Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Competitive Shooting Puzzling Garand problem

I've got an M1 Garand that was rebuilt and rebarreled 3360 rounds ago that now gages a "4" in the throat and a "2" in the muzzle. I used to shoot in CMP & ATC matches, but I haven't used this rifle for matches in nearly two years due to decreased accuracy. I've tried various patches and tested them with careful slow fire.

Yesterday I cleaned the barrel, disassembled, cleaned, greased, and reassembled the rifle. Today I took it to the range to get a 100 yd. zero with a load I've only shot once before in preparation for a fun type shoot tomorrow. The load was nothing particularly odd, but I had only shot it once before, and it gave reasonable results. The load was the 150 gr. Remington PCLSP seated to 3.215" OAL (approximately 1/2 of the crimp grove into the case mouth)/48.0 gr. IMR4064/LC cases/CCI No. 34 primers. Previously my best load was a 168 gr. Hornady or Sierra with 45.0 - 46.0 gr. H4895 and the same cases and primers.

First I fired ten shots from a bench at a SR-1 target at 100 yds. The first two shots were single loaded, and the last eight from a clip. I fired slow enough to check each shot through a spotting scope before firing the next. The group was truly awful and also required a sight adjustment of three clicks left and two clicks down, which I made. The group scored 83-1X.

After making the sight adjustment I raped fired an eight-round clip from the bench to confirm the sight adjustment. The adjustment was spot on and as good as it could be with 1 MOA adjustments. The eight rounds scored 76-1X/80, or 95%. I was shocked an puzzled why the rifle shot this well.

I'm open to any answers that involve rifle or shoot problems, but I really don't think I have an ammo problem out to 200 yds.

They always shoot better after a few fouling shots.

Don't clean it before the match!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When you take the action out of the stock for cleaning it does take a number of rds for it to settle back in and accuracy to return.

Two good suggestions. I will add consistency in mounting the rifle in your shoulder. Each time you break position to scope, you have to remount the rifle consistently. Head position, cheek position pressure, grip, shoulder pressure. All of that was accounted for when you shot rapid off the clip. See it all the time.

The voice of experience says that there is no secret to shooting. It's fundamentals! As Chris said above. The most important Is watching the front sight and follow through. To me, the M1 was a difficult gun to shoot It is very important not to "bull gaze. You have got to have a clear and sharp front sight. After I smoked my front sight, I took my knife and scribed a bright mark down the middle of my front sight. If you concentrate on the sights, the gun will actually "fire itself" Watch the bullet go all the way through the target. I have shooting buddies who get every thing right except the follow through part. Some times they shoot cleans and other times , it looks like rat crap in a dresser drawer. If I watch them closely, it usually can be blamed on follow through.
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I think orlando8 hit the nail on the head and a couple of fouling shots don’t hurt either.

Craig is right on his thoughts, might not be what is wrong, but his, Chris too. Marking the front sight after smoked did wonders for us years ago. Made us concentrate.

Taking gun out of stock takes some settling. Cleaning takes settling.

Even changing powders takes some at times... I was once shooting one powder up close and another at 600.... gave me FITS for the first rounds until I figured it out by asking one of the long range La Berge shooters.

So there are many things, one of which can even be as simple as not tight enough sling, bad NPA for a rapid( same thing Chris kind of talks about on slow prone) etc...

Speaking of slow prone, do you watch any tennis? Rafael Nadal... wipes his nose, then left ear, then right ear before every shot? About the same as having to put that stock back in same same, nose same, face same, etc... for EACH shot.

One more lone wondering thought... in reality you should shoot prone shots just as fast as rapid almost. The more we look a shot over, assuming I'm not closing my eyes, blinking it off, taking another breathe etc.... the more you look at most shots the worse they get.

Of course I was working on a Garand once, had not shot it in some time, worked up a good slow prone load with 168s, but could not shoot rapids for flip... was big time into the AR and winning matches by then... So I took it to the guy that had done original work, he ripped off a prone rapid group that made me blush compared to mine. I'd become sloppy with the AR, RE recoil, NPA etc.. and had still been cleaning targets and winning matches...

Jeff

I think I'm beginning to see some light on the problem. Get a routine for slow fire and back to basics. I do that part better standing than I do prone. I usually just clean the barrel. I only breakdown the rifle once or twice a year to preserve the bedding. The rifle isn't bedded as such because of CMP rules, but the stock was new and tight when I had it rebuilt.

Shoot em till they degrade accuracy, then clean... cleaning for highpower demands is WAY over rated.