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Posted: 9/2/2008 5:07:28 PM EDT
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I am going to order a rifle but have a couple questions. Has anybody here ordered a correct grade? Are they worth the extra money? What's the significant about the 5.4 -5.8 million serial # on a Springfield? I want one for the history as well as shooting, I'm not a collector but I do want a nice one. |
The way the CMP has worked it out for rifle condition explained on their website. You should know that a Correct Grade refers to having the combination of parts numbers/I.D. marks like they left the factory when made. I do not think it means you get a rifle in better condition, but it does have the correct marked parks for the maker. |
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For shooting they're not worth the money. It just means it should have all parts on it that would be "correct" for a rifle made during the time is was made. Most M1's have had enough use that parts were replaced. Springfields might have Winchester parts, or H&R parts, or even some Italian parts (BMB), H&R's might have Springfield parts, etc. The Correct Grades should have all Springfield parts if the receiver is Springfield and they should all be post war parts of the same era as the receiver. Having all original parts is a good thing for collecting, but not necesarily for shooting. That $300 difference in price between a correct grade and service grade will buy you a case of Greek surplus to shoot in your rifle. |
When I bought my Correct Grade H&R, I went and picked it out personally. All the Correct Grades I saw that day were in excellent condition and the one I bought looks like it has never seen a round. It is in the back of the safe and will be given to my grandson one day. I have 7 other Garands for shooting.  I have turned down 2 offers to swap my Correct Grade H&R for a papered Collector Grade Springfield. I asked the guy at the desk what made the difference between a Correct Grade and a Collector Grade and he said basically it was whomever was doing the grading that day. Contrary to what some will say and verified by a personal discussion with Orest, the CMP does not mix and match parts to come up with a Correct Grade. He said they might occassionally replace a minor part, but for the most part, they are as CMP gets them from the Army. |
The H&R Garands are more rare. Just an FYI, if you want a Garand with a WWII reciever (finding a WWII Garand intact as it came from the factory is damn near impossible and the price would be astronomical), your choice would be a Springfield up to the mid 3 million serial number range or a Winchester. All H&Rs and IHCs are mid-50s production. |
| I got the HRA correct grade and I'm extremely happy with it. It's a very good looking rifle. Looks to have been shot very little. Thinking about getting a SG HRA just to shoot. From pics of the SG's that some guys have been getting lately, I can't see a whole lot of difference between the two. Other than parts being mixed the rifles look just as good as far as finish and their stocks. Barrels all seem to be in very good shape also. Check out the CMP forums and you can see some more pics of the SG's. |
| FWIW, I HIGHLY recommend actually going to the CMP store to pick out your own Garand. Almost 2 years to the day, I made my pilgrimage to the CMP North Store. There was a big gun show about 30 minutes away, so I was the first and only customer in the store for a good hour. I tested every single Garand there, and made a note of the good ones. If memory serves me right, I got a Field grade that was around 2.5 on the muzzle wear, and a low 3 for throat erosion. When you look at CMP's grading standards, I think I did pretty damn well. |
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Correct Grades are more than just having all correct parts. They are like new rifles. Both were mail ordered. I'll let the pictures do the talking HRA Correct Grade Springfield Correct |
I have been told by several people at the South store that they grade in favor of the customer. I have picked up my Garands personally at the South store. With the exception of my Correct Grade, they are all Field or Rack Grade. The largest ME is 2.1 and the largest TE is 3.5, well within Service Grade specs. |
You know, if the automobile industry treated customers as well as CMP did, our local economy would be a different story. But, I digress. That day, the quality of the Garands really ran the gamut. My Garand was a Greek and had one of the Greek stocks. At the time I thought it looked nicer than most of the other ones... but a few of the others might have cleaned up nicely. It shoots well, and for me, that's what matters. If I had known that was the last time I would see 1903's on sale at CMP, I might have gone that route instead. Anyway, CMP is a first class organization all the way. I have no doubt in my mind that they grade in favor of the customer. |
Who has disposable income? It is all garand expense account accrual....
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I agree I've bought two since spring of '07 and am currently saving for when the Winnies are released sometime around the end of the year. 
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I've been saving for a couple of months to get a garandfrom CMP and was getting ready to order a service grade H&R. So, should I just buy one now, or wait until the winchesters come out? |
Winnies are really nice but there is some dicussion that HRs have a better finish, one of the two I bought was an HR the other a Springfield. Quite happy with both the Springfield was WWII woodless dane with a .50 muzzle, and the HR had a .25 muzzle as a service grade. With what appear to be original barrels to boot. (according to dates) Get on the CMP forum site, there is some talk about the Winnies being posted at around $800 or more around the first of the year.
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I bought a collector-grade Springfield and a correct-grade H&R. Condition of both rifles is identical; both appear to be brand new and unfired.  Yes, it is worth the extra money for a correct grade. I believe they did away with collector grade because there is no real difference between the two grades. Correct grade H&R  Collector grade Springfield   
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