AndrewWyatt wrote:
I'd stick with .30-06 in the garand. it's what the gun was designed for. With the garand, the chamber reaming has to be don with the barrel dismounted from the gun.
The first part of your statement is true.... but not necessarily a determining factor in how a rifle will operate when converted to a different cartridge.
Re chamber reaming..... Not true at all.
Short chambered Garand barrels are installed on the receiver, timed, and then finish reamed with a pull through reamer. This allows the 'smith to carefully set headspace to the bolt just as he would when barreling a bolt rifle.
Andrew also wrote:
well, you have to add parts, like the mag well block, and you do lose some reliability with .308 ammo.
????? All it takes is a barrel change..... PERIOD. ... and who is building all these malfing Garands you have been exposed to???
If I were you I'd check around and look for different 'smiths. I shoot a .308 Garand with 1500 rounds through it without a single malf or FTF. I shoot with other guys who have them as well. I've yet to hear of anyone with a .308 Garand that malfs.
Highpower shooters have been converting Garands to .308 by the THOUSANDS for the last 40 + years with no problems. Believe me, the last people who will tolerate a malfing rifle are Highpower competitors.
BTW, if .308 Garands are so unreliable, why would there be enough demand for FOUR barrel makers to offer .308 barrels as a standard catalog item??? Douglas, Barnett, Wilson, and Kreiger all offer "off the shelf" Garand barrels in .308.
Loss of reliability with a .308 Garand.....???? Ya gotta' be kiddin' me. Sorry, but if you've experienced problems with .308 Garands all I can say is to find a better 'smith... Any GOOD Garand 'smith with his shingle hangin' out can do a .308 conversion in his sleep and feel confident that it will shoot and the customer will be happy with it.
There's lots of them out there...... Anthony Pucci, Tony Giaccobi, Clint McKee, Dean Dilabaugh, Roland Beaver, and Ronnie Morris just to name a few.... there's plenty more.
BTW, the mag well block serves NO mechanical function. It's ONLY purpose is as a saftey device to prevent a clip of 30-06 ammo from being inserted into the mag well.
.308 Garands are the best thing since sliced bread and bottled beer.
Get one.....
Swampy
Garands forever