MC-1952 Marine Corps Sniper Garand

The MC-1952 was a variation on the M1C Garand sniper rifle, adopted by the US Marine Corps in 1952. The Marines were not satisfied with the low magnification of the Lyman scopes on the Army M1C, and after some experimentation they adopted their own version of the rifle using a 4x scope made by Kollmorgan (commercially sold as the Bear Cub). This scope had a larger tube and lenses, and offered both greater magnification and superior light gathering capabilities. It also was fitted with windage and elevation dials far better for precision shooting that the Lyman had, with clearly audible and tangible clicks.

The MC-1952 was only made and used in small numbers, but it remains an interesting showcase of the difference in approaches to sniping between the US Army and US Marine Corps.

10 Comments

  1. I’m curious how many of these were made, and how many might be warehoused in South Korea among the hundreds of thousands of M1 Garand & Carbine rifles that the country was given a half-century ago and is basically stuck with.

    Considering the high prices that these classic rifles are now commanding on the US collectors market, its a shame that Obama’s 2013 executive order banning reimportation has been preventing any of them from ever returning.

    https://www.thetrace.org/2015/07/m1-rifle-antique-south-korea-import/

    It’s quite possible that the value of these rifles could change significantly after the November 8 election — we’ll see.

    • Well, perhaps even an idealist like Obama has a point. Who is going to buy the guns? Hopefully NOT terrorists who use reverse psychology. What do I mean? Conventional wisdom would dictate that all terrorists would want to get their hands on either AKs, AR-15s, or semiautomatic rifles “similar” to the former two groups which could be modified into select-fire assault rifles. But a smart terrorist relying on reverse psychology would buy or steal weapons which while serviceable (spare parts and ammunition still available), would be considered “too obsolete” by conventional armies for battlefield use. The M1 Garand may not match the M4 Carbine in rate of fire or handiness in CQB, but it is still good at scaring the media, snap-shooting SWAT cops right through Kevlar vests or through plastic face plates, and bayoneting sniveling hostages. By the way, .30×06 is still being produced on the commercial market. Similarly, the SKS has plenty of 3rd party after-market support for casual shooters and hunters, and you know that 7.62×39 is plentiful. All it takes is a bunch of genre-savvy terrorists buying up “supposedly useless 50 year old junk guns.” If the media starts spreading paranoia after such an occurrence, law-abiding citizens will get jailed just for having anything from a grandfather’s war trophy (like a K98) to an antique Springfield Model 1861 Rifle Musket. Even an obviously fake toy musket would scare the gun-hating liberals.

      Did I mess up?

      • “.30×06”
        Correction: should be .30-06 (with dash between number) not cross, which (at least in Russia and Europe) indicate that following number is case length in mm.

        “either AKs”
        Eh, that usage is directly against what M.T.Kalashnikov supposed, he also said:
        I would prefer to have invented a machine that people could use and that would help farmers with their work – for example a lawnmower.
        http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/russia/kalashnikov.htm

        “Even an obviously fake toy musket would scare the gun-hating liberals.”
        Famous 1930s gangster – Dillinger – escape from prison using wooden gun, so it is not a question what it actually is but what you believe it is.

        • I get the points but the whole point is that terrorists rely on fear to get their way. It won’t matter if the gun is “modern” or “too old” if the victim is in no mental condition to fight back. And if the victim is tied to a chair, even a cap-lock muzzle loader with bayonet would terrify him.

          • “The art of practical politics consist of keeping the electorate in a constant state of alarm and hence clamorous to be lead to safety.
            This is achieved by an menacing them with an endless string of hobgoblins, most of which are imaginary” Mencken, 1922.

            Warfare and welfare states need fear (and arguably need terrorists too) in order to achieve the necessary level of tension and fear to justify their policies and the levels of coercion necessary to force the compliance of the plebs.

            Known instances of such terrorism include:
            the staging of “anarchist” attrocities by the Tsar’s secret police

            The false flags perpetrated by the SA and SS in order to get the NSDAP into power and keep it there

            Operation Gladio’s staging of bombings murders and assassinations in Italy and else where in Europe between the mid 1960s and approximately 1990.

            The blowing up of inhabited tower blocks in Moscow during Yeltsin’s premiership, by elements within the secret police, as detailed by Litvinienko.

            The approx 3/4 of “terrorist” prosecutions in the united state since 9/11 which are the result of patsies cajoled into scripted “conspiracies”.

          • “The approx 3/4 of “terrorist” prosecutions in the united state since 9/11 which are the result of patsies cajoled into scripted conspiracies”.”

            That’s because the Bush Regime had boxed themselves into a corner with the ever-present color-coded terrorism alerts (roughly modeled on NOAA’s severe weather warnings) that constantly rubbed it into people’s faces by “warning” us of an imminent or likely terrorist attack that was about to take place somewhere in the country. Rather than admit that the whole terrorist-alert thing was nothing more than wild speculation (at best — many insiders said it was an intentional fraud) the FBI had to save face by concocting false “patsy” terrorist attacks and then swoop in and play the hero.

            Dept of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge later admitted that these terrorist alerts were in fact bogus, and he resigned right after the 2004 presidential election because he was ordered to bump up the terrorist threat level a few notches, without reason and against his own judgement, right before the 2004 election in order to sway the election towards incumbent president Bush (mission accomplished!).

            http://www.nbcnews.com/id/32501273/ns/us_news-security/t/ridge-says-he-was-pressured-raise-terror-alert/

    • There were over 300,000 M1 Garands, and over 1,000,000 M1 Carbines sent to South Korea. I’d imagine that there are quite a few “rare” variants in a group of that size.

      I’m not sure of the current status of these firearms. Did they get scrapped after the import ban?

      • M1 Garand is a full length rifle with a modest magazine capacity (by modern standards) and no detachable magazine, so it should be legal in many countries despite being semi-auto. I suppose it boils down to cost and whether it would make more sense to try and sell some or all of them to other countries besides the US ,or simply scrap them, unless South Korea has some policy concerning ex-military weapons, which would prevent sales to third parties. Further military use is probably out of the question due to non-standard caliber.

        • “unless South Korea has some policy concerning ex-military weapons, which would prevent sales to third parties.”

          Generally speaking, countries that receive US military aid are not allowed to transfer it to other countries without prior permission (yes, there are always strings attached) so that sort of red-tape is probably the limiting factor. Besides being semiauto, 30-06 might still be legally considered a “military” caliber, and thus prohibiting its possession by civilians in many countries.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*