The Civilian Marksmanship Program is nearly out of original-receiver surplus M1 Garands.
That is not an internet rumor or another recycled story about warehouses overflowing with $220 Korean Garands. CMP itself says its original M1 Garand receiver inventory is “nearly exhausted.”
The strongest evidence is the new M1 Garand by CMP: a $1,900 commercial rifle built around a newly manufactured receiver rather than a receiver once owned by the United States military.
CMP still possesses and sells some surplus rifles. More may return from foreign governments, military storage or ceremonial programs. Reclaimed drill rifles will also extend the supply.
However, the seemingly endless river of ordinary military-surplus M1 Garands is reaching its end.
That changes what “buying a Garand from the CMP” means.
Is CMP Really Out of Surplus M1 Garands?
Not literally.
CMP has not announced that every remaining Springfield Armory, Winchester, Harrington & Richardson and International Harvester receiver is gone. Surplus Garands may still appear through mail-order sales, affiliated-club sales, CMP stores and auctions.
The more accurate conclusion is that CMP no longer has enough ordinary original receivers to support its traditional Garand business indefinitely.
In its Fall/Winter 2025 CEO update, CMP stated that its original receiver inventory was nearly exhausted. It also said it continues working with the federal government to identify possibilities for returning American M1 rifles currently held overseas.
That matters because the receiver is the legally and historically central component of the rifle.
A surplus M1 Garand receiver was manufactured for the United States government by Springfield Armory, Winchester, Harrington & Richardson or International Harvester. It may have served during World War II, Korea, the Cold War or decades of allied military service.
A newly manufactured CMP receiver has no military service history.
That does not make it bad. It makes it different.
What Is the New M1 Garand by CMP?
CMP describes the new rifle as a commercial reproduction built around a forged receiver manufactured by Heritage Arms USA.
The receiver was developed using original Springfield Armory drawings, specifications and surviving military receivers. It uses historically styled heel markings, but it carries a CMP crest and a new commercial serial number. Regular-production serial numbers began at 1001.
The remainder of the rifle combines new and surplus components. CMP’s current description identifies:
- A newly manufactured forged CMP receiver
- A new .30-06 Springfield or .308 Winchester barrel
- A new walnut stock and handguards
- A rebuilt and refinished operating rod
- A mixture of commercial and surplus GI components
- The original eight-round en-bloc clip system
- A fitted rifle case
- A certificate of authenticity
The current price is $1,900 plus $40 shipping. Because CMP classifies it as a commercial firearm, it must be delivered through a federally licensed dealer. It does not qualify for the direct-to-your-door treatment traditionally associated with eligible surplus CMP rifle purchases.
CMP also exempts the commercial rifle from its annual limit on surplus M1 Garands.
Is the New CMP Rifle a Real M1 Garand?
Mechanically, yes.
Historically, no—not in the same sense as an original U.S. military M1 Garand.
The new CMP rifle retains the Garand operating system, receiver pattern, rotating bolt, fixed magazine and en-bloc clip. It is not a modern rifle wearing an M1-shaped costume. It is a newly manufactured example of the M1 Garand design.
It is also eligible for CMP competition. The 2026 CMP Games rules specifically permit commercial and foreign-manufactured M1 Garands when they follow the design and operating features of the rifles issued by the United States military and comply with the remaining match requirements.
But a rifle can be mechanically authentic without being military surplus.
The distinction is simple:
- A surplus M1 Garand is an original government rifle, although it may contain replacement barrels, stocks and mixed military parts.
- The M1 Garand by CMP is a new commercial rifle assembled with a new commercial receiver and a mixture of new and surplus parts.
A CMP certificate cannot manufacture military history retroactively. The new rifle was never issued to an American soldier, returned from Greece or rebuilt in a government arsenal.
It should not be represented as though it were.
Why CMP Had to Manufacture New Garand Receivers
CMP’s traditional supply depends on government-owned rifles becoming available for transfer.
That supply was always finite.
The United States stopped regular M1 Garand production in the 1950s. Since then, rifles have been destroyed, transferred to allies, converted into drill rifles, retained for ceremonial use, placed in museums or sold through earlier government marksmanship programs.
Large foreign returns temporarily replenished the system. Approximately 100,000 American M1 rifles returned from overseas in 2018, but even a warehouse containing 100,000 Garands empties when buyers want hundreds of thousands of them.
My earlier history of the CMP and America’s surplus rifles explains how foreign returns, Army transfers and rifle sales supported CMP’s marksmanship mission.
The supply problem is not difficult to understand. The government has not manufactured a military M1 Garand in roughly seventy years, while shooters and collectors continue buying them.
Eventually the pile gets smaller.
There is no federal agency capable of repealing arithmetic, although several would undoubtedly form a committee to study it.
Reclaimed Drill Rifles Are Extending the Supply
The new commercial receiver is not CMP’s only answer.
CMP has also been reclaiming receivers from deactivated M1 Garand and M1903A3 drill rifles. Its reported starting inventory included approximately 75,000 serialized drill rifles:
- About 10,000 Category A M1 rifles
- About 26,000 Category B M1 rifles
- About 15,000 potentially recoverable M1903A3 rifles
- About 24,000 Category C rifles deferred because of cost or condition
CMP placed an initial order for approximately 20,000 reclaimed receivers. These rifles and receivers carry an “RC” item-number prefix so buyers can distinguish them from traditional surplus products.
The reclamation program has involved engineering review, destructive testing and proof loads exceeding 80,000 psi, according to CMP.
That does not transform every welded parade rifle into a valuable World War II collector piece. A reclaimed drill receiver remains a reclaimed drill receiver, and its price should reflect its history and condition.
It does, however, preserve usable receivers that the government once condemned to life as display objects or scrap metal.
Turning a recoverable American rifle into a functional firearm is considerably better than melting it because some bureaucrat previously attacked it with a welder.
What About the Korean M1 Garands?
Whenever CMP inventory tightens, the Korean Garand story crawls out of its grave.
I addressed this in No, There Are Not Going to Be $220 Korean CMP Garands back in 2015.
CMP is not an ordinary commercial importer. For foreign rifles to enter the CMP pipeline cleanly, the federal government generally must recover eligible U.S.-provided rifles and transfer them through the proper government process.
That is different from a private importer purchasing foreign-owned rifles and stamping import markings into them.
CMP says it continues exploring returns of American rifles held overseas. That means another batch is possible.
“Possible” is not the same as “scheduled,” and it certainly does not mean tens of thousands of cheap rifles are sitting on a ship headed toward Alabama.
Do not buy a rifle today based on a social-media promise that mythical crates will arrive next month.
Should You Buy the New CMP M1 Garand?
That depends on what you want.
Buy an original surplus Garand if you want:
- A government-manufactured receiver
- Genuine military history
- Traditional CMP provenance
- Established collector value
- Manufacturer and serial-number interest
- A rifle that may show honest service wear
Consider the new M1 Garand by CMP if you want:
- A newly manufactured forged receiver
- A new barrel and walnut stock
- A choice between .30-06 and .308
- A Garand intended primarily for shooting
- CMP competition eligibility
- Factory assembly and CMP support
- No anxiety about wearing out a historically significant receiver
At $1,900, the new rifle is not cheap. A buyer should compare it against currently available surplus CMP grades, commercial Springfield Armory M1 rifles, Fulton Armory builds and original rifles on the collector market.
The new CMP rifle makes the most sense for someone who wants a clean, shootable Garand and cares more about function than wartime provenance.
It makes considerably less sense for someone whose primary goal is owning an authentic United States military rifle.
Before ordering anything, read my guide to buying an M1 Garand from CMP and verify the current CMP eligibility, inventory, price and transfer requirements.
The End of the Cheap Surplus Garand Era
The M1 Garand by CMP is a sensible rifle and a warning.
It preserves the design, supports competitive shooting and gives CMP a product it can continue selling after the original receivers become scarce. Revenue from those rifles also supports the National Matches, ranges, junior programs and marksmanship training.
But it confirms something collectors have avoided admitting:
The supply of ordinary military-surplus CMP Garands is nearly finished.
Some original rifles remain. Reclaimed drill receivers will extend the timeline. Additional foreign returns could provide another temporary supply. Rare and collectible rifles will continue appearing at auction.
The traditional model—vast quantities of government M1 rifles rebuilt, graded and sold at affordable fixed prices—cannot continue forever.
The new CMP M1 Garand is a real Garand design and a legitimate competition rifle.
It is not a surplus U.S. military rifle.
That distinction will become more valuable with every original receiver that leaves the CMP warehouse.
GarandThumb.com was established on May 4, 2012, to document my experiences trying to become a better marksman.