M1 Carbine - Are They Worth The $$$

[Worsley]

As cool as it is, having a cool gun too valuable to shoot makes as much sense to me as a cool car that isn’t driven.

My Tisas 1911A1 US Army was about 4 hundy.

It scratches my itch….

I guess it’s down to a mini 14 then

 

[ken792]

I guess it’s down to a mini 14 then

Find a GI M1 Carbine to shoot. There are a lot of them coming out of estates and old collections cheap. You just have to be patient for one to pop up and also find and grab it before someone else does.

 

[calicojack]

My 89 year old Father was in Korea. He confirmed the freezing up issue, they had the same problems with Garands. Lighter weight oil instead of grease helped. He indicated the failure to penetrate was largely urban legend and a convenient excuse for missing. He did say it was obviously "less harder hitting" than the guy next to you shooting a M2 .30-06 ball but then again it didn't weigh 10 lbs either.

When I was in High School and college, a neighbor of mine was a retired Army LTC. He served in WWII and Korea. He had been to an A Bomb test in the desert. They guy had been around the block once or twice. He LOVED the M1 Carbine and how light and handy it is. He liked it even better than the M16. Go figure.

 

[Red1917]

I love my M1 carbine, light, reliable with good mags, easily hits steel out to 200 yards. I shoot it in 3 gun matches fairly often. Would probably be the last C&R gun I’d ever sell.

Be patient and keep your eyes out for a GI carbine. You can still get them for $1200-1500 in good shape. If you’re going to spend that kind of money idk why you would go repro over GI

 

[smdub]

^this. I think you can get a nice GI one for <$1500. Not sure why one would pay way more for a repro.

 

[sxs]

^this. I think you can get a nice GI one for <$1500. Not sure why one would pay way more for a repro.

Here are some for right around 15 bills:

Get your original WWII M1 Carbine before the last supplies run out

We have the final shipment of original WWII M1 Carbines out of Africa for which State Department granted a retransfer authorization. These won't last long.

www.royaltigerimports.com

 

[dbledoc]

I have a used James River Arsenal version that is fun to shoot and much less $$.

 

[rgramjet]

Dusted mine off and took my daughter shooting. Its comfortable to and fun to shoot. Nice to give it some range time.

 

[Bountied]

So many other things I'd rather have for $1500+.

 

[sxs]

I love my M1 Carbine. I really haven't shot it all that much, but it is fun to shoot. It's also kind of special to me as it was the last firearm I acquired from oldcarjunkie before he passed.

 

[Trepang]

I am going to go out on a limb and say these were less than $2600 when you bought one.

Ordered it Aug 2021, Picked it up March 2022. I actually paid extra to get the match upgrades, a Winchester receiver, bolt, op rod and a chrome lined barrel.

 

[Trepang]

I don’t consider my Fulton Armory a repo. It’s a WWII USGI Winchester receiver, bolt, op rod and trigger assembly. Yes it has a new barrel and stock and misc small parts but so do the CMP Rack Special and Expert Grade Garands and I don’t consider them repos. It’s not a Collectors Grade nor is it an all original, numbers matching gun but IMHO I don’t consider it a repo.

But speaking of repos, I forgot I actually have three M1 Carbines.

In addition to the Inland and the Fulton Winchester, I have an Auto Ordnance repo. It’s fun and I don’t have to worry about banging up a more valuable piece of history. I got it NIB for a fraction of the cost of a USGI M1.

I guess I got lucky because I haven’t had any issues with it providing I use surplus USGI magazines. I shoot all three but I don’t worry about the AO getting banged up. That’s the one I hand to friends when we go shooting and I shoot the other two.

I am always on the lookout for a Rock-Ola to add to the collection. Not sure why, but I really want one.

Top down: CMP Inland Bavarian Rural Police, Fulton Armory Winchester, Auto Ordnance Repo

 

[Biggfoot44]

and our soldiers loved them.

Well , go to contemporary sources , and opinions were mixed , and often dependent upon context .

Not about the quality or reliability , but its design parameters , and roles . i.e. lots of GI liked the idea of weapon & ammo load weighing half- ish of a Garand .

 

[Biggfoot44]

My 89 year old Father was in Korea. He confirmed the freezing up issue, they had the same problems with Garands. Lighter weight oil instead of grease helped. He indicated the failure to penetrate was largely urban legend and a convenient excuse for missing. He did say it was obviously "less harder hitting" than the guy next to you shooting a M2 .30-06 ball but then again it didn't weigh 10 lbs either.

On that theme , Jim Higgenbothem has related a conversation with a friend and neighbor who was a Korea Vetran . The conversation came around to the combat effectiveness of the M1 Carbine . The reply stuck in my mind .

The direct quote was " The Carbine would penetrate Chinese Helmets at 300 yards " . At one level , that's a tribute to Old School Marksmanship skills . Between the lines , if he needed the enemy soldier to reliably drop , he had to take head shots .

 

[Biggfoot44]

Audie Murphy loved his “Lucky Carbine” and wired it back together when the stock was broken by a mortar round. Murphy was also deadly accurate with it which speaks to his skills and abilities.

No doubt about the marksmanship or courage of Murphy .

But an additional factor was Murphy was a little guy . 5'5" tall , and 112 lb at enlistment . A Garand is proportionally huge for someone that size . Undoubtedly he could get on target faster with the Carbine .

 

[Biggfoot44]

He liked it even better than the M16. Go figure.

That one is obvious ! ( You & I might or might not agree , but his thought process was obvious .)

The stock fit , balance , and handling qualities of the M1 Carbine was substantially similar to Real Rifles . The M16 was weird , and felt strange .

 

[JRisBundyboyz]

I recently completed CMP but finding a price on their website isn’t possible. I assume because they’re in stock like they used to be. All I saw were 4 guns for auction and I’m not paying that price.

I think I’m a decade or to late on trying to buy one.

 

[smdub]

CMP hasn't had (bulk) carbines for sale in ages. The very few they get go through auction and command high prices. Its best to search GunBroker, shows, classifieds, etc.

 

[TheOriginalMexicanBob]

I still have the Quality Hardware Carbine (with Rock-Ola barrel) my dad bought through the NRA back in the ‘60s. The invoice with it says he paid the princely sum of $17.50 + $2.50 shipping…mailed directly to the house.

 

[Bountied]

I still have the Quality Hardware Carbine (with Rock-Ola barrel) my dad bought through the NRA back in the ‘60s. The invoice with it says he paid the princely sum of $17.50 + $2.50 shipping…mailed directly to the house.

I'd definitely be in on one for $20. Not $2000 though. What's $20 from 1960 worth today?

Edit: after a quick google search it's about $200 today still a good deal on any gun.