Background
Though the M1 Carbine originally rolled into service in 1942, the U.S. military’s search for a light carbine-caliber semi-auto firearm specifically for support troops really got its start during World War I.
Carbine-sized firearms were hardly new, with cavalry, officers, and various breeds of other soldiers fielding them throughout history. They were often seen as a nice compromise for specialized troops who needed more compact firepower that still outpaced a pistol. Plus, they could sometimes offer a nice performance and cost compromise. For instance, in World War II-era dollars, the 1911 pistol cost around $26 to produce compared to the $45 M1 Carbine and the much meatier $85 M1 Garand.
RELATED: Ode to the M1 Garand – America's Beloved Battle Rifle
But the real issue was practical battlefield performance for an increasingly complex battlefield. After World War I, the U.S. Army conducted a study and noted the relatively rare occurrence of pistol-caliber wounds inflicted in combat. In fact, despite issuing millions of handguns in both world wars, pistol-related wounds were one of the least common injuries to enemy troops by a massive margin.
That comparison also stood for studies of U.S. casualties in WWI (and again in WWII). This blended with anecdotal reports of support troops with pistols struggling to effectively engage German units that managed to breach allied lines in WWI.
The handgun certainly still had its place, with the famed Sgt. York reportedly taking down six charging German soldiers single handily with his 1911 in the Great War. The real issue was less the lethality of guns like the 1911 and more the ability to press them into broader combat-effective roles.
Design
As warfare grew more dynamic and complex, the idea of a “front line” became less obvious, with traditional support units often pressed into direct combat rolls. With a weight of 9.5 pounds, the bulky M1 was expensive but also unwieldy if you were, say, firing a mortar or driving a truck. So, the hunt was on for an easy-to-use, cheap, light, but effective alternative. By 1938, that request for a “light rifle” went out.
Winchester developed the .30 Carbine round to meet the army’s needs but finding a suitable firearm to use it in proved an issue. Various designs were rejected until a somewhat unique team from Winchester managed to cobble together a few prototypes that were promising.
There are plenty of debates around the true origins of the M1 Carbine design, many revolving around one of the main designers, David Marshall "Carbine" Williams, who supposedly invented the operating design behind the M1 Carbine while in prison for murder. There’s not space for all the myths here, but suffice it to say there were actually a lot of hands in the final product.
Regardless, after several rounds of prototypes, missed deadlines, and some work-shop drama, the U.S. military had its caliber and carbine just in time to start sending them off to war in 1942. The final product used a short-stroke gas-piston system that allowed for a short package that came in at just under 36 inches. It also borrowed the rotating bolt and slide design from the M1 Garand, but it was now chambered and designed for an intermediate cartridge.
The end product came in at a scant 5.2 pounds (against the Garand’s 9.5) but offered accurate and effective engagement distances out to around 300 yards. In a testament to U.S. manufacturing might, contracts for parts and guns were then spread out to multiple manufacturers to maximize production quickly.
History of Service
Even in the age of lightweight space-age polymers and alloys, the M1 Carbine is undeniably light for a primary fighting weapon, even for support troops. It almost vanishes from your mind when slung over a shoulder. And that was one of the reasons many service members fell in love with the gun.
It’s pretty tough to say when the M1 Carbine truly first saw combat, but there are some telling signs about why it likely started to see a lot more of it. For one thing, the lightweight was coupled with a standard 15-round detachable box magazine. So, it had an edge in capacity while also being appealing to light, fast-moving fighters like paratroopers.
Still, for infantry units, the designated issue of M1 Carbines was only a fraction of the number of M1 Garands – somewhere on the order of 1:5 not counting other firearms, and they were mostly meant for officers, staff, or specialty personnel. But the carbines were also incredibly plentiful in non-infantry units. So, it was natural that they would be pressed into service more often in a war where the idea of a predictable frontline was, well, less predictable.
So, even though it was originally designed for “non-combat troops,” defining who those people were was somewhat sketchy, and the guns also gained favor with many infantry, paratroopers, tankers, mortarmen, radio operators, and more.
Original Caption: “Holding the Line”: Sergeant First Class Hun Toon, a 52-year-old veteran of both world wars, typified the determination of old and young soldiers alike to make the enemy pay dearly for every foot of ground gained during the Korean War. (Photo: Harry S. Truman Library Museum/National Archives)
The M1 Carbine remained dominant and served throughout World War II, even though a modernized selective-fire M2 variant emerged near the end of the war. This variant went on to see more service through the Korean and Vietnam Wars, adding an infrared-scoped M3 version along the way.
After the war, with millions of carbines to go around, many U.S. allies ended up with generous arms shipments. Even today, it’s not uncommon to see a few pop up in conflicts and other nations’ arsenals. In fact, many of those M1 Carbines have even trickled back into the states.
Specs: Our Sample Carbine
Our sample gun from the Guns.com Certified Used Vault is a Winchester build – at least on the receiver – with a mid-war production serial number on the rear. That puts its birthday someplace between September 1942 and February 1944. As unique as that sounds, this gun has around 350,000 brothers and sisters that popped off the assembly line at Winchester during the war. Though, they are hardly as cheap or as a common as they once were.
Interestingly, this one seems to be a long-lost return-to-sender gun with newer import marks. As a wartime production carbine, it likely was given to some ally and eventually re-imported into the U.S. under PW Arms out of Redmond, Washington.
There’s quite a bit of variation inside the M1 Carbine family, but not just because of the newer models. For instance, our sample gun lacks a bayonet mount. Some were later fitted with one based on feedback from service members. Additionally, ours offers a fully windage-elevation adjustable ramped rear peep sight, a feature added around 1944. That suggests a more accurate birth date, but upgrades and part swaps were common. Earlier guns offered a basic L-shaped peep with elevation-only options at 150 and 300 yards.
Slings also vary somewhat, as do stocks. The sling that came with this one is a basic web-style design. The sling mounts to a simple spring-retained front band and a clever cut in the stick that uses an oil can as the sling retaining pin. There was also a version with a paratrooper-style collapsible wire stock. Ours is plain wood with a top wooden handguard that is grooved for a lower bore-sight alignment.
Of particular note, many WWII rifles and carbines lacked much in the way of grip texture on the butt plate, but this one is nice and positive. That’s also true of the Garand line. Another fairly common feature on American-built rifles and carbines was the attention to accurate sights, a fact that paid off in marksmanship in the field.
Here are some additional specs on our sample gun.
Length: 35.6 inches
Barrel Length: 18 inches
Sight Radius: 21.5 inches
Trigger Pull: 6.8 pounds
Capacity: 15 rounds (later 30-round options added)
Sight Adjustments: 100, 200, 250, 300 yards
The trigger has little take-up or mush, but it breaks with a fairly heavy pull that’s common on military guns. The safety is also an interesting point, as the original design hosted a push-button safety. This was changed to a small lever when troops reported issues pushing the magazine release that’s right next to the safety – an unfortunate mistake in combat.
Lastly, there is a bolt-lock button on the bolt handle that will be somewhat familiar if you’ve shot the Ruger Mini-14. The bolt will half-lock back on an empty magazine, but it will return home once the empty magazine is removed.
Reliability & Performance
While often loved, there were plenty of complaints thrown at the M1 Carbine during its service life and beyond. Perhaps the three most common are about reliability, power, and availability (today).
There were reports from service members of the M1 lacking knock-down power, though comparing its intermediate cartridge to the much larger .30-06 is a bit unfair. It’s also worth noting the gun doubled the capacity of the Garand but with a detachable magazine. Again, the gun came to life right as the world was starting to find that modern blend of rifle and carbine that led to guns like the AK-47.
It is certainly not one of those modern rifles and instead lives in the intermediate carbine zone. Plus, just to reiterate, it has more than shown its value as an incredibly lightweight but useful combat firearm over multiple wars.
Related: M1 Carbine – Terrible Platform or the Original PDW? (VIDEO)
The other complaints about reliability are fair – sort of. Keep in mind, the original guns are old, and they come from a different period of manufacturing during a massive war. So, take that with a grain of salt. The operating spring is also quite small, so replacing that is not a terrible idea if you have issues. Also remember the M1 Carbine and M1 Garand are meant to be well oiled semi-auto firearms, so give them some love if you are having an issue.
Calling the magazines chintzy is quite fair. But I don’t think they were ever really meant to be used over and over again. They just weren’t designed for sporting uses, and good guns often get blamed for old/worn/cheap mags. I have heard, but not tested, that some reproduction models were also notorious for failures and may have contributed to this reputation.
Those are some things you can probably fix. Prices, however, are much higher than they once were. But, don’t expect them to improve over time if you really want one of these.
Final Thoughts
