M1 Garand ammo and brass choices...

[z7]

looking to order one from the cmp and need to feed it

Never shot one much so I have no idea how hard they are on brass

Cmp sells loaded creedmore sports ammo for 30-06 in Lapua brass using a Lapua scenar for $1.35 a round. Lapua 30-06 brass runs nearly $1 a round anyway, so buying loaded ammo is pretty much at “cost” for me anyway of buying brass and bullets/powder

They also sell Hornady loaded ammo with a fmj round for 90 cents a round

Is the m1 hard enough on brass that it makes Lapua brass worthwhile?

Would I be better off with the cheaper Hornady? I’m leaning heavy toward the Lapua brass but am open to suggestions, and yes I plan to reload for it, so the first batch of ammo will also be used to reload

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I bought 1000+ rounds of Greek surplus M1 ammo from CMP when the price was right. I have been using that brass for reloading and I have at least 4 reloads on each.

I use a 150gr M2 bullet, CCI #34 or CCI-250 primer and H4895 powder. Half the ammo I bought from CMP came with the e-bloc clips so I have more than I will ever need.

Do not use too slow a powder because the pressure will still be building when it hits the hole in the barrel and slam the op-rod which can bend/break it. They cost a lot of money to replace nowadays.

 

[forty_caliber]

IMR4895 is my powder of choice for that rifle. It closely matches the powder used in the military cartridges of the day. Keep your charges in the mid-range, projectiles 168gr and below and you won't bend your Op-Rod.

I never had much of a problem with re-cycling brass from mine. I prefer military rather than commercial brass when I can find it. I still have some from WW2. As others have suggested mil-surplus ammo is still available and is my usual source for "new" brass. The hardest part is finding it after ejection. My rifle slings it at random. 12-15' out and somewhere between fore and aft.

.40

 

[MEHavey]

Forget the fancy brass in a Garand action.
You don't need it performance-wise and it won't buy you anything in longevity.
Get bulk Winchester brass for 48-50Ȼ a case and toss it after a half-dozen firings

 

[badkarmamib]

Yeah, you don't want to have a lot of money tied up in brass. It will randomly eject cleanly at 4:00, or, like it is supposed to, deflect off the op rod, denting the mouth, and flinging it somewhere between 11:00 and infinity. I go out to every range session fully expecting to bring home 1-2 pieces fewer than I took, and toss 2-3 in the scrap bucket. I use a mixture of brass, mostly Remington, with mid-range (Garand) loads of H4895 pushing 150 SSTs or InterLocks.

 

[edwardware]

I buy large lots of commercial brass, and it works. If you're gentle with loads, reasonable with setback, and anneal necks occasionally, your brass will die about 50/50 for thin case walls and loose primer pockets. Check with a sharp paperclip, every case every time.

I get 3-5+ reloads from R-P commercial, and the headstamps are pretty abused by then. The hard extraction is rough on brass.

 

[cheygriz]

I use nothing but USGI military brass in .30-06 and .308. It lasts forever and it's not expensive.

 

[Reloadron]

Is the m1 hard enough on brass that it makes Lapua brass worthwhile?

Not in any of my observations. A M1 Garand rifle which is functioning properly will not tear up the brass anymore than any other 30-06 Springfield semi-automatic rifle. This is true of all the Grand rifles I have had pass through my life. While there is no shortage of factory ammunition loaded for the M1 Garand (often called Garand Safe) in time you will likely find the best deal is to roll your own. The Hornady 9th Edition features service rifle loads for the M1 Garand which can be found here. Finding USGI once fired 30-06 brass is not as easy as it once was. I haven't seen any for awhile. Maybe someone has a link? I have used the Sellier & Bellot #2954 stuff which was about fifty cents a round with decent reloadable brass, 150 grain FMJ bullet, today I am seeing it up to about eighty cents a round. Once you start rolling your own and you know how well you and the rifle shoot you can think about loading better brass and bullets, till then I wouldn't worry about it.

Anyway, no the M1 Garand will not eat or destroy brass when loaded with proper ammunition.

Ron

 

[cfullgraf]

HXP (Greek) cases are good brass for the Garand. Lapua and Hornady brass will be good as well.

As far as reloading, there is a limited range of powders that are safe to use in the Garand without risk of damaging the op rod. Generally, H4895, IMR 4895 and Varget are good choices but there are a few others in that burn rate that work well as well. My main load is with H4895 under 150 FMJ bullets.

Hornady has a good list of "Garand" safe loads.

You can stray outside the accepted Garand safe loads with an appropriate pressure reliving gas plug installed on the gun.

 

[1KPerDay]

Garands beat up the rims fairly bad, and if you don't have it running properly the mouths can get dinged up. I have 5 reloads on my oldest HXP and GI brass and they still haven't shown signs of incipient case head separation. But I don't push my loads and I size them to just gauge the lower step of the Wilson gauge.

 

[rg1]

A Garand is hard on brass. You can find bent extractor rims on cases, dings from impacting the rifle on ejection, plus the Garand typically have maximum length chambers which can cause case stretching which could cause case separations. You need to have a cartridge gauge to adjust your sizing dies to push shoulders a measured amount. Chambers can measure .008" or so and if you push shoulders back to zero each sizing it will cause excessive stretching. I prefer Hornady's Headspace Gauge set which works with a caliper rather than a drop in gauge. I load Greek HXP, Remington commercial, and LC cases mostly. No need to spend lots of money for custom brass. Check cases closely for bent rims and stretching. Fun rifle to shoot !! Use Garand safe powders. I like RP 9 1/2 primers or would go with CCI 34 primers. I like 150 gr. M2 surplus or new bullets and have had good results with Hornady 150 FMJ's but prefer a true M2 military style bullet.

 

[lightman]

I prefer mil surplus brass in mine. I love Lapua brass and buy a lot of it but I would not shoot it in a Garand. I shoot mostly Sierra 168 HPBT or the original 173 grain FMJ over the appropriate charge of IMR 4895.

 

[Charlie98]

If you are looking for brass, any reasonable .30-06 brass will do. If you want to get a bunch of it (I have 600 cases for mine, I load them all at once and shoot them over time...) I would just source it by buying some M1-specific factory like Federal (American Eagle) or Prvi, and get one round out of them before loading; cost-wise it makes a lot of sense.

Like many others, I use a generic load of 47grn IMR4895 and any 150grn FMJ bullet. I've not loaded 168grn BTHP's yet... one of these days I'll get there.

I've not seen my Garand beat up my brass so much, but you can tell it's been fired. I think some of the problems with extractor marks and such are rifle-specific... each rifle is different, you won't know until you've popped a few rounds through it and looked at your brass.

 

[rdnktrkr]

I purchased 4 cans of mil surplus ammo at an auction and while there an older gentleman said he had some brass that he would give me, 2 5gal buckets 1 mostly 30-06 the other mixed. I also use 47gr powder when using 150gr bullets. Some friends load 168gr and have said they are more accurate at longer distance but I think the 150gr shoots better than I can. I also load some 125gr bullets that are cheaper and softer shooting.
If you look on the CMP forum there is always someone there selling brass.

 

[mdi]

I to use HXP brass (once fired by me) for 90% of my reloads. Short story; I thought I needed a case gauge for my 30-06 ammo to insure good feeding in my Garand (CMP Special Grade, new Criterion barrel). Many of my reloads would not "gauge" in my Wilson cartridge gauge. I tried for several weeks to get 100% of my ammo to gauge (sizing twice, trimming, different lubes, new dies, etc.) but one out of 8-10 rounds would not gauge. I asked on the CMP forum and one answer I got was "Do they chamber?". They did, and shot quite well, so I put my gauge away. Later I found that my brass was hitting the OP rod hump on it's way out and dinging some of the rims about .010", preventing gauging, but still feeding, chambering, shooting well...

I also noticed the loads vary the ejection and some "softer" loads the brass cleared the OP rod, but "heavy" loads hit the hump pretty hard. All brass was affected, I just shot way more HXP. For my shooting, my gun I don't need the "Ultra Premium" brass as my Garand out shoots me with my "plain old" HXP, Hornady and R-P brass...

 

[1KPerDay]

Yeah, I actually use my Wilson gauge to help iron out some of the dings and bends in the rims. I use another case rim to force the bent ones into the gauge and the neck to press them out again. I figure the tool steel is harder than the brass so the brass loses.

 

[Random 8]

Get yourself on the CMP forum also. There are many folks on there who have forgotten more about the M1 than most will ever know. It is also a great place to find surplus brass for your M1. I fire very little commercial brass in my M1s. They are hard on the brass, and the military seems to hold up the best for me. Have also had good luck with PRVI as far as commercial goes. Good, heavy, consistent brass. I believe they offer an M2 ball loading that got good reviews on the CMP if you want to go that route. I did run some Hornady for awhile, but scrapped it after only 4 firings due to the excessive amount of trim on some of the cases. I usually get 5-6 out of LC or HXP military brass before I feel the need to scrap it. Expect to trim your brass every firing. Expect to lose some at the range. Expect the rims to start looking ugly after a few firings (doesn't seem to affect function unless they develop a burr that needs a couple of file strokes). You can run Lapua, but it's kind of like putting racing fuel in a '96 F250.

IMR or H4895 are the longtime favorites, I prefer IMR4064. Varget would probably work just as well, but I've sworn off the stuff and other Australian made powders after the last shortage when it became unobtanium. Charge range of 45-47 grains of any of these powders over 150-168 grains. Consult your Hornady data. Avoid BL-c2 at Garand safe charges. Long story, just don't do it. Enjoy your new rifle. A simple load to get your feet wet is 46 IMR4064 under the Hornady 150 FMJBT seated to cannelure. This is a mild load, probably on the soft side of M2 ball, but functions all rifles I've tried it in and been quite accurate for me to 300m.

 

[Laphroaig]

The CMP was offering 1/2 priced Creedmoor 30-06 ammo with the purchase of a new rifle. Be sure to check before you order as the ammo had to be ordered at the same time as the rifle. Get as much as allowed if they are still doing it.

I was on their site and couldn't find any reference to it now.