HELP - Garand feeding problem

[CaptG]

Here's one I need some advice on. My new (to Me) CMP Garand is having feeding problems. When I load a clip, the bolt does not close. If I pull it all the way back and release it, it will move the top round in the mag about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch. If I pull it all the way back again and release it, it will chamber the round. Function after this is normal. I've changed the op rod spring, the spare I had was new and was about 3/4 of an inch longer than the old one. No change in the problem.

Any ideas?

Thanks
Guy  

[Appalacious]

That's a "timing" issue I think.  Somewhere in the feeding mechanism theres a problem of some kind.  Its pretty common actually.
Both of mine do that too, the fix is to simply "bump" the charging handle after you enter the clip.  It should slam closed then.  Don't pull it back, just bump it forward.

J

[eaglescouter]

It is very normal for the oprod to need an 'assist' on closing after loading an enblock.  Simply slap the oprod handle in the forward direction with the heel of your hand and it should slam closed.

[CaptG]

OK. Thanks. After all the warnings about M1 thumb I've heard, I really wondered if I had a big problem, but I'd much rather have to bump the charging handle than watch my thumb swell up while I said all kinds of bad words.
Guy

[eaglescouter]

OK. Thanks. After all the warnings about M1 thumb I've heard, I really wondered if I had a big problem, but I'd much rather have to bump the charging handle than watch my thumb swell up while I said all kinds of bad words.
Guy

Don't worry about missing out on the "M1 Thumb", you will acquire yours when you least expect it, and probably with an unloaded rifle.

[Nickle]

It is very normal for the oprod to need an 'assist' on closing after loading an enblock.  Simply slap the oprod handle in the forward direction with the heel of your hand and it should slam closed.

IIRC, they actually are supposed to work like that.

Mine does, and I love it. People actually pay $$$ for a Holbrook device, when all you have to do is find a properly timed M1.

[AFTERMATH]

OK. Thanks. After all the warnings about M1 thumb I've heard, I really wondered if I had a big problem, but I'd much rather have to bump the charging handle than watch my thumb swell up while I said all kinds of bad words.
Guy

Don't worry about missing out on the "M1 Thumb", you will acquire yours when you least expect it, and probably with an unloaded rifle.

That's how I got mine!  It wasn't nearlly as bad as it sounds, though.   Maybe I'm tough or maybe I just got lucky...

[Colorado Pete]

The very first clip I ever loaded into my first M1 the first time I had it at the range had the bolt chamber the top round when I released the op rod handle. That was in April 1994, four M1's ago, and I've never had it happen since, with any of them. Have had to bump the handle every time.

I don't know that it's a 'timing' issue (as I understand it, timing has to do more with the clip latch grabbing/releasing the clip and/or the op rod being captured/released by the op rod latch, all based on where the magazine follower is in its arc of motion), but a full clip has some serious grip on all the cartridges. Just try pulling a cartridge out with your fingers some time. Once the first one is stripped, most of the clip tension is gone, and the remaining rounds are mostly pressured upwards by the magazine follower, whose power comes from the rear end of the op rod spring.

Just pop the op rod handle with the heel of your hand. Might want to make sure the muzzle isn't pointed over the berm, just in case.

[Law man]

 Most M1s will start out with the op rod not going forward automatically. After a while the parts will wear in and youl have a fast loading M1

[AFTERMATH]

Most M1s will start out with the op rod not going forward automatically. After a while the parts will wear in and youl have a fast loading M1

That's when you let your guard down...

btw...I've seen M1 thumb now, and I guess I didn't get it yet...

[douglas34474]

I would think that after 50+ years the parts are about as 'broke in' as they are going to get.

Timing has to do with the release of the bolt on insertion of a fresh clip. The bolt should be released just at the point the clip latch catches the clip or ever so slightly after. The 'timing' is controlled by the small tab on the bullet guide that the accelerator in the op rad catch rides on. If the BG tip is worn, the bolt will not release. If too high, the bolt releases early and the clip will not catch before the bolt goes forward.

Having to bump the op rod handle is normal, but not by design. Take some steel wool and polish the park smooth on the inside of the clip. This will improve feeding.

Hold the op rod back with the heal of your hand to prevent the op rod from going forward when you load the fresh clip. As the round starts to chamber, roll your thumb out of the way as you let the bolt go forward. If the bolt only goes forward a little, bump the op rod with the butt of your hand and let 'er rip.

[Earl]

One thing I have held since getting my M1 Garand last Fall, it should have come with a big ugly DI that would wear me out on what the rifle and I needed to know about each other. It is a fine rifle but just a little more fear and expert knowledge that every GI and Marine got in WWII and Korea during training. I do remember what my first machine gun instructor told me about the M60 and malfunctions, hit it hard it is only a piece of metal. It worked fine clearing an AR on the range Sunday, and my issues with loading two rounds are many many long practices ago.