Garand - Born On Date and Other Questions

[HammBone]

I've had a Garand for about 15 years, but to be honest, it has been mainly a safe queen. I've had it out a few times, but have never had much ammo for it and all my other newer rifles got the attention. Now that I'm more involved in Appleseed and reloading, I want to change that. And I want to shoot expert scores with it.

First question: Is there any reason not to shoot it? It's in great shape, but to me it just looks like a Garand. I assume it's been through several armory refits since 1943. It came out of the CMP through a friend of mine. He obtained it while he was up for the Camp Perry shoot. Is there anything I should look for to determine if it's more of a collector than a shooter? And even if it is a collector, shooting it shouldn't hurt it, right?

Next, the born on date. I just put this information together with a few web searches and have made what I think are good assumptions, but you Garand experts may know better.

My Garand - Winchester Repeating Arms S/N 2340929

The serial number starts bracketing that one are:

Oct 1943  - 2334032
Nov 1943 - 2349632

Rifles produced in Oct 1943: 2349632 - 2334032 = 15600
Rifles produced per day: 15600/31 = 503 (I assumed 7 days per week based on the war demand.)
My rifle 2340929 - 2334032 = 6897th rifle produced in Oct 1943
6897/503 = 13.7 days (number of days into the Oct 1943 production)
Therefore, my rifle was produced  around the 13th or 14th of October 1943. Sound plausible?

Now, reloading. I've read the very good information on the forum about reloading for the 30 caliber battle rifles and I understand the watch-outs and have the tools and gauges to load safely. Are there any "heavily favored" loads for the Garand to shoot Appleseed KD stuff?

Finally, the glove. I see many guys with the heavier battle rifles using a big mitt/glove on the support hand. I understand this is to take away some of the sling pressure and to protect the lead fingers from the swivel in the multiple recoils. Are there any brand/models that are favored by the AS folks particularly or the high power guys/girls in general?

[Maximum Ordinate]

1.  A pallet of Garand receivers might not have been completed in sequential order. I think the closest you're going to get is October 1943, but if picking a birthday for your rifle makes you happy... 

2.  There are a number of videos & articles out there about field stripping, cleaning, greasing, and reassembling the Garand.  I'd start there with your rifle.  If it passes each step of the function test, there's probably no reason to not shoot it.

3.  Most reloading books will provide special (lighter) loads for the Garand to avoid putting too much stress on the oprod.  I rarely recommend grabbing a recipe off the internet, but Master Po's data is well regarded.  You can find it here:  http://masterpostemple.bravepages.com/M1load.htm  I still recommend everyone follows good reloading procedures and works loads up slowly and methodically, regardless how authoritative the recipe might be.

4.  When I shoot Appleseed with a glove, I usually just shoot with Mechanix gloves.  They are cheap and provide a bit of protection against the cold or a picatinny rail.  When I shoot high power, I favor a Creedmoor fingerless glove.  There are plenty of other fine shooting gloves out there. 

Good luck with your Garand!   

v/r
MO

[2 clicks low]

As it was sold by the CMP at Camp Perry, it is a shooter. The collector models (when available) are sold on their web site via auction.
Grease it and shoot it.
2cl

[HammBone]

Thanks for the replies. I will shoot it. Picked up some IMR4895 powder and some 150 gr bullets at Cabelas over the weekend. My buddy has promised me some good brass. Will get to the range soon and see how it does.

[maxwell]

3.  Most reloading books will provide special (lighter) loads for the Garand to avoid putting too much stress on the oprod.  I rarely recommend grabbing a recipe off the internet, but Master Po's data is well regarded.  You can find it here:  http://masterpostemple.bravepages.com/M1load.htm  I still recommend everyone follows good reloading procedures and works loads up slowly and methodically, regardless how authoritative the recipe might be.

FWIW, I'd consider those max loads, maybe 2-3 grains more than you need for accuracy, so watch for pressure signs and work up. They're even hotter than the service rifle loads listed on Radomski's website, which tend to be pretty hot in general.

http://www.radomski.us/njhp/cart_tech.htm

For Appleseed KD, you can just pick a standard load or starting load from your manual and shoot it. It's a huge target .