M1 Garand? or M1 Carbine?

[Dr.Mauser]

Im an avid WWII Rifle Collector, (self proclaimed) Im trying to decied whether to get an M1 Carbine or a Garand, I love them both but im having a hell of a time deciding what one to get.

[run8]

My thoughts, since I've been buying alot of WWII items, the carbines seem to be going up in price depending on what your looking for, if you want just a shooter I'd say $500-700 range, if you want a nice collectors piece, the sky is the limit. On the Garands, I got a nice shooter for $800, really depends on how accurate you want to be, and what you want to do with it. I'd get the carbine first though, then the Garands.

[Milsurp Collector]

Im an avid WWII Rifle Collector, (self proclaimed) Im trying to decied whether to get an M1 Carbine or a Garand, I love them both but im having a hell of a time deciding what one to get.

Get both.

[SimpleCountryActuary]

Get both.

Yes, get both. You need both. In fact, you need more than one of each.

Trust me. I know.

[Someoneelseok]

ultimately plan on getting both, the two guns are completely different from each other.

At first, I bought the Garand thinking that would be it but later on, I "some how" ended buying the Carbine too.

[RaceDay]

Get both.

I like the carbine better but both are great. Carbine is a great gun for taking out newbies. I took a guy from work and his 9-year old son shooting and the kid handled the carbine no problem. Its lightweight and non-magnetic ammo is available. The Garand is awesome too but SoCal friendly ammo is hard to come by right now and it is a bit more imposing if you are taking out new shooters. I took out another guy at work to shoot the Garand (he had drilled with them in honor guard but never fired one) and he had a great time too. So, they are awesome and fill different roles so get both.

If you are a zombie fighter, I think carbine would be better for home defense. I think I read somewhere that the 30 carbine is similar to a 357 magnum round.

[run8]

Some fun from the range shooting G43, Garand, and a 98K, forgot to bring the Carbine, next time.

My shooting stances suck, got a bad back, double fusion surgery from 06 so can't twist as before ;(

Enjoy the vid, watch in HD.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G9Ov5nDN_E

[blackfalcon]

Through the CMP you can get both relatively cheap.

[Trench Broom]

Get 'em both.

[Dr. Peter Venkman]

Can't really be an avid "WWII Firearm Collector" without having both.

[RudyN]

If you could, get both. If not I would start with a Garand and then the Carbine ASAP. I was lucky and have both plus a 1903A3.

[sevensix2x51]

Can't really be an avid "WWII Firearm Collector" without having both.

lol. or without either, for that matter...

i havent gotten an m1 carbine yet, but im not an avid wwii rifle collector.. been thinking about it, but those mosins are just too cheap.

if i were looking to collect, i would find the best value on the highest quality rifle, whichever it happens to be, and buy it... then i would wait for the other. ive got a garand and an 03a3, because those are the ones i have gotten good deals on so far...

[run8]

Yes, if money is not a issue, then buy both and more than one. I wanted one of each, then I got the bright idea to buy a shooter. So then I ended up with one really nice one to display and one nice one to shoot. Somehow I fell off the wagon and now I have three carbines, and five garands, where did I go wrong? ;-)

[GrinderCB]

I also have an affinity toward the more historic guns. Hmmm, Garand vs Carbine... hmmm...

Why is this even an issue?

One of each, of course.

The harder question is which one to get first?

I'd take the Garand first, mainly because of its historic significance, the only semi-auto combat rifle issued in large numbers by any of the primary WWII combatant countries, Patton's comment about the Garand being the single most important weapon issued to our boys, its durability, reliability, accuracy, longevity (they were used all the way up to the start of the Vietnam war...). The nostalgia factor is just off the chart. You load it from the top using stripper clips and if you get an earlier model you can listen for the >ping< when you're empty.

The Carbine is a fine weapon but not the symbol of the American ingenuity that the Garand is. More a symbol of Korea then WWII. I also can't think of the M1 Carbine without picturing the scene in "Dr. Strangelove" where Maj. Batguano (if that IS his real name...) brandishes his M1 Carbine while bickering with Capt. Mandrake about whether to call the President. More of an early Cold War symbol, the Carbine is.

Get one of each and enjoy.

[run8]

Good point on the historic aspects, I tend to look at the monetary aspects first when weighing what I want first, the historical is of course part of the factor, but $$ first ;-)

I also have an affinity toward the more historic guns. Hmmm, Garand vs Carbine... hmmm...

Why is this even an issue?

One of each, of course.

The harder question is which one to get first?

I'd take the Garand first, mainly because of its historic significance, the only semi-auto combat rifle issued in large numbers by any of the primary WWII combatant countries, Patton's comment about the Garand being the single most important weapon issued to our boys, its durability, reliability, accuracy, longevity (they were used all the way up to the start of the Vietnam war...). The nostalgia factor is just off the chart. You load it from the top using stripper clips and if you get an earlier model you can listen for the >ping< when you're empty.

The Carbine is a fine weapon but not the symbol of the American ingenuity that the Garand is. More a symbol of Korea then WWII. I also can't think of the M1 Carbine without picturing the scene in "Dr. Strangelove" where Maj. Batguano (if that IS his real name...) brandishes his M1 Carbine while bickering with Capt. Mandrake about whether to call the President. More of an early Cold War symbol, the Carbine is.

Get one of each and enjoy.