m1 carbine identification

ww2freak27 · January 3, 2010, 06:02 PM

I picked up an m1 carbine stock from a military surplus store and I cannot identify the stock that I bought

so I decided to post a thread here to see if any of you guys knows where this stock was manufactured, its rarity and or history

. It has some asian symbols on the sides of the stock and the bottom of the hand grip has been painted yellow with the number 74 inside. Any help would be appreciated with identifying this m1 carbine stock. If you need more photos just let me know and I'll try to upload more. Cheers!

SDC · January 3, 2010, 06:06 PM

The ideographs look Korean to me, and I know the ROK used M1 carbines, but that's just my SWAG as to its history.

ww2freak27 · January 3, 2010, 06:07 PM

Here's some of the other pics

Tom2 · January 3, 2010, 06:18 PM

Kinda rough looking stock. It is marked with Korean characters and probably is from a 90's Blue Sky imported carbine from Korea. If it is a US made stock, there should be a letter code inside the sling cut on the left side. Korea also made replacement stocks, but I think they were mostly the potbelly M2 style of stocks from what I have seen. They used teak or some other wood native to their region. The Korean paint markings have no meaning to us and are most likely detract from any collectability of the gun.

ww2freak27 · January 3, 2010, 08:43 PM

Thanks for the info. Do you mean that the stock was imported in the 1990's or manufactured in the 1990's? I don't see any markings where the sling would be like you said

so it probably is not american made. I guess it still makes an interesting addition to the collection. Any other information would be greatly appreciated.

Tom2 · January 3, 2010, 08:52 PM

If is was a US stock it was likely made in the 40's, I have no idea when the Koreans phased out the carbines from actual use and quit making stocks. The Blue Sky Korean surplus carbines were imported into the US in the 90's and some were as cheap as 150$. The creme of the picks were of course maybe higher. The condition of the Korean guns ran from really nice to pretty worn out. They were in plain cardboard boxes and usually seemed to have old grease on them. Dealers at the gunshows had piles of them so you could pick and choose. The guns were all rearsenaled and the parts were usually all mixed, but sometimes you could get a carbine with major components all of one maker, most often Inland.

impalacustom · January 4, 2010, 03:21 AM

That stock is for an M2, it has the selector notch cut into it, look at pic 39. Did you get the handguard as well?

Uncle Buck · January 4, 2010, 10:09 AM

It is definitely Korean on the stock. The pictures made it hard to read what it says (Hyon Dan Tak Na?) and I have not had to read/translate Korean in many years.
These rifles were sent to various units and then the units would take either a paint brush or a can of spray paint and print the info on them (Unit name and location).
I was in Korea from 1985 - 1993 and the only places I saw this type of rifle used was down country at some of the smaller com sites and once in awhile I would see a patrol along the DMZ with them. By my time in country, most units had switched over to the M-16.

Just based on the condition of the stock, with-out the paint, I would not imagine it would be worth much.

ww2freak27 · January 5, 2010, 10:13 PM

thanks Uncle Buck! You seem to know quite a bit about this gun's history. Do you happen to know what that korean means in english? Is this a stock to an m1 or an m2 carbine like the person said above you in this post? Any other information would be appreciated since you seem to know more about this stock than anyone else so far

Uncle Buck · January 5, 2010, 10:34 PM

I only know a little about the language and the time I spent in Korea. Not much about the stock itself.

My dictionaries are in the barn and it is too cold for me to retrieve them right now. It has been quite awhile since I have had to translate any Korean, but my guess would be the writing (Hangul)signifies the unit/job.

The military police carried rifles that were marked 'Hyon Byong'. Yours seems to be marked "Hyon Dok" or "Hyon Dak"

ww2freak27 · January 5, 2010, 11:05 PM

That is ok. I still appreciate the help.

Travlin · January 21, 2010, 08:31 PM

ww2freak27

You can easily replace the stock. Prices range from $30 for birch without the metal parts to $100 or so for walnut, some times with the metal. The buttplate is usually around $15. Many gun shows have them. Here is a good online source. With a better stock your carbine will look very fine and probably be much more accurate.

http://www.fulton-armory.com/
Scroll to find the M1 Carbine parts.

January 3, 2010, 06:06 PM	#2
SDC Senior Member Join Date: January 23, 2001 Location: People's Republic of Kanada Posts: 1,652	The ideographs look Korean to me, and I know the ROK used M1 carbines, but that's just my SWAG as to its history. __________________ Gun control in Canada: making the streets safer for rapists, muggers, and other violent criminals since 1936.

January 3, 2010, 06:18 PM	#4
Tom2 Senior Member Join Date: June 23, 2004 Location: Ohio Posts: 5,676	Kinda rough looking stock. It is marked with Korean characters and probably is from a 90's Blue Sky imported carbine from Korea. If it is a US made stock, there should be a letter code inside the sling cut on the left side. Korea also made replacement stocks, but I think they were mostly the potbelly M2 style of stocks from what I have seen. They used teak or some other wood native to their region. The Korean paint markings have no meaning to us and are most likely detract from any collectability of the gun. __________________ Your gun is like your nose, it is just wrong for someone else to pick it for you!

January 3, 2010, 08:52 PM	#6
Tom2 Senior Member Join Date: June 23, 2004 Location: Ohio Posts: 5,676	If is was a US stock it was likely made in the 40's, I have no idea when the Koreans phased out the carbines from actual use and quit making stocks. The Blue Sky Korean surplus carbines were imported into the US in the 90's and some were as cheap as 150$. The creme of the picks were of course maybe higher. The condition of the Korean guns ran from really nice to pretty worn out. They were in plain cardboard boxes and usually seemed to have old grease on them. Dealers at the gunshows had piles of them so you could pick and choose. The guns were all rearsenaled and the parts were usually all mixed, but sometimes you could get a carbine with major components all of one maker, most often Inland. __________________ Your gun is like your nose, it is just wrong for someone else to pick it for you!

January 4, 2010, 10:09 AM	#8
Uncle Buck Senior Member Join Date: June 21, 2009 Location: West Central Missouri Posts: 2,592	It is definitely Korean on the stock. The pictures made it hard to read what it says (Hyon Dan Tak Na?) and I have not had to read/translate Korean in many years. These rifles were sent to various units and then the units would take either a paint brush or a can of spray paint and print the info on them (Unit name and location). I was in Korea from 1985 - 1993 and the only places I saw this type of rifle used was down country at some of the smaller com sites and once in awhile I would see a patrol along the DMZ with them. By my time in country, most units had switched over to the M-16. Just based on the condition of the stock, with-out the paint, I would not imagine it would be worth much. __________________ Inside Every Bright Idea Is The 50% Probability Of A Disaster Waiting To Happen.

January 5, 2010, 10:34 PM	#10
Uncle Buck Senior Member Join Date: June 21, 2009 Location: West Central Missouri Posts: 2,592	I only know a little about the language and the time I spent in Korea. Not much about the stock itself. My dictionaries are in the barn and it is too cold for me to retrieve them right now. It has been quite awhile since I have had to translate any Korean, but my guess would be the writing (Hangul)signifies the unit/job. The military police carried rifles that were marked 'Hyon Byong'. Yours seems to be marked "Hyon Dok" or "Hyon Dak" __________________ Inside Every Bright Idea Is The 50% Probability Of A Disaster Waiting To Happen. Last edited by Uncle Buck; January 5, 2010 at 10:41 PM.

January 3, 2010, 08:43 PM	#5
ww2freak27 Member Join Date: January 3, 2010 Location: Minnesota Posts: 20	Thanks for the info. Do you mean that the stock was imported in the 1990's or manufactured in the 1990's? I don't see any markings where the sling would be like you said so it probably is not american made. I guess it still makes an interesting addition to the collection. Any other information would be greatly appreciated.

January 4, 2010, 03:21 AM	#7
impalacustom Senior Member Join Date: January 26, 2009 Posts: 492	That stock is for an M2, it has the selector notch cut into it, look at pic 39. Did you get the handguard as well?

January 5, 2010, 10:13 PM	#9
ww2freak27 Member Join Date: January 3, 2010 Location: Minnesota Posts: 20	thanks Uncle Buck! You seem to know quite a bit about this gun's history. Do you happen to know what that korean means in english? Is this a stock to an m1 or an m2 carbine like the person said above you in this post? Any other information would be appreciated since you seem to know more about this stock than anyone else so far

January 5, 2010, 11:05 PM	#11
ww2freak27 Member Join Date: January 3, 2010 Location: Minnesota Posts: 20	That is ok. I still appreciate the help. __________________ guns don't kill people...people kill people

January 21, 2010, 08:31 PM	#12
Travlin Member Join Date: February 13, 2009 Location: Upper Midwest Posts: 16	Stock replacement ww2freak27 You can easily replace the stock. Prices range from $30 for birch without the metal parts to $100 or so for walnut, some times with the metal. The buttplate is usually around $15. Many gun shows have them. Here is a good online source. With a better stock your carbine will look very fine and probably be much more accurate. http://www.fulton-armory.com/ Scroll to find the M1 Carbine parts.