M1 Rifle

The M1 Garand was a semi-automatic rifle that was used by the United States of America from 1936 to the early 1970s. It was designed by John C. Garand.

Service History
The M1 Garand was introduced into service in 1936. However, production was slow, and in 1941 only small numbers were in service. By the end of the war, over 5 million had been produced. Production continued into the 1950s, and when all was said and done over 6 million had been completed.

The M1 was officially replaced by the M14 in 1957. However, it was not until 1965 that M1s had been replaced in all front-line units. M1s were thereafter used through to the 1970s by the National Guard, Navy, and Army Reserve. From the early 1950s, M1s were heavily exported to US Allies, and this continued into the 1980s. Some Garands are still in storage, but most have been sold off to Civilian users.

M1s are still used for ceremonial purposes by the US Military, among others.

Haitian Police still use the M1.

Small numbers of M1s occasionally pop up in the Middle East. They were spotted in Afghanistan during both the Soviet-Afghan War and US Afghan War, and in small numbers during the Syrian Civil War.

Variants
M1 - Basic Model.

M1C - Sniper variant. 1945-1960s.

M1D - Sniper variant. 1945-1960s.

Mk2 Mod 0/1/2 - M1s converted to fire 7.62x51mm NATO. This was carried out by the US Navy from 1964 onwards, as an interim weapon until sufficient numbers of M14s were available.