Clover Pistol & Rifle Club, Inc.

Contrary to common misconception, the AR portion in the name AR-15 does not stand for “Assault Rifle”, it is the designation given to a rifle platform designed by Eugene Stoner, Robert Fremont, and L. James Sullivan of the Fairchild ArmaLite corporation. The AR-15 is a lightweight, 5.56 mm, magazine-fed, semi-automatic rifle, with a rotating-lock bolt, actuated by direct impingement gas operation or long/short stroke piston operation. It is manufactured with the extensive use of aluminum alloys and synthetic materials. First built by ArmaLite as a selective fire rifle for the United States armed forces, the design was sold to Colt with the select-fire AR-15 entering the US military system as the M16 rifle. Colt then marketed the Colt AR-15 as a semi-automatic version of the M16 rifle for civilian sales in 1963. Although the name “AR-15″ remains a Colt registered trademark, variants of the firearm are independently made, modified and sold under various names by multiple manufacturers.

Beginning with January’s meeting, we will be tackling a new project: How to Build Your Own AR-15. This will be a recurrent subject of our meetings over the next few months. While there is currently a challenge in obtaining parts, we anticipate increased availability in the next several weeks.

This is supposed to be a fun project that culminates in having your very own AR-15, customized how YOU want it. Given the challenges with buying a completed rifle on the market today, this should interest you.

Our initial discussion will focus on what you need, the guide to use and some recommendations on where parts can be obtained. If you have thoughts or suggestions, please come prepared to share them. We will be using the “Build Your Own AR-15 Rifle” e-book, available from http://buildyourownar15.com/ to take us step-by-step through this process. This book can be purchased for the low price of $10 and includes color pictures throughout the process.

If this goes well, our next group project will focus on building your own AK-47.

The Clover Pistol & Rifle Club sponsored its first gun safety class on Saturday, May 19, 2012. William Cornwell, an NRA Certified Instructor, delivered the NRA Basic Pistol Class to 13 attendees. With attendees comprised of both club sponsors, a few residents, and 3 children, the course served as a great introduction to the fundamental principles of gun ownership, safety, and maintenance. Broken down into a lecture session accompanied by live fire at a private range, the course covered the working components of both revolvers and semi-automatic pistols as well as understanding four key safety rules of gun ownership:

1. ALWAYS keep the gun pointed in a safe direction.
2. ALWAYS keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot.
3. ALWAYS keep the gun unloaded until ready to use.
4. KNOW your target and what is beyond it.

Dan Bond, Club President and one of its directors said, “This class was very successful and delivered on one of the core missions of the club: promoting gun ownership and proper gun safety. Ownership of firearms is a fundamental right, guaranteed by the 2^nd amendment, but regardless of whether or not one chooses to exercise this right, it is important to understand and learn these fundamental principles of firearm safety.”

After the NRA sanctioned material was presented to the attendees, the group traveled to a private range owned by the instructor to get hands-on experience in applying this newly gained knowledge and familiarize themselves with actually firing a pistol. Mr. Cornwell worked with each student individually to ensure that they exercised safe handling, proper shooting stance, and also included individual drills for accuracy with a wide range of calibers, ranging from .22 LR to .45 ACP. At the end of the day, the instructor allowed those who also brought rifles to shoot. Several participants brought their .22 caliber rifles as well as a .30-30 and an M1 Garand. A few students availed themselves of the opportunity to shoot these rifles under the close supervision of the instructor.

MCF resident Allan Bulkley said, “I feel like I learned exactly what I expected to. The pool house is a good setting for the classroom portion, and William’s range is a bit of a drive but I didn’t mind a bit. It’s a nice quiet, private setting for new people.”

Over the next several months, the Clover Pistol and Rifle Club plans to sponsor additional deliveries of this class, along with the NRA Basic Rifle, NRA Basic Shotgun, NRA Personal Protection in the Home, and is also investigating the availability to offer the South Carolina Concealed Weapons Permit course. 

Last week, I received my M1 Garand from the Civilian Marksmanship Program. Based on everything I read, I was not expecting to receive it until late May through mid-June as I placed the order on 4/17/12. However, fortune apparently favored me and it arrived within 2 weeks! 

Included in the hard-shell case along with the rifle was an instruction manual, single target, and one en bloc clip for use. In anticipation of its arrival, I was able to procure 15 additional clips for under $20 on EBay, so I would be ready to shoot this beautiful gun upon receiving it. Unfortunately, this shipment also included a note stating that they were out of slings, but one would be sent when they are back in stock. From what I’ve heard, they’ve been out of stock for months, so I’m not holding my breath on this one. In addition to the rifle, the RM1Special, I ordered 200 rounds of surplus ammunition from the CMP which arrived the next day.

I chose the RM1Special model because I was willing to pay a little bit more to have one in very good condition and this did not disappoint. The Criterion barrel is new, as is the stock, and both arrived in pristine condition. The stock is stained Black Walnut, and felt slightly rough, almost as if they stopped short of a smooth sanding job. This was quickly remedied by oiling the stock a bit, which brought out the details in the grain all the more and smoothed it out. The receiver is a refurbished receiver starting with the serial number 369, which, based on my research would indicate that it was fabricated in July 1945. So while the receiver may not have seen any action in WWII, it’s still a vintage piece of equipment. There was minimal pitting on the exterior of the receiver (only one or two spots), and it was pristine on the interior.

Some history on the M1 Garand, from Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1_Garand ):

The M1 Garand (officially designated as United States Rifle, Caliber .30, M1 and later simply Rifle, Caliber .30, M1, and also abbreviated as US Rifle, Cal. .30, M1), was the first semi-automatic rifle to be generally issued to the infantry of any nation. Called “the greatest battle implement ever devised” by General George S. Patton, the Garand officially replaced the bolt-action M1903 Springfield as the standard service rifle of the United States Armed Forces in 1936 and was subsequently replaced by the selective fire M14 in 1957. However, the M1 continued to be used in large numbers until 1963 and to a lesser degree until 1966.

The M1 “is an air-cooled, gas-operated, clip-fed, and semiautomatic shoulder weapon. This means that the air cools the barrel; that the power to cock the rifle and chamber the succeeding round comes from the expanding gas of the round fired previously; that it is loaded by inserting a metal clip (containing a maximum of eight rounds) into the receiver; and that the rifle fires one round each time the trigger is pulled “. After the eight rounds have been shot the clip automatically ejects causing a “ping” noise to occur.

The M1 was used extensively by U.S. forces in World War II, the Korean War, and, to a limited extent, the Vietnam War. Most M1 rifles were issued to Army and Marine troops, though many thousands were also lent or provided as foreign aid to America’s allies. The Garand is still used by drill teams and military honor guards. It is also widely sought by the civilian population as a hunting rifle, target rifle, and military collectible. The name “Garand” is pronounced variously as /ɡəˈrænd/ or /ˈɡærənd/. According to experts and people who knew John Garand, the weapon’s designer, the latter version is preferred. It is available for American civilian ownership through the Civilian Marksmanship Program.

On Saturday, I was able to take the Garand out and fire it for the first time at the Leeds Outdoor Range. I loaded all of my en bloc clips and headed off with my wife, oldest daughter, and some friends from the neighborhood. While we were at the range, I was able to put about 50 rounds through the rifle, shooting at 25 yard and 100 yard distances (the maximum distance at this particular range). Not only was I impressed with the handling of the gun and its accuracy, I found it a great pleasure to shoot! With absolutely no adjustment to the iron sights on the gun, I was able to easily hit a golf ball at 75 yards (golf balls are very fun to shoot with a wide range of calibers). My wife said that I was grinning like a madman after the first clip left the rifle with its distinctive “PING” and she’s probably right. 

This is a heavy rifle, you feel its weight on picking it up and you feel it firing from a standing position. That being said, the tradeoff that its weight provides is the absorption of some of the recoil from such a powerful cartridge. Don’t get me wrong, you still feel the recoil when firing this gun, but it’s manageable. In my experience (limited thus far), this is by far the heaviest rifle with the most recoil I’ve ever fired, but it’s a GOOD feeling. I can’t wait to shoot this rifle some more and look forward to the end of this month and the opportunity to carry it out to the known distance range that the RWVA has out in Ramseur , NC. 

Own a little piece of history and a great gun to boot: Get yourself an M1 Garand by whatever legal means you can!