M1 Carbine Non-Firing Replica

When specialized U. S. troops increasingly reported their standard-issue M1 Garand Rifle was too heavy and cumbersome to support the extra mobility they required for their duties as mortar and machine-gun crew members, tankers, engineers and other fast-moving specialists, Army ordnance got busy developing a new, compact, lightweight defensive firearm with an effective range of 300 yards and greater range, firepower, and accuracy than a pistol. In 1941, major U. S. firearm companies and designers began the competition to create an easy to carry .30 caliber rifle that met the Army’s 5-pound weight limit. Winchester won the contract and began supplying the first M1 Carbines in mid-1942 to troops in Europe.