Hoping someone here is a Springfield nut? Found an interesting 1922 that may be an original issue type but can not find much info or any pictures on the net. Barrel date 6-22 sn 72x . Blued finish. Magazine protrudes from the floor plate? Any Springfield guys here?
Thanks Chris

Yes, if your are talking about the 22 caliber variant of the 1903 Springfield service rifle. What does the rifle in question look like?

For starters, there were only three styles of stocks used. One was a high comb NRA stock with a cup shaped butt plate. The other two were military issue stocks with lower combs and grasping grooves on the forearm. All three were relieved for Lyman 48s and had military style sling swivels (with a nifty front band that was shaped to fit around a barrel without a hand guard). Do a google search for M1 and M2 1922 Springfields and you will see plenty of pictures of what I'm talking about. In my opinion, they are the Steve McQueen of 22s or, if you may, the "King of Cool" of 22s.

Ask gnoahhh, he knows 1922 Springfields!

Put a message out to Gunswizard. As I recall he has some knowledge and experience with the Springfield 1922

Well the rifle does not have finger grooves but it does not seem to have a high comb either. The clip sticks out of the floor plate maybe a half inch. Wondering what the cupped butplate is? I to think the rifle is very cool! I was thinking Gary and Gene would probably have the most experience with these.

Early "U.S. Springfield, Model 1922, caliber .22" rifles are quite rare. Only around 2000-2050 were produced. To determine if the one you are looking at remains as-issued, look for the following: A) headless cocking piece. B) Lyman 48 (short slide 48B, no flip-up aperture) rear, standard '03 front sight. C) cupped butt plate. D) finger grasping grooves in fore arm. E) twin pronged firing pin (like the M1919 Savage)- .22 rimfire ammo back then wasn't as reliable as we enjoy it today, twin firing pins were deemed an advantage for reliable ignition. F) Bolts were not serial numbered to receivers as were later M1922M1 and M2 Springers were. G) When the M2 was intro'ed, early M1922's were upgraded with later style bolts (headspace adjustable via set screw set into locking lug- 1922 bolts unadjustable) when turned in for repairs- that's why totally original M1922's are so rare. H) Ditto the original magazine- originally extended below stock, M1 and M2 mags sit flush, and were swapped out during rebuilds.

That's about all I can remember off the top of my head, Chris. If you need more info I can dig out my copies of Brophy and Campbell and look stuff up for you.

If your specimen has no finger grooves in the fore arm, then it was re-stocked with an M1 or M2 stock, although not all such stocks were configured like that. The world of M1 and M2 variants can get confusing with all the variants contained therein. M1922's were relatively pure in that regard- they didn't muck around with variations, and when it was deemed necessary to modify the design they called it an entirely different model.

Hope this helps.

And yes, the M1922, and especially the later M1 and M2, is IMO one of the top 5 .22 bolt action rifles ever built. They keep company with the M52 Winchester, M37 Remington, Martini variants, and Anschutz family members. Sorry guys, but Savage never made anything that would compete with those fellas, IMO.

Okay in a Google search this is the rifle
http://www.hallowellco.com/springfield___model_1922.htm

But no extra holes in bbl, no extra wood removed for the rear sight and no stock crack.

Thanks Chris

If it has an extremely low comb, it's probably a "B" style M1 stock.

Huh. M1922 stocks were standard with finger grooves. I wonder if they had a pile of grooveless M1920 stocks left over that they felt the need to use up? (M1920 was the experimental precursor to the M1922.)

I was just trying to describe how the NRA buttplate was made. Its basically a shotgun style plate while the military issue M1 and M2 have buttplates that resemble the 1903, but without the trapdoor. If it doesn't have grasping grooves then its likely the NRA issue stock or an aftermarket stock. Does it have a front barrel band? The clip on my M2 only sticks out far enough to get a hold on it. So the stock you are looking at may be an aftermarket item. The comb heights are relevant to the NRA and military issue stocks. Keep in mind that these rifles went into production around the same time Savage brought out the 1920, so the combs are cut for open or peep sights and not optics.

That 1922 has the NRA issue stock and it is double damn cool. I don't think the clip on the rifle in the picture is a factory made item though. But you better buy it before I put footprints up your backside getting to the shop.

The more I think about it i think that one you pictured, Chris, has had an M1 stock or an NRA Sporter stock fitted to it.

You will find a picture of a 1922 with the military issue stock in this link:

http://www.milsurps.com/showthread.php?t=23724

You will find pictures of the two styles of buttplates and the barrel band in this link:

http://forums.gunboards.com/showthr...ld-1903-NRA-Sporter-and-1922-M1-M2-Parts

And you will find a picture of the 1922 with the NRA issue stock in this link:

http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=5016814

At least this is how I understand 1922s. But I have been wrong in the past and that in no way precludes me from being wrong again in the present and future!

Any way you cut it, Those 1922/M1/M2's can be confusing with their variants!

Gary not to many of these out there. I think this one is a first issue. I was very surprised to find it with a tag Springfield 22 long rifle. I could not leave the rifle so it is here with a mirror bore now I need to find some standard velocity ammo for a tes. I wonder how many of the original 2 thousand rifles made it with no alterations?

Not very darn many! Great snag, Chris!

Of all that I owned (current one an M1I- M1 arsenal upgraded to M2, with Roman numeral "I" added to the M1 stamped on receiver ring), none ever shot splendidly with high vel ammo. 1"+ groups at 50 yards- certainly decent hunting accuracy, but paled in comparison to the roughly 1/2" accuracy I came to expect with std vel match ammo.

The arsenal d/t'ed many for target scope blocks, for a fee of a buck or two, plus it was a common aftermarket mod. If you find one like that, hang an old Unertl or Fecker on it and see what those old girls will really do. Mine will drop into the 1/4" neighborhood on occasion when outfitted thusly. Not bad for a 90 year old Army .22!

I don't know what you paid but if you get a standard mil issue M2 like mine for under 1K you are doing good. I had to pay in installments to afford mine. Your 1922 is more scarce so I'll leave doing the math on the value of your purchase up to you. Right now I have my sights set on a 50s vintage Marlin 39. Another one of my favorites.

Dime-a-dozen M2's are fetching $1500 these days. (I paid $285 at a "pre-death" estate auction back in the Stone Age for mine. The old guy who had it had brought it out of the Letterkenny Army Depot piece by piece when he worked there during the War. It was missing the Lyman 48 and when I pointed that out he said he thinks he knows where it is. Darned if it didn't show up in the mail a week later. Don't worry, the statute of limitations is up. I checked.)

I had an M2 that someone converted to centerfire and chambered it for .22K-Hornet. Quite the barn burner, it was, but it kept breaking firing pins for some reason I never figured out. Another M2 was absolutely mint, paid the then outrageous sum of $700 for it. When along came another collector who had to have it and made me an offer I couldn't refuse....

I made my most spectacular squirrel shot with an M2 fitted with a 6x Fecker Small Game scope firing Eley Tenex. I had been using the gun to shoot smallbore silhouette and knew the scope setting for 100 meters, so when I saw the little bugger way up in a tall oak tree a helluva distance away, I dialed in the 100 meter settings and added a whole bunch more clicks of elevation on top of that. Pop! A second later I heard the bullet hit and in slow motion the bushytail fell out of the tree dead as a squirrel can be. Paced it off to 130 yards to the base of the tree, plus another 70-80 feet up- you trigonometry guys figure out the actual distance. My buddy, Larry Shull, was sitting a ways in back of me and witnessed it, whereupon (after calling me a lot of bad names) he said he would be my witness if anybody ever doubted the story. Sadly he died two years ago, so y'all just gotta believe me now. These days I can't even see a squirrel that far away...

I'm into mine for about $1100.00, so that makes me feel better. The only gun I'm into for more is a Fulton Armory M14 build from about 10-years ago. But my M2 goes nicely with my High Standard HD Military. I'm afraid I might have to get a nice older Ruger Single Six if I get that Marlin 39. Damn this shooting bug!

My sporterized Springfield shoots right up there with my Winchester pre-A 52 Sporter, grouping 50 rounds of CCI Std. Velocity into one ragged hole at 50 yds.. My rifle has the NRA style stock and wears a 2 1/2x Lyman Alaskan in a Griffin & Howe mount. The barrel has been shortened to 22" and a Lyman banded ramp sight replaces the military original, the stock has been checkered in a classic point pattern.

Well the one I purchased is not this nice but holy crapper in 2008

https://www.collectorebooks.com/jamesauction/military-rifle/34044.htm

I have little knowledge on these but a few years ago a dealer showed me some odd looking magazines he had - I had not idea what they were for, he explained they were the earliest version for the 1922 Springfield's and were really rare, I tried to remember what they looked like just in case I ran into some cheap, but couldn't identify one for sure now (I think his were priced well over $500 - I might see him this weekend and will try to get more information... if you want a couple extra magazines let me know, I'll ask if he still has them .... and the price!....). I could not find a picture of just the magazine, here is a link to someone looking for a magazine who says a M1 magazine will fit but the original should stick out the bottom, he also has a picture of his rifle minus a magazine - rimfirecentral 995105

Two of my most prized firearms possessions are my M2 and my Savage 1920/26. I think they represent the state of the technology for bolt guns of their time.

I've had mine for a few years. It came from the estate of a Korean War Vet. This was his last rifle as his others were sold before I was aware. Mine is a M2.







I need to get in the safe to see the barrel date.

That will make you drool!

Sweet!

Barrel has a 6-26 date.

Show off! I'll have to look last night but I think mine was one of the early guns made in early WWII after a period of non-production. It dates to 1942 with a corresponding barrel date. I doubt that any of these rifles ever suffered having their barrels shot out. I mean, could you ever shoot out a 22 barrel?

I sure have refined a bunch of 22's lots of Stevens among others. I could use a sling for my Springfield only the top half was present and it is not good. What do your recomend?

IMO the only sling fit for a Springfield .22 is a M1907 military sling, either original (pricey for a nice usable one) or a quality repro.

My barrel date is 2-1930, the month and year my Mom was born. But the gun started life in 1927 as an M1. Like I said, it made it to the civilian world one piece at a time. M2 production started in 1933 and ended in 1942. Brophy reported that the highest serial number he was aware of was #12328, with records ending at 11171 for July, 1942. With so few of the guns made (2000+ M1922's, 20,000 M1's, and 12,000 M2's) it's a miracle they aren't priced a lot more these days. (Each of the 3 models had their own serial number series.)

The saga of the .22 Springfield ended with the growing popularity of the M52 Winchester. After all, the main reason for the gun's existence was to fill a niche for a quality/accurate/heavy enough .22 bolt gun for the then extremely popular smallbore position shooting competition. As soon as commercial interests rose to the challenge, the gov't saw no reason to stay in the manufacturing game. Since then to this day the gov't has always purchased their .22 training/target rifles rather than build their own.

To try to tie all this in with Savages, the M1919 was Savage's attempt at a .22 bolt target gun. (Bolt guns of all ilks took off in popularity with the return of the Doughboys from WWI.) Even though they had excellent barrels, their one piece receiver/barrel assembly was frowned upon by the top shooters (as mentioned in articles in ancient American Rifleman's)*, and even though they had passably good triggers their light weight and crummy sights kept them out of the hands of serious competitors. The writers of the day, guys like Ness and Landis, recommended them as entry level guns with which to learn the basics and to use while saving the nickels to buy a Springfield, M52, or Winchester/Ballard/Stevens/Martini single shot.

*Remember, that was still the era of corrosive .22 ammo. A brain fart in the cleaning protocols could very well result in a rusted bore necessitating a barrel swap- a near impossibility with a M1919. Another gaff on the part of Savage engineers along with the 1-14" twist .250's.

Oh yeah, I forgot about corrosive ammo. Funny, I always correlate it with center fire ammo, especially the military issue stuff. On another topic, Turner seems to make a good 1907 sling. At least they did the last time I got one. There's a guy in Hawaii who is supposed to make a good 1907 sling too, but I don't recollect his name right.

Out of the three .22 target rifles I own from the early 30's- M52, M19-33NRA, and M1I Springfield- if I were forced to keep just one it would be the M52.