Garand ejects fired cases upward.

[RED]

It has been over 10 years since I shot a Garand. I took my newly acquired Service Grade CMP to the range today to zero it in. At 25 yards with the rear sight up 8 clicks, it was 5" low. I raised it 13 clicks (21 total) and it was dead on center. I went up another 4 clicks and it was 1.5" high so I left it there, 25 is an easy number to remember.

In 4 clips I had one fail to feed (5th round in the clip) and had to eject the clip to clear the jam. One thing I noticed was the empties were ejected upward at about a 75 degree angle and landed about 3 feet to my right. A couple of cases actually hit the 8' high rafters on the shed covering the firing line and one round wound up laying on the bench to my immediate right. Any suggestions? I was shooting the S&B 150 gr. M-2 Ball sold by the CMP.

That was the first time I had been to a public range in over 20 years and It was overcrowded. I didn't get to shoot near as much as I wanted. My M-1A stayed in the van as did my .40 cal H&K.

[Major Tom]

There is plenty of advise on the internet and here on why a garand ejects empties haphazardly. Mine ejects to the right and forward about 5 feet as it should.

[Sunray]

"...21 total) and it was dead on center..." Change the front sight. It should be 8 or so clicks from bottomed out to be on target at 100. 25 from the bottom is way too many.
I'd be changing the ejector spring too. Mind you, the lubing of the rifle has to be right too.
And go here and download the TM-9-1275 and FM-23-5. Note the need for the provided UN & PW.

http://www.biggerhammer.net/manuals/

"...It was overcrowded..." It's also Saturday in summer.

[togor]

Stock fit can affect POI also. New CMP wood may need some relieving. I have also noticed that the fitment with new wood between the stock ferrule and the lower band is not always what it should be. The CMP assumption is that most guys don't notice, and if one does, do whatever to make him happy.

[Roadkingtrax]

Oprod may be rubbing hard on right mid clearance cut.

[Dan Shapiro]

I would disassemble and clean the bolt. In normal operation, the ejector flips the fired round on extraction, and the hump on the op rod bats the expended round out and to the right at about 2 o'clock as it chambers a new round. (This explains why a properly timed M1 will have expended cases with a "D" shaped case mouth). Of course the last round will go back at about 4 o'clock since the op rod/bolt will lock open on firing that last round.

[Rifleman]

What Dan said and I would add to generously lube/grease, when I started shooting mine again after a long absence I tended to lightly oil and that cause problems.

[RED]

Thanks a lot for all the information. It looks like I'm pretty much a noobie again with noobie questions. The front sight intrigues me. I knew that M-1 carbines often had front sights that were too tall and people filed them down. But, am I backward, or isn't this the same situation. A too tall front sight would move the impact down... right? Too tall can be fixed, too short can't. I was in the process of filling out a CMP order for parts including a new front sight... but would it be any different than the one on the rifle?

[m1ashooter]

Red, yes I believe a too tall front sight will move impact down. Can you get a measurement on your front sight?

[RED]

Dan said, "I would disassemble and clean the bolt."

Thank you !!! I used a punch to remove the extractor using my thumb to keep the ejector from going ballistic. Instead it turned out that I had to use needle nose pliers to pull out the ejector and spring. The spring was totally clogged by years of old grease. Then there was the extractor spring that normally would fall out... no way. Even using tweezers, and after soaking in #9 for hours, the damn spring wont move.

Thanks Dan for the tip.

[togor]

If the #9 doesn't do the trick, then maybe an extended soak in a can of auto parts cleaner. They sell those 1 gallon cans of it with a little basket. It's not as nasty (and therefore not as effective) as the stuff from the old days, but it still seems to be able to loosen heavy gunk. (Gunk may be the brand I think). Gloves still a good idea.

[Sandpebble]

The casings bounce off the op rod as allready stated. One thing "I think" that can change "when" it bounces off the op rod is timing.

Timing can be affected by the height of the "lobe" on the bullet follower . You can peen it higher with punch and hammer as a temporary fix .

That's what the CMP armorer did for me at Camp Perry in 99, just before the 2nd annual Garand Match .

[togor]

Have you tried a tilt test yet, Red?

[RED]

Back at the range this morning and no problems... except for the 25 clicks on the rear sight

The problem with the ejection and dimpling was easy once I detail stripped the bolt. The ejector plunger and spring, the extractor spring, and even the firing pin were covered by very hard Cosmoline (?) and the Hoppes didn't do much but a big pan of boiling water did the trick and I "flossed" the springs to get all the old grease out of the coils. The firing pin was covered with old burnt powder. I had to use a wood dowel and 00 steel wool to get it clean.
The only problem now is the front sight. I can't get a firm grip on the thought that it is too tall. I think there is something else going on there. I still haven't found my micrometer or my calipers so I can't measure the height. Moving sucks, especially when you downsize.

If the CMP was right on 2 week delivery, I should get my IHC service grade next week and I'll be able to switch out the front sights and see if that changes anything.

[Dan Shapiro]

I strongly suspect that the stock was switched out at some point. I have an M1A that came in a wood stock. At 200 yds, it needed 10 clicks up. Later, I switched to a fiberglass stock. At 200 yds, it only required 2 clicks up. All 4 of the M1's that I have, have a front sight blade roughly 1/4" tall.