M1 Carbine?

[Willie D]

Anyone know anything about what to look for/avoid when buying an M1 Carbine? I want to get a good dependable shooter and don't want to pay for rarity. Are the various makes all reliable? What about new ones? I've heard that maybe the IMI versions were crappy.

Most I've seen are $600+ but I've found two in the $300-$400 range. Are these neccessarily bad?

Magazine wise: are there good and bad mags?


Thanks.

[mikepro8]

Best thing you can do is check the muzzle wear - If you want a good shooter, make sure there is some bore left in it! Beat up stocks are not big deal, you can get replacements at most any gun show or even cheaperthandirt.com.
The other thing you are going to keep an eye on is manufacturer. Universal manufactured a bunch of carbines (post wars), however, despite their name, some of their parts do not interchange well with USGI parts.
Inland manufactured the most during the war, therefore "less desireable" to collectors. I have an inland and it shoots wonderfully. 30 carbine ammo is going up up up just like most other ammo.

[Karys]

I just bought my first M1 carbine through the CMP. It hasn't been delivered yet. I'd recommend you get one through them. A rack grade Inland can be had for $419. Rack grade Underwoods are $479. I got a rack grade Winchester.

I'd say the most important thing to check is the muzzle wear. You can use a gage but a .30-06 bullet works just as well.

Their site has all the info you need. Be sure to check out the article on M1 magazines.

http://www.odcmp.com/rifles/carbine.htm

[wellcraft]

willed, checkout surplus city guns at 305 Bustleton pike, feasterville, pa. they have a nice selection of m1 carbines price around 500 bucks. i believe these are imports from isreal and appear to be good shooters. the stocks are in good shape with nicks/dings but no cracks, the metal is in good shape with minimal finish wear. depending were you live in philly surplus city is no more than a 45 minute drive.

[brian]

stick with usgi guns. avoid commercial made carbines, they are just too much of crap shoot...even the new ones being made now are not fool proof.
import marked is fine, as long as the gun in question isn't junk....alot, not all, but alot of the re-imported guns are trashed.

[pred]

Take a 3006 round with you, check for muzzle wear, and choose wisely, I was at Surplus city for about 1 hour looking at about 15 M1 carbines they had, I kept sorting through them condition wise until I found 2 or 3 that seemed to be the best of what they had, Then I mulled over the 2-3 until I found the one I liked the character best, Took it home, stripped and cleaned it, metal and wood, Now it is clean and happy and shoots very well!!
Be picky, Be choosey, And be prepared to spent 500 to get a good one,
DO NOT spend much more!
Peter.