...which is the best to get?  Service grade Danish,... American?

Also WRT the gun club requirement, I need to join a club and shoot in a match?  Am I reading this right?

Join the Garand Collectors Association online www.garandcollector.org and that fills the club requirement.  $25.00 per year.  They can automatically give your membership info to the CMP if you want.  If you are a veteran, current active or reserve military, or cop you get the range requirement waived too.  If no,t go to a local sanctioned match and shoot! Download the form, fill it out, notarize and viola!  Your on your way!

As for which rifle, the Springfield and HRA Service grades are top notch.  Now you will get varying responses but I attached a note asking for a high serial number SA SG and got a 5.7 million 1965 rebuild that was put away after rebuild and is basically a new rifle.  The barrel gages brand new, parkerizing is perfect and matching!  Like I said some will say that asking for a particular serial number range is moot but it "seemed" to work for me.  Also the HRA's are great.  Mine has beat up wood but a pristine LMR barrel, which are highly regarded in the accuracy realm of Garands, and the metal is 90%.  A new DGR stockset and a few small parts here and there and she will be a looker like her SA sister!

Go to www.jouster.com

This is where the world's Garand experts hang.  I'm serious, there are guys there that are known all over the place for their expertise in these rifles.  They are more than happy to help a FNG!

Thanks Valkyrie!

Pretty much ditto what Valkyre said, unless you can go to the CMP store (Camp Perry Oh)and pick one off the rack, get a service grade, many people buy rack grade rifles with the intention of rebarreling them either with another 30-06 bbl, or rebarrel to .308, at $400 it's not a bad idea provided everthing else is ok,you'd have about another $200 in it,I've got 2 service grade SA's from the CMP,both have the orginial bbls,(1945) and the bbl on the last one I bought is just about new,MW almost 1, TE 2, finish is about 98-99% ,I also restocked it with a fitted unfinished stock set from DGR, it looks like it came out of the box yesterday, You'll find that these rifles are very addicting,there's nothing like that "Ping" as the clips ejects on the last round,

dogcaller,

Here's a list of CMP affiliated clubs. Just click on California to get a list of clubs in your state.

My son and I attended a qualification class/match at Rio Salado Sportsmans Club, here in Arizona. We had a great time and met a lot of good people. I highly recommend it.

We received our Garands about a month later. Like Ralph said, there's nothing like it.