M1 Garand Reloading

[Navybowhunter]

Hey all,

Have had great success in this forum with questions for suggestions/advice, so figured I'd post this one up.

Have a M1 Garand, re-barreled with the Criterion match barrel. Gorgeous gun for sure.

Have a spam can of greek 1973 surplus ammo, and also 200 rounds of Federal M1 Garand 150 gr factory ammo.

I will have plenty of brass, and do have the de-swager for the milsurp.

I reload for .308, and was able to score some more H4895 powder. It has been a long wait for that stuff.

In the meantime, I bought 2 boxes (100) of the 150 SMK's with intentions to reload for the Garand.

After some more research, since the powder is finally on the way, I am getting some conflicting info.

First on the powder. Is H4895 an "accuracy" powder for the M1? I am reading now that 4064 would be better?

I have some IMR 4895, and could use that, what are your thoughts? IMR or H4895?

150 SMK? Should I stay with that or go with the 168's?

Primers......I have a lot of WLR and Fed 210 primers. I have been reading about possible "slam fire" issues with the FED 210's? I also see where it is recommended by many to use the CCI34's? Of course unavailable at the present time.

So....., anyone have any experience loading for an M1 Garand with 150 SMK's using FED 210 or WLR primers, and H4895 powder?

Appreciate the info. I am somewhat limited with the supplies I have now, and would like to be able to work up a load with what I have, in particular using H4895 cause logistically that would be better for me as it works for my .308 loads also.

Appreciate the replies in advance!

R/
Chris

 

[Kentucky Jelly]

All 3 of those powders will work well. I do use the 34's, but would not hesitate to use the win or fed. I get great results with 168gr A max. The greek brass is good stuff as well. There is a lot of M1 load info out there. Google the cmp forums, or service rifle forums.

 

[bigedp51]

Use nothing slower than IMR4064, the rifle was designed around IMR4895 and a 150 grain bullet.

Reloading for semiauto rifles
C.E. Harris
Reloader Magazine May-June 1989

 

[Silverbullet2]

I shot plenty of 06 in the Garand for Highpower back in the 80's. We ran IMR 4895 for all yardages. 150 grain for 200, 168's for 300, and 600. I'd start there. Best of luck, J

 

[Huckleberry75]

Hornady match load is 46.5gns of Varget behind a 168 Amax. I load this in HXP brass and it shoots quite well.

 

[leadbullet]

52 gr of H335 with a 150 gr works well in my M1

 

[FLIGHT762]

I've shot a bit of H-335 in my 30/06 Garands with a 150 grain FMJ or SP. I got stretched primer pockets and extractor / ejector marks with 49 grains of H-335 in 1953 GI cases. The load was way too hot. I found 45-46 grains of H-335 was safer and shot very well. I can't imagine loading 52 grains.

 

[Grumulkin]

I would use mil spec primers if possible. I think it's uncommon but it's said that at times other primers can lead to a slam fire. That said, I've shot hundreds of rounds in an M1A and Garand using Federal 210M primers with no problem.

There is also the small base die issue. Many times you don't need one but there is the exception which happened to be me. I had numerous closed bolt slam fires until I went to small base dies for my Garand.

My powder of choice is IMR 4064 which, at least around here, is on the shelves.

The word from someone who should know is never use any bullet heavier than 180 grains in a Garand. If your gun had an adjustable gas lock, you could go as heavy as you wanted. I've had the best success with 168 grainers.

 

[rpk762]

Win primers are fine. Just do not just let the bolt fly on a round in the chamber ride it half way home then let it go when single loading.

I have burnt a few of those barrels out and so far I have never needed my small base die.

You will want to keep an eye on your shoulder bump. My brass the shoulder is short until the second or third firing.

 

[sermonator]

So, not to hijack the thread, but I've often heard some say never to shoot anything other than 150s in a M1. It seems from these posts that is not about the weight of the bullet, but the pressure curve of slow powders vs. the faster powders the M1 was designed for; is that correct? Using 168s with fast powders isn't going to create problems with the op-rod; correct?

 

[rg1911]

While still able to shoot the Highpower matches before back surgery, I used surplus IMR4895 with 168-grain bullets in my CMP Garand. The batch of powder I had was a little slower than regular IMR4895 but not as slow as IMR4064.

I later used the same powder/bullet combination when I transitioned to a match-grade M1A.

Richard