Is it Proper to Shoot Garands with GI Barrels?

[SmokeEater2]

These rifles were designed and built to be shot a lot more and take more abuse than I'll ever subject them to.

If '06 ammo was priced like .22 LR I might wear out a barrel but not at the rate I'm rationing my last cases of HXP and reloads.

[yoteman]

One of the silliest things I've ever heard.

[milprileb]

You and the M1 will not last forever. If your passion is running a museum then save the M1 for someone else to enjoy & shoot its barrel out. If you are of a mind to enjoy your shooting life with your M1, fire away and hope you do fire enough to burn that barrel out. I want to shoot all my rifles till barrels are useless, next owner can re barrel it however he choses.

[Ronwall]

Originally Posted by milprileb

You and the M1 will not last forever. If your passion is running a museum then save the M1 for someone else to enjoy & shoot its barrel out. If you are of a mind to enjoy your shooting life with your M1, fire away and hope you do fire enough to burn that barrel out. I want to shoot all my rifles till barrels are useless, next owner can re barrel it however he choses.

Just like serious car collectors enjoy having dozens of cars but rarely if ever driving certain ones and coin collectors enjoy having rare or valuable coins and not spending them, I enjoy having dozens of collectable Garands but only shooting a select few that I do not consider collectable. From my point of view I consider it preserving history for future generations and I just enjoy having them. They are my rifles so I'll do with them as I please but to each his own.

[Nehalem Man]

I know it's neat to have an original barrel (I have one on a 5.93), but does it really matter in the long run?

I look at barrels like I look at tires on a collectable car. Eventually they need replacing, but it doesn't detract from the car.

-E-

[T38Carbine]

I’d love to shoot my barrel out!!

[Tester19]

MY point of view: I can shoot the heck out of it, or let my heirs sell it to someone who will. Easy choice for me! My personal M1 Bucket List includes actually wearing one out. I have about 9000 rounds to go and the clock is ticking.

[BSAGuy]

Shoot the USGI as much as you want. No need for a Criterion. These barrels were made to take a lickin' and keep on tickin'.

[firekeep]

Originally Posted by Ronwall

Just like serious car collectors enjoy having dozens of cars but rarely if ever driving certain ones and coin collectors enjoy having rare or valuable coins and not spending them, I enjoy having dozens of collectable Garands but only shooting a select few that I do not consider collectable. From my point of view I consider it preserving history for future generations and I just enjoy having them. They are my rifles so I'll do with them as I please but to each his own.

^ Yep, same here. Agreed!

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[jimthompson502002]

This is an attitude thing.

If one shoots a great deal, which I used to and probably will again, it's a way to do what the rifle did in its heyday, and not further deteriorate stuff which CANNOT be replaced. Same reason many of us don't shoot rifles in their rare, collectible butt stocks. A crack means one thing on a 2012 purchased, attractive, commercial stock, and a repair doesn't make it "doctored" necessarily. On a pre-war hunk of wood, sorry, it deteriorates value and heritage/

Really, it comes down to volume. If you shoot 100 rounds a year, you'll rarely wear out a barrel. If you shoot several hundreds rounds every day, well, no question, you WILL stress that unit a couple of months.

There's another factor, too. Modern commercial barrels with extremely rare exceptions are WAY better than the older ones. Machining and straightness/concentricity measurement and so on has vastly improved in 80 or so years. And a heavy barrel will shoot better and last longer.

So it's not all one way.


No, there's no "rule". You make up your own or you don't.