Stopped by the LGS "just to have a look at the used/consignment rack" (like a drunk stopping in the bar "just to see if they've got any new single malt Scotch bottles on the rack"
...and this IBM M1 Carbine followed me home. Looking at the parts markings, it seems original except for the Saginaw bolt and wartime replacement, LW marked, stock. The AO on the receiver is Auto Ordnance, a sub contractor of slides (AOB marked on mine) bolts (not in my carbine) and receivers. Searching the internet I see the number 50K tossed about, not sure of it's veracity but if true that means AO supplied about 15% of the 348K carbines produced by IBM in late '43 through April '44.
The odd import mark is "MEREX, Savannah, GA. The only references I can find on that are speculative. Apparently Arif Durrani, a Pakistani expatriate of Iran-Contra fame, claimed to have been acting for the Reagan Administration in their dealings with Iran. The government threw cold water on his claim but I don't feel too trustful of either the defendant or the prosecution in this case
LA Times article trying to track down who owns Merex.
http://articles.latimes.com/1987-03-31/news/mn-1549_1_arms-deal1991 Article on Durrani's case
https://books.google.com/books?id=6ugCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA46&lpg=PA46&dq=merex+durrani&source=bl&ots=q6ty52fwga&sig=9zTyiHS0h1Cxv9VAQxmRoR2BO0E&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjmofuv-vbRAhVRx2MKHVT9DXMQ6AEIHzAB#v=onepage&q=merex%20durrani&f=falseThe original Merex AG, out of Germany, not Savannah Georgia, was owned by an ex-German paratrooper Gerhard Mertins (MERtins EXport).
Anyhow, the story is unclear but interesting...
...The carbine itself is more interesting so enjoy the pics!
Should be LW-B marked for an original, where the
B on all of the parts are subcontractors to I
BM
Type 1 barrel band
Hammer
Sear
Trigger group body
Slide
Flat bolt
...Saginaw marked
Button safety