Rifles’ simplicity triggers nostalgia
When it comes to firearms, I have a thing for guns with a little bit of history behind them.
Drop me off at a museum and my feet just seem to find their way to the firearms gallery where guns from days gone by are on display. Perhaps that is how I found myself standing in front of the Kingston Armory booth at the SHOT (Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade) Show when it came to town in January.
While the big boys of the firearms industry put their wares on display in finely honed, well-furnished, well-staffed and rather large exhibits on the upper floor of the convention center, the folks from Kingston Armory — all two of them — showed their products in a rather stark booth that measured perhaps no more than 10 feet by 10 feet. If that. And forget the fancy trim and accessories, there were none. No video, no fancy displays and no polish. Just the necessities.
Perhaps it was the apparent lack of bling that first caught my attention and made me look twice, but I don’t think so. For there on display were two beautiful yet simple firearms by today’s standards, an M1 Garand and an M14. The Garand took me back to Saturday afternoons spent with a bowl of popcorn and the television series “Combat!” about World War II.
I stepped close and gave the rifles a once over. The walnut stocks were beautiful and a nice change from the seemingly endless sea of synthetic stocks that seem to dominate SHOT today. The finish was satin smooth and the grain deep. Then I picked up the Garand and felt of its heft. It was solid and felt good in the hand. I shouldered the rifle and looked through the peep sight for the post up front. It all felt good.
The surprise came when I placed the rifle back in its display rack. There on the black sign in white lettering it read, M1 Garand .22LR. I glanced at the M14 and it was the same. From stock to peep sights, both rifles looked and felt like the original on the outside, but on the inside they were built for the .22 long rifle cartridge. The originals were chambered for .30-06.
I told Michael Kera, president of Kingston Armory, that in a day when everything is going to the “black gun” look these guns were a little bit nostalgic. Thinking again of Saturdays with popcorn and Vic Morrow on the television screen.
“It’s not just nostalgic. There’s nothing better than good walnut and 4140 steel,” he answered. “We’ve gone to great pains to replicate the look, the feel of the original M14 and M1 Garand. To that end, we’ve come pretty close, we think. Can’t get a hundred percent, but we’ve gone as far as possible.”
For Kera, satisfaction comes when people pick up one of the rifles, “and you see the look on their face. That says it all,” he said. “You had that look on your face.”
He went to explain that people are “just shocked when we tell ‘em it’s a .22 or they realize they’re holding a .22.”
Kingston Armory manufactures the entire action and internal parts in-house. What the company doesn’t manufacture it has made to their specifications. They are preparing to bring barrel production in-house to help with production numbers, quality and logistics.
Kera picked up the Garand and while sliding his hand over the stock in obvious admiration he said, “This will make a termite real happy. This is really good walnut. We have only one grade, and that’s good.”
Kingston Armory tests each rifle on their indoor range before it is boxed and shipped to the customer. These rifles were actually first introduced at SHOT Show 2015, but somehow I missed them completely. To order one of these firearms, Kera said all you have to do is work through your favorite licensed gun dealer who can place the order for you. He anticipates that as commercial orders are filled customers will be able to locate them on store shelves and give them a good look over.
In the meantime, you can see the rifles online at kingstonarmory.com. The site is a little sparse, not unlike the company’s display booth, but it is a start. The MSRP for both the M1 Garand and the M14 models is $699.
Freelance writer Doug Nielsen is a conservation educator for the Nevada Department of Wildlife. His "In the Outdoors" column, publishedThursday, is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NDOW. Any opinions he states in his column are his own. He can be reached at intheoutdoorslv@gmail.com.
