load data for 1st time "garanders"

[garand poobah]

i see many new garand owners asking about load data for the m1 garand. it is a fairly common myth that the garand has issues when it comes to strength-of-action. nothing could be further from the truth.

the issue is not the action. it is the gas system, and its really more of a timing issue than anything.

use the correct burn rates, and it is likely the most robust lockup you will find in the semi auto rifle world.

i dont like to go slower than varget. i advise most new owners to start with h4895, or imr 4895. also to start with 147-152 grain bullets. most garands will shoot better with bullets in the 168 grain category, but i think its always better to start with lighter bullets and charge weights, and work up from there watching for signs of overpressure along the way.

flattened primers with squared shoulders is a good sign to back it down a bit. little "tank dams" around the primer indentation, where part of the primer has flowed into the boltface around the firing pin is another. another less noted but method of reading pressure levels for me is case trimming required between loadings of a given case. always check case length and trim where needed to maintain consistent length of cases for a given batch so stretch can be observed. commercial brass will always stretch a little more than good mil-surp brass like hxp or lake city. if you find that commercial cases need more than 5 or so thousandths trimmed off, you are likely loading a little to hot. 3-4 thousandths for hxp or lake city. ignore these signs and you will be introduced to mr. case head seperation. he is not nice.

i like to suggest that the new garand handloader start simple.

46g h4895
152g m2 bullet or similar (winchester makes a very nice 147g substitute that shoots very nicely)
cci or winchester large rifle primers seated 4-5 thousandths below flush
new or once fired brass full length sized (read FULL LEGTH SIZED)


this load shoots into an inch or so at 50yds, even with my eyes (which are probably older than most) and chronos in the 2800 to 2825 fps range

always ALWAYS full length size your brass for the m1 garand.

[garandman]

Great Post!