Guns International #: 103421362
Seller's Inventory #: 25120456

Category - Springfield Rifles - 1903 - Remington Rifles - Military

Category
Springfield Rifles - 1903
Remington Rifles - Military

Remington Model 1903 Modified .30-06 Built December of 1942

Description:

The ’03 Springfield rifle is one of the most famous military rifles in U.S. history, having served in World I, World War II, Korea, and to a lesser extent, Vietnam. The ’03 came to be from a requirement to replace the then standard issue Model 1898 Krag rifle. During the Spanish American War (1898), the Krag rifle in .30-40 Krag was shown to be inferior in many ways to the Spanish Mauser Model 1893. The supreme irony in all this was that the Krag rifle had competed against the Mauser rifle during the U.S. Army trials of 1892 along with designs from Lee, Mannlicher, Schmidt-Rubin, and around 40 other military and civilian designs. The Krag rifle had won the trials despite the obvious superiority of the Mauser design. Now, to replace the Krag, the U.S. Army would adopt the 1903, a Mauser-pattern rifle. The ’03 is effectively a Model 1898 Mauser except for the small receiver ring (1.305-inch or 33.15 mm diameter) which is comparable to the earlier Model 1896 Swedish Mauser (1.3-inch or 33 mm diameter. By comparison, the Model 1898 Mauser has a ring diameter of 1.41 inches (35.8 mm). The ’03 not only replaced the Army’s Krag rifle and its variations, but also the Lee M1895 and M1885 Remington-Lee rifles used by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps respectively. It also replaced any remaining single-shot Trapdoor Springfields (many were still in use during the Spanish-American War as there were not enough Krag rifles to go around). In service, the ’03 was prized for its accuracy and reliability though some issues were noted. During World War 1 it was found that the precision rear aperture sight was located too far from the eye for efficient use (for most soldiers). This is the first notable difference between the original ’03 and the later M1903A3 with its rear mounted aperture sight. 

Contrary to popular belief, Remington did not start off making the ‘03A3. Prior to the A3, Remington produced a version of the Model 1903, modified to simplify production of the rifle with respect to time to produce, material requirements, and the cost of production. This version is known as the M1903 Modified. These rifles were only produced in 1942 before being replaced by the later ‘03A3 variant. The ‘03 Modified featured the introduction of stamped metal parts commonly associated with the later A3 model. As such, it is considered a transitional model between the original 1903 rifle (as produced by the Springfield and Rock Island arsenals), and the ‘03A3 as produced by Remington and Smith Corona. In the early years of World War 2 (1941-42), due to a lack of available M1 Garand rifles, 1903s of differing models would be issued to the troops. Eventually, as greater numbers of the M1 Garand became available, the ’03, ‘03 Modified, and ‘03A3 were replaced in U.S. service, leaving just the M1903A4 sniper rifle in use during Korea and the early years of Vietnam.  
 
This particular ‘03 Modified is in good condition for its age. The barrel is dated to December of 1942. The stock is an example of what is usually referred to as a “scant” stock. This refers to the semi-pistol grip nature of the stock, a half-way between a conventional straight grip like the 1903 and a pistol grip stock like on the ‘03A3. The scant stock came about as a way to improve shooting comfort and control without having to completely overhaul the rifle by fitting a new stock like the “C” pistol grip stock found on the A3. The stock exhibits the usual wear found on a rifle that saw service during wartime. There is a small crack on the top near the receiver tang that has been prevented from spreading through an ingenious bit of woodworking. Rather than fill the crack with glue, the armorer cut out a very narrow rectangular portion of the stock and then filled the resulting slot with a piece of wood placed diagonally to the direction of the crack. This leaves the crack running into a wall and unable to progress further, putting an end to the issue. The top of the stock near the butt plate is stamped “14”, which is probably a rack number. All metal parts exhibit some level of finish wear except for the parts on the rear of the bolt, such as the cocking piece. The magazine floorplate has been stamped with the letter “B”. The back of the bolt handle is stamped “4666”, which is the last four of the serial number. It appears as though the back of the bolt was polished or some other work was done as the stamping is not very deep. Oddly, the sixes are a larger font size than the number four and look very much like a letter “G” thanks to a flat-topped loop. This stamp may have been applied to the bolt in the field or during an arsenal rebuild. Though a small amount of micro-pitting is present, the bore exhibits very good rifling and should provide good accuracy.
 

Rifle Caliber: .30-06 Springfield
Manufacturer: Remington Arms Co.
Model: M1903 Modified
Serial Number: 3,324,666
Barrel Length: 24.0 inches (610 mm)
Bore Info: Rifled, 4 grooves, 1:10 inches (1 in 254 mm) RH twist.
Ejectors: Manual ejection via bolt operation
Condition: Used
Barrels: Nickel steel
Barrel Type: Standard
Action: Bolt action, Mauser-’98 action but small ring; cock-on-opening, controlled-round-feed.
Triggers: Standard
Stock: Scant stock
Fore End: Wood
Butt Pad: Metal plate with trap door
LOP: 13.0 inches (330 mm)
Finish: Parkerized
Weight: 9 lbs. 13.9 oz.
Sights: Flip-up rear sight graduated to 2700 yards, blade post-type front sight, sight radius 21.5 inches (546 mm).
Manufacture Date: 1942

Price: $1,995.00