Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Mausers and Military Rifles Remington 03-A3

Thanks, fourbore will go to other forums to check it out also. I did remove cheek wood and filling hole will remove hand guard and see if drill & tapped. Looks to me the guy bought it in 1962 from NRA. It been setting in safe like I said it had spider webs still on it when I picked it up. Been cleaning on it very careful. Also the marking on stock RAI only one I have found.

Yes, knowledge is a dangerous thing but lack of knowledge is far worse. There are several good books out there, chief among them, IMO, are Canfield's and Brophy's. (I'm partial to Brophy.) If reading isn't your thing, then by all means check out the CMP forums - there are guys there who live and breathe this stuff.

Letterkenny Depot was, and is, a major rehab place for arms and equipment. It's right up the road from where I grew up, and I knew a few guys who worked there. One of those WWII era guys, Harry Walker was his name, brought an M2 Springfield out piece by piece in 1946. He sold it to me 30 years later, my first M2. (Harry's dead now so I guess the statute of limitations is over for him, and I sold the rifle 35 years ago and have no idea where it's at now.)

Another long gone acquaintance was an old guy in the late 1960's-early 70's whose job was to roam around Army and National Guard facilities up and down the East Coast, doing inventories of small arms and declaring obsolete those which deserved it. Periodically he would show up in the parking lot of the small LGS I hung out at as a kid, with his trunk full of delectable objects whose paperwork had been fudged (he being the chief "fudgee" in charge) and was now for sale, cash and carry, no questions asked. I remember 03's, 03A3's, Garands, 1911's and .38's, and even a few Krags he found in some podunk armory. Cases of small arms ammo would be stacked in the back seat. I bought a M1903 Mark I for $40 as I recall, money that was earmarked for school books but ya gotta have priorities dontcha know! One item I'm still kicking myself over, 50 years later, was an absolutely complete Armorer's Chest for 1903 Springfields- all the gauges, tools, and spare parts were in their compartments wrapped in waxed paper and the chest itself was mint. $100 would've bought it out of that car trunk, but I simply didn't have the money. Sigh.... (But bear in mind I was a college kid making $30-40 a week part-time, supporting myself.)

Ok removed the hand guard. NOT drilled & taped. Who knows why the guy put that wood on the stock. But the lug in front has a R on it. So I'm thinking this is all Remington 03a3. About every piece so far has a R stamped on it or RA.

Really thank all that have given info. even when we got off track always willing to learn more about guns. Keep passing on this info before it is gone.

I would've been thoroughly surprised had you found the barrel to be D/T'ed. There would've been no reason to do that unless a previous misguided owner had tried to make a USMC-style sniper out of it. (USMC utilized M1903A1's in their sniper program, altered to accept Unertl 8x's- and some very few other target scopes- never 03A3's. The Marines wanted nothing to do with the 03A3. Unertl mounting required two holes on the receiver ring and two holes 7.2" forward on the barrel in front of the rear sight base, no holes in the receiver bridge.)

Congrats on a cool rifle- really it’s the only thing that matters is how much you enjoy it!

The A3 bolt handle verision I accurized for a customer was a hand me down from his grandfather, it was already half sporterized.

He had me fix the stock (cut a race in it for the curved bolt handle), and bed it.
I hooked him up with a nicer scope mount, and helped the rifles lock time a bit, then cleaned up (lapped) the bore to clean it up.
She really started running tight groups, he was super happy.

Then he shot his first deer with it at around 17 paces !! LOL.. You just have to love life !

Again - be as happy as you can with all and any rifles you have!

Cool rifle!

Spot

If this forum had a 'like' button, I would give a click to gnoahhh. I agree with every word.

The Brophy book is the bible. It is more money and requires some serious time to study. I am sorry to admit, I tend to forget all the details and have to go back to that. I like Canfield because it is an easier read. That is on me.

I have a fake/clone marine snipe with scope D&T as he mentioned. Also the proud owner of an A4 fake/clone sniper. I should not say "proud owner", but; I understand how these things happened. In fact, I think many an 03 has been bubba modified to the point where this is an act of kindness to bring it back to something a person could afford today. The real snipers are expensive and many of those dont stand up to an expert examination. An easy newbie burn.

Good news from the OP. I think he has a good rifle. Plug the stock screw holes and enjoy!

Yep one hole plugged in stock.

Ta da!! Now fire the old girl up!

Two groove or four groove barrel? You said earlier it's a 1944 rifle- is that going by the serial number or the barrel date? Barrel dates didn't always jibe with receiver build dates.

Out of curiosity what's the manufacturer of the barrel- it'll be an abbreviation right above the date behind the front sight. For example "RA 6-44" with the Ordnance flaming bomb in between.

Like the gnnoah have more than a few springfields 03 and 03A3's none are in pristine original condition. That's why I could afford them back when I bought them. I have a great collection of what most would call bubba sporterized. Most are 30-06 with one 03A3 a 308 Norma mag and an 03 in 300 win mag. The heart of the matter is that they are on high number springfield, remington and SC actions all original barrels. I can at anytime pick one up and a box of ammo and kill deer without fail. Long live springfields and those shooters smart enough to own them....mb

On barrel has RA ,flaming bomb, 8-44. Serial # 3599705 a few guys said it was April 1943. Cleaned bore deep groves. Looks like four groove. And cleaned up very bright. It is four groove.

Wife has foot surgery this morning been taking care of her.

Pictures on auction was not very good just wanted a shooter and I think got a gem. The more I get into it cleaning and seeing everything stamped RA or R and sell paper with it. I call it discharge papers. LOL DD 1149 - 4

You did well! The papers are an added bonus and provide a bit of history.

Yep the guy only lived 1 hour away from me. I worked in Indianapolis for 25 years I know where he lived. Small world. Bought it 1/2 hr. from me. This will not be Bubbafied by me.

Well, you got a good one. Take care of it and it'll outlast all of us.

Thanks, and that's the plan will do a bunch of reading on it and learn what it needs and pass on to my son and on to his.