M1 Garand upgrades

 

Another piece of history came through the shop: the semiautomatic rifle that won the war for US Gi’s during WWII. The Famous Springfield M1 Garand, which saw service from 1936 to 1957, was replaced by its big brother, the M14 (M1A).

The M1 Garand is a .30 Cal (.30-06 Springfield, gas-operated, eight-round “clip” feed rifle, where the shooter places the clip into the internal “magazine”. Yes, it used a clip. Today, we have the luxury of using box feed magazines, which were one of the differences between its big brother, the M14(M1A) rifle. They changed the furniture, re-chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO, and added a 20-round box feed magazine. Interesting fact, the M1 Garand was also re-chambered to 7.62x51 and saw action early in the Korean conflict before being retired from service.

A common injury from the M1 Garand is called “Garand-thumb”. This is where the shooter’s thumb gets smashed by the bolt slamming home during the loading process. 

Thumb trapped by bolt.

The painful results of the Garand Thumb.

This was later fixed in the M14(M1A). By replacing the Operating Rod Catch Assembly with a Holbrook Device, we eliminate this painful oops.

Operating Rod Catch Assembly left and new Holbrook Device on the right.

We start by field stripping the rifle and removing the Operating Rod with spring. Next, pull the retaining pin for the Operating Rod Catch Assembly. Pull the Operating Rod Catch Assembly free and replace it with the Holbrook Device, then push the retaining pin back in place.

Field stripped M1 Garand.

Close-up of installed Holbrook Device.

Reassemble the M1 Garand by placing the Operating Rod with spring back in place, attaching the stock, and installing the trigger group.

Operating Rod and Holbrook Device in place before installing the stock.

Next, we install the Garand Gear Ported Gas Plug (TM) which has an open area in the base of the screw that increases the starting volume of the gas cylinder. This causes the peak gas pressures in the gas cylinder to drop by over 30%, allowing you to safely shoot commercial ammunition hassle-free in your M1 Garand.

Garand Gear Ported Gas Plug (TM).

Garand Gear Ported Gas Plug (TM) installed in M1 Garand.

We love working on history as much as we love the new stuff. My father trained with the M1 Garand during the tail end of WWII before transitioning to the M1 Carbine and being sent to the Philippines. We are proud to have helped our customer upgrade this legendary iconic rifle.