M1 Carbine Accessories

The M1 .30 Carbine will forever hold a place in my heart, for it was my very first centerfire of any type. I got it in 1965, and it was one of those 250,000 distributed by the DCM to NRA members for the grand sum of $20. Although I was too young to qualify for one, I had my non-shooting father sign up with the NRA so we could get it. To this day, I don’t remember how we even learned of their availability.

My little carbine taught me many things. One was commercial centerfire ammo was extremely expensive for a high school junior with no income. Also, the DCM M1 Carbines were pretty “bare bones”––no sling or the oiler to secure it. There were many other items, which could have been included to make it a complete package. Other than a very small quantity of military surplus 110-grain ball ammunition and a single box of Winchester factory loads with 110-grain JHPs, nothing else accompanied my carbine.

Now I have three of them. One is the standard M1 as issued for World War II––meaning an L-shaped rear peep sight and no bayonet lug. Another is a “counterfeit” M1A1––a standard M1 barreled action dropped into a reproduction M1A1 folding stock. And then there’s my pride of the entire bunch––an M1 overstamped with a “2” indicating it was converted to select fire in the years between World War II and the Korean War. (Yes, I have all the proper Federal paperwork to go with it.)

Before proceeding I want to throw this in: no American military cartridge has been criticized for lack of stopping power as much as the .30 Carbine. And this is certainly valid for 110-grain FMJ military loads dictated by international conventions. However, we American sport shooters are not so constricted. Anyone who has seen the damage done to a predator or varmint with a softnose, expanding .30 Carbine bullet doesn’t sneer at it.

To the best of my knowledge, the most recent addition to the .30 Carbine ammo lineup is the Speer LE Gold Dot load. It’s accurate and actually breaks 2,000 fps from 18-inch M1 Carbine barrels by my chronograph. And now that I’m able to afford factory ammo, I’ve laid in a couple cases of this new load.

My array of .30 Carbines would still consist of bare-bone specimens like my very first one except for a company called World War Supply. They recreate––in tiny detail––so much of the accouterments used by many nations to fully outfit their small arms. For instance, they catalog holsters for Japanese Type 16 and Type 94 8mm Nambu pistols, German Fallschirmjäger (paratrooper) helmets and, of course, most everything needed for M1 .30 Carbines.

These fast-firing little carbines tend to burn through ammo fast, so back in the days of their combat use, it was common for troops to take the issue double-magazine pouch meant for belt wear and stick it on the buttstock. Of course, I don’t need magazine pouches set up for fast reloads, but they are definitely photogenic. World War Supply has an array of these with different dates and manufacturer markings as were used on WWII originals.

Slings and the oiler gizmo are also necessary for a well-outfitted carbine. The slings were made of canvas strapping with metal buckles, and the oiler was used to secure the sling at the buttstock.

These items come as a set or separately from World War Supply. Of course the folding stock M1A1 did not have the buttstock slot for the oiler, so it was affixed into the wire stock, and there was a second sling swivel on the pistol grip.

While writing this, I looked at my Ruger Mini-30 and thought: “Hmm?” Sure enough, the World War Supply M1 Carbine sling fit it perfectly.

In Montana it’s legal to tote firearms around in vehicles, and I usually do. But it’s also common for a rifle or carbine stowed in my vehicles to get covered with dust and dog hair. World War Supply offers fleece-lined canvas carrying bags with a zipper closure and sling strap (also as issued in the 1940’s and 1950’s). Not only do I stow an M1-type carbine in one but also my Ruger Mini-30 fits perfectly, even while wearing a Leupold 2.5X scope. On their website is a very nice looking leather scabbard, as was used for carbines carried on jeeps and armored cars. Since I’ve sold my 1943 jeep, I haven’t had the need for one.

From slings to carrying bags to modern factory ammo, my three M1 Carbines are all set, but I’m considering something else. Inland Manufacturing Company offers a “scout” type version with Picatinny rail. If they would just sell me the handguard with rail, I could scope mount it on one of my carbines. Pretty neat!

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