History

Though the U.S. Army became interested in self-loading rifles with the Bang and Murphy-Manning of 1911, and there were trials in 1916-8, the M1's origin properly dates to 1919, when armies around the world were realizing standard rifle cartridges were more powerful than necessary for typical engagement ranges, leading to heavier weapons than really required. The Army trials in the 1920s had a .256in minimum caliber requirement, compared to the .30-06 then standard.

Firearms designer John C. Garand, working at the Army's Springfield Armory, began with a .30 caliber primer-operated breech. Twenty-four rifles, identified as "M1922", were built at Springfield in summer 1924, and at Fort Benning during the summer of 1925 they were tested against the Thompson autoloading rifle, Berthier, Hatcher-Bang, and "highly promising delayed blowback Pedersen rifle". This led to a further trial of the improved "M1924" Garand against the Thompson, ultimately producing an inconclusive report. Therefore, the Ordnance Board ordered a Garand variant .30-06, while in March 1927 the Cavalry Board reported trials between the Thompson, Garand, and '03 Springfield had not led to a clear winner, leading to a gas-operated .276 model.

During the spring of 1928, both Infantry and Cavalry Boards ran trials with the .276 Pedersen T1 rifle, giving it high praise (despite its use of waxed ammunition). On 13 August 1928, a Semiautomatic Rifle Board carried out joint Army, Navy, and Marine Corps trials between the .30 Thompson, both cavalry and infantry versions of the T1 Pedersen, "M1924" Garand, and .256 Bang, and on 21 September, the Board reported no clear winner. The .30 Garand, however, was dropped in favor of the .276.

Further tests by the SRB in July 1929, which included rifle deisgns by Brauning, Colt-Browning, Garand, Holek, Pedersen, Rheinmetall, Thompson, and an incomplete one by White, led to a recommendation that work on the (dropped) .30 gas-operated Garand be resumed, and a T1E1 was ordered 14 November 1929.

Twenty gas-operated .276 T3E2s Garands were made and competed with T1 Pedersen rifles in Spring 1931. The .276 Garand was the clear winner of these trials. The .30 caliber Garand was tested at these trials in the form of a single T1E1 prototype but was withdrawn with a cracked bolt on 9 October 1931. A 4 January 1932 meeting recommended adoption of the .276 caliber and production of approximately 125 T3E2s. Meanwhile, Garand redesigned his bolt and his improved T1E2 rifle was retested. The day after the successful conclusion of this test, Army Chief of Staff General Douglas MacArthur personally disapproved any caliber change, in part because there were extensive existing stocks of .30 M1 ball ammunition. On 25 February 1932, Adjutant General John B. Shuman, speaking for the Secretary of War, ordered work on the weapons and ammunition in .276 caliber cease immediately and completely and all resources be directed toward identification and correction of deficiencies in the Garand .30 caliber.

On 3 August 1933, the T1E2 became the Semi-Automatic Rifle, Caliber 30, M1. In May 1934, 75 M1s went to field trials; 50 were to infantry, 25 to cavalry units. Numerous problems were reported, forcing the rifle to be modified, yet again, before it could be recommended for service and cleared for procurement on 7 November 1935, then standardized 9 January 1936. The first production model was successfully proof-fired, function-fired, and fired for accuracy on July 21, 1937. In 1938, the U.S. Army adopted a new, lighter 150-grain bulleted cartridge for the M1 as well as its other rifle-caliber small arms and machineguns, designated 'Cartridge, Ball, caliber 30, M2', or M2 Ball.

Production difficulties delayed deliveries to the Army until September of 1937. By September 1939, Springfield Armory had reached an output of 100 per day. Despite going into production status, design issues were not at an end. The barrel and gas cylinder assembly were redesigned and entered production in early 1940. The problem proved so thorny, that even the M1941 Johnson rifle had to be deferred so Springfield could concentrate on the problematic Garand. Production increased in 1940 however, reaching 600 a day by 10 January 1941, and the Army was fully equipped by 1941.

Following the outbreak of World War II in Europe, Winchester was awarded an "educational" production contract for 65,000 rifles, with deliveries beginning in 1943. The British Army tested the M1 Garand as a possible replacement for its bolt-action Lee-Enfield No.1 Mk III, but rejected it after trials to simulate combat conditions.

The M1's semiautomatic operation gave United States forces a significant advantage in firepower and shot-to-shot response time over individual enemy infantrymen in battle (German and Japanese soldiers were usually armed with bolt-action rifles). General George S. Patton called it "the greatest implement of battle ever devised." The impact of faster-firing infantry small arms in general soon stimulated both Allied and Axis forces to greatly augment issue of semi- and fully-automatic weapons then in production, as well as to develop new types of infantry firearms.

Much of the M1 inventory in the post-World War II period underwent arsenal repair or rebuilding. While U.S. forces were still engaged in the Korean War, the Department of Defense determined a need for additional production of the Garand, and two new contracts were awarded. During 1953-56, M1s were produced by International Harvester and Harrington & Richardson. A final, very small lot of M1s was produced by Springfield Armory in early 1957, using finished components already on hand. Beretta also produced Garands using Winchester tooling. Most recently, the M1 was produced by Springfield Armory, Inc. of Geneseo, Illinois. This civilian variant is offered in either .30-06 Springfield or .308 Winchester chambering.

The M1 proved an excellent rifle throughout its service in World War II and the Korean War. The Japanese began development of a modified version of the Garand, the Type 5 Rifle, near the end of World War II, though it never reached production status. Surplus M1 rifles also armed many nations allied to the USA postwar, including Germany, Italy and Japan. Some Garands were still being used in the Vietnam War in 1963; despite the M14's official adoption in 1957, it was not until 1965 the changeover from the M1 Garand was completed in the active-duty component of the Army (with the exception of the sniper variants, which were introduced in WWII and saw action in Korea and Vietnam). In other components of the armed forces, such as the Army Reserve, Army National Guard and the Navy, Garands continued to serve into the 1970s or longer; photos of Ohio Army National Guard troops at the Kent State shootings in May 1970 clearly show them holding Garands.

Some military drill teams still use the M1, including the U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Team, the Norwegian Royal Guards Drill Team, almost all Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) and some Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) teams of all branches of the US military. Modern Drill Team M1s are permanently disabled by having a metal rod welded into the barrel. Exhibition teams often use fiberglass stocks in place of wooden ones, the latter being heavier and more prone to breakage when dropped.

Singleplayer/Co-Op

The Garand is often what you start with in the Pacific Missions, and can be picked up from fallen Marines.

Multiplayer

Damage 50-68 (SP), 35-45 (MP), 70 (MP Scoped), 135 (Bayonet)
Damage Multipliers Head: 2.7, Chest: 1.25, Limbs: .7 (SP), Head: 1.4, Chest: 1, Limbs: 1 (MP)
Magazine Size 8 rounds
Maximum Ammunition 128 rounds (SP), 120 rounds (MP)
Reload Time 3.4 s loaded, 1.65 unloaded
Rate of Fire Semi-auto
Range 1024-2400 m (SP), 1500-2000 m (MP)
Penetration Medium
Fire Mode Semi-auto
Ammunition .30-06
Unlocked at lvl 17

Its high power and accuracy make it a well-rounded gun although there is significant recoil. However, its high recoil increases its chances of a headshot. In World at War you can now reload the M1 Garand at any time, without having to empty the clip. This gun is good for medium to long range.

High recoil makes it hard to get back on target quickly. It is hard to use for close range.

Challenges