From: khays@sequent.com (Kirk Hays)
Newsgroups: rec.guns
Subject: Re: M1 Garand -> Baretta BM59 Conversion?
Date: 11 Nov 1998 21:12:49 -0500

In article <72c8uc$5pr@xring.cs.umd.edu>,
Dan Paquette <dpaquette@flashoflightning.com> wrote:
#I was looking through some old gun mags and ran across a short article about
#M1's (Gun World June 1988).  It gave a few details about about a Baretta
#BM59 that was built from M1 Garands.  The coolest feature of the converted
#BM59 is that is is MAG FED, none of those ^&%*$ En bloc clips.

Magazines are overrated.  They're expensive, fragile, and break easily
- moving parts, you know.

Garand en bloc clips are cool.  They're cheap, durable (if you don't
step on them), and have no moving parts.

#What I would like to hear is that:
#a - This conversion can be done (maybe by Fulton Armory?)

It can be done, there are several vendors that do it.

Fulton does not do them.

#b - It is not more expensive than my Garand.

It will add $400 to $500 to the cost of a garand.

Lots of milling must be done, plus stock work, to get close to a
functioning rifle.  You can't go back, afterward.

#c - Mags are available.

Well, you'll get one with your conversion.

Beware any conversion that uses BAR magazines - the US Army and John Garand
couldn't make them work in the transitional prototypes from M1 to M14, there's
no reason to believe any individual gunsmith can, either.

Let me beg you *not* to butcher a garand, and instead buy an M1A or
other M14 clone, designed to shoot with magazines.

Sell your Garand, and buy an M1A.  Or have both - they have different
charms and differing utility.

#There were not many details in the article about the BM59, it was not clear
#it a whole new received was used, or if the old receiver was "converted".

BM59's come on the market from time to time.

--
Kirk Hays
[I don't speak for Sequent.]