M1 Grand
I have a Springfield NM M1 Grand with a 6 land and 6 grooved barrel. I would like to reload the ammo for it but no body can tell me the best bullet weigt to use ,or what the barrel twist could be.I will be useing 4046 IMP power.
Thanks for any will you give me.
Thanks for any will you give me.
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The gas system of the Garand is designed to operate with 150 to 180 gr bulets and a specific burn rate to produce a specifice pressure range. H4895 is the powder that was loaded in billions of rounds during WWII. Any powder with a simular burn rate is fine. Avoid slow powders due to possible operating rod damage from excessive port pressure.
For hunting a 165 Nosler partition is hard to beat for most game. For general plinking any 150 to 180 gr bullet is fine.0 -
BTW, that's GARAND, not GRAND. 
MEMBER SINCE 10/24/1999.
To err is human, to moo is bovine.0 -
BIG AL,
I don't think that there is a 'best' bullet weight since several weights were loaded by our government and other governments around the world. Here is a good introduction to reloading for the Garand:
Reloading for the M1 Garand
Should I or shouldn't I?
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.
A: Several problems can arise for the unwary reloader, but all can be overcome. Since .30-06 chambers vary widely, use only virgin brass or brass from factory ammo fired in your M1 for reloading to help mitigate chambering problems. Before you make up a batch of reloads, make a dummy round first to ensure your die settings are correct and the round feeds and the bolt closes normally. Maintain correct brass length religiously, too. Second, stay with medium burning powders in the class of IMR 4064 or Hodgdon H4350.
A good reference for reloading for the M1 specifically can be located in the current Hornady reloading manual. Third, there is no retractor spring on the M1's firing pin and it tends toffy forward as the bolt closes. While it is too light to set off the majority of primers, a too sensitive primer could ignite. The CCI No. 34 primer is a Mil-Spec primer with a cup made a little harder to resist slam firing during use in semiauto rifles. CCI offers this primer to the consumer. Using such a primer will reduce the chance of a dangerous slam fire occurring.
Inspect your reloads thoroughly and check to ensure no high primers are present. A slam fire can occur even with the No. 34 primer (f they are seated above the rim of the brass. If you do all of this in addition to standard reloading and shooting safety procedures, you should have no problems.
The Garand was designed to use then-current issue military ammo. After some initial problems the ammo was revised slightly. This is what we know as M2 ball ammo. It consisted of a 150 grain FMJ bullet launched at around 2700 feet per second by a powder that had a medium burn rate.
Powder selection is also critical to making safe loads for a Garand. Do not use any powder with a burn rate slower than IMR 4320 or a faster than IMR 3031. Before you get all discouraged about a limited powder selection you should know that (from fastest to slowest burn rate) Hodgdon Benchmark 1, Norma N-201, Hodgdon 332, Hodgdon Benchmark 2, Accurate Arms 2230, IMR 4895, Hodgdon 4895, Hodgdon 335, Hodgdon BL-C(2), Accurate Arms 2460, Winchester 748, Alliant Reloader 12, Vihtavuori N-135, IMR 4064, Hodgdon Varget, Accurate Arms 2520, & Norma 202 all have acceptable burn rates. Of those powders IMR 4895, H4895, & IMR 4064 are the most popular as they most closely duplicate the powders originally used by the military, but any that fall between IMR 4064 & IMR 4895 on the burn rate chart will produce good results.
If you're using Mil-Surp cases you'll have to reduce your load from 1 to 2 grains to adjust for the thicker walls of the Mil-Surp cases. If you use a magnum primer such as CCI No. 34 you'll also have to lower your powder charge by a grain or so if you're using data developed with a standard primer.
& keep the following in mind as a guide to working up loads: 150 grain bullets should have a velocity of less than 2850 FPS; 165/168 grain bullets should have a velocity of less than 2750 FPS & 173/175/178 grain bullets should have a velocity of less than 2650 FPS. Keep this in mind as you decide how you want to work up your loads. I know it seems disappointing when the data you're looking at shows how you can push a 150 grain bullet to 2900 FPS, but velocity isn't nearly as important as safe functioning or accuracy. If loading 100 to 150 FPS under what's possible is that big of a deal, then you either need to switch to a bolt action rifle or make some modifications to your Garand (which I'll touch on in a bit). A game animal, target or enemy won't be able to tell what speed the bullet hit them at, & even at the velocities outlined above the '06 will do its job if you do yours.
Keep bullet weights under 180 grains. You can find several match bullets in the 170's if you need something heavier for long range shots. Also keep exposed lead to a minimum as lead doesn't mix well with the gas system of a Garand. One bullet I would recommend as a replacement for a traditional exposed lead tipped bullet is Hornady's SST. It uses some sort of polymer tip that not only looks neat but keeps the tip protected as it travels through the Garand's action. I haven't shot any game with it yet but it is designed to expand & seems to be a good choice for any autoloading firearm that you'd use to hunt light skinned big game.
The above is from a very comprehensive article that really deserves reading and printing out for your files:
http://carnival.saysuncle.com/002449.html
Best.0 -
Taking a SWAG I'd say that you would probably have a 1 in 10 twist; but that six groove barrel plumb evades me. Has to be some commercial knockoff....but the most I've ever heard of is a 5 groove M1 match barrel that Boots Obermeyer made a long time ago. I'm hoping someone can come up with an answer to.
For best accuracy I'd go with some 155 grain Palma Match bullets, but you can't go wrong with 168 grain BTHP Match Kings either. Beach
P.S. I just talked to a friend and he thought that maybe Krieger made a 6 groove once...Any body Know?0 -
BIG AL,
You can measure the twist rate used in your barrel with a cleaning rod and a patch on a brush fitted tight. Be careful as this has to be done from the muzzle.
Garand barrels with 6 lands/grooves are common with major barrel manufacturers.
http://www.dgrguns.com/0-main-page-barrels.htm
http://www.kriegerbarrels.com/RapidCat/catalog/pagetemplate.cfm?template=/RapidCat/common/viewPage.cfm&PageId=3393&CompanyId=1246
As I wrote before, there is no one best bullet because usually the rifle will determine what it likes to shoot. It's a matter of testing loads with the different powders and bullets. Just pay attention to the restrictions on velocity and powders that I posted above.
If it will help, I'll be glad to send you an Excel spreadsheet with the suggested military loads listed. Most of the major powder manufacturers also print loads specific to the Garands and other military rifles for competition.
Best.0 -
Thanks no nonsense...I didn't know about those commercial barrels. 0
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