A few Garand questions

Here I go with another thread about the Garand... but I have a few questions now that I physically have it and have had a chance to play with it... Range time will be this weekend :bier:

1. How do I load the darn thing without it biting my thumb? Can't say I've figured that out yet.

2. How do you lock the bolt open with a clip in?

3. What is a good Garand cleaning kit or is a regular cleaning kit good enough? I heard it requires a special oil.

4. Is the safety usually tense flipping it on and off, or does it depend on the gun? You have to put a little effort into mine to turn it on.

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Originally Posted by Pro2A

Here I go with another thread about the Garand... but I have a few questions now that I physically have it and have had a chance to play with it... Range time will be this weekend :bier:

1. How do I load the darn thing without it biting my thumb? Can't say I've figured that out yet.

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When you push the clip in with your thumb the palm of your hand should move down the side of the stock so that when the bolt releases the cocking handle hits the heel of your hand. Then when the clip "locks" in place you move your hand out of the way. It can take some practice.

The injury actually had a name in the old days... "M1 Thumb" :hand10:

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Originally Posted by rstickle

When you push the clip in with your thumb the palm of your hand should move down the side of the stock so that when the bolt releases the cocking handle hits the heel of your hand. Then when the clip "locks" in place you move your hand out of the way. It can take some practice.

The injury actually had a name in the old days... "M1 Thumb" :hand10:

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Ya I already got bit once...

It was not pleasant :rant:

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The injury actually had a name in the old days... "M1 Thumb"

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Been there Done that.
Forty years later and my left thumb nail still shows the damage.

1 & 2. As rstickle states, the right hand firmly grasps the right side of the rifle with the side of the hand retaining the handle in the rear position as the thumb presses the loaded clip home. The bolt is designed to stay back if the clip is pressed completely home into the magazine. A quick bump with the heel of the hand closes the bolt.

The problem arises when the clip isn't fully depressed yet the bolt is inadvertently or purposely released. I'm a slow learner and have experienced "M1 Thumb" twice in my life, both times on the firing line.

Here's a clip my brother-in-law sneakily took of me shooting a prone rapid fire stage in a local match last summer. It doesn't show the complete stage but does show a reload. It also shows how one who is over 50 gets into prone, hah!

[IMG]http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...h_DSCF2262.jpg[/IMG]

3. I put together a WWII set with combo tool, 3-piece rod in canvas case, oiler, and chamber mirror for my rifle for fun but actually use standard one-piece steel rod with a brass rod guide, .30 bronze brush and a .30 jag for patches. Chamber is cleaned with a short rod with a worn .45 bronze brush then swabbed.

4. You ain't cool if you don't use Lubriplate grease on your M1. I'm going to be heretical and say that I've used only machine oil on my M1 for many years rather than the grease, so I ain't cool. I dislike gun grease so avoid it when possible. Some will howl but my rifle remains in outstanding condition after many thousands of rounds with no appreciable wear and it gives perfect function at all times. It is oiled before each use. It doesn't require much oil. For long term field use I suppose I'd break out the Lubriplate but for "civilian" use I'll stick with the oil.

5. Yes the safety on the average M1 is fairly stiff, both in engaging and disengaging. My rifle's safety was stiff enough to be painful to push off with the back of the trigger finger when I first started shooting it. With use it has become easier to disengage.

If you're lucky and things work right, the bolt won't close until you bump the charging handle forward. The advice given is very true, putting the rear side of your right palm in the way of an errant forward moving charging handle/bolt is ALWAYS the thing to do. Then when it does'nt move forward, just smack it with your right palm and you're good to go.
When you load the en-bloc clip, imagine your thumb is pushing down into molten metal and pull it back IMMEDIATELY. This should preclude the dreaded M-1 thumb!
Remember this...anything that hurts you on that side of a 30-06, hurts much worse on the other end.