Remington 1903A3 opinions

I want to buy a Remington 1903a3 serial nr 4100xxx, barrel date 6-43.The stock has the "FJA" and "RIA" in a box on the left side, P stamped on the grip, some little stamps in front of the mag..I am not such an expert on those rifles so I am looking for some opinions concerning originality etc...I have added 4 pics with 4 rifles , the one I have marked with the arrow is the only one for sale.I know it's not easy to give opinions on those pics but I hope the "experts" can tell me soon on their first sight what is good or wrong.
Thanks!

The rifle sounds like November/December 1943 production, so the barrel was changed during rebuild. More than likely the small parts were changed also. If you are looking for an original rifle, that is not it.

I am not 100% about the month (6) in the barrel-date, but the marking RIA indicates the rifle was a rebuilt if I understand well.

Yes , really hard to tell without more and closer pics. The reciever/bbl looks parked and the rest blued. That would be orig. finish , so maybe the rifle just passed through RIA on a cleaning/inspection and was not rebuilt and parkerized , or maybe it was and someone has replaced the small parts , or maybe this rifle didn't but now wears a stock from one that did , or.....??? See... too many varables without more pics. we can't tell if this is a $400 or a $700 rifle. The devil is in the details.
Chris

From what little I can see in the pictures, the rifle appears completely original. I see nothing wrong with it, except that the front sight cover is a non-Remington replacement.

Hope this helps. Good Luck!

J.B.

Thanks for the advice, but I am a little suprised about the value and prices. I live in Belgium (Europe) and looking already more then 5 years to buy a complete original springfield or remington 1903A3.Here in Belgium the 1903a3 rifles are very scarce, so the seller asks a very high price. I want to spend a lot of money (1500 $ or perhaps more ) to buy a 100% original 1903A3 so it is very difficult decide.

John, isn't the 6-43 barrel a little "early" for a 4,100,000 receiver?

Could it be a "parts queen"? Hard to tell hiding behind three other rifles.

Wow, im looking for a WW1 03' seems like 03A3's here in the US are real common , really around my area at shows and such. A real nice correct 03A3 Remington here... 750 or so ... and over in Belgium they are at least double the price?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Rick the Librarian

John, isn't the 6-43 barrel a little "early" for a 4,100,000 receiver?

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I concur that a 6-43 barrel is a little early for a S/N 4100000 receiver. But, I see no evidence that the barrel has been replaced. And Remington was notorious for slipping in an earlier barrel on occasion. So, I am in no position to suggest that the barrel is a replacement.

J.B.

Anyone realize that these were used hard in Combat, and were probably rebuilt once or twice in their lives? I would be more suspect of one with everything 100% correct. It would either be an arms room Queen, or someone really put some effort into parts matching during a rebuild. I collect battle rifles Myself. A rebuild or two, replacement parts, dings, dents, are part of a rifles history..They add character. I like to feel the character of the firearm, and envision where it has been, when I am at the range shooting it. The Hope Diamond and '57 Chevys should be nice and pretty, battle rifles should look as such. Yeah price is a big consideration, but I would not pass on one just because it has a replacement part or two. Now a cracked stock would ring bells, as they are getting slim, but as long as the bore is strong, and the headspace is correct..I am a happy camper..Don't get me wrong, I would not turn down a fresh, in the Cosmoline find, but I prefer a little character Myself...Good luck and apologies for the rant...Cheers, Peter

I've been in the military for 25+ yrs. and guns get repaired by the armorer and parts swapped by GI as soon as they are out of the crate. My 2cents? If it was issued it cant be 100percent original. It has a past,history. Fell out of truck and frt sight replaced,sling mount bent and replaced,stock cracked while jumping into foxhole and swapped with one lying around or pulled off another one.If it was built,crated and left lost in a warehouse till today then pulled out of the crate and cleaned in front of you I chuckle when told it's 100 percent original.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mohawk

Anyone realize that these were used hard in Combat, and were probably rebuilt once or twice in their lives? I would be more suspect of one with everything 100% correct. It would either be an arms room Queen, or someone really put some effort into parts matching during a rebuild.

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That is probably true for the vast majority of the 03A3's. But it seems to be well documented that a number of the late 03A3's, having been supplanted by the Garand, went directly into storage. I guess none of us can blame a soldier for wanting a semi over a bolt action.

I've got a nice Remington 03A3 that I believe is in the "direct to storage" category. Of course, I can't prove it, but it appears to have all the correct parts, clean sharp stock cartouches and no evidence of having been issued.
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...03A30021-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...03A30101-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...03A30111-1.jpg


https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...03A30061-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...03A30081-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...03A30091-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...03A30051-1.jpg

It is very difficult to do justice to the wood with my camera, but there are very few marks on it and it is in excellent condition. As I said, I can't say for sure that it was never issued, but I'm pretty certain that it never saw combat.

As far as I can tell from the OP's pictures, and it is difficult, it appears that the 03A3 that he is considering might be in similar condition to mine.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by John Gelotti

I want to buy a Remington 1903a3 serial nr 4100xxx, barrel date 6-43.The stock has the "FJA" and "RIA" in a box on the left side, P stamped on the grip, some little stamps in front of the mag..I am not such an expert on those rifles so I am looking for some opinions concerning originality etc...I have added 4 pics with 4 rifles , the one I have marked with the arrow is the only one for sale.I know it's not easy to give opinions on those pics but I hope the "experts" can tell me soon on their first sight what is good or wrong.
Thanks!

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John, you indicate that there is an "RIA" and an "FJA" stamp on the left side of the rifle. Is it possible that the "RIA" stamp was actually an "RA" stamp?
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...03A30061-1.jpg

If so, that was put on all 03A3's made by Remington and would not indicate a rebuild.