MidwayUSA m1 carbine (IBM, 1943), value?

[kyle415]

Per the title, I FOMO/impulse purchased one of the WWII M1 carbines that midwayusa was selling a few years back. Paid $1600 for it after taxes and fees, which i know is very high.

Very fun to shoot, but with each round costing over a buck, it just sits in my safe. With the prices of other m1 carbines posted for much lower (albeit mostly remakes or post wwii), I kinda regret it. If I were to sell it, how much do you guys think I could get? Ty in advance!

 

[Palladin]

I'll give you $500 for it

seriously, IBM is a better choice for carbines, 346,500 manufactured, as compared to 2.5 million Inland rifles

 

[RumRunner]

$501

 

[strangenh]

501, but with the button fly



(j/k)

Gunbroker is an excellent resource for past sales to get a ballpark idea of value; if you have a login, you can search successful past sales. Looks like you could about make your money back, but not a lot better unless the condition is amazing.

 

[PappyM3]

Per the title, I FOMO/impulse purchased one of the WWII M1 carbines that midwayusa was selling a few years back. Paid $1600 for it after taxes and fees, which i know is very high.

Very fun to shoot, but with each round costing over a buck, it just sits in my safe. With the prices of other m1 carbines posted for much lower (albeit mostly remakes or post wwii), I kinda regret it. If I were to sell it, how much do you guys think I could get? Ty in advance!

That depends on A LOT. Looking at gunbroker you can definitely theoretically get your money back for an IBM M1 Carbine.

1. Did it live part of its life in another country like South Korea and have an import stamp on the barrel? M1 Carbines that were never exported go for more.

2. Did it have post-WWII depot level modifications? You can find lists, but things like bayonet lugs, safety style, rear sights etc. were added/updated in post-war refits. M1 Carbines without those go for more.

3. Have you disassembled it to analyze where all the different parts were manufactured and when? There’s no way to confirm an M1 Carbine is all original (except for very rare instances). But you can see if all the parts are plausibly original, or at least most of them. You’ll usually see it least a couple replaced parts that don’t make sense for that period IBM.

 

[kyle415]

That depends on A LOT. Looking at gunbroker you can definitely theoretically get your money back for an IBM M1 Carbine.

1. Did it live part of its life in another country like South Korea and have an import stamp on the barrel? M1 Carbines that were never exported go for more.

2. Did it have post-WWII depot level modifications? You can find lists, but things like bayonet lugs, safety style, rear sights etc. were added/updated in post-war refits. M1 Carbines without those go for more.

3. Have you disassembled it to analyze where all the different parts were manufactured and when? There’s no way to confirm an M1 Carbine is all original (except for very rare instances). But you can see if all the parts are plausibly original, or at least most of them. You’ll usually see it least a couple replaced parts that don’t make sense for that period IBM.

Good points! I have not disassembled it all the way yet, but the midwayusa website describing these is still up!
M1 Carbines for Sale | M1 Rifle for Sale | MidwayUSA
Looks like they’re all via 1 single lot from some italian law enforcement agency that acquired them. It does have an import stamp, and there’s a chance that parts may have been “replaced or upgraded” prior to transfer from wwii use to Italy.

 

[CulperJr]

I always find it strange how expensive M1 carbines are, especially compared to M1 garands. If my memory is correct, a similar amount of each was made- about 6 million. Of course they don’t make them like they used to, but I’ve seen certain carbines sold for well over $2,000 on CMP forums.

I think it has something to do with the vast amount of contractors and sub contractors, maybe people feel like they need one of each?

Anyways, I think gunbroker, CMP forums, or even local consignment should be able to fetch around $1000 bare minimum. I’ve seen a number of absolutely clapped out carbines sold by royal tiger for well over $1000. The buyers are there, just be patient.

Oh, and I reload my carbine ammo for very cheap. Costs about the same as reloading 5.56. In today’s market. Something you may want to look into!

 

[PappyM3]

I always find it strange how expensive M1 carbines are, especially compared to M1 garands. If my memory is correct, a similar amount of each was made- about 6 million. Of course they don’t make them like they used to, but I’ve seen certain carbines sold for well over $2,000 on CMP forums.

I think it has something to do with the vast amount of contractors and sub contractors, maybe people feel like they need one of each?

Anyways, I think gunbroker, CMP forums, or even local consignment should be able to fetch around $1000 bare minimum. I’ve seen a number of absolutely clapped out carbines sold by royal tiger for well over $1000. The buyers are there, just be patient.

Oh, and I reload my carbine ammo for very cheap. Costs about the same as reloading 5.56. In today’s market. Something you may want to look into!

Part of it is who the contractors were. Rockola and IBM fetch more because of the companies. And while more M1 Carbines were made than Garands, some companies made much fewer than others.

The Carbines used to be dirt cheap, but people realized how fun they were and started buying them up. CMP also doesn’t sell them anymore and hasn’t for a while. CMP is one of the reasons why Garand prices have stayed where they are.