1917 A5 Scope Mount

[Leggett71]

I am looking to build a 1917 sniper using the Winchester A5 scope.

I am asking the experts what is the proper spacing for the mounts.

My current '03 sniper with an A5, spacing is 7.2 inches and Brophy noted 6.0 & 7.2 inches was recommended on the '03.
From photos I have gleaned from the different forums and scaled of 1917's fitted with an A5 the spacing keeps coming to 6.48-6.5 inches.

Does anyone have any reference or experience on the correct spacing?

Thanks in advance

Leggett71

Information

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[cplstevennorton]

Honestly I think you will probably be able to mount it however you want. It's a long story, but I pulled all the Winchester documents from the archive at Cody from WWI to detail the Marine A5 rifles. But WRA was actively trying to build the 1917 into a sniper rifle, but they weren't using the A5 scope. They were using a new design scope called the model of 1918.

The Army ordered almost 60,000 of these WRA 1917 snipers (Model of 1918), but production problems and the war ending caused not many to be shipped. And it seems no one knows about them. I think there was a lot of confusion as many authors have seen notes of a 1917 sniper from Winchester during WWI, and just assumed it was a A5 going on it. But when you get into the detailed contracts, that isn't what Winchester was trying to do.

Now it's possible they might have tried them in trial runs at SA at this time. But I just don't think it was done till post wWI. It seems they did a lot of experimenting till 1924, then dumped most everything.

I imagine this isn't any help to your cause. But I only say it because I think any of the 1917's you see with A5 scopes, most were probalby mounted in a commercial setting. You see so many mentions of 1917's being sold cheap after 1920 and tons of articles about mounting scopes on them in shooting magazines like Man at Arms, and American Rifleman. It was a fad back then, like AR rifles are now.

But this is the picture Wincehster provides in early 1918 when they ran a featured article on the 1917 snipers they were buidling. The Model of 1918. This is from their Wincehster Journal they put out to factory workers. But all the WRA docs at this time point to this as the 1917 sniper they were develeoping.

[Leggett71]

Thanks for the reply. There is not much written about the A5 & the 1917 as you note.

[cplstevennorton]

I'll tell you what, I will keep this in the back of my mind. I'm literally digging in this era's documents every day it seems. If I find anything more detailed on these I will come back and private message you.

[Leggett71]

Thanks for keeping this question on your watch list.

A couple of years ago I obtained a pre A model 52 and found an A5 for it and had Mike at iron sight restore it. Fantastic shooter and I became hooked on the A5 and its use as a sniper scope in WWI.
I do not have any way to research other than the internet & the few photos of the A5 on US and British rifles are intriguing.
It would be great if someone wrote another sniper rifle book like Poyer's on the other US & British sniper rifles.

Thanks again,
Leggett'71

[Surpmil]

There is a company on eBay who sell not very good reproductions of the original Winchester brochure which give the mount spacing options and how to read and adjust the knob scales etc.