M1 Carbine Rifle

[David]

The M1 Carbine (pronounced 'Kar-Been') was originally proposed as a light rifle design in 1938 but declined by the US Military. Later in 1940, the design was resubmitted and accepted for further development. The weapon needed to fill the role of light rifle for the ancillary groups of soldiers already burdened down by primary weapons or tasks - mainly mortar teams, machine gun teams and clerks - basically a weapon for what was termed 'second line' troops. The weapon would have to have the portability of a handgun with the firepower of a rifle.
Winchester would produce the ammunition and 25 companies would go on to design competition for the trials. 11 firms handed in designs with the Winchester design being selected.
The M1 Carbine was a light, semi-automatic rifle utilizing a short-stroke piston pushed into position by a rush of gas. In its original form, it fired from a 15 round detachable box magazine and came complete with a magazine pouch fitted to the wooden butt. Later models would be fitted to fire either the 15-round magazine or a 30-round magazine (which was intermediate between a pistol and rifle cartridge in overall power, resulting in that being one of the only drawbacks encountered by troops using the weapon). Original production rifles were capable of only semi-automatic fire to speed up production. It was an immediate success because of its light weight and robust easy-to-handle features.
The M1A1 version was similar to the original M1, except it was fitted with a metal folding stock for parachute troops.
The M2 was simply the M1 but with an added selective fire switch, allowing the user to fire in semi-automatic fire or full automatic.
The M3 variant was shipped with mountings for a variety of scopes to be fitted.
The weapon system did become a favorite among frontline troops, particularly in the Pacific Theater of War, seeing combat in the hands of US Marines in the jungle and surf environments.
A multitude of firms (10 total) produced the weapon including General Motors Corporation, National Postal Meter Company in New York, Rochester Defense Corporation, Winchester Repeating Arms and Standard Products Company. Total production numbers have been reported at 6,332,000.
Specifications for the M1 Carbine Rifle:

Designation: M1 Carbine
Classification: Automatic Rifle
Design: Winchester
Operation: Gas-action piston
Caliber: .30 Caliber (7.62mm)
Length: 35.6 inches
Weight: 5lbs, 2oz (unloaded)
Magazine Capacity: 15 or 30-round internal box
Rat of Fire: 750 to 775 rounds per minute
Muzzle Velocity: 1,970 feet per second

Pictured is the M1A1 version of the M1 Carbine Rifle
in the hands of the 82nd Airborne.