VINTAGE M1A1 CARBINE PARATROOPER STOCK on EbAy! ReaL DeaL OR ReAl FaKe????

[ntex2000]

Came across on ebay what is being billed as a complete, WWII surplus M1A1 stock. Seems as if the Seller bought it from Northridge Int., who acquired it after it was found where it had been hidden for decades in the ETO along with Hiltler's secret cache of long forgotten Allied mil-surp relics he had stashed away for retirement shortly before escaping to South America to create the boys from Brazil! Well, yes, I am sort of paraphrasing and sensationalizing what the Seller claims in his lengthy auction description so you might want to read it for yourself since I'm not to be trusted with translating auctions. However, I can do a decent job at re-posting auction photos and have thus added the pics from his M1A1 auction pics below for your close and careful inspection.

So for all you Carbine experts, is this stock the Real Deal or has the Seller been taken for a ride and put up wet????

Here's the link:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-WW11-VIN...30931282531%26


And, here's his pics:

[Tuna]

From what I can see the metal and grip are correct and real. I cannot see inside the stock at the bridge area to see if the correct OI is stamped there. If it is then it's a completely correct M1A1 stock.There is some bad information from people with questions on this one too.
The wood could be a replacement made in Europe and it would not have the OI stamp on it. The hand guard is also the wrong time frame for the stock if it's an original.

[madcratebuilder]

Sarco has parts for the folder. Some of the older Italian folders look aged and can be hard to tell unless you get hands on.

http://www.sarcoinc.com/m1c.html

There's a guy that reparks the wire and replaces the leather and rivets with the correct parts. I do know the repops have brass rivets and war2 has steel rivets.

I have a repro that appears to be high quality, nice wood and metal.

Looking at your pic's I would say it's the real deal. The leather and rivets appear correct.

[Tuna]

Both steel and brass rivets were used during WW2. But most of them were steel.

[BOB LOUGHLIN]

Looks as real as it gets, but I don't think a 4 rivet hand gaurd was ever use with the M1A1 Carbines. For sure, not with a High Wood Stock. Bob

[BrianQ]

Both steel and brass rivets were used during WW2. But most of them were steel.

Most were tubular brass.

[BrianQ]

Looks as real as it gets, but I don't think a 4 rivet hand gaurd was ever use with the M1A1 Carbines. For sure, not with a High Wood Stock. Bob

Sure they were. Since Inland used leftover first run M1A1 stocks at the beginning of the second run it would not be inconceivable a 4 rivet hand guard was used with one of those earlier stocks during the second run.

[ChipS]

I'm no expert but there are 3 or 4 issues with this stock wood that make me believe it is a put-together, probably with Boyds or other new wood, attached to original metal and semi-skillfully re-shaped, aged, dirtied and photographed to look pretty real. I detailed all of my mis-givings in this post and then deleted all of it, thinking perhaps even my amateur observations might help the next fellow make a little bit better counterfeit. I'm not pointing any fingers at anyone in particular since I don't know when or if the stock was faked. I was going to bid on this stock at first because it looks so nice, but after some closer review I decided I don't have an extra couple grand to shell out on this gamble, even if the seller does offer a return priivilege. It might be right as rain, but not to me. JMHO

[Johnny in Texas]

It looks like the forend of the stock is an Aftermarket highwood. All the rest looks USGI issue Northridge had all the parts for these except for the forend or main wood stock.

[Tuna]

Brian, I was under the impression that the type 3 hand guard first started about the 5.5 million range for Inland around August 1944. Wouldn't that put them well past the beginning second run type 1 M1A1 stocks used in May 1944?