Eight bangs and one ping.
Thats how the M1 rifle works.
There are plenty of shooters today who question this design, or at least have questions about it.
Did John C. Garand get it right by using an eight-round en-bloc clip within the M1 rifle’s internal magazine? Image: Author’s collection.
There are some who outright deride the M1s internal magazine and feed system.
Designed to Specifications
The M1 rifle was not designed in a vacuum.
American military leaders had very definite ideas about what they wanted from their new semi-auto rifle.
In the above photos, the M1 Garand rifle is loaded with an en-bloc clip for testing at Springfield Armory in July 1940. Image: NARA
Others were concerned that anything but a flush-mounted magazine would impede effective shooting from the prone position.
This clip is a U-shaped piece of steel that holds eight rounds of .30-06 together in a staggered formation.
I have never tried it, primarily because I already cuss too much.
A man demonstrates how to load the M1 rifle using the en-bloc clip. Image: Library of Congress
If all else fails, the M1 can be loaded with individual rounds and used as a single-shot weapon.
With the M1 Garand, the American rifleman simply slammed home another eight-round clip and continued firing.
The new Garand rifles had only recently arrived, and the troops were not completely familiar with the weapon.
Loading the metal clip by hand was tedious in even in the best conditions. Image: Author’s collection
Evidence points to some unfamiliarity with the M1 rifles en-bloc clip among U.S. That is what U.S.
Ordnance was looking for when they approved the Garand design, and that is what they got.
Even so, it is a rite of passage among all Garand shooters.
This image of loading the M1 rifle is from a series of images taken in the late 1930s to introduce the Army’s new infantry weapon to the public. Image: NARA
The Ejection Sound Myth
The sound of the M1 rifles empty clip ejecting is certainly quite distinctive.
Anyone who has ever shot one knows that metallic ping.
But this is a sound learned during focused target shooting on the range.
A paratrooper of the 101st Airborne Division empties his M1 rifle during the fighting in Holland in November 1944. Note the shell casing and the empty clip seen as they are ejected. Image: NARA
Even so, the issue of the M1 Garands clip ejection sound made it all the way to Congress.
The concern, likely based on rumor and G.I.
Some of the over-blown concern about the clip ejection sound came from supporters of the M1941 Johnson rifle.
A U.S. Marine loads his M1 rifle with an en-bloc clip during theBattle of Cape Gloucester. Image: NARA
The Johnson used a 10-round rotary magazine which could be easily topped off with single rounds.
Also, the M1941 rifle was two pounds lighter than the M1 Garand.
Conclusion
The M1 Garands performance and capabilities are beyond question.
At an unknown location in Korea, U.S. soldier in the 25th Infantry Division loads his M1 rifle during combat against Communist Chinese Forces in January 1951. Image: NARA
Id say that pretty much ensures that it also deserves our respect.
U.S.M.C. Sgt. Cody Cheney shoots the M1 Garand rifle during the Civilian Marksmanship Program National Matches at Camp Perry. Image: U.S.M.C./Sgt. Dana Beesley
