View Full Version : another CMP M1 Garand question

December 7, 2009, 05:25 PM
What is the difference between a M1 Garand, WRA Field Grade and a M1 Garand, SA Service Grade?

The service grade is $100 cheaper at $595 then the field grade at $695.

What does the "WRA" mean and what does the "SA" mean?

I want a good Garand to shoot. Not anything as a collector or anything like that if that is the difference.


Buffalo Wing
December 7, 2009, 05:33 PM
The field grade should be just fine for a shooter. The wood may not be in great shape but if that's not a huge worry for you then the $100 saved is probably worth it. One of my buddies has a Service Grade and it is in excellent shape, so the Field Grade shouldn't be a huge step below it.

I am pretty sure "WRA" and "SA" would be the company the specific Garand was produced by, "WRA" being Winchester ("Winchester Repeating Arms") and "SA" being Springfield Armory (the original, not the modern company).

December 7, 2009, 05:34 PM
the service grade is the cheaper rifle.

The difference between the rifles is WRA and SA.

So is the Springfield armory rifle just as good as the Winchester?

December 7, 2009, 05:50 PM
Springfield, Winchester, International Harvester, Harrington-Richardson... they all went through very stringent acceptance processes in order to retain the right/ability to produce firearms. The War Department issued specs and standards for each part and each total firearm- if a company wa'nt up to snuff- then their equipment did not end up in GI's hands.

The matter of who made what is kind of a non-issue anyhow. The name you see is the name on the receiver. There will likely be several other parts on your rifle since they went through numerous armory rebuilds. So, if you get a Springfield- it may have more Winchester parts than a rifle with a Winchester receiver. Don't let that shake you though- they are very good rifles. Be sure to study up on what ammo you can shoot, adjustable gas plugs, lubrication and cleaning procedures. They're a ton of joy- have fun.

December 7, 2009, 08:51 PM
Winchesters command a premium on the collector's market. If you're not a collector get a service grade Springfield and it'll be a shooter you'll enjoy.


December 8, 2009, 02:34 AM
If you want to know what the differences are in the CMP's grading, the grading system is explained on their website. The differences go much farther than the condition of the stock.


December 8, 2009, 12:35 PM
There is also overlap in the grades. Its impossible to assign every one of a lot of thousands of rifles into 4 or 5 absolute groups. So a 'superior' rack grade might be a 'high end' field grade with one or two parts that are not as good as they might be. On the other hand a 'low end' service grade might seem like a 'good' field grade

Strictly speaking, the post- war HRAs (should be all of them) are "better" than WWII made rifles. Collectibility is another matter. During wartime production, quality could and did slip, and also as the production progresses improvements were made. Presumably all improvements were made at arsenal rebuild as well, but still, an HRA should have the potential to be "better", all other thing being equal. An HRA trigger group for instance is generally held to be better than an SA

That said, I specifically requested and received a WWII Springfield from the CMP

December 8, 2009, 09:28 PM
The Field Grade Winchester (WRA) is assigned a higher price strictly due to the collectability. If you're only interested in getting a good shooter, then go for a post war SA (Springfield Armory) or HRA (Harrington & Richardson). As stated above, these rifles were made during peace time and most of them are very nicely finished. Personally, if I wanted a good shooter and were only going to get one, I'd get the SA Service Grade.

If you can stop there, you are a better man than I...:D