Auto-Ordnance M1 Carbine into layaway safe, S&W 317 gets liberated!

One out of the layaway safe and another one goes back in. The story of the life of an unrepentant gun slut.

This time the one going into the layaway safe is not a handgun, which is a radical change for me. I'm pretty much of a handgun slut, but I made an exception this time for the Auto-Ordnance M1 Carbine Tactical Folding Stock Model. 


The only other long guns I have suitable for castle defense are a pair of 12 gauge shotguns, one SBS double-barrel my daddy left me and an Ithaca 37 pump that I had the barrel shortened to 18.25" as a riot gun; plus a Marlin 1894 .44 Magnum Stainless Lever-Action Carbine. All of those are pretty much for close-up work. The lever-gun is a bit more long range than the shotguns, but after 100 yards those .44 Magnums start dropping like the huge hunk of lead they are. You just can't repeal the law of gravity.


The M-1 Carbine isn't exactly a long-range weapon but it is capable of rapid semi-auto fire out to about 200 yards with some degree of accuracy, which is suitable for my purposes. I don't live in the wide-open spaces, but alas, I'm a town dweller. It should suffice for any threat to home and hearth in my housing subdivision.

And when the brown stuff hits and fan, it's light and easily portable with a folding stock for my bug-out bag.

The .30 Carbine round has a bad rep for "stopping power" but statistics from its battle record show it was more effective in use than the .45 ACP in a round-for-round comparison. It's hardly fair to compare a rifle with its superior accuracy and ease of use to a 1911 pistol, but this is war we're talking about, not fairness.

And that was with full-metal-jacket rounds. With the jacketed-soft-points available in .30 Carbine, it's a much more effective round. 

And one reason I decided to buy an M1 Carbine is Cor-Bon just introduced the very first genuine hollow-point for .30 Carbine.

Loaded with pure copper Barnes Triple-Shock X Bullets, the DPX line offers deep penetration with 100% weight retention. These revolutionary bullets from Barnes are made of 100% copper and contain no lead. When the bullet expands, four razor-sharp cutting petals are created, allowing the bullet to penetrate farther through tough bone and tissue.

They're a little pricey, more than $2 a round, but what's your life worth? I'd say a couple of boxes of those reserved for home-defense is definitely worth the investment in the security of my home and loved ones.


And before I go, what came out of the layaway safe? My new-to-me gently used S&W 317 .22LR revolver.

And also before I go, my apology to one of my readers who commented that the 317 is a J-frame. I argued that it's a K-frame based on its heritage as a lightweight alloy version of the S&W K-17 .22, but I was wrong. Smith & Wesson says on their website it's a J-frame, and how can I argue with the manufacturer? 

And one more correction. I also stated in an earlier post that the S&W 317 is a 9-shot revolver. As you can see from the above photo of my new-to-me 317, there's eight holes in that cylinder, not nine. I've been having a lot of trouble with math since I ran into those multiplication tables in the 3rd grade. And I never got over it.