ROK’s Gift to American Firearms Enthusiasts
by James Na ~ September 25th, 2009. Filed under: Miscellaneous, ROK Miltary, U.S.-Korea Relations.My apologies to Richardson and the readers of this blog for months of silence (I will write an explanation at some point). But here is some good news from South Korea if you are a gun nut like I am:
South Korea’s defence ministry has announced plans to sell up to 86,000 M1 Garand rifles to gun enthusiasts and collectors in the United States. Along with a reported 22,000 M1 carbine rifles, the total value of firearms for sale exceeds $100 million.
Okay, so technically these are not a gift (in fact, we gave them to the Koreans a while back), but they are a gift in the sense that M1 Garand rifles in good condition are drying up fast in the U.S. and a fresh supply is always a gift to gun buyers interested in these historically significant firearms.
More on the details here. Oddly, the ROK military is keeping 640,000 M1 Carbines for the reserves. Now, M1 Carbines are nifty little guns: simple, easy to shoot, has low recoil and very handy. They are, however, a bit underpowered (they chamber an intermediate cartridge that is somewhere between a rifle and handgun in power). Surely, in this day of 6.8mm Rem when there is endless debate about whether the standard 5.56mm NATO cartridge is potent enough, M1 Carbines are a bit backward in addition to being archaic for military service.
September 25th, 2009 at 11:21 pm
I wonder if any of those M1s in reserve are actually M2 Carbines.
September 27th, 2009 at 8:04 am
As a reenactor, this makes me VERY happy.
September 27th, 2009 at 7:57 pm
If only American firearms enthusiasts currently residing in the Republic of Korea had first choice….
September 28th, 2009 at 9:11 am
Most are probably NOT M2’s. And even if some are, these probably won’t be imported.
I might grab an M1 Carbine for my wife. It’s such an ideal carbine/submachine gun substitute for women and children, especially since real submachine guns length barrels are prohibited or prohibitively expensive due to the 16″ restriction. And as weak as .30 Carbine is, it beats handgun calibers all day.
October 7th, 2009 at 7:37 am
The ideal submachine gun for children?? I was waiting for the punchline.
October 8th, 2009 at 12:19 am
@straitgate@hotmail.com
Lots of kids shoot guns in America. There is nothing weird or funny about it at all.
Cars are far more dangerous in the hands of children than guns have ever been.
October 15th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
Yeah, lots kids. Like this little fella (link here). Way to go kid.
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:11 am
The article is incorrect. All weapons approved for sale by the Republic of Korea (M-1 Garand and M-1 .30 Cal Carbines) were purchased by ROK under the MIMEX program. All grant aid weapons have long been disposed of or demilitarized.