Posted: 4/25/2004 5:24:23 PM EDT
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Right before the site went down, there was a thread posted about obtaining a Garand under the CMP program. I've decided to go ahead and get one of these and would like to know if anyone has any advice before I start down this trail. I was also advised in Arfcom chat that this website www.garandcollector.org/faq.html#purchase%20a%20rifle is acceptable for the club membership requirement. Any advice would be appreciated. |
.. a Danish one
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Do it, do it now. Do not hesitate. Current supply of all USGI M1 Garands will be exhausted by late 2007, that is, if current demand does not increase. I was down there in December and bought two NICE M1s. I will be buying at least one more this year to finish my collection. The CMP prices are impossible to beat. |
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www.battlerifles.com/ has a great deal of CMP-related info in the Garand forum. |
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Do it!!! I purchased an M1 Garand a couple of years ago and it has to be the best money I've ever spent. The rifle I got is a pure joy to shoot. It is accurate, the recoil is very managable and you get the great "tink, tink" sound after every 8 rounds.  There is a downside, however. It also sparked my interest in other rifles and I have started a collection of standard rifles of the WWII era. I've almost filled the safe and I've only covered, the US, the UK, Finland, USSR, Swiss and German. I still have the Japanese and the Italians to go (among others). |
Those were the ones that were used in the liberation of Daneland if I recall correctly. I believe the King of Scandanavia carried one during the battle of Hollandaise. I bet there is a lot of history in those rifles. |
Dont you dare mock the famous battle of Hollandaise ... you bastard! 
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You're lucky, when I bought my Garand, I had to wait a whole year. I had to wait so long that when it came on a Friday by USPS reg'd mail, and at first I didn't know where the pkg came from because I didn't recognized the name on the USPS notice. |
Why did you have to wait a year? |
Think you will only get one? Think again. Trust me. HRA service grades are a couple months wait right now because they are sorting and grading the Greek returns. From what I understand they have a good stash of service grade Springfields ready to go. You cannot screw up with either rifle. The HRA's are considered very fine in fit and finish and generally they are. However, mine came with a birch stock that looked like it was dragged behind a truck on an interstate. But the barrel is a 8-53 LMR replacement that guages new at the muzzle and throat, white breech, even park about 98% and all parts are excellent condition. It wears new walnut from DGR now and is a damned gorgeous rifle and shoots better than I. It may have been rebuilt and never issued, not sure. My service grade SA is a 5.9 million range rifle, the end of production basically. It came with new birch stocks and handguards, an 11-64 SA barrel and a rebuild mark of 9-65. From the barrel gaging new with dark park and a white breech, new wood, all new park on the trigger group, reciever and stock metal the Garand guru's at Jouster and here at home have deduced that I have been blessed with one of the famed 1965 rebuilds that went directly into storage after arsenal rebuild without ever being issued. I replaced the wood on this one also because I like the look of walnut. It also shoots very well! Basically if you go for the SA ask for a high serial # rifle by attaching a note POLITELY asking for such. You might add that you will be using the rifle for formal competition in John C. Garand matches rather than collecting, that's what I did. As for the HRA they are all post WWII production and like the late SA's they are considered the finest in fit and finish and as being recent production they are less likely to be in bad shape. Don't get an $1100 comercial SA Inc rifle, please. Not trying to knock SA Inc, but you can add 960 rounds of LC M2 to your order and still be a few hundred under the SA Inc price with a CMP rifle. Edited to add: The Garand Collectors Assoc. does qualify you and they will directly notify the CMP of your membership status. Also www.jouster.com is the "hang out" of the world's Garand experts, really. Guys that write the books on collecting and gunsmithing on these rifle are regular posters on these boards. Go there and ask away, you will learn as much there about Garands as you can here about AR's |
Thanks Mucho Valkyrie! |
BACK THEN, it was called DCM(Div of Civilian Marsksmanship, a branch under the US Army), now it is privatized courtesy of (Red)Ted Kennedy & the anti-gunners who claim the old DCM was a handmaiden of the NRA, into what we know as the CMP, a wholly non-profit private organization. Now I understand the delivery time is around 30 days from the date of receipt. |
I just did quite a bit of poking around over there. I discovered that the service-grade H&Rs have up to a six month backlog before you may receive your rifle. However, it appears as though the service-grade Springfield Armory's are pretty much available. I think I'm going to switch to requesting the SA as I really would prefer not to wait that long. Thanks for the tip! |
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Don't worry, you will end up with more than one. In all seriousness, these rifles are probably the best value in a military rifle on the market. You get an issue ready rifle that will be tested for fire and function, superior design and manufacture over it's foreign counterparts of the same era. And just to add, 30-06 M2 ball is rated to punch through 11" of oak  When I got the bug I was dead set on a WWII war horse, then I started seeing pics of the late SA's and HRA's coming from the CMP. My grandfather has an HRA that is just gorgeous, so I got the bug for "nicer rifles". Now a lot of guys like the banged up, worn looking war horses but I prefer them as clean as possible. That's just me. I have been toying with getting a stripped reciever from the CMP and keeping for later use. With out a doubt they are my favorite rifles of all. |
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This evening I causally mentioned to my wife the idea selling one or two of my guns to buy a carbine. She immediately snapped, "Well, don't you DARE sell that Garand or the M1917. They're just too cool!" That 1942 SA CMP Garand is definitly one of our best, and favorite firearms. It shoots really, really well and is probably the best $500 I ever spent. The only advice i'd like to add is: 1) Get Scott Duff's M1 Owners Guide. Great reference. Order it direct and he'll sign it. 2) Make sure you GREASE, not oil, the major bearing surfaces. 3) You may have to disassemble and clean the rear sight. The metal on mine was outstanding right out of the box, but the rear sight had a LOT of gunk in it which interferred with adjustments. 4) If your rifle has trouble engaging and stripping the first round from a clip, Try inserting the clip with your thumb just behind the SHOULDER of the cartridges. If that solution irritates you, try replacing the follower. |
1) Anyone eligable to own firearms can purchase from the CMP. Guns are shipped to your door due to a special exemption to the 68 GCA, no FFL involvement is needed. 2) They used to require you fire at least 200rds in hi-power competition. Now, they expand that to anyone with a C&R license, a concealed weapons permit, or a few other categories. If you don't meet any of the otehr exemptions, you can still go shoot 3-4 matches (NM course is 60 rounds, but they also have 80 shot & larger matches as well)... This was probably done because the Garand isn't a serious competitor in service rifle matches anymore. If you want to win, you use an AR. So now they're selling them to any/all interested collectors. 3) No, before you ask, they will not be doing this with M-14s. The only way to get a 'real' govt M-14 as a private civillian is to check and see if your state rifle team has any loaners. In WI, you can 'check out' a 'fixed' (eg no full-auto anymore) M-14 if you want. I think you get it for a year or something (didn't pay too much attention, as I was planning on using my AR anyway)... |
Did you get to select yours? Was this Camp Perry? Thanks! |
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The service grade Danish VAR barrels are history as of the beginning of this month. I am going to Perry this year and wondered does anyone know if you'll be able to pick your Garand at the National Matches or will they assign you a serial # like mail order and you take what you get? |
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been there done that.........i sent the CMP my information last thursday as well for a service grade SA as i heard the H&Rs were on backorder im gonna start checking my credit card statement everyday so i'll know when and if they got my paperwork, waiting sucks i used my C&R, FFL, and hunters safety certificate to qualify in the marksmanship category, each is a stand alone but i figured i'd hedge my bets. and in competition it's now 50 rounds if you don't qualify anywhere else so you'd only have to shoot one match what accessories am i gonna HAVE to get? and where and what is the best ammo deal going for them right now? |