will get a very good bore, very good muzzle and overall a better looking rifle. The rack grades tend to have either more muzzle wear, throat erosion, or overall ugliness. You will probably find more desireable older parts on the rack grades as they may have escaped rebuild. This can be good from a collector standpoint. The Danes are a crap shoot, if you get a VRA barrel, you will have a great shooter. The stocks can and usually are uglier, the parts may be Beretta, BMB, etc. I have seen some nice Danes though. You can always send it back and ask for a refund. CMP is good like that. You are buying a used rifle, not a new one. The Service grade SA can look new though, some went through rebuild in the 60s and have nice, desireable 60s SA barrels, new finish etc. You will get a sling, enbloc clip, and trigger lock. There are VERY FEW reports of people being dissatisfied. You very well, will get hooked on Garands and then buy 5 a year. The 1903s are a different animal. The 03s were made during WWI, were probably rebarreled during WWII. The 03A3s were made during WWII and are in better condition. I saw a few very new looking Remington 03A3s. The Low number SA and RIAs are not considered safe to shoot. Get a high number SA 03 and a Remington 0A3. That should round out your collection. By the way CMP will let you come down and volunteer your time to help sort, clean, and pack rifles. You'll learn a lot!! Fire away any questions. |
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I ordered 3 service grades, at the time, you couldn't specify receiver make. Got a SA-42 that appears to have the correct parts, a SA-44, and an HR-53 that is very accurate. The metal on all three were excellent. The gas cylinder finish was worn on a couple of them(this is normal).The bores were all shiny with no pitting. In fact, I didn't see any pitting anywhere on the rifles. The wood on all three was good enough that I could leave it alone and not be embarrassed. There are only a couple of deep gouges that couldn't be lifted out. I doubt that I'll ever mess with them. I ordered a couple of high number Springfield M1903's. One seems to be the original barrel from'21 the other was rebarreled('44). One has a nasty crown nick. The metal on the rest of the rifles was very good. The bolts don't appear to be the original, my '21 has a N.S. bolt. The bolts have been matched to the rifles, it has part of the serial # etched onto the bolt handle. The wood is downright nasty. It needs to be thrown in the garbage. The mag floorplates have been pinned shut. The tab that you press to open the floorplate has been broken off. A letter("B", I think) has been stamped on the floorplate. I was told that this was a Greek rifle. These rifles were COMPLETELY covered in grease. You better know how to take this sucker apart. The rear sight, the safety, mag cutoff, everything needs to come apart, down to the smallest screw. The Mossberg 44US are in great shape. The metal is parkerized and in great shape. The wood needs to be sanded and refinished, no biggee. The Kimber M82 Governments are as advertised. New in the Wrap. These rifles have not been fired, they have not left their bags. The bolt comes in its own sealed bag, so do the sights. There is a razor cut running most of the length of the stock where some dipshit sliced open the bag when they inventoried these rifles. This is noted on the literature before you buy it, it's no surprise. The cuts also aren't that bad. It just disgusts you to know that it happened. I've bought 8 rifles from CMP and I'll buy more. |
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www. jouster.com has the boards you want for both the M-1 Garand, and 1903 variants. Service Grade Springfields are great for the money...can clean up beautifully, and usually shoot very well. I'm not complaining because I got a WW-II dated reciever with the original barrel, and correct lockbar sights. Added another WW-II era stock with the proper cartouches for the time, and I've got a very good Fall 1943 Garand I have already traced nearby numbers to Marine Units of the time. History? Absolutly! My CMP 1903 has a 1918 Reciever, is a High Numbered Springfield '03, rebarreled with a 4-43 Springfield Barrel. The replacement WW-II "C" Stock cleaned up into a beautifully grained brown Walnut. The sights take a little getting used to, but it too shoots very, very well. If you're interested in the '03's..learn about the heat-treatments, and what older units are considered too brittle to safely shoot...and why some shooters say it may not really matter. Incredible history well worth preserving! |
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