Bought a Rock-Ola M1 Carbine with a tapped scope mount

[veprdude]

I bought a Rock-Ola M1 Carbine with a tapped scope mount. I'm in the process of putting this back to stock (or as close as possible). Any suggestion would be helpful.

The stock has been cut to fit the mount and the butt plate has been replaced with a Pachmayr rubber one. Appears to be quite old.

Left side of the receiver near the bolt has "Bavaria Game Warden" stamped.

[Nodak1858]

Other than take off the mount and get a replacement stock i wouldn't do much to it. If you can still see the screw holes you could plug and cold blue them still will be noticeable but would look be IMHO

[ammo.crafter]

This brought back childhood memories as this gun was the first centerfire rifle I was taught to shoot.
Good luck on your project.

[hammie]

@veprdude: Just do what "nodak1858" said. And I would get the replacement stock now, because they will just get harder to find in the future.

There is also an option B: Buy a replacement stock but leave the rifle as is for now. Most will consider this blasphemous, but if you mount a 1x-4x variable scope on it, it should make a handy shooter. Although for the life of me, I can't figure out why someone would install a recoil pad on a 30 carbine.

@ammocrafter: My first centerfire rifle was a savage 23D, chambered for .22 hornet. I was 15 at the time and used it for hunting groundhogs. It opened up a whole new world for me. I'm 75 now, but in those days nobody thought it was bad for kids to have guns. Of course, in those days we all had fathers who would skin us alive if we mis-used a gun. Society has changed, but that's another thread for a different forum.

[44 AMP]

Although for the life of me, I can't figure out why someone would install a recoil pad on a 30 carbine.

One puts a pad on a light recoiling rifle for its non-slip properties (over a steel buttplate), not for recoil reduction.

I would be curious about the "Bavaria Game Warden" marking. A carbine used by an actual Bavarian Game Warden wouldn't be marked that way, in English.

My best guess would be the scope base was mounted and the gun marked that way as a marketing name for some large (probably mail order) supply house sometime in the early 60s.
but, that's a total guess...

[veprdude]

Originally Posted by Nodak1858

Other than take off the mount and get a replacement stock i wouldn't do much to it. If you can still see the screw holes you could plug and cold blue them still will be noticeable but would look be IMHO

What's the best way to go about plugging the holes? File down the bolts flush and loc-tite them in the holes?

[kymasabe]

I found quite a few articles about M1 carbines in Bavaria. If this website is correct, your rifle may be one of 2598 given to Bavarian game wardens.
http://www.bavarianm1carbines.com/bavaria.html

[dahermit]

Originally Posted by 44 AMP

One puts a pad on a light recoiling rifle for its non-slip properties (over a steel buttplate), not for recoil reduction.

I would be curious about the "Bavaria Game Warden" marking. A carbine used by an actual Bavarian Game Warden wouldn't be marked that way, in English.

My best guess would be the scope base was mounted and the gun marked that way as a marketing name for some large (probably mail order) supply house sometime in the early 60s.
but, that's a total guess...

Another reason for adding a butt pad to a U.S. .30 Carbine is to increase the length of pull. Nevertheless, I consider any mod to those guns to be an abomination.

Here is my .30 U.S. Carbine.

[Nodak1858]

What's the best way to go about plugging the holes? File down the bolts flush and loc-tite them in the holes?

Depends on how much you want to hide them, but either way they'll still stand out from the finish on there now. But the Bavarian's soemtimes have funky colored finishes, I have one with a plumb colored trigger housing, they say from being refinished over there. But if it were me I'd use something like these from Brownells easy to use and won't have to do anything else to the receiver other than screw in. Google the words below will take you to some plugs for the holes.

BROWNELLS - PLUG SCREW KIT

[taylorce1]

M1 carbines are fun, I'd just take the mount off and enjoy. I don't need it correct to enjoy the pure shooting pleasure these little rifle are. I'm sure you picked it up for a very good price, since it isn't a collector piece.

[44 AMP]

Nevertheless, I consider any mod to those guns to be an abomination.

Does that include mods made by the Govt? Your carbine pictured has the post WWII modification, the bayonet lug....

I have one with a plumb colored trigger housing, they say from being refinished over there.

The plumb color can be from a refinish, or it can be the result of the way the original finish aged.

Am not a carbine expert, will do some checking, but I think all the original guns were parkerized, so a plum color could very well be from a refinish.

[Nodak1858]

The plumb color can be from a refinish, or it can be the result of the way the original finish aged.

Am not a carbine expert, will do some checking, but I think all the original guns were parkerized, so a plum color could very well be from a refinish.

I picked up a carbine years ago that was over there and it has that color form the refininsh. Rest of the rifle is a decent park, even though it looks a bit odd, that's the history of it . So I'll keep it as is, the Barvarians have some folks collecting then as well now.

[The Happy kaboomer]

44AMP

These carbines were lent to the Germans after WWII to police Germany after the war. The stamping is legitimate. Each area of Germany after the war stamped the carbines with the area in which they were used. I have an Underwood-Elliot-Fisher carbine that was used for that purpose. My is stamped BAVAIAN FORESTRY POLICE. Mine was purchased from the CMP in Aniston Alabama.

[Scorch]

I would be curious about the "Bavaria Game Warden" marking. A carbine used by an actual Bavarian Game Warden wouldn't be marked that way, in English.

From 1945 until 1952, a lot of things in Germany were written in English. Or Russian. We were the occupying armies, after all. I was in Germany in the 1960s, there were a lot of things in English even then. And the Germans resented it.

[dahermit]

Quote:

Nevertheless, I consider any mod to those guns to be an abomination.

Does that include mods made by the Govt? Your carbine pictured has the post WWII modification, the bayonet lug....

If the Govt did it, I have no problem with it. As far as I know my Carbine was Korean war era.

[44 AMP]

The stamping is legitimate. Each area of Germany after the war stamped the carbines with the area in which they were used.

Based on the info this thread has brought to light, I'm not questioning that the guns were used by the Bavarian Forestry Police, am just curious about who might actually have done the stamping.

IF the guns were stamped by the supplying US govt for German use, then English makes sense.

It just doesn't make sense, to me, that the Germans would stamp the guns in English, for their own use.

Bavaria Game Warden is Bavaria Wildhüter
And Bavarian Forestry Police is Forstpolizei Bayern

according to my computer's translator. Which is why I suspect the markings on those carbines were done by an English speaker, for German use.
Marking them that way, (in either language) means that there is a permanent "trail" if the carbines were ever "repurposed", showing where they came from/had been.

I think that if the Americans had marked them and gave them to the Germans, then English might have been used. And, if the Germans marked them for themselves, I think they would have used German, UNLESS one of the conditions from the US to get them required marking in English (so GI's/occupation officials could easily tell who they were supposed to belong to).

I don't think it's likely but it is possible and stranger things have been done.

[105kw]

According to War Baby III, by Larry L Ruth, in 1946 the US military forces issued M-1 carbines to various Bavarian Police organizations.
They were marked in English, with the name of the group they were issued to. To allow US personnel to easily identify them.

[Spats McGee]

FWIW, which is exactly what you paid for it, I'd also love to see the "Bavarian Game Warden" marking.

[veprdude]

Originally Posted by Spats McGee

FWIW, which is exactly what you paid for it, I'd also love to see the "Bavarian Game Warden" marking.

Last (5th) pic I posted in the first post. Left of the bolt on the receiver. When I remove the rail, I'm also going to thoroughly clean and lube it. I'll post new pics then.

[Spats McGee]

Originally Posted by veprdude

Last (5th) pic I posted in the first post. Left of the bolt on the receiver. When I remove the rail, I'm also going to thoroughly clean and lube it. I'll post new pics then.

Thanks. It's very faint on my monitor, but I see it now.