As for reloading... by all means, do it, as long as it is done intelligently. If you really don't like reloading, handloading new components can still save you mucho $$. Reloading for Garand can be done safely, and anyone seeking competency and shooting hundreds or thousands of rounds pretty much needs to do (unless independently wealthy!). Unfortunately, most reloading advice is geared to the ever-popular bolt action. Some of the advice given is antithetical to what is required for loading for a self-loader. Here's what to keep in mind in loading for the M1: 1. Use a powder suitable for the pressure curve requirements of the M1, for example, IMR4895 and IMR4064. 2. Use a bullet weight suitable for the pressure curve requirements of the M1, for example 150, 162, 165, 168, 172 grains. 3. Use a CCI mil-spec primer. These use primer cups that are harder than standard and help prevent slam-fires. Very important and often overlooked. Avoid high primers, which cause slam-fires. Store ammo nose-down and look across the case heads, that allows you to quickly inspect 50 or more cartridges at once. Also run your fingertip over all primers as they come out of the press or priming tool. 4. Sizing! This is where most M1 Garand reloading advice is insufficient. Not neck-sizing is not enough. It also must not be undersized! In other words, you NEED a shoulder height/headspace comparator to measure where the shoulder is on your cartridge. I like Stoney Point's, it is quicker than RCBS and cheaper. You also need to have an idea of what the headspace is of your chamber. Measuring fired brass is not enough. It stretches beyond chamber length sometimes due to adhesion during extraction. Chambering empty cases of various shoulder heights will help you determine your actual headspace. Cartridges must be somewhat under chamber size for safe functioning (avoiding slam-fires). 5. Retire brass earlier. If you measure the shoulder height growth between unfired and fired brass, you'll see Garand brass goes through more stretch and resizing compression than bolt action brass. Eventually you'll get case head seperation if you insist on using your brass forever. Retire after 1 or 2 reloads. Use GI brass (the usual caveat about reducing loads versus commercial brass applies) when possible, see: http://www.gibrass.com It is thicker than commercial brass and less likely to seperate. Fortunately GI brass is available new, unused and in quantity at good prices during the last few years, due to a de-militarization program. This will never happen again, once it is gone it is gone (the US military is not ever going back to the .30-06 now and the current de-mil stock is getting into the mid-seventies when the last production ended.) Be sure and avoid high primers as in rule #3. 6. The usual caveats about approaching max loads slowly, use a much lower maximum than that for bolt action rifles, don't try to push limits. The goals of reloading for M1 are accuracy, variety and cost, not velocity. Trim cases, check that the neck mouth is not pinched in the chamber throat (unlikely, but disastorous). Check body size so that case entry into the chamber is not impeded by outsized case bodies (go to a small base die if this is an issue). As you can see, reloading for the M1 takes more time and thought than for other rifles. With the right equipment and technique it can be done safely and effectively. Ignore those who casually throw out statements like "don't reload it's dangerous" and don't bother to explain. Some might say they've seen reloads slam-fire. All reloading slam-fires can be explained by ignoring rules 3 and 4 or single-loading. But guess what... all self-loaders slam-fire about once per million anyway, even if everything is done right. That's life in the self-loader lane. Wear safety glasses. Don't single-load without a SLED, etc... If you decide not to reload... be sure and give your brass to someone who does! :) Knowledge is power, reloading or handloading is your choice, whether you choose to do it should be based on information, not just advice. Ken.
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