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Old 04-16-2018, 10:48 PM
Ivan the Butcher Ivan the Butcher is offline
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Location: Harlem, Ohio
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I have been playing with and loading for M-1 Carbines since 1979. Most of what should be said about the M-1 has already been covered above!

On factory ammo; I have had very good success with Winchester Soft Hollow Points, I picked up 6 boxes at a very good price, at a gun store closing. I have scoped 2 of my M-1's and have a T-3 Night scoped 1943 IBM. With 4x scopes you will/should be able to keep 5 shots in a groundhog sized target at 200 yards. (5 or 6") with this ammo.
Note: All American ammo ever made is primed with non-corrosive primers. HOWEVER: there was a batch of Chinese made ammo marked 44 that is Berdan Primed and extremely corrosive!(This hit the country in the early to mid 80's and is in boxes that say it is American made!)

I have found that my wife and my daughter have trouble holding up a full sized AR, AK or bolt action rifle; but could use M-1 Carbines without and strength issues (Mini-14 were the only other rifle that worked for them and never tried a M-4 cloan). 30 round magazines were made for full auto M-2 Carbines! They interfere with prone shooting and shooting through some barricades, I stick with the 15 round version. I picked up a crate of 100 about 25 years ago and kept 20 (a real lifetime supply!) When doing farm work, one mag will be far more than all the pests I get a shot at in a day. When carrying for hunting or plinking, 1 in the carbine and a few in the pockets are plenty (for the end of the world, you can't carry all you will need!)

General comment; The 32-20 rifle loading is about the same thing power wise and the M-1 is a semi-auto for fast follow-up shots.

30 carbine has had all the power needed to put car struck animals out of their misery, up to and including steers. With 110 grain factory ammo, it is the same power as a 357 mag 110 grain out of a lever action or a little more! I don't hunt with FMJ ammo in any rifle or hand gun! And I don't try to shoot 600 yard targets/game with a 200 yard gun and ammo either. If you stay within the limitations of the M-1 Carbine, you should be quite satisfied.

Ivan

On reloads; stick to WW296/H110 for powder! On cast bullets you must use bullets with a gas check, unless you wish to clog the gas system! I use 115 grain FP or RN bullets sized to .309" and on heavily worn barrels sized to .314". These should be hard cast! There are kits for hollow pointing bullets with either 1/16" or 1/8" drill bits, with the hard cast bullets I use the 1/8" hole! I bought the Carbide sizing die back in the early 80's when they were $70, this is a round you don't want to use Lube on! All military ammo I saw has crimped primers, the need removed befor you try to insert new primers.
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