I am not absolutely sure, but that .30/06 kerfuffle is an import mark, slightly obscured and partly mis-stamped. I've seen some other sloppily stamped WW2 barrels which turned out to be genuine. The topside lot number appears to be fine, but the date/maker data is all messed up. I doubt if it's aftermarket, but it may be a "gray" barrel someone re-marked. More likely, but also not CERTAIN: That was during the height of that first summer after Pearl Harbor. Lots of panicky product and details let to slip and corrected later. I'm inclined to think it was hand punched because the original hollow cut die missed the mark or didn't imprint properly. So I'd say there's a strong chance it's an original.
Were it a Criterion, there'd be tracks of someone removing their markings. Citadels are usually finished very light gray from the early period, inky black after about 1999. Their crowns tended to be "flattish".
However, snobbery to the contrary, guys were milling and turning Garand barrels a long time ago, and most--from the factories or done in workshops!--originally bore no markings at all.
Another note: factory M1's VERY RARELY featured "matched" finish and color/tone. That's almost entirely a myth on military rifles, but especially so on Garands. The blackish phosphate finish on your receiver is either original or a careful refinish. But if it's all matched, from this period, and especially from the armory, it's very likely someone wanted to fool novices and it's refinished for "cosmetic" (fakery) purposes. I do not think this rifle falls into that category.
Were it a Criterion, there'd be tracks of someone removing their markings. Citadels are usually finished very light gray from the early period, inky black after about 1999. Their crowns tended to be "flattish".
However, snobbery to the contrary, guys were milling and turning Garand barrels a long time ago, and most--from the factories or done in workshops!--originally bore no markings at all.
Another note: factory M1's VERY RARELY featured "matched" finish and color/tone. That's almost entirely a myth on military rifles, but especially so on Garands. The blackish phosphate finish on your receiver is either original or a careful refinish. But if it's all matched, from this period, and especially from the armory, it's very likely someone wanted to fool novices and it's refinished for "cosmetic" (fakery) purposes. I do not think this rifle falls into that category.
