M1 Garand sighting in today.

[Hamourkiller]

I think you enjoy will the rifle and shooting the normal Winchester and Remington 150 gr Factory loads will not harm the beast.

Hold on a second. Are you talking about modern ammunition? Does anyone concur with this?

If you pull the factory ammo bullet and weigh the powder, you will know if it will work in the M1 Garand. 52 grs or less should be good to go. Powder charge weight is what gets the op rod. A slow burn powder takes large amounts to get good velocity. Medium burn rates take around 50 grs to get good velocity. So if the factory load has the 50 to 52 gr charge it will work good with the Garand.

If you faint at the prospect that the op rod will bend and jump out and beat you up, well get an adjustable gas screw and tame the beast.

Some people would have the M1 loaded down to 300 savage levels for fear of the op rod, I just keep my powders around 50 grs and my bullets at 150 to 168 and target 2700 fps for the 168 and 2800 for the 150 gr bullets.

Have fun and enjoy the rifle.

[C-dub]

I think you enjoy will the rifle and shooting the normal Winchester and Remington 150 gr Factory loads will not harm the beast.

Hold on a second. Are you talking about modern ammunition? Does anyone concur with this?

If you pull the factory ammo bullet and weigh the powder, you will know if it will work in the M1 Garand. 52 grs or less should be good to go. Powder charge weight is what gets the op rod. A slow burn powder takes large amounts to get good velocity. Medium burn rates take around 50 grs to get good velocity. So if the factory load has the 50 to 52 gr charge it will work good with the Garand.

If you faint at the prospect that the op rod will bend and jump out and beat you up, well get an adjustable gas screw and tame the beast.

Some people would have the M1 loaded down to 300 savage levels for fear of the op rod, I just keep my powders around 50 grs and my bullets at 150 to 168 and target 2700 fps for the 168 and 2800 for the 150 gr bullets.

Have fun and enjoy the rifle.

Thank you very much!

I don't have any reloading equipment yet, so I'm not up to pulling anything. I could get an adjustable gas screw, but think I would rather keep it as is and just get safe ammo until I can reload my own.

[9mmfan]

That is definitely the safe way to go, but the gas plug runs all of $35, and simply screws in, no permanent modifications required. It is a nice option to have. I bought one before I received my M1, have yet to install it, but may use it yet. There are, if I recall correctly, two kinds, McCann(?) and Schuster. One dials in, the other has multiple discs with variously sized apertures. Now that I think, garandgear.com sells a no-adjustment-needed hollowed out version. These all vent, or give extra room for gas near the port near the end of the barrel. The burn rate of the powder vs the weight of the projectile (IMR 4895 and a 150 or 168 grain bullet, iirc) combines to form a pressure curve for which the gas system was designed. These plugs allow for a greater variance in said pressure. I have heard, and will stick to it, whether or not it is true, that 170 grain is still the heaviest bullet one should use. It might be 180 grn. But I am not sure enough in my memory to say for a fact. I am sure wiser heads will comment further.
To recap, the adjustable/replacement plugs are a non-permanent handy thing to have around.

[SQLGeek]

I'm late to the party but congats on joining the club. M1's are a lot of fun to shoot. Just watch out for the M1 thumb.

[C-dub]

I've been seeing a bunch of 30-06 150gr. ammo on the shelves lately. Will any 150gr. be safe in an M1?

[The Annoyed Man]

I've been seeing a bunch of 30-06 150gr. ammo on the shelves lately. Will any 150gr. be safe in an M1?

Absolutely yes, as long as the charge isn't too heavy. But the 3 grain difference between a 147 grain and a 150 grain pill is negligible. I would guess that any 150 grain load that produces the same muzzle velocity in the same length barrel with the same twist rate as a Garand that is produced by a 147 grain bullet in a Garand is probably safe for a Garand. I doubt that the 3 grain difference in weight would make that much difference in the pressure to do something like bend an operating rod.

[C-dub]

I've been seeing a bunch of 30-06 150gr. ammo on the shelves lately. Will any 150gr. be safe in an M1?

Absolutely yes, as long as the charge isn't too heavy. But the 3 grain difference between a 147 grain and a 150 grain pill is negligible. I would guess that any 150 grain load that produces the same muzzle velocity in the same length barrel with the same twist rate as a Garand that is produced by a 147 grain bullet in a Garand is probably safe for a Garand. I doubt that the 3 grain difference in weight would make that much difference in the pressure.

Thanks TAM. I guess I still have a bunch of reading to do on this rifle.

[The Annoyed Man]

I've been seeing a bunch of 30-06 150gr. ammo on the shelves lately. Will any 150gr. be safe in an M1?

Absolutely yes, as long as the charge isn't too heavy. But the 3 grain difference between a 147 grain and a 150 grain pill is negligible. I would guess that any 150 grain load that produces the same muzzle velocity in the same length barrel with the same twist rate as a Garand that is produced by a 147 grain bullet in a Garand is probably safe for a Garand. I doubt that the 3 grain difference in weight would make that much difference in the pressure.

Thanks TAM. I guess I still have a bunch of reading to do on this rifle.

Well I'm certainly no expert on it. I used to own an M1A, and the mechanisms are for all practical purposes identical. With the M1A, too high pressures can damage the gun, and the damage usually centers around bending the operating rod. I've heard of things like shearing off the bolt lugs, but I can't imagine what kind of abuse you'd have to give it to do that. They are, after all, battle rifles and they are supposed to be rugged and reliable. The two things that will cause high pressures are really hot loads, and really heavy bullets. I don't know if high pressures can adversely effect the timing of the ignition/ejection/reloading cycle or not, but it is something to consider, as might be any damaging changes to headspacing and stuff like that. G26ster is a fountain of knowledge about Garands, and I know there are others on this board as well.

[C-dub]

I've been seeing a bunch of 30-06 150gr. ammo on the shelves lately. Will any 150gr. be safe in an M1?

Absolutely yes, as long as the charge isn't too heavy. But the 3 grain difference between a 147 grain and a 150 grain pill is negligible. I would guess that any 150 grain load that produces the same muzzle velocity in the same length barrel with the same twist rate as a Garand that is produced by a 147 grain bullet in a Garand is probably safe for a Garand. I doubt that the 3 grain difference in weight would make that much difference in the pressure.

Thanks TAM. I guess I still have a bunch of reading to do on this rifle.

Well I'm certainly no expert on it. I used to own an M1A, and the mechanisms are for all practical purposes identical. With the M1A, too high pressures can damage the gun, and the damage usually centers around bending the operating rod. I've heard of things like shearing off the bolt lugs, but I can't imagine what kind of abuse you'd have to give it to do that. They are, after all, battle rifles and they are supposed to be rugged and reliable. The two things that will cause high pressures are really hot loads, and really heavy bullets. I don't know if high pressures can adversely effect the timing of the ignition/ejection/reloading cycle or not, but it is something to consider, as might be any damaging changes to headspacing and stuff like that. G26ster is a fountain of knowledge about Garands, and I know there are others on this board as well.

I did manage to get one of those 500 round cans from Cabelas last month and figured it would last quite a while, but it sure is fun to shoot. I may have to get some of that CMP stuff if I'm going to keep shooting it. Their price is supposed to be more reasonable than most.

[gmckinl]

I've been seeing a bunch of 30-06 150gr. ammo on the shelves lately. Will any 150gr. be safe in an M1?

Read this if you haven't already...
http://www.garandgear.com/index.php?opt ... d&catid=39" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[C-dub]

I've been seeing a bunch of 30-06 150gr. ammo on the shelves lately. Will any 150gr. be safe in an M1?

Read this if you haven't already...
http://www.garandgear.com/index.php?opt ... d&catid=39" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thanks. I have already seen that. lol You showed us that link on page 2 of this thread. I decided not to get that, for now at least, and stick with ammo safe to shoot in it as it is.

[C-dub]

My copy of Julian Hatcher's Book of the Garand arrived yesterday. I only made it through the first two chapters last night. This is supposed to be, pretty much, the Garand bible, so I've got some really good reading ahead of me.