Topic: M1903 Super speed Firing Pin designed by John Garand

[liberty2009]

Here is some super trivia - in about 1926 John Garand designed a firing pin for the M1903 Springfield rifle, it is in Hatcher's Notebook and Brophy's book on the M1903 Springfield rifle. The firing pin is super fast, to cut down on lock time. I have located one at the Springfield Armory Museum - I'm think of getting the example laser scanned so that a solidworks file cane be created then copies could be made - does anyone know how much such scanning costs? How much interest in it? I may have to do a Kickstarter or something. This is at the very start of the idea - nothing is started yet. thanks 

[Bill, Idaho]

I happen to have a (signed) copy of Hatcher's Notebook.  (I found out after my dads death he was buddies with J. Hatcher!)    On page 398 mention is made of Mr. Garand designing and building a faster firing pin. It was alleged to cut the lock time from a service/standard firing pin (.0057 of a second) and a National Match pin (.0049 of a second) down to .0022 of a second. There is/was also a special firing pin spring needed.  It was described as some type of special chrome vanadium metal that had a square cross section rather than round as most other springs. (There is a picture on page 397 of a standard and the modified firing pin.)   
       That, according to the numbers, would be a big difference in lock times.    However in real life, I don't know if the squeeze would be worth the juice.         

[Jrhoney]

It would be interesting but like Bill said, the effort might be largely moot. Fewer and fewer people are actually shooting their M1903s these days. Still, it would be interesting from an academic standpoint. No idea on the cost.