No the M1 Carbine does not fire a pistol cartridge. I did once have a Ruger Single action which was chambered for the Carbine round. It had so much blast that I traded it off fair;y soon.
The M1 carbine round is in the same class as the original German 8mm Kurts as well as the AK and M16.
” I did once have a Ruger Single action which was chambered for the Carbine round. It had so much blast that I traded it off fair;y soon.”
I had one when I was young and too stupid to wear hearing protection. I credit it with most of my 40% hearing loss.
An intermediate cartridge is a military assault rifle cartridge that is less powerful than typical full power battle rifle cartridges such as the United Kingdom .303 British, Russian 7.62×54mmR, German 7.92×57mm Mauser or United States .30-06 Springfield, but still significantly more powerful than pistol cartridges.
The .30 cal has very similar stats to the .357 Mag (a pistol cartridge). I grew up shooting the M1 Carbine and Ruger Blackhawk in .30 Cal. It is not even close to the 5.45x39, 5.56, or 7.62x39.
***No the M1 Carbine does not fire a pistol cartridge.***
I read, years ago, that the M-1 Carbine was really a rimless a .32/20 pistol round.
I had a Ruger pistol in .30 carbine. It did make a flash, and LOUD! I noticed real quick that you had to feel the cartridge base when you placed it in the cylinder as some were made just a hair too long and would cause the cylinder to bind up.
When Winchester made THEIR VERSION of the 5.56 MM rifle for tests, it looked just like an M-1 carbine. It was rejected.