M-1 Garand question

[oremike]

Can you shoot 180 gr round noses in a Garand? If so what's the preferred load? Any thing I'd need to know before attempting this?

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[Certaindeaf]

@oremike
Pretty much any factory load will fit in the magazine of any rifle of a given caliber and work.. save for ultra-light, (like Accelerators or perhaps varmint 110's) and ultra-heavy might batter the gun. A handload that mimics a standard factory load in 180gr should be fine for your rifle as there has been and still is 180gr milsurlp ammo in that weight that was designed for and used in that rifle.
Oh edit, I wouldn't load a whole pile until you establish that it'll actually feed round nosers reliably into the chamber
good luck

 

[Mark W.]

I own a M1 Garand And feeding it is not a matter of what fits the magazine or will chamber.

M1 Garands are not able to tolerate a steady diet of modern commercial .30-06 rounds. The pressure curve is different, due to the faster burning powder and/or heavier bullets used. As a result, the excessive force on the Garand's gas system can result in a bent operating rod or cracked receiver heel. Firing the occasional handful of modern rounds probably won't hurt it, but it's not something you should make a habit of.

If you want to shoot primarily modern commercial ammo in a Garand, you'll need to invest in an adjustable gas plug. This allows you to regulate the amount of gas that is being fed into the gas system. Unfortunately, they have to be tweaked at the range through trial and error for each new type of ammo you want to run through it, so it's not a "drop in and forget it" kind of part.


http://www.garandgear.com/m1-garand-ammunition

 

[Stomper]

^^^This.... beat me to it^^^

use caution with modern rounds.

 

[erudne]

just use the same powder as they used in WW2

 

[oremike]

I will be reloading for my Garand, I have a pet 180gr RN load that shoots well but it uses W760 powder, some forums say that is too slow of a powder for the Garand and will bend the operating rod, others say the ball powder(s) will work fine. So will I be able to "tune" my rifle to this load with the adjustable gas plug?

 

[Mark W.]

the closest Powder to WWII era M2 Ball ammo I know of is IMR 4895 if you use the same amount of 4895 as the M2 Ball ammo load with a 180 gr slug you will get a higher pressure curve and most likely damage.

You best bet is to either by factory ammo labeled as for M1 Garands (I've even seen it at Bi Mart) or surplus ammo or get a NEW reloading manual and follow the M1 Garand Load data exactly.

Or by an adjustable gas block and tune your rifle to the ammo you want to be using. EACH AMMO as the tune will change.

 

[jbett98]

There is an alternative to the adjustable gas block.
It's a hollowed out ported gas block that delays the critical spike in pressure that comes from using modern ammo.
Here's a link to it.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct...IosnvSR6EviJeb5VA&sig2=lrP043ZZsDm2e8DeL60N7Q

 

[oremike]

I own a M1 Garand And feeding it is not a matter of what fits the magazine or will chamber.

M1 Garands are not able to tolerate a steady diet of modern commercial .30-06 rounds. The pressure curve is different, due to the faster burning powder and/or heavier bullets used. As a result, the excessive force on the Garand's gas system can result in a bent operating rod or cracked receiver heel. Firing the occasional handful of modern rounds probably won't hurt it, but it's not something you should make a habit of.

If you want to shoot primarily modern commercial ammo in a Garand, you'll need to invest in an adjustable gas plug. This allows you to regulate the amount of gas that is being fed into the gas system. Unfortunately, they have to be tweaked at the range through trial and error for each new type of ammo you want to run through it, so it's not a "drop in and forget it" kind of part.


http://www.garandgear.com/m1-garand-ammunition

Thanks Mark, looks like that'll work for my application, have you used the garand gear ported plug and if so did it work as advertised?

 

[Mark W.]

Thanks Mark, looks like that'll work for my application, have you used the garand gear ported plug and if so did it work as advertised?

I only shoot ammo I have loaded myself so I just load to the firearm I am shooting.