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Posted: 8/15/2026 1:08:44 PM EDT
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Someone told me the other day that Garand bolts are fitted to the rifle and they should not be swapped. My understanding is that you only need to strip the bolt and use GO and NO GO gauges, with gentle finger pressure. I find it really hard to believe that each Garand bolt was fitted to each rifle. It's a supremely practical rifle and hand-fitted bolts are not practical for a military rifle. Thanks |
| interested in the response, I always understood verifying headspace like normal is all you needed |
No one could take His life, He laid it down for me,
That twisted wreath of thorns, yea He took that crown for me,
But after three days, out of the ground for me,
He overcame it all, now I live to serve Him
That twisted wreath of thorns, yea He took that crown for me,
But after three days, out of the ground for me,
He overcame it all, now I live to serve Him
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Yes, you can use a go/no go to check after swapping bolts. Some will say if it does not pass a no-go you can go as far as a field gauge. The intention was parts were interchangeable with M1’s. Most of the time you can with no issue. The military would test new rifles for parts interchangeability before acceptance at the factory. They did not check between manufactures or wwii vs postwar. However, later rebuilds, tolerance stacking and who knows what someone did to the rifle is why you should check headspace after swapping bolts. |
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You only need a go gage. Remove the ejector and see if it chambers. If that fits add a layer of scotch tape to the gage's head, it's approximately .002" thick. Continue this process until the bolt won't close. You will quickly discover your chamber's headspace with a little scotch tape. Anything between .000" and .004" is considered acceptable on a new rifle. Anything between .000" and .009" is considered acceptable on a used rifle. That would be five layers of scotch tape +/-. IMO, all semi-auto rifles should be .002" clearance over SAAMI minimum headspace for reliability. |
Joined:
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I have a GO and a NO GO gauge. I have two rifles. They both close nicely on a GO gauge and won't close on a NO GO, no matter which bolt is in which gun. You have to strip the bolt to get an accurate reading from the gauges. So it looks like I'm good to go. The reason that I asked is someone said to me that Garand bolts were individually fitted to each gun, which sounds like horsepucky to me, but I figured that I would check just to be sure. |
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Originally Posted By sleestakwhisperer: The reason that I asked is someone said to me that Garand bolts were individually fitted to each gun, which sounds like horsepucky to me, but I figured that I would check just to be sure. |
| If checking headspace on a rifle that already been finish reamed ,all you need is a Field gauge. Strip bolt, make sure shamber is cleaned and bolt face. Insert Field Gauge in chamber, push bolt forward and with LIGHT finger pressure only push lug down in closed position. You are basically letting the lug fall on its own. DO NOT PUSH HARD ON LUG. If there is any space between the lug and receiver you are fine. |
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Well, you can…………you can’t. If you stay within the same manufacturer, and the same series you have a better chance of a bolt manufactured within the specs for that series properly fitting in a receiver made in that time period. For example, some series of bolts are made to slightly different specifications. IIRC, and it’s been a while, the -2, -18,-19, and series “65” bolts are made somewhat longer. So, in a mid war Garand they may shorten headspace enough to cause problems. I’ve actually got a Navy Garand, chambered in 7.62NATO specs, shortened to SAAMI specs by using a new Series “65”. |
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Originally Posted By borderpatrol: You only need a go gage. Remove the ejector and see if it chambers. If that fits add a layer of scotch tape to the gage's head, it's approximately .002" thick. Continue this process until the bolt won't close. You will quickly discover your chamber's headspace with a little scotch tape. Anything between .000" and .004" is considered acceptable on a new rifle. Anything between .000" and .009" is considered acceptable on a used rifle. That would be five layers of scotch tape +/-. IMO, all semi-auto rifles should be .002" clearance over SAAMI minimum headspace for reliability. |
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