The house rifle

[Absintheur]

For years I have always kept either a sub-caliber (handgun caliber) carbine or an AR platform as a house gun. Recently however the folks at CorBon have released their 30 Carbine DPX ammo and after testing I have changed over to the venerable M-1 Carbine for the house gun task. It is light, short, easy to put into action, has great ammo capacity, a low recoil impulse, and is fairly easy on the night vision compared to some other firearms (including the shotgun). The addition of CorBon DPX to these traits make it ideal for the task. The CorBon tested out extremely well in VYSE Gelatin mixed to 10% as per FBI protocols and clothed with 4 layers denim.

Test gun: Inland M-1 Carbine
Average velocity: 2019fps
Average penetration: 21.3
Average expansion: .55

The M-1 I am using is a Inland from the CMP program. Was in excellent condition when I received it and all I have done is add a sling to it. The tag was a bit unusual, the inspector at the CMP had added the notation "nice muzzle" on it, something I hadn't seen before on any of the dozen or so CMP rifles I have received from them. At the range this became evident as it shoots 1 1/4 inch groups with Federal American Eagle ammo at 100 yards from the bench with the iron sights.

I know many feel the shotgun is the ideal firearm for this purpose but I prefer the small caliber rifle for several reasons.

Shorter overall than an 18 inch barreled shotgun
Lower recoil
Higher capacity
Less muzzle flash

 

[tyr_shadowblade]

M1 carbine has been my house gun for 20+ years. I prefer it to the AK, AR, and Uzi. Very lightweight, fairly short, mags pop in and out easily, accurate within 300 ft, and I've never had a jam. :thumbup:

 

[Iron City]

Curious.. how much does an M-1 carbine (as seen above) go for?

 

[kalama]

i got a used one about 10 years ago for $150 a neaw one runs about $575-to$700 here in hawaii ,i love this gun my gramps,father an myself use the 30 cal to hunt pigs,i have used the 30 cal to hunt pigs for the past 20 plus years i owned 3 during this time an im going to get a new one in dec.,i own alot of brush guns but this is my favorite..

 

[SPXTrader]

This is good to hear. I love my M1, and getting an updated cartridge is great news!

 

[Absintheur]

Curious.. how much does an M-1 carbine (as seen above) go for?

That one was bought thru the CMP (Civilian Marksmanship Program) and cost me $419.00 plus shipping. Currently National Postal Meter, IBM, and Standard Product rifles are available around $500.00.

http://www.thecmp.org/m1carbine.htm

 

[Robert H]

That's a great rifle. I bought one for my wife but she prefers the Mossberg 12 gauge.

Oh well.

 

[sir woodley]

Great choice! I like.

 

[Absintheur]

The shotgun makes for a great bedroom gun. When used from a set defensive position such as from behind a bed on the side opposite the door it is unequaled by just about any other firearm. Another great use is at the head of the stairs in a house with more than one floor, especially an enclosed staircase, basically a shooting tunnel.

For moving about the house I like the Cabine's short length and light recoil and muzzle flash.

 

[shooter10]

With this new ammo, the carbine MAY be the ideal house gun, but with the original 110 grain, ball ammo, it left considerable to be desired. Sure, it made deep wounds, but they were tiny, and often it took multiple hits to let the target know he was supposed to fall down and be good. It was my issued weapon in KOrea, and after several dismal failures to stop like I thought it should, I seemed to always "lose" mine, and rearm with a M1 Garand. That 4 pound weight difference was great, but of little value if the lighter weapon did not do it's job.
Yet, when the Government sold them to NRA members, I bought one, and still have it. It is fun to play with, but in my opinion not of much value. I would rather have a Ruger Mini 30, (7.62 x 39) with multiple choices of much less expensive factory ammo, hollow point, soft nose, ball, etc. Little recoil, but capable of creating decent wounds, and transferring bullet terminal energy to the target, not just drilling a clean hole all the way through and wasting much of the energy. YMMV.

 

[Absintheur]

With practice ammo priced at $155 a case from the CMP and other places selling American Eagle for 9.99 to 11.99 when on sale I don't think it is really more expensive to shoot. Plus the straight wall case is easy to reload on a progressive loader which makes it even cheaper. If you read through my initial post you will see that with the proper ammo it make an excellent stopper without over penetration.