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1903 Springfiekd vs M1

cabnetman
I have a 1903 Springfield 30-06. I just got an M1. Are the rounds interchangeable?
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Comments

11 comments

Date Votes
  • Tflogger
    Rounds loaded to military specs? Yes.
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  • wpage
    Yes.
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  • nononsense
    cabnetman,

    I thought you might enjoy reading about the cartridge and the firearms in which it was employed:

    http://m1-garand-rifle.com/30-06/

    There are several other pages to this website so read on if it holds your interest.

    Here is new manufacture M1 ammunition from Hornady:

    http://www.hornady.com/in-the-news/latest-news/new-30-06-m1-garand-match-ammunition-from-hornady

    Best.
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  • rufe-snow
    Be aware in a few instances M I rifles have been altered to take other cartridges then 30-06. Most common is .308 Winchester/7.62 X 51. Years ago I also shot one in .270. Not likely yours has been altered, but there is always the possibility.
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  • jonk
    Dimensionally yes. However the M1 has a weak point- the long narrow op-rod. To prevent damage to the rod, you must use ammo that develops a specific pressure curve, achieved by bullets in the 150 to 180 gr range and medium burn rate powders between 3031 and 4320. Standard USGI ball ammo, or that loaded by some other countries (Denmark, Korea, Greece for instance) is fine, as is anything made that is marked "For the M1" such as Hornady's new ammo.

    So any ammo safe for the M1 is safe for the 1903.

    With the purchase of an adjustable gas plug to bleed off excess gas port pressure, any ammo safe for the 1903 can be made safe for the M1.
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  • cabnetman
    quote:Originally posted by nononsense
    cabnetman,

    I thought you might enjoy reading about the cartridge and the firearms in which it was employed:

    http://m1-garand-rifle.com/30-06/

    There are several other pages to this website so read on if it holds your interest.

    Here is new manufacture M1 ammunition from Hornady:

    http://www.hornady.com/in-the-news/latest-news/new-30-06-m1-garand-match-ammunition-from-hornady

    Best.


    Interesting reading and a lot of great info. Thanks.
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  • Ned Fall
    Back when John Garand was developing the M1, he had made it up in .270 caliber. General Douglas McArthur, the Army Chief of Stall told him to change it to .30 U.S. caliber (.30-06 Springfield) as the Army had millions of rounds of .30-06 left over from World War One.
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  • cabnetman
    quote:Originally posted by Ned Fall
    Back when John Garand was developing the M1, he had made it up in .270 caliber. General Douglas McArthur, the Army Chief of Stall told him to change it to .30 U.S. caliber (.30-06 Springfield) as the Army had millions of rounds of .30-06 left over from World War One.
    Thanks Ned. That brings up another interesting question: Would it be safe to use ammo from WW1?
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  • bpost
    quote:Originally posted by cabnetman
    quote:Originally posted by Ned Fall
    Back when John Garand was developing the M1, he had made it up in .270 caliber. General Douglas McArthur, the Army Chief of Stall told him to change it to .30 U.S. caliber (.30-06 Springfield) as the Army had millions of rounds of .30-06 left over from World War One.
    Thanks Ned. That brings up another interesting question: Would it be safe to use ammo from WW1?


    I would not, the reason is the old primers had mercury in them. I have noticed brass embrittlement from the leaching mercury in very old ammo. It is no fun having 60,000 PSI leaking out of split brass cases just in front of your nose.

    I fired some 06 ammo from WW1 thirty-five years ago, MANY split at the base leaking some gas into the action. I was too naive to know it was a very dangerous situation until someone told me I could be hurt if a case head failed completely. I was lucky, you may not be.
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  • cabnetman
    What would you think is too old? I have some 30-06 WW2 ammo that I haven't shot for 35 years or so. Do you think they would be safe to shoot? If so, then I could use them up in my M1.[:p]
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  • mark christian
    WWI ammo and WWI era ammo are two totally different animals and what bpost told you about the mercury in ancient primers weakening brass is true. Mercury is harmless to steel, which is why fulminated mercury caps were used for decades in BP firearms without any problems. When brass cased cartridges came along it did not take too long to discover that the mercury was doing nasty things to the brass and this is the reason that the switch was made to chloride-type primers. The salts in the new primers lead to corrosion of steel, but that is a whole other story.
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