Research on December 1942 SA auction find

ronbo · 05-07-2002, 03:58 PM

Well, I've been working on it. I had originally looked in Poyer's book for info on the parts used, etc. and found that his book leaves a lot to be desired. Upon reading Duff's book,"The M1 Garand: World War II", I learned that the trigger housing in this 12/42 M1 that I got at the estate auction is the correct one for this rifle. The trigger housing has the designation D28290-8-SA which was used from September 1942 to January 1943 and overlapped the 12-SA revision by a couple of months so 8-SA is ok. The bolt is a 17SA revision of which Duff says the period of their use is unknown. Anyway, I have examined all the other parts and it appears that they are all original to this rifle. I drew up a data sheet like Duff uses in his book and then checked it against the chapter about identification of parts. The only question is the 17SA bolt as the serial number of this rifle, 1069XXX, calls for a 12SA bolt. But as he said, the period of use of the 17SA revision is unknown and he also says that if the finish and wear of all the parts matches, then it may be "correct" (to paraphrase). The finish and wear does match perfectly on this rifle so I think I'm ok in thinking it is all original. My next step is to have it checked out to determine if it is safe for shooting. Yes, I will shoot it at least one time at the range.
I have done some research into the history of this rifle. I went back to the auctioneer and he confirmed that it came from the estate that was listed in the auction announcement. He said it was found in the attic. (I know.....the proverbial attic. Better than the damp basement!). As far as getting in touch with any relatives, there are none. The woman died late last year and left no heirs and left the house and her belongings to a local religious organization which hired an attorney to liquidate the assets. Her husband died in 1997 at age 82 so he was of WWII era age. I was able to go to the town where she lived and access probate records and find out the names of three people who are listed as friends of her. If I reach a dead end trying to find out her husband's miitary history, I will contact the friends to see what they might be able to tell me. I was able to obtain the husband's date of birth, death, and social security number which will be a help in finding out military service. If anybody has any suggestions as to how to go about finding out about a person's military service, I would appreciate the tip.
Here are the part number designations:
Barrel - 1-S-A-12-42 TE<4 excellent bore and muzzle
Bolt - D28287-17SA Heat lot B4C
Op rod - D35382 6SA Unmodified
Trigger housing - D28290-8-SA
Hammer - C46008-3SA
Safety - C46015-9SA
Receiver D28291-17 Heat lot R47

Rick the Librarian · 05-07-2002, 06:49 PM

Nice job of research - good luck on your quest.

David N · 05-07-2002, 09:27 PM

Try the Department of Veterns Affairs. Also check with a local American Legion or VFW. He might have been a member of either. Some locales had National Guard or Reserve units from the community and went over as a group. It was more prevelent during WW1 but it did happen with some National Guard units during WWII. Good luck.

05-07-2002, 03:58 PM	#1
ronbo Registered User Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 4 Trader Rating: (0)	Research on December 1942 SA auction find Well, I've been working on it. I had originally looked in Poyer's book for info on the parts used, etc. and found that his book leaves a lot to be desired. Upon reading Duff's book,"The M1 Garand: World War II", I learned that the trigger housing in this 12/42 M1 that I got at the estate auction is the correct one for this rifle. The trigger housing has the designation D28290-8-SA which was used from September 1942 to January 1943 and overlapped the 12-SA revision by a couple of months so 8-SA is ok. The bolt is a 17SA revision of which Duff says the period of their use is unknown. Anyway, I have examined all the other parts and it appears that they are all original to this rifle. I drew up a data sheet like Duff uses in his book and then checked it against the chapter about identification of parts. The only question is the 17SA bolt as the serial number of this rifle, 1069XXX, calls for a 12SA bolt. But as he said, the period of use of the 17SA revision is unknown and he also says that if the finish and wear of all the parts matches, then it may be "correct" (to paraphrase). The finish and wear does match perfectly on this rifle so I think I'm ok in thinking it is all original. My next step is to have it checked out to determine if it is safe for shooting. Yes, I will shoot it at least one time at the range. I have done some research into the history of this rifle. I went back to the auctioneer and he confirmed that it came from the estate that was listed in the auction announcement. He said it was found in the attic. (I know.....the proverbial attic. Better than the damp basement!). As far as getting in touch with any relatives, there are none. The woman died late last year and left no heirs and left the house and her belongings to a local religious organization which hired an attorney to liquidate the assets. Her husband died in 1997 at age 82 so he was of WWII era age. I was able to go to the town where she lived and access probate records and find out the names of three people who are listed as friends of her. If I reach a dead end trying to find out her husband's miitary history, I will contact the friends to see what they might be able to tell me. I was able to obtain the husband's date of birth, death, and social security number which will be a help in finding out military service. If anybody has any suggestions as to how to go about finding out about a person's military service, I would appreciate the tip. Here are the part number designations: Barrel - 1-S-A-12-42 TE<4 excellent bore and muzzle Bolt - D28287-17SA Heat lot B4C Op rod - D35382 6SA Unmodified Trigger housing - D28290-8-SA Hammer - C46008-3SA Safety - C46015-9SA Receiver D28291-17 Heat lot R47 Last edited by ronbo; 05-08-2002 at 03:56 PM.

05-07-2002, 09:27 PM	#3
David N Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 198 Trader Rating: (0)	Research on December 1942 SA auction find Try the Department of Veterns Affairs. Also check with a local American Legion or VFW. He might have been a member of either. Some locales had National Guard or Reserve units from the community and went over as a group. It was more prevelent during WW1 but it did happen with some National Guard units during WWII. Good luck. __________________ -- In Educatio Veritas est, In Veritas Lux est (In knowledge is truth, in truth is light)

05-07-2002, 06:49 PM	#2
Rick the Librarian Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: NW Washington Posts: 218 Trader Rating: (0)	Nice job of research - good luck on your quest.