Garand barrel with “T”

[louis]

I have seen a Garand barrel with a “T” stamp. What is this and who would stamp it? Thank you

[gwp]

I believe the rifle was tested for accuracy during manufacturing. The "T" indicates it was targeted and acceptable.

[louis]

Thank you I’m guessing it was probably done at Springfield

[the_1st_sgt]

Would the targeting of the rifle possibly be the first step in determining whether it will become a NM? I ask because not all rifles seem to have the "T" marking

[louis]

Good question

[Cosine26]

No. On MN rifles this was the final check to determine if they met accuracy specs. If they met specs they were stamped "T" and accepted. If not, they went back for rework. Some service grade rifles were also targeted. I have a service grade M1 bought in 1972 that has he "T" stamp. It is an SA rework. I believe that a certain number of reworks were targeted to see if they met accuracy specs. I believe that they sample checked them as a QA check on rework procedures.
FWIW

[the_1st_sgt]

Thank you. I have a 5.3 million that has a "T" marked barrel and thought (hoped) that maybe it was considered for conversion to NM.

[nf1e]

Would the " T " marking on the exterior of a USGI SA M14 barrel have the same meaning?

[Cosine26]

YES

[nf1e]

Thanks, I have one and was wondering what it meant.