I recently acquired a 1903 Springfield rifle in a sporter configuration and want to learn everything I can about it. It has been in one family for many years and is in excellent condition(95% condition). The rifle is blued with an oil finished dark walnut stock with a shotgun butt with checkered steel buttplate and a Schnabel fore end tip. The stock has very fine 30 line per inch checkering on the pistol grip and the fore end. The receiver has the usual Springfield markings with a serial number of 1265181. The bolt is marked L 3 and has been dished slightly, apparently to allow operation with a scope. The barrel is marked near the muzzle with SA, the bomb, and 8/24. I am told that the rear sight is a Lyman 48 and the front sight a Marbles. The receiver has a side scope mount attached without use of screws which I am told is a Griffin & Howe single lever type? The trigger looks different than a military one and has a screw adjustment of some type visible. The stock has two reinforcing bolts similar to what you see on standard military stocks. The barrel is completely smooth with no evidence of a slot for a rear sight. There is no star mark on the muzzle. I have not tried to take the gun apart. Two "experts" locally have told that they are confident that it is a Springfield Armory made gun commenting about the "Springfield Blue" , the general configuration and high quality of the work. It is not a standard NRA gun but they said Springfield made other special guns for presentations and the like. True? Could someone please check the serial number to see if it would indicate a special gun of some sort. Another possibility is that it the work was done by some very skilled gunsmith. I know pictures would help answer these questions but I have had little luck with cameras and posting pictures in the past so I don't know. I will be glad to answer any questions you may have help me figure out what I have. Thanks in advance for any help you can provide. WC
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