Finally got an M1903a3

[SoloDallas]

Dear fellow M1903 passionate,
welcome to the club.

To me, the M1903 is the best bolt action rifle ever made.
I am fully aware of it being inspired to/from Mauser rifles which thing leaves me indifferent. I love them both. A couple of mine pictured.

Best,
SD


Original 1923 Springfield M1903 by SoloDallas, on Flickr


Original 1943 Remington M1903A3 by SoloDallas, on Flickr


Complete BCD 1943 k98k and Luger by SoloDallas, on Flickr

[Bhobbs]

M44, check
K98, check
Garand, check
1903a3, check

I am predicting that that stretch of space in your group picture will soon be filled by an M1 carbine, an Enfield, and maybe even an Arisaka.

My grandfather has a 44 Inland Carbine, a long with some very cool old rifles, that I hope to inherit. I do plan on picking up a nice Enfield and Arisaka at some point.

[aghauler]

Thank goodness so many owners over the years have had the good sense to sand down and obliterate those weird stampings and protect the stocks with heavy, shiny varnish, They were really thinking ahead.

Yep, they were considered cheap shooters of dubious collector quality or desires. Times change though, the "protectors of old MilSurps" have arrived!

[kurac]

Nice 03A3, it looks legit to me. I still need to work up a good shooting load so I can try out the Sac Valley silhouette match.

[Enfield47]

My grandfather has a 44 Inland Carbine, a long with some very cool old rifles, that I hope to inherit. I do plan on picking up a nice Enfield and Arisaka at some point.

For an Enfield, I highly recommend the No.4 Mk2 (or Mk1/2 or Mk1/3 a these have been upgraded to the Mk2 standard). They are great shooters and have an action that is buttery smooth.

Nice 03A3, it looks legit to me. I still need to work up a good shooting load so I can try out the Sac Valley silhouette match.

H4895 or IMR 4064 are your best bets - 47 gr of either powder with a 150 gr M2 bullet and you'll be good to go. My 03A3 likes the M2 ball better than boat tails so that's what I stick with. YMMV

[Bobby Ricigliano]

There is a lot of dislike out there for rifles built on recovered drill rifle receivers. I personally still think it is a decent option if you want a shooter and aren't too hung up on it being an authentic milsurp.

Of course the crowd here did convince me to let mine go in order to buy a real milsurp one.

[highpower]

It really depends on the drill rifle receiver. I have seen some of those receivers that are nearly perfect, with the drill welds done so lightly that you barely notice them.

I think most of the hysteria over them was largely generated by the sky is falling/net nanny crowd. You ought to see the hand wringing that happens when I show pics of my 80% AR build with the Colt logo on it.

As for US service firearms, I find them to be somewhat interesting and I have been fortunate enough to collect a few over the years.

[TMB 1]

There is a lot of dislike out there for rifles built on recovered drill rifle receivers. I personally still think it is a decent option if you want a shooter and aren't too hung up on it being an authentic milsurp.

Of course the crowd here did convince me to let mine go in order to buy a real milsurp one.

Actually they're authentic 1903A3 receivers. They'd be classed as bubba builds, not as collectible but shooters.

[Bhobbs]

Nice 03A3, it looks legit to me. I still need to work up a good shooting load so I can try out the Sac Valley silhouette match.

I need to get back to reloading. I have been shooting the Prvi Partisan M2 ball through my Garand and it's good ammo.

For an Enfield, I highly recommend the No.4 Mk2 (or Mk1/2 or Mk1/3 a these have been upgraded to the Mk2 standard). They are great shooters and have an action that is buttery smooth.

H4895 or IMR 4064 are your best bets - 47 gr of either powder with a 150 gr M2 bullet and you'll be good to go. My 03A3 likes the M2 ball better than boat tails so that's what I stick with. YMMV

What boat tails have you tried? I think I have a box or two of the 155 a max I wanted to try out.

There is a lot of dislike out there for rifles built on recovered drill rifle receivers. I personally still think it is a decent option if you want a shooter and aren't too hung up on it being an authentic milsurp.

Of course the crowd here did convince me to let mine go in order to buy a real milsurp one.

I might add a rebuilt one with the C stock and new 4 groove barrel so I don't wear out this one too much.

[highpower]

Actually they're authentic 1903A3 receivers. They'd be classed as bubba builds, not as collectible but shooters.

What in the world prompted you to make such an asinine statement? There is so much fail in it that I don't hardly know where to begin.

"Bubba" somehow implies that it was done in a crude and unprofessional manner. A properly restored rifle is as far from a "bubba" as you can get. True, a restored rifle is no longer original. But the VAST majority of military rifles on the market today are no longer original as nearly every single one has been rebuilt/refurbished by an arsenal and therefore are no longer "original".

Here is a test; One of the four rifles below uses a recovered drill rifle receiver. Guess which one.

[aghauler]

All look nice, I dunno the one with the sling or the one with the barrel?

Just being a wise guy, can't really even guess without closer photos of the receivers and the inside of the receivers.

What is the name of that outfit in the BA that restores rifles to new condition then sells them fer high prices usually with a packing crate and accessories?

The president of that company bought an unaltered WRA Garand receiver from me once. I mentioned the issue with the drilling and tapping of O3 and O3A3 receivers and how I thought it really effected the value. He told me "get me a D&T'd receiver and we can do "miracles with it, you'd never know it had been altered". He invited me to a personal tour of their operation if I can get down that way.

Maybe #4, just based on the different finish colors of some of the parts, still all very nice rifles.

#1 missing a front sight blade?

[highpower]

See how hard it is to tell a properly restored rifle? The notion that a rebuild from a former drill rifle receiver is, by definition, a bubba job is just so much FUD. When I get near my computer, I'll post before and after pictures of the rifle.

[aghauler]

See how hard it is to tell a properly restored rifle? The notion that a rebuild from a former drill rifle receiver is, by definition, a bubba job is just so much FUD. When I get near my computer, I'll post before and after pictures of the rifle.

I agree and look fwd to the pics!

[TMB 1]

What in the world prompted you to make such an asinine statement? There is so much fail in it that I don't hardly know where to begin.

"Bubba" somehow implies that it was done in a crude and unprofessional manner. A properly restored rifle is as far from a "bubba" as you can get. True, a restored rifle is no longer original. But the VAST majority of military rifles on the market today are no longer original as nearly every single one has been rebuilt/refurbished by an arsenal and therefore are no longer "original".

Here is a test; One of the four rifles below uses a recovered drill rifle receiver. Guess which one.

LOL, Kind of asinine to think anyone could tell from those photos. I don't have any ex-drill 03s, but I do have an ex drill Garand and one that is what people call a re-weld. I could take photos just like yours with my other Garands that aren't and nobody would be able to tell which two were restored by bubba looking at the photos. Unless you know what to look for you wouldn't be able to tell if you were holding them in your hands. Some bubbas do good work I guess.

[highpower]

LOL, Kind of asinine to think anyone could tell from those photos. I don't have any ex-drill 03s, but I do have an ex drill Garand and one that is what people call a re-weld. I could take photos just like yours with my other Garands that aren't and nobody would be able to tell which two were restored by bubba looking at the photos. Unless you know what to look for you wouldn't be able to tell if you were holding them in your hands. Some bubbas do good work I guess.

See my post "restored drill rifles"

Big, big difference between a rifle that has the receiver welded back together and the restoration of a drill rifle.

Besides which if a receiver has been welded and then heat treated properly, how in the hell can you consider it a bubba job? We make fun of that type of work due to the amateur nature of the craftsmanship and the horrid results.