11/9/18 - This is a very rare and desirable Springfield M1C Garand Sniper rifle from the tail end of World War II. Manufactured in early 1945 with late 1944 barrel, this rifle features original M82 scope with properly numbered and matching scope mount and rail. Developed in 1944, the M1C was the first production-level sniper variant of the M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle. While highly effective as a sniper weapon, the manufacturing process was rather involved, requiring a Springfield receiver to be selected off the production line before heat treating, shipped to Griffin & Howe for base installation, and then returned to the Armory to complete the process. While phased out of production in favor of the M1D, which could be produced in-house by Springfield using finished and surplus M1 rifles, the M1C saw sniper duty through Korea and into Vietnam. There were fewer than 8,000 M1Cs produced and only 4,000 issued. This rifle features original cheek pad and sling, as well as M2 flash hider. The stock has clear crossed cannons cartouche and is marked 'SA NFR'. The scope has crystal clear optics and is marked 'Telescope M82' with serial number. The stock is in great shape, though the rear hand guard does have a thin crack and a small chip in it. Excellent, shiny bore.
