Pictured below is the final outcome of a project that has been in the works for over ten years. This is a build of a M1 carbine that I assembled from scratch by handpicking every single part from new/unused old stock USGI parts, with the exception of the receiver (noted below). I assembled this M1 carbine to be configured as close as possible to be like one rolling off the assembly line just before the war ended in mid-1945

The receiver is a commercially manufactured one made by Springfield, Inc. Springfield, Inc., annouced in the late 1990's that they planned to make complete M1 carbine, I still have an copy of Shotgun News from around 1998 with a advertisement indicating as much. For some reason, complete M1 carbines from Springfield, Inc., never materialized but they did start selling carbine receivers. At the time these receivers were getting very favorable reviews so I bought one and was very impressed and I ended up ordering several more at around 80 bucks each. This carbine uses the last of the receivers I bought in 1999.

The barrel is a unissued late production Winchester barrel that I bought at a gunshow in 2001. Most of the rest of the parts were made either by Winchester or by a subcontractor for Winchester. The rear sight is late war milled adjustable type, it has a complete Winchester round bolt and slide. Over a period of several years I hand selected each individual part which makes up the trigger housing group. The only part of the project I did not do myself was to headspace the chamber, I had a local gunsmith do that for me.

The project has been laying dormant for a year or so for the want of a quality stock set. I recently purchased a high-wood black walnut reproduction stock from Dupage Trading Company. They are running a special on 'blemished' stocks so I ordered one of those and I was very impressed with the quality of the stock when it arrived. Honestly, the blemish took me about 5 minutes with some 000 steel wool to work out. I finished it with one application of Chestnut Ridge Military Stock Stain and then 3 or 4 hand rubbed coats of a mix of boiled lindseed oil & mineral spirits. I love the smell of BLO applied to black walnut!

By the end of World War II, the only two manufacturers still producing M1 carbines was Winchester and the Inland Division of General Motors. Based on a review of the final production specifications, I believe my carbine project is pretty close to a late war M1 carbine as it rolled off the assembly line in 1945. It's been a labor of love . . . now I need to find a new project

__________________
- Change it back -

A fine beauty and very well done project.

Something very special about the carbines.

Seem to have gotten everything just right.

Just a bit more oomph from the cartridge and they wood be absolutely perfect. They work for me as is though.

Let us know how she shoots.

__________________
I Love This Site

Wow! You did a great job! The M-1 carbine is a favorite of mine, and I think it tends to be highly underrated. Yours is obviously a labor of love.

Thanks for sharing.

Regards,

Dave

The M-1 carbine has been on my wish list for almost 60 years.. But I have been looking for a special one.

When I was a kid in the 50t's I went to NRA pistol matches with my dad. A lot of the matches were held were he worked..
At the IBM Country Club, in Poughkeepsie NY.

In between sessions I would follow he down to the targets and pick thru the slugs embedded in the back stop. I always found a lot of 30cal slugs but no one was shooting it?? They were .22, .38, or 45.

It was years later that I found out that IBM made several parts for the war effort. The barrel, frame, and some smaller parts. And they test fined the barrels at the same range use for the NRA matches in the 50t's.

I don't think there was an IBM made carbine. The parts were used by others to assemble.

I have looked for a long time for a carbine with at least the receiver & barrel..

May never find one...

I'm jealous of yours.. Great job..

Nope. IBM made about 350,000 carbines during WWII.

Are you saying they completed the build??

Then there is a chance.. I was told years ago they only made some parts..

Thanks..

Agreed. As a defensive arm for artillery crews, etc., it was superior to any submachine gun or pistol issued by any nation during World War II.

Beautiful job, Faulkner.

Oh yes, IBM was one of the prime contractors for USGI M1 carbines during World War II. (The others being Winchester, Inland Division of General Motors, National Postal Meter, Quality Hardware & Machine Company, Rock-Ola, Saginaw Steering Gear, Standard Products Company, and Underwood-Elliott-Fisher). IBM also manufactured the M1918A2 Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) and M7 rifle grenade launchers during the war, along with many other types of war material.

All of the USGI M1 carbine prime contractors used sub contractors to some degree in the manufacture of their carbines. Some, like Winchester and Inland, made most of their parts in-house, but not all. In contrast, Qaulity Hardware only made one part in-house, the receiver, and used subcontractors for everything else.

IBM was somewhere in the middle. IBM made their own receivers but they also used receivers made by subcontractor Auto-Ordnance Corporation. IBM manufactured their own barrels and also supplied barrels to other prime contractors (it is not uncommon to see a Quality Hardware, Standard Products, Saginaw, or National Postal Meter carbine with a IBM marked barrel on it).

It is interesting to note that IBM developed a manufacturing improvement for the M1 carbine trigger housing. Instead of the milled trigger housing used by other manufacturers, IBM developed a stamped/brazed trigger housing that proved to be just as functional as the milled trigger housing yet was easier, faster, and cheaper to manufacture.

I find the history of the development of the M1 carbine to be fascinating.

Here is a picture of a early configured IBM M1 carbine from my collection;

__________________
- Change it back -

Faulkner,,,,Absolutely beautiful! Outstanding!
I have an original Inland in my collection, all original but not that nice!

Very well done, sir! I admire a guy who sticks to his guns, literally. One of my all time favorite carbine class rifles and the couple I own might be the last I'd ever give up. My congratulations on keeping your compass straight to the finish, well done, well done indeed.

Cheers;
Lefty

All I can say is well done!

__________________
Always bet on stupidity.

Bruce Canfield has a book on the M1 carbine and the M1 Garand. It's still in print and can be found where you usually order books. It has a lot of info about both guns including who made what for who. He also has books on the 1903 and military shotguns. All are interesting reading and will help keep you from getting burned when you are considering the purchase of a collectible. I own several carbines. They have been one of my favorites since I was very young. I killed several deer with one in my younger days and carried one for years as a patrol rifle. There are thousands of carbines and Garands in South Korea that some of our politicians won't allow to come back home. "They might fall into the wrong hands." was one of the comments I've heard. I've been a LEO for almost 43 years and have yet to see a crime committed with either gun. Turn them loose so more Americans can own a piece of their history.

Bruce Canfield has two books on the M1 rifle and M1 carbine and they are both very informative. I have a good number of books written on the topic of M1 carbines in my library including the voluminous "War Baby" by Larry Ruth. I find them very interesting.

I also carried one as a LE patrol carbine and never found it wanting for what I used it for.

__________________
- Change it back -

I own a USGI M1 carbine that I puchased about 10 years ago and agree, that they are under rated. It is a Winchester, nice to shoot, and accurate.

Every time I see a M1 Carbine I think of a late, very close friend who
had spent multiple tours of duty in Vietnam as a member of the 5th Special Forces.

Here he is in VN with his all time favorite weapon, an M2 Carbine,
which to use his words, "Killed like a son of a gun."



Another favorite weapon he used in VN, which he referred to as, "his pet", was the M16A1E1S.

__________________
Ogy

Take an M-1 Carbine to the range and everybody wants to shoot up your ammo!

I wish someone had made and successfully marketed an M-1 Carbine in .357 Magnum. They could have sold a grundle of them.

Ogy, one of the brothers-in-law was a RTO with the 23rd ID in SVN and according to him Laos and Cambodia ;D. He told me shortly after he came home that he carried a folding stock M2 carbine. I asked him if it seemed under powered and he replied: No, it was easy to carry and if they were close enough that I was shooting it worked very well.

Well, I didn't see it, of course, but Bugsy Siegel was killed with an M1 carbine back in June of 1947. And some of the Black Panthers used them--or at least posed with them--back in the late 60s.

But I agree, bring those Korean M1s back home. Nearly all will fall into "the right hands."

Well done, Faulkner. Beautiful!

According to "Bullet With No Name" the biography of Audie Murphy his favorite weapon was the carbine.His favorite which he carried most of the war had a broken stock which he had wired together.It is a great but moving read covering his life,including his "post traumatic stress disorder "which was not recognized at that time.I highly recommend it.

Great job, results are worth the effort. I've had a few military M-1s over the years. Recently purchased a new Auto Ordinance/Thompson. The finish and machine work is outstanding, and the stock is beautiful. Took a while to scrounge up a few thousand pcs of brass, loaded a bunch and have been enjoying it every trip to the range.

Very nice job...I have always wanted one .....

A lot of my fellow LEOs carried M-1 Carbines in the early 1960s as a NRA member one could purchase one from DCM for $20.00 plus $2.00 for S/H.
As a further note NRA members could purchase Model 1911/1911A1s for $17.00 and Model 1903/1903A3 for $14.50.

The primary weak point with the .30 M1 carbine is the ammo. Once you transition from standard military ball to soft nose and/or hollow point bullets it really enhances it's effectiveness.

__________________
- Change it back -

CorBon makes an M1 Carbine load with the Barnes DPX bullet, that is supposed to be a very good defensive choice.

Faulkner, you're a man of many talents.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.

Anyone know about the Plainfield M1 Carbines?
I see them for sale now and then. Don't know much about them except
that they were not military issue.

My father still has the M1 Carbine he carried in the Battle of the Bulge (where he earned his Purple Heart). I'll never hold a firearm with more soul.

Marlin also made barrels. I have a Standard Products with a Marlin barrel and it is very accurate.

__________________
Corripe Cervisiam

Mine is a 44 Winchester and is probably my favorite rifle to shoot (fun wise). We used to issue Carbines to the Montagnards and I had the task to be the instructor a few times. That was "interesting" to say the least.

Attached Images

Serial 5793464.JPG (138.2 KB, 25 views)

__________________
Minimize the variables

I understand the Germans really liked captured m1s and really prized the M2 version.

I wish that I had the skill to do that. Congratulations it is a "beaut".

I have a photograph of my father in WWII, holding an M1 Carbine. He was a heavy machine operator for the IX Engineer Command, and working behind, but close to the front, he was issued an M1 Carbine.

Like so many veterans, he almost never talked about the time he spent in the war, so I don't know if he ever shot that M1 at the enemy. My best guess would be that he didn't. His job was building landing strips in newly freed territory, to bring supplies in, and take the wounded out.

The M1 Carbine was a very successful design, with a very short lead up, between concept and production. I'm sure a LOT of soldiers were happy to have them, compared to the Colt 45ACP's they probably would have been issued, if the M1 wasn't available.

I've always wanted to own a nice 'shooter grade' M1 Carbine, but I lack the knowledge to know if I would be buying a 'good one', or not.

I wouldn't mind paying a fair price. I need to find somebody like the OP, to buy his 'project gun' from.

Prices for original M1 Carbines, like everything else associated with WWII, have been rising steadily over the past few years. There are a couple of other options you might want to consider...

Fulton Armory manufactures complete Carbines from scratch. You can check them out at Fulton Armory | M1 Carbine Rifles

And Miltech restores original Carbines... M1 Garand, M1 Carbine, 1903 Springfield, Miltech Firearms Sales Restoration and Service

Good luck to you!

It is a learning curve. IMO, the commercial M1s do not compare to the
military, but some are pretty good and some are to be avoided.

The early models seem to be closest to the military, they vary as they
departed from GI parts over time.

Good info. here M1CarbineForum - Powered by ForumCo.com - The Forum Company

http://www.m1carbinesinc.com/carbines.html Good info on commercial carbines

__________________
I Love This Site

I'm with you on that. The 357 was actually created before WW2 and I always wondered why the gov't didn't just spec a rimless 357 carbine. Someone made the comment that the 357 wasn't used because of material shortages and less mag capacity. That sounds plausible.

Recently I was in the market for a carbine. I wanted something without polymer and rails in a pistol (straight wall) caliber. Nothing much out there except old M1 carbines so that's what I ended up with, a 45 Inland. Found it right here on this on this forum. I bought a set of dies and started cranking out ammo.

Someday, someone will wake up and build a self loading carbine using a rimless 357. Reloaders will be all over it.

__________________
That's just somebody talkin.

Actually, It's here already. MechTech makes a non-ffl upper that can be mated to a Glock or 1911 lower, in a bunch of calibers, including 38super & 357sig. Other calibers: 45ACP, 10mm, 9mm, 40 Smith & Wesson, & 460 Roland.

MechTech - 1911

Jessie, I don't think the Germans ever got to see an M2. The M2, and M3 came along after WWII. Great job, Faulkner.

__________________
Wayne
Torn & Frayed

I was lucky to pick up a WW2 Inland years ago with all correct parts in very good shape. I paid $300 for it. What a deal. A friend wants it and is just driving me crazy to buy it but I won't sell.

I was just looking around and found where a barrel/upper maker has mated a 357 barrel to an AR receiver. Because the brass is not commercially available he cuts 223 brass down and makes it straight walled using a 357 sizing die. I still think a utility carbine using something like an AR upper designed around a mag specifically for a rimless 357 would be show stopper.

Oh well, I have my M1. Back to work.

__________________
That's just somebody talkin.

I'm also a big fan of the little rifle. I have two. One is a standard G.I. issue Inland.


The other is a Standard Products that has been modified some and is my choice for a personal defense rifle.

Very few, if any, M2 carbines made it to the European Theater of Operations before the end of the war there. A few have been documented as used during the battle for Okinawa in the Pacific very late in the war.

__________________
- Change it back -

It looks correct for a 45 production Winchester. I have a 45 Inland that I want to put back to spec. I need the push button safety, an Inland round bolt and an Inland slide.

These types of projects fascinate me especially when someone spends years putting them together. M1 carbine prices and parts are becoming expensive but at least they are available. Prices will come down if the 70,000 in Korea ever make it home. If that happens I will buy a few more.

__________________
That's just somebody talkin.

Well, I came by the knack to fiddle with M1 carbines honestly. About 15 years ago the sheriff purchased 65 surplus M1 carbines that had been re-imported from Israel. I was tasked with reworking/rebuilding them so that they could be issued as patrol carbines to our full time and reserve deputies. It was a labor of love and I learned a lot from this little exercise.

I snapped this picture the day I unpacked the carbines. Once reworked these carbines provided excellent service and a few deputies still utilize them. I still have mine that I carried in my patrol car for about 10 years.

__________________
- Change it back -

That's funny. It could be true that the M2's showed up in Okinawa, but the carbine my father was issued in Guam before he was sent to Okinawa still had the "L" shaped rear sight and the push button safety.

My Dad always liked the carbine but he loved the M1 Garand. He was a forward observer for a heavy weapons company observing fire for 81mm mortors.

Ken

The vast majority of M1 carbines utilized during WWII were in their original early configuration. Most of the production upgrades (adjustable rear sight, round bolt, barrel band with bayonet lug, flip safety) were implemented very late in the war. Very few carbines used in WWII actually had the adjustable sights and bayonet lug.

It was not until after WWII that existing carbines were brought back in for the late production upgrades and then re-issued or placed into storage. As a result, most (but not all) of the M1 carbines used during the Korean War had gone through the post WWII rework process and had most of the upgrades installed by then.

__________________
- Change it back -

Congratulations, very well done!

__________________
John
S&WCA Life Member

This may be one of the most "liked" threads in forum history. And for good reason. Great job.