Imagine you’re a He-Man

And you shoot Heavy Metal 3-gun division with an M1 Garand.  I don’t know off the top of my head anyone that does that, but let’s just pretend for a second. Because to be honest, that would be pretty much the coolest thing – running 3-gun HM division with a Garand, a GI-style 1911, and an 1897 Trench Gun.  Normally you’d run in Heavy Metal Iron sights, but say you wanted to shoot in optics and put a scope on your Garand.  Most Garand scope mounts are heavy, kludgy, and fragile.

Img courtesy Ultimak

Until now.  Meet the Ultimak M1 Garand rail which puts the scope forward, perfect for long eye relief scopes or red dot optics.  Sure, some people may say it’s blasphemy to put an optic on a Garand, but those people probably also don’t like beavertail grip safeties and rails on their 1911s.

I don’t own an M1.  I really probably should, if for no other reason than it is a piece of American history, the rifle that won WWII.  In fact, I should probably buy 2.  One for historical purposes, and another for shooting.  The shooter would get the Ultimak rail system put on it most rickey-tick.

This is pretty cool.  The Ultimak guys make good stuff, helping bring guns like the M1 Carbine into the 21st century, and now they’re offering a similarly slick set-up for the Garand.

5 Comments

  1. Wouldn’t have the heart to do it to my real Garand, but maybe on a “tanker” model as it doesn’t have any “real’ heritage.
    it is interesting that there’s even a market for it though.

    1. Yeah, I’ve had my eyes on getting a Mini-G Garand from Shuff’s Parkerizing (kind of like a tanker Garand), and this would be perfect for something like that.

  2. I’m still waiting for some enterprising soul to make MOLLE enbloc clip pouches…

  3. I like the way it looks.
    Thanks for posting on it.
    I wonder what the extra weight would do to the balance?

  4. I’ve shot a Garand in a few 3-gun matches at Wildcat (Indiana) in the last couple of years, and there is another guy who brings a Tanker Garand sometimes. At Wildcat, they do more longer range stuff with rifles than other places I’ve shot 3-gun around here That brings everyone’s times a little slower, plus they generally only use a few targets way out there, so the Garand isn’t that much of a handicap. Four MGM flash targets at 300 yards is pretty even for everyone.

    Not that I am in a position to win no matter what I’m shooting. I keep a Garand as a truck gun and like the chance to practice with it there.

    On the match falling on June 6th last year, I went D-Day and used a Garand, 1911, and Remington Model 11 military riot gun (like an A5 Browning).

    As far as MOLLE pouches for Garand clips, there are such things…sort of. Frag pouches hold two Garand clips like they were made for them. Plus Opolango Outfitters makes up chest rigs, grab ‘n’ go rigs and stock pouches.
    I usually just dump ’em in a Rolly Polly.

    I used my M1941 Johnson once last year. Do that, and a Garand seems almost mainstream.

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