WWII rifles. Are they still viable?

I am surprised that nobody has mentioned that the M1 Garand was still be used in several conflicts as recently as the late 1980s/early 1990s. The full range of WWII era US weapons (Garands, M1 carbines, M1919 machine guns, BARs, etc) were used by both sides in the early phases of the Nicaraguan Civil War. When the Haitian Army was disbanded in 1994 guess what their standard issue rifle was .... the M1 Garand.

Remember folks, it's not about how fast it fires but rather how accurate the shooter is. A gun is a gun, they all can kill just the same. What matters is how good the shooter is. Go to the range and practice, practice, practice!

if i presume you are refering to a shtf scenario then.....if you use for example a garand or enfield smle (not the enfield as it appears in callofduty.lol.thats an sa80 and will always be called an sa80 or even more generally an l85) eg a semiauto rifle it all comes down to if you are accurate at a medium range 300m or so,kinda removes the threat from everything except similar weapons or well handled assault rifles.
at closer ranges it all depends how good your drills are,reloads,stoppages etc.but i guess the deciding factor would be your ability to "keep your powder dry" and not empty a full clip at one target or a single opportunity.

Originally posted by CX
.303 Le Enfield was the first rifle i ever fired as a 13 year old army cadet.

Fantastic gun. That was my main hunting rifle as I was growing up. The rifle has the year 1916 stamped in the metal near the rear sight. I came to love a semi-auto .30-06 a bit more but the reliability and beauty of the Enfield is unquestionable. The bolt action rifle never breaks and is still deadly accurate.

reply to post by schuyler


With enough practise, you can fire 15 rounds a minuet with a bolt action, the Brits did in 'the great war' they used a bolt action short model lee-Enfiled, the Germans thought they were being fired on by machine guns.

Originally posted by AnteBellum
M1911

2nd

Star for you!! You beat me to it!!

Just look at the 1911. It's probably the most popular and recognized handgun designs, still used today by civilians, LEO's, and military. And the most popular competition gun. And it's100 years old!!

reply to post by JDBlack


I think as long as the ww2 weapon was reliable and funtioned properly it should still be viable. I have an 8mm german mauser and it works just as well as it did all those years ago. I think if i can put 10 rounds down range and make a grouping that fits inside a 50 cent piece at 125 yards its still a viable weapon

reply to post by JDBlack


Mosin Nagant. The Soviets issued them in WW2 and they are great guns. You can get a refurbished one for under 100 bucks. They have been around forever for a reason. Crazy accurate, used in general combat and as a sniper rifle.
en.wikipedia.org...

Ive got an 8mm Mauser thats over 100yrs old and it still kicks @rse,also got a .303 jungle carbine that i use with 60 yr old pakistani ammo not as accurate as the Mauser but great over the shorter distances

Great thread, unfortunately the UK's gun laws are quit ludicrous, so i have never fired or seen any of these weapons to touch, but i would love to fire a kar98k, m1garand or the russian Mosin nagant, iam a big fan of bolt action rifles, im really living in the wrong country, i would consider myself a gun enthusiast but i dont own any lol, as i do not live on a farm and all i would ever be able to get a licence for would be a shotgun for clay pigeon shooting

reply to post by GogoVicMorrow


Wow you can get a refurbished working Mosin for under $100 !? thats mad cheap !!! i love that extra little bit of metal infront of the trigger, it looks so slick.

reply to post by Vanishr


Yep.. without the nice wood finish it's about 80 bucks and they shoot perfect (unless it wasn't refurbished correctly) and are crazy accurate. A friend of mine got one with the nicer stained finish for 90 bucks. That was on sale, everyday price is about 100 (with bayonet, and pouches) and if you get one set up with a scope it might end up around 140.

Very worth it, and they do look very nice.

BTW i'm talking about the 1891/30 model.

And you definitely live in the wrong country for being a gun enthusiast.. I just found Mosin's on AimSurplus for 69.99.

reply to post by GogoVicMorrow


Sounds great, is it possible to go out and shoot on a range in the US, without any sort of gun ownership licenses ? In a few years i was planning on going to Alaska for the crab season's, After i got my paycheck i may have to travel to a gun friendly area in the US and shoot some

In a SHTF scenario even a flint lock is a viable weapon. Remember that some gun is better than no gun. Even the US government knows this. That is why durring WWII they made the FP-45 Liberator. So it all depends on what the scenario is at the time.

Originally posted by machines4200
reply to post by JDBlack

 

i dont quite know what u mean by viable... they may still work but i wouldnt use them in todays wars.

M1 Carbine is still used by many governments. It also probably has more variations than a lot of other guns.

reply to post by GogoVicMorrow


Mosins for 69.99.. wow!!! Thats a deal right there. A very accurate rifle for that price you cant beat that. Thats my step father hunting rifle of choice and i'd have to say its very effective.

reply to post by Vanishr


I think you would be ok finding a place there in Alaska. I speak only for Kentucky.. and yes if you came here you can probably shoot whatever you want.

From the description of the Westpoint machine gun shoot in Westpoint Ky:

But you don't have to be a militia member to enter the grounds of the Knob Creek Gun Range. Anybody with $7 can come in. Machine guns can be rented for $15. And if flames are your game, try a flame-thrower out on a Chevy Impala for about $50. And if you're hankering for a little competition, for $25 you can borrow a pistol or a shotgun and maneuver through a police training course blowing away silhouettes of bad guys. There is also the Sub Gun Jungle Walk ($10), where contestants run rather than walk through a course searching for hidden targets to blast with a sub machine gun capable of letting loose 600-800 rounds per minute. But the highlight of the event is the Saturday Night Shoot, where the whole crew gathers to wield their weapons and light up the night. "It's sort of like the 4th of July with machine guns," Sumner says. "It's a big barrage of tracer bullets and flames, a nice solid roar of weaponry."

www.2camels.com...

www.kyfestivals.com...

Originally posted by Vanishr
reply to post by GogoVicMorrow

 

Sounds great, is it possible to go out and shoot on a range in the US, without any sort of gun ownership licenses ? In a few years i was planning on going to Alaska for the crab season's, After i got my paycheck i may have to travel to a gun friendly area in the US and shoot some

We have a range here in MO at which you can rent and fire almost anything (they have mulltiple heavy MG and even a MK 19) as long as you can afford the ammo. No licence required to shoot anything in the US. .

reply to post by Vanishr


u wanan shoot go to vegas they let you shoot fully autto just gotta pay for it or you could come accross the pond and vist some american members of ats sure there would be more then a few willing to help ya shoot some kind of gun

reply to post by KilrathiLG


Yea i will have too wen im 21 buddy, definetly planning on going to vegas, good to hear the gun laws there are reasonable, will have to go for a good shoot when im out there gambling Hehe im not sure many people would be confortable with sharing there weaponry with a British stranger Especially that they've only met on ATS hehe, Maybe one day KilrathiLG we'll get to hang and smoke 100% legal blends of herbal material & shoot up some stuff

A nice thought, beating anything that could possibly happen in my job today

Originally posted by Vanishr
reply to post by KilrathiLG

 

Yea i will have too wen im 21 buddy, definetly planning on going to vegas, good to hear the gun laws there are reasonable, will have to go for a good shoot when im out there gambling

Hehe im not sure many people would be confortable with sharing there weaponry with a British stranger

Especially that they've only met on ATS hehe, Maybe one day KilrathiLG we'll get to hang and smoke 100% legal blends of herbal material

& shoot up some stuff

A nice thought, beating anything that could possibly happen in my job today

You make me sick. You should be grateful we don't live in a gun infested craphole like the US. And you're a drug junkie to boot. GTFO of the UK.