Help with value on accurized Garand

[Ken in Iowa]

I may have the opportunity to purchase the rifle that I used in competition when I was a young man.

The metal is nothing special , GI parked 1960s SA barrel and 1940s receiver- rear sights are hooded front NM and always worked well. I can't get erosion numbers, but the bore is as clean as I left it. It has 2-3000 rounds through the non- NM barrel there is plenty of accuracy left.

The stock was glass bedded an has a urethane finish.

What's a fair price today, gun show, private or otherwise? 6-800?

Ken

[Clark Howard]

If no mods have been done that preclude a return to original condition, I would start at $900 and deduct replacement cost of "accurized" parts. Regards, Clark

[dave]

Mister Howard is obviously a 'picky' collector, a 'shooter' would obviously pay and leave it as is. It can never be "original" again! Value? Don't have a clue, all M1's are overpriced in my opinion!

[Sunray]

"...a urethane finish..." Drops the value by half and eliminates any collector value. Urethane takes a lot more work to get off and belongs on cheap furniture not rifle stocks.
"...6-800..." You'll pay a lot more than that for any M1 Rifle. You'll pay nearly that much for a receiver on Gunbroker(roughly $500 for just a receiver. Another guy wants a bit over $400 for a VAR barreled receiver.). I'd be thinking at least twice that for a rebuilt rifle. Even with the plastic finish destroyed stock.

[Ken in Iowa]

Mister Howard is obviously a 'picky' collector, a 'shooter' would obviously pay and leave it as is. It can never be "original" again! Value? Don't have a clue, all M1's are overpriced in my opinion!

Yes, I have heard about picky collectors like him, but my provenance with this particular rifle eludes him. I will simply ignore him and forgive his ignorance.

I'm thinking about $1000 bundled with an 1100 Remington that I am connected to as an heirloom as well.

Thanks for the thoughtful responses.

[Chaz]

Didn't Air Force match rifles (or maybe it was presentation rifles) have shiny finishes on their stocks? I remember seeing those in Scott Duff's website back in the days when he was offering rifles for sale.
Chaz

[Ken in Iowa]

Can't say about Air Force.

This rifle was purchased by my dad from the DCM about 1968.

A fellow club member by the name of Ken Hull had recently been discharged by the US Navy. Ken had a son that was a few years older than I. Ken was at Guantanamo Bay during the missile crisis serving as a small arms armourer. They were ordered to convert all M1 Garands to 7.62 NATO in anticipation of a fight with the commies. This was probably the first and last time that the conversion was attempted in field conditions.

After An assignment to the Navy rifle and pistol team as an armourer where the Navy perfected the use of 180 grain match bullets in Garands, Ken discharged and moved to my area.

High power shooting was very popular at our local club and Ken had quite a business accurizing Garands and Springfields. The rifle in question was one of those and Ken used a urethane stock finish on many of them.

I shot the game until after high school where my interests changed. The rifle found little use and is available to me for purchase at this time.

[togor]

In your shoes I would "pull the trigger" on the deal you subscribe. The glass bedding complicates assessment, question is whether or not you can test fire for accuracy first.

[dryheat]

Mister Howard is obviously a 'picky' collector, a 'shooter' would obviously pay and leave it as is. It can never be "original" again! Value? Don't have a clue, all M1's are overpriced in my opinion!

So your babbling.

- "...a urethane finish..." Drops the value by half and eliminates any collector value.-
Not necessarily. A Lend Lease rifle that was imported to the U.S and used as a shooter by a 1960's marksman is still a piece of history, varathane not withstanding. No, it's not the holy grail,but it's valuable and a collectable piece. You seem to have access to your old rifle. What's it worth to you? Feed your kids first and then figure out the value of the rifle. I trade off stuff all the time. But, my collecting is transitory. I like something, and then I get tired of it. Not everything. There are items that have gone past me in the stream that I would love to have again and take to the grave with me. Pretty much the stuff that I had my hands on prior to age 16. Anything my dad touched. Not necessarily collectable(but some of it was), but stuff I miss.

[lyman]

FWIW, I could sell that rifle in a couple of weeks at Chantilly for 1000 easy,
provided the Throat numbers are good,


honestly tho, match prepped rifles are a difficult sell, unless they have really good provenance,

so price it at a sum of the parts,

M1, decent numbers, 700+ (based on condition.. 700 being a low mark)
national match sights,, what do they go for today, when you can find them???

has the handguards etc been unitized?