M1 carbine

[jd3020]

Hey there again all you guys out there. A few years ago my grandpa passed away and in the mist of all of that he wanted to kill him self. So we removed all of the guns from his house and i got to looking around at them the other day and i have grown attached to one in particular. Its an m1 carbine. From what i can tell on the barrel up by the front sight it says underwood and under that is a 3-44 and under that looks like a bomb with fire out of the top. My question to all of you guys out there is what time period was this used in, is the year a 44 what war was it from etc... and the biggy is what do you think its worth? This gun is in original condition and as its not nib i would say its very good condition.i will attach a picture of it as well. thanks for all the help. my grandpa was in the military and im just trying to see if this gun dates back to what he was doing. As far as i know he was in the korean war and my dad said this was the gun he carried or one like he carried (if this gun was even used in the korean war) anyways like i said any info would help. and also is there any way to get an authenticty paper to show this thing was real or does that have to be passed down with the gun?

[jd3020]

updated for that info to is the serial number is 3824472

[kraigwy]

The 3-44 means your rifle was built in March 1944. Comparing your serial number to mine, I'd say its right on.

Hang on to it, your grand kids will appreciate it.

[Art Eatman]

The M1s were issued during WW II. I have my father's Carbine that he toted on D-Day.

Odds are that they were used in Korea, although I was issued a selective-fire M2 when I was there in 1954/1955.

I haven't been paying all that much attention to prices, but I vaguely recall numbers in the $500 to $700 range for clean, original guns.

[jd3020]

m1.jpg its not the best picture of it but its all i have right now. and yes that is a bayonett on the end of the barrel. we were at a gun show and happened to find one a guy was selling. nice little addition to it.

[dalegribble]

i would check to see what the cmp is selling them for and if your gun is original it would be worth that as a minimum and maybe much more if the numbers match.

[kraigwy]

i would check to see what the cmp is selling them for

Their not, their out except for a few high priced Auction sales.

I almost missed out procrastinating, but did get one just before they sold out. $495.

Since the CMP ran out and see no signs of getting more M1 Carbine prices are getting sky high.

[TX Hunter]

I really hate it when a post starts out sad, talking about a loved One that has passed, then mentions a gun that was owned by the loved one. And then that question , WHATS IT WORTH ? comes up. Reason i hate these kinds of post is it reminds me that one day, the things i want to pass down to my grandchildren will probably end up in a pawn shop somewhere too.

[jd3020]

i understand where you are coming from but i have no intention in selling this gun at all. Matter of fact i also have a springfield 1903 that was with this one but it needs a stock as the one on it is broken. i very rarely sell a gun and in this case this one has to much history behind it to sell it. at least to me any ways

[kraigwy]

i also have a springfield 1903 that was with this one but it needs a stock as the one on it is broken.

The CMP sells stocks for 1903s (and other US Military Surplus Rifles)

https://estore.odcmp.com/store/catal...4=&note5=&max=

[TX Hunter]

Im glad your keeping them, i have collected a few nice firearms myself. (a 1903 A3) also. And i hope one day that my children and grandchildren will enjoy them.

[jd3020]

see technically they arent MY guns and my grandma is still alive so they are tech. hers but since we have been storeing them i guess i get to mess with them. The down side is when she passes my dad told me he isnt going to fight with my uncle over anything and what ever he wants he will get (im hoping he dosent know about the guns) because if thats the case they will end up at a pawn shop because he has greedy fingers and wants all the money he can get his hands on. but i will do my best to keep that from happening!!!!

[TX Hunter]

its none of my business, but have you ever thought of asking your grandmother if you can have the carbine? If she gives it to you, its yours

[jd3020]

actually no i have never thought of that. my grandma has done alot for me and i guess i have just felt like asking to have something of hers would be like a kick in the shorts. but maybe thats not a bad idea to ask

[TX Hunter]

If she knew you had an intrest in such things she may want you to have it. Grandparents are kind of special like that.

[Chris_B]

i would check to see what the cmp is selling them for and if your gun is original it would be worth that as a minimum and maybe much more if the numbers match.

Hi. I just want to mention that with firearms like this "matching numbers" may be a bit of a wild goose chase. The "numbers" may never have "matched" on the day it was manufactured, or in other words, the serial number of the receiver was not necessarily recorded on other, original parts. Originality on things like this sometimes needs to be determined by the correct parts being in their as-issued configuration, and bearing correct drawing numbers

At first glance, it seems that the operating slide is later manufacture, the barrel band is definitely late manufacture, as is the rear sight and it has a later manufacture rotary safety. Gorgeous wood, with the better-for-function 'low wood' stock

[Young.Gun.612]

Unless grandma is an avid shooter, I don't think she'd take any umbrage to you asking for something of your grandpas that has sentimental value to you. I know my grandparents would give me anything they could if I asked for it. It's what grandparents do.

[jd3020]

chris b i believe when i was researching the m1 carbine was not manufactured after 45 i believe. unless that was just a certan brand. yes this one does have the round operating slide which was put in on the later ones. and maybe that was the deal with bringing it back it was in different pieces from different guns. that im not for sure of because i cant ask my grandpa those questions

[Chris_B]

I think you're misunderstanding me

When I say "later manufacture" I mean "later USGI manufacture", not "those aren't the correct parts". You are correct; they were made up through '45. All USGI carbines were made during WWII years

My 1943 Inland M1 carbine has the late manufacture sights, barrel band, and operating slide too, and Uncle Sam did that becasue those parts were better for the service weapon that the earlier parts. Mine also had a "pot-belly" M2 stock, with the cut-out for the selector switch. Great shooting stock and it's nice wood. USGI stock, just later manufacture than the receiver and barrel. It was very common to update the weapons while in military service, no shame in that

I think the M1 carbine you showed is a fine carbine and I'd be happy to have one just like it

[TPAW]

You said the gun is in original condition. How did you determine that?

[Chris_B]

I think what he means is that it hasn't been sporterized, etc; "original" as in "still in US GI condition", which is what it looks like to me. Pretty wood but some of the GI stocks had nice figuring

[bigghoss]

Almost all the M1 carbines were rebuilt and updated after WWII so it's not uncommon to find one with mis-matched parts because they didn't take the time to put the original parts back in a gun. Even early manufacture guns will have late-manufacture features.

You should talk to your grandmother and state your case. Say that you really like the gun and you're worried that if it goes to your uncle it'll get sold and a piece of family history will be lost.

[TPAW]

You said the gun is in original condition. How did you determine that?

I think what he means is that it hasn't been sporterized, etc; "original" as in "still in US GI condition", which is what it looks like to me. Pretty wood but some of the GI stocks had nice figuring

Almost all the M1 carbines were rebuilt and updated after WWII so it's not uncommon to find one with mis-matched parts because they didn't take the time to put the original parts back in a gun. Even early manufacture guns will have late-manufacture features.

Thank you both for your input. However, I would like the original poster to respond. It would be refreshing to hear that it is truly all original. There are some out there, I know of one that was brought back after the war.
It was on a ship and never saw land. That and a .45 cal. was issued to my neighbor. He was a young Lt. in the infantry waiting to invade Japan. As we know, the invasion never took place. After being discharged, he became an FBI agent and still had possession of both the M1 carbine and .45.
I've seen both of them and offered to purchase them. He said that he was going to pass them down to his son. After being my neighbor here in NY for many years, he relocated to MO. We stayed in touch briefly for a couple of years and he passed away. Since then, I have not had contact with any of his family. I can only presume that his son now has the carbine and .45? Can't say for sure.

[gak]

Mine, 6-44 production, is one of the few war-issue M1s I've seen with original fit bayo lug. It also has the ramp adjustable sight as original equipment...both of which features were mid 1944 Ordnance department orders for all carbines to be so fit or refit, but few of the bayo barrel bands especially made it into action (or few post order new ones even ever "heard the order"). The few that did were likely only in the PTO late in the war--Okinawa and such. I know my Inland is a non-messed-with "all original" as my father found it NIB in a junkyard on Guam looking for engine parts (and getting pot shot at!) and brought it back behind his seat in his B-29.
Top is the original '44 Inland. Note as odd earlier style high wood, combined with *matching* grain but four-hole (rivet) handguard usually asociated with later then M2s--confirming what one poster said--they used what parts were on hand. It is *all Inland* however, and has the later round bolt. Note the nice walnut figuring on the top '44 Inland. The bottom is a '43 Inland that's been post/Korean war refit all around. Bolt, low wood, sights, rotary safety. Very good example, in fact, of a complete refit. It is a relatively rare nice re-import (you couldn't tell except for nearly illegible tiny marking on the under side of the barrel). Also rare, through the refitting it retained original or via happenstance 95% Inland parts. Bottom: rare image of a war-issue--but not a refit--bayo lug band.

[jd3020]

yes i say original because to me it looks all original. the rear peep sight has a knob for windage adj but you have to push the elevation by hand and there are different numbers on the ramp. the front sight is just like that in the picture and it has the bayo lug on it. i know its a late model obviously beacuse the barrel is stamped with underwood 3-44. it has a round rotating bolt on it which the earlier ones were flat on top. right behind the trigger guard there is a p ingraved in the stock and then down on the butt stock there is a ra-p engraved. over on the side of the butt stock there is a j engraved where the sling goes through the stock.on the front of the reciever its stamped u.s. carbine .30 cal m1. on the rear of the reciever under the sight there is something stamped that i can see because the rear sight is in the way and then under that is the serial number 3824472. on the front sling mount k1 is stamped on the piece that wraps around the forarm and barrel. it has a front ramp sight and the ramp slopes down away from you not towards you. it has the original mag pouch with 2 9 round mags. m1 is stamped on the mag relase and it has a round saftey. on the right side of the rear sight i.r. co. 7160060 is stamped. This is what stands out to me on the gun. i will try to get some pictues on here of it all this evening. The bad part about this whole deal is my grandpa had demencia when we had to take these guns away from him. If i would of known about them sooner i would been all over him to find out the history. I will def. ask my grandma if she knows any history behind it. But i was always told from my dad that this was the gun grandpa carried with him in corea. I never saw grandpa take it out of the cabnit in my 24 years of being alive and to this day i have never heard grandpa talk about the war the he was in. i just saw the side affects of the demencia.