This will be the subject of a future article. Comments welcome; hope you enjoy it.
John
Over 6 million of these handy, lightweight carbines were produced during the World War II period, making it one of the most prolific weapons of the war. It wasn't an assault weapon as we have come to know it today, and it wasn’t a submachine gun either. It fired what was essentially a powerful .30 caliber handgun cartridge. The carbine was a semiautomatic at first, and in a later version, fired both semi and full auto. Originally designed to replace the 1911 and 1911A1 .45 caliber pistols for rear-echelon troops, it mostly failed in that objective. Instead, it was issued at almost every level and in every theater of the war, while the .45 pistols continued to be fielded. In a folding stock version, it served our airborne troops as a primary weapon throughout their distinguished record during WWII. It zoomed from concept to production in about a year, and was produced as a masterpiece of production control and sub-contracting by a large number of different prime manufacturers. Immensely popular with the troops, it was used throughout WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. There was nothing else like it.
In June of 1940, the U.S. Army Chief of Infantry requested the design and production of a light rifle from the Army Ordnance Department. The .45 semiautomatic pistols were great for close-range defense, but at longer ranges were ineffective. A short, handy shoulder arm could give those currently armed with the .45 a more potent weapon. Paratroopers, who of necessity had to travel light, could also benefit from a carbine, which would be better suited to offensive use. Interestingly, a carbine (short rifle) had not been general issue since the Krag-Jorgensen carbines used by cavalry troopers at the turn of the 20th Century. The Ordnance Department issued a call to various firearm manufacturers to develop samples. It wanted a weapon weighing about five pounds. It had to be effective out to 300 yards. It was to be carried by a sling or some comparable device. It would be chambered for a .30 caliber round similar to the commercial Winchester .32 self-loading cartridge. After preliminary tests, final service tests of qualified entries were held beginning September 15, 1941. A possibility fielded by Winchester had drawn good reviews in previous tests. Winchester’s entry was put together in record time. It utilized a smaller version of the basic M1 Garand action, but it was actuated somewhat differently. Gas was bled from midway in the barrel to power a short-stroke piston. The piston impacted on a somewhat heavy slide attached to an operating arm incorporating a cam. The cam rotated and unlocked the bolt after the bullet had left the barrel. David Marshall Williams, a former convict who worked with engineering manager Edwin Pugsley and the rest of the Winchester design staff, had invented this new and efficient method. He was known as “carbine” Williams from that time on. He achieved some notoriety after a movie loosely based on his life and starring Jimmy Stewart was made.
The Winchester entry was selected as the best of all candidates entered in the trials, and on October 22, 1941 Winchester was notified that their weapon was to become the U.S. Carbine, caliber .30 M1. The new carbine had an overall length of 35.6 inches, and weighed 5.5 pounds with an empty 15-round magazine. An L-shaped “flip-flop” rear sight was incorporated, calibrated for 100 and 300 yards. No provision was made to mount a bayonet. The .30 carbine cartridge had a muzzle velocity of about 2,000 feet per second from an 18-inch barrel, with an effective range of 300 yards. All issue M1 carbine ammo utilized ball powder and non-corrosive primers. Some minor tweaking to the design was effected, and then the real work of producing the new weapon on a wide scale began.
A carbine production board was instituted to distribute blueprints and coordinate production. Ten prime manufacturers produced the weapon in varying numbers. They were: Inland Manufacturing Division of General Motors, 2,625,000. Winchester, 828,059. Underwood-Elliott-Fisher, 45,616. Underwood also made a huge number of barrels that were provided to other manufacturers. Rock-Ola Jukebox Company, 228,500. Irwin-Pedersen, 3000 (none delivered). Saginaw Steering Gear Division of GM, 293,592 (after taking over the Irwin-Pedersen contract). Quality Hardware, 359,666. Standard Products, 247,160. IBM, 346,500. National Postal Meter, 413,017. NPM later changed its name and produced and marked 239 carbines under the name Commercial Controls. It should be noted that most M1 carbines found today will have been arsenal reconditioned and equipped with later-design parts. These included a fully adjustable rear sight, a modified rotary safety (early push-type safeties were sometimes mistaken for the magazine release, causing an “oops”), a forward band incorporating a bayonet lug, a round-cross-section bolt and an improved magazine catch.
The carbine illustrated is an ultra-rare Standard Products weapon in as-issued original WWII configuration. Although most of the smaller parts on the M1 carbine were routinely subcontracted out to about 140 other firms and stamped with their markings, the parts on this specimen nearly all match as being made by Standard Products, including the magazine. Most of the work force at the Standard Products plant in Port Clinton, Ohio was female; the men in that city had almost all gone to war. Many of them perished during the Bataan death march in the Philippines. Made in early 1944, this carbine is a valuable collector’s piece, and very representative of carbines as made and used during most of the war.
The M1A1 carbine, adopted in May 1942, was designed to address the needs of paratroopers who needed an even more compact weapon. It featured a side-folding stock and a wooden pistol grip. The only change from the standard carbine was in the stock. Original M1A1 Carbines were produced solely by Inland from late in 1942 through the middle of 1944. Only about 140,000 M1A1s were made, making them sought-after collector pieces today.
The M4 carbine bayonet was adopted in May 1944 and began to be issued in October. It was a modification of the earlier M3 trench knife, which was previously issued to carbine users. There were 12 different manufacturers. Numerous other accessories were designed and used for the carbines. These included slings, maintenance and disassembly tools, canvas “holsters” for both the M1 and M1A1, airborne drop pouches, grenade launchers and compensators. A full range of ammo types was available, including ball, blanks, grenade launching and tracer.
Although test and small-quantity variations on the M1 carbine design were made including a T3 infrared night-vision version, the M2 carbine was the main advanced development based on the M1. It featured full-automatic capability, and its parts could be incorporated on an M1. A selector switch was next to the action on the left side. This version used a 30-round magazine that could also be used in the M1 carbine. The M2 was adopted in September 1944, but production was not initiated until May 1945. This was too late in the war for it to see significant action, if any, in WWII.
The M1 carbine was first used in combat in the invasion of North Africa in November 1942, and became widely issued after that. The 82nd Airborne Division was the first to employ M1A1 carbines during the airdrops into Sicily in July 1943. This was the first large-scale airborne invasion in U.S. history. M1 carbines were also used immediately following in the Italian campaign. U.S. Marines first used M1 carbines on the Pacific islands of Tarawa and New Britain in late 1943. “Merrill’s Marauders” made effective use of carbines in the jungles of Burma in February 1944. These were the first American infantry troops to fight on the continent of Asia in the war. The D-Day invasion of Normandy in June 1944 saw widespread use of the M1 and M1A1 carbines by the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions. These airborne troops used the M1A1 throughout the rest of the European campaign. The T3 carbine with its infrared sight was first used on Okinawa in the spring of 1945. Carbines in all versions were used during the Korean War of 1950-1953. French and Vietnamese troops used carbines against communist forces during 1954 in the former French Indochina. The carbines started to be phased out of U.S. service with the introduction of the M14 rifle in 1957. The U.S. then distributed carbines widely to a number of smaller countries, where they have been used in limited wars, revolutions and civil disturbances. Some surplus M1 carbines were sold directly to NRA members during the early 1960s.
All in all, the M1 carbine has been a very popular and unique firearm, used widely throughout the world by the United States and its allies. Designed in haste but modified little over the years, it’s still a useful weapon and a prime collector’s piece with all its variations and manufacturers. The word “classic” fits it well.
(c) 2013 JLM
John
Over 6 million of these handy, lightweight carbines were produced during the World War II period, making it one of the most prolific weapons of the war. It wasn't an assault weapon as we have come to know it today, and it wasn’t a submachine gun either. It fired what was essentially a powerful .30 caliber handgun cartridge. The carbine was a semiautomatic at first, and in a later version, fired both semi and full auto. Originally designed to replace the 1911 and 1911A1 .45 caliber pistols for rear-echelon troops, it mostly failed in that objective. Instead, it was issued at almost every level and in every theater of the war, while the .45 pistols continued to be fielded. In a folding stock version, it served our airborne troops as a primary weapon throughout their distinguished record during WWII. It zoomed from concept to production in about a year, and was produced as a masterpiece of production control and sub-contracting by a large number of different prime manufacturers. Immensely popular with the troops, it was used throughout WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. There was nothing else like it.
In June of 1940, the U.S. Army Chief of Infantry requested the design and production of a light rifle from the Army Ordnance Department. The .45 semiautomatic pistols were great for close-range defense, but at longer ranges were ineffective. A short, handy shoulder arm could give those currently armed with the .45 a more potent weapon. Paratroopers, who of necessity had to travel light, could also benefit from a carbine, which would be better suited to offensive use. Interestingly, a carbine (short rifle) had not been general issue since the Krag-Jorgensen carbines used by cavalry troopers at the turn of the 20th Century. The Ordnance Department issued a call to various firearm manufacturers to develop samples. It wanted a weapon weighing about five pounds. It had to be effective out to 300 yards. It was to be carried by a sling or some comparable device. It would be chambered for a .30 caliber round similar to the commercial Winchester .32 self-loading cartridge. After preliminary tests, final service tests of qualified entries were held beginning September 15, 1941. A possibility fielded by Winchester had drawn good reviews in previous tests. Winchester’s entry was put together in record time. It utilized a smaller version of the basic M1 Garand action, but it was actuated somewhat differently. Gas was bled from midway in the barrel to power a short-stroke piston. The piston impacted on a somewhat heavy slide attached to an operating arm incorporating a cam. The cam rotated and unlocked the bolt after the bullet had left the barrel. David Marshall Williams, a former convict who worked with engineering manager Edwin Pugsley and the rest of the Winchester design staff, had invented this new and efficient method. He was known as “carbine” Williams from that time on. He achieved some notoriety after a movie loosely based on his life and starring Jimmy Stewart was made.
The Winchester entry was selected as the best of all candidates entered in the trials, and on October 22, 1941 Winchester was notified that their weapon was to become the U.S. Carbine, caliber .30 M1. The new carbine had an overall length of 35.6 inches, and weighed 5.5 pounds with an empty 15-round magazine. An L-shaped “flip-flop” rear sight was incorporated, calibrated for 100 and 300 yards. No provision was made to mount a bayonet. The .30 carbine cartridge had a muzzle velocity of about 2,000 feet per second from an 18-inch barrel, with an effective range of 300 yards. All issue M1 carbine ammo utilized ball powder and non-corrosive primers. Some minor tweaking to the design was effected, and then the real work of producing the new weapon on a wide scale began.
A carbine production board was instituted to distribute blueprints and coordinate production. Ten prime manufacturers produced the weapon in varying numbers. They were: Inland Manufacturing Division of General Motors, 2,625,000. Winchester, 828,059. Underwood-Elliott-Fisher, 45,616. Underwood also made a huge number of barrels that were provided to other manufacturers. Rock-Ola Jukebox Company, 228,500. Irwin-Pedersen, 3000 (none delivered). Saginaw Steering Gear Division of GM, 293,592 (after taking over the Irwin-Pedersen contract). Quality Hardware, 359,666. Standard Products, 247,160. IBM, 346,500. National Postal Meter, 413,017. NPM later changed its name and produced and marked 239 carbines under the name Commercial Controls. It should be noted that most M1 carbines found today will have been arsenal reconditioned and equipped with later-design parts. These included a fully adjustable rear sight, a modified rotary safety (early push-type safeties were sometimes mistaken for the magazine release, causing an “oops”), a forward band incorporating a bayonet lug, a round-cross-section bolt and an improved magazine catch.
The carbine illustrated is an ultra-rare Standard Products weapon in as-issued original WWII configuration. Although most of the smaller parts on the M1 carbine were routinely subcontracted out to about 140 other firms and stamped with their markings, the parts on this specimen nearly all match as being made by Standard Products, including the magazine. Most of the work force at the Standard Products plant in Port Clinton, Ohio was female; the men in that city had almost all gone to war. Many of them perished during the Bataan death march in the Philippines. Made in early 1944, this carbine is a valuable collector’s piece, and very representative of carbines as made and used during most of the war.
The M1A1 carbine, adopted in May 1942, was designed to address the needs of paratroopers who needed an even more compact weapon. It featured a side-folding stock and a wooden pistol grip. The only change from the standard carbine was in the stock. Original M1A1 Carbines were produced solely by Inland from late in 1942 through the middle of 1944. Only about 140,000 M1A1s were made, making them sought-after collector pieces today.
The M4 carbine bayonet was adopted in May 1944 and began to be issued in October. It was a modification of the earlier M3 trench knife, which was previously issued to carbine users. There were 12 different manufacturers. Numerous other accessories were designed and used for the carbines. These included slings, maintenance and disassembly tools, canvas “holsters” for both the M1 and M1A1, airborne drop pouches, grenade launchers and compensators. A full range of ammo types was available, including ball, blanks, grenade launching and tracer.
Although test and small-quantity variations on the M1 carbine design were made including a T3 infrared night-vision version, the M2 carbine was the main advanced development based on the M1. It featured full-automatic capability, and its parts could be incorporated on an M1. A selector switch was next to the action on the left side. This version used a 30-round magazine that could also be used in the M1 carbine. The M2 was adopted in September 1944, but production was not initiated until May 1945. This was too late in the war for it to see significant action, if any, in WWII.
The M1 carbine was first used in combat in the invasion of North Africa in November 1942, and became widely issued after that. The 82nd Airborne Division was the first to employ M1A1 carbines during the airdrops into Sicily in July 1943. This was the first large-scale airborne invasion in U.S. history. M1 carbines were also used immediately following in the Italian campaign. U.S. Marines first used M1 carbines on the Pacific islands of Tarawa and New Britain in late 1943. “Merrill’s Marauders” made effective use of carbines in the jungles of Burma in February 1944. These were the first American infantry troops to fight on the continent of Asia in the war. The D-Day invasion of Normandy in June 1944 saw widespread use of the M1 and M1A1 carbines by the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions. These airborne troops used the M1A1 throughout the rest of the European campaign. The T3 carbine with its infrared sight was first used on Okinawa in the spring of 1945. Carbines in all versions were used during the Korean War of 1950-1953. French and Vietnamese troops used carbines against communist forces during 1954 in the former French Indochina. The carbines started to be phased out of U.S. service with the introduction of the M14 rifle in 1957. The U.S. then distributed carbines widely to a number of smaller countries, where they have been used in limited wars, revolutions and civil disturbances. Some surplus M1 carbines were sold directly to NRA members during the early 1960s.
All in all, the M1 carbine has been a very popular and unique firearm, used widely throughout the world by the United States and its allies. Designed in haste but modified little over the years, it’s still a useful weapon and a prime collector’s piece with all its variations and manufacturers. The word “classic” fits it well.
(c) 2013 JLM
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Glad I've got a bunch of ammo stockpiled (along with the supplies to make more
