1903 Springfield Rebuild Questions

[Midmichigun]

Steve,
I won't disagree with anything you said.
I am a restorationist, and have brought back things farther... from the edge. My joy is the act of restoration or repair.
BTW, I don't know if someone attempted to park this thing, or spray paint it. There are no or little pits on the receiver. But it does have a blotchy look.
While cleaning I did find the following proof marks on the underside of the receiver:

I actually asked for the type of upperhandguard in an earlier post. This was due to the condition of the current one. It has a crack in it. I suppose I could repair it, but would rather replace due to the apparent low cost of this item.