Posted: 4/2/2009 12:03:25 PM EDT
|
Just got my M1 Garand from the CMP in yesterday (Service grade). Couldn't be happier with the condition of the rifle. Took it apart today and cleaned all of the cosmoline/grease out of there and applied new lubrication where needed. Disassembly and reassembly were a joy, that rifle's design is nothing short of genious. So simple.
What would happen if one were just to slam the loaded clip into place with their left hand and pull their thumb out quickly? Is it possible to beat the bolt (get it your thumb out of there before the bolt slams it) or is this going to lead to the dreaded Garand thumb? I've been playing it safe, but I want to try it "the fast way". I'll take pictures of the rifle soon and I promise I'll post pictures if I suffer "Garand thumb". |
|
The bolt won't go until the clip is latched in place and pressure is removed from it. Even still, the friction of stripping the first round out of the clip will likely still keep it from going anywhere until you bump the oprod with a hand.
You've got to be "special" if you get your thumb caught while loading. It's tough to do. Now cleaning, or fiddling with it empty––that's another matter. |
|
Your right hand should be inserting the clip with your thumb exerting pressure on the rounds. Your fingers should be together, as if you were saluting, and moving down the right side of the rifle, with your pinky on/near the oprod.
On most (all?) Garands, you'll then have to bumb the oprod to get it to go into battery. I'd check youtube for videos. |
| I never used my left hand to insert a clip, or depress the follower, but, yes you can be quicker than the bolt. The way it is taught is to hold the bolt with the right hand and use the right thumb to depress the follower and remove before letting the bolt go forward. In my ROTC days we used the Garand in our drill team and the way to close the bolt was to jam all four fingers onto the follower and remove before the bolt got you. Of course, I was a lot younger then and my reflexes were faster. |
|
Quoted:
I never used my left hand to insert a clip, or depress the follower, but, yes you can be quicker than the bolt. The way it is taught is to hold the bolt with the right hand and use the right thumb to depress the follower and remove before letting the bolt go forward. In my ROTC days we used the Garand in our drill team and the way to close the bolt was to jam all four fingers onto the follower and remove before the bolt got you. Of course, I was a lot younger then and my reflexes were faster. That just sounds like a bad idea. Probably had a lot of cadets walking around with black and blue thumbs, huh? |
|
Quoted:
Your right hand should be inserting the clip with your thumb exerting pressure on the rounds. Your fingers should be together, as if you were saluting, and moving down the right side of the rifle, with your pinky on/near the oprod. On most (all?) Garands, you'll then have to bumb the oprod to get it to go into battery. I'd check youtube for videos. I have to bump it if I use the "knife"/"salute" method with my right hand. If I just slam that clip in there with my left hand and pull my thumb out fast, it goes into battery on its own everytime. |
|
You could jam your thumb in like that. Let me refer to Weapons In Pictures #1, The M1 Does My Talking.
page 58 shows an illustration from the Army field manual FM23-5, July 43' A soldier using his thumb only to jam the clip in the gun. There is the right way, and the Army way. Note the picture is illustrated, not real. I can imagine a humorous FFFFUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!! MS paint picture I have not gotten M1Thumb yet. However I did have the middle digit of my pinky-finger get slammed shut in a S&W model 76 9mm sub-machinegun. It hurt like a SOB, and somehow manged to not sailor cuss every tangible thing around me.. EDIT..... I think the manual shows the thumb being to the rear of the clip enough that the bolt pushes the thumb up and away while closing shut. This is sure to cause injury |
|
sigh
You don't Grand thumb when loading the rifle. If the bolt were to release before you removed the downward pressure on the loaded clip, your thumb is high enough in the receiver that the bolt pushes it out of the way when going forward and does not smash it between the bolt and the chamber. You get Grand Thumb when you are fiddle fucking around with an empty rifle, usually when you don;t have the bolt locked back but rather it's hung up on the follower. |
|
Quoted:
sigh You don't Grand thumb when loading the rifle. If the bolt were to release before you removed the downward pressure on the loaded clip, your thumb is high enough in the receiver that the bolt pushes it out of the way when going forward and does not smash it between the bolt and the chamber. You get Grand Thumb when you are fiddle fucking around with an empty rifle, usually when you don;t have the bolt locked back but rather it's hung up on the follower. Quit throwing those pesky facts around.... 
|
|
Quoted:
Quoted:
I never used my left hand to insert a clip, or depress the follower, but, yes you can be quicker than the bolt. The way it is taught is to hold the bolt with the right hand and use the right thumb to depress the follower and remove before letting the bolt go forward. In my ROTC days we used the Garand in our drill team and the way to close the bolt was to jam all four fingers onto the follower and remove before the bolt got you. Of course, I was a lot younger then and my reflexes were faster. That just sounds like a bad idea. Probably had a lot of cadets walking around with black and blue thumbs, huh? RIF. "...all four fingers..." (no thumbs). |
|
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
I never used my left hand to insert a clip, or depress the follower, but, yes you can be quicker than the bolt. The way it is taught is to hold the bolt with the right hand and use the right thumb to depress the follower and remove before letting the bolt go forward. In my ROTC days we used the Garand in our drill team and the way to close the bolt was to jam all four fingers onto the follower and remove before the bolt got you. Of course, I was a lot younger then and my reflexes were faster. That just sounds like a bad idea. Probably had a lot of cadets walking around with black and blue thumbs, huh? RIF. "...all four fingers..." (no thumbs). Thumbs, fingers, whatever. Did a lot of cadets end up getting fingers mashed by the bolt? |
|
Quoted:
sigh You don't Grand thumb when loading the rifle. If the bolt were to release before you removed the downward pressure on the loaded clip, your thumb is high enough in the receiver that the bolt pushes it out of the way when going forward and does not smash it between the bolt and the chamber. You get Grand Thumb when you are fiddle fucking around with an empty rifle, usually when you don;t have the bolt locked back but rather it's hung up on the follower. Thank you. That's exactly the kind of information I was looking for. |
|
Quoted:
sigh You don't Grand thumb when loading the rifle. If the bolt were to release before you removed the downward pressure on the loaded clip, your thumb is high enough in the receiver that the bolt pushes it out of the way when going forward and does not smash it between the bolt and the chamber. You get Grand Thumb when you are fiddle fucking around with an empty rifle, usually when you don;t have the bolt locked back but rather it's hung up on the follower. Yep, on all three of my Garands, and almost everyone I have shot, the bolt only occasionally slams forward when actually loading it. Most often they need a little kick in the ass to fully close when a full enbloc is in there. |
|
Quoted:
sigh You don't Grand thumb when loading the rifle. If the bolt were to release before you removed the downward pressure on the loaded clip, your thumb is high enough in the receiver that the bolt pushes it out of the way when going forward and does not smash it between the bolt and the chamber. You get Grand Thumb when you are fiddle fucking around with an empty rifle, usually when you don;t have the bolt locked back but rather it's hung up on the follower. yup. it wont bite when you are loading it. |