Stock Question My First 1903

[Banjo1928]

Found what seems like a nice 1903 Mark I this week. I am still new to this and was looking for a 1903 or 1917 to fill the gap between my Krag and M1 Garand. I’d heard of the 1903 and 1903A3 but to be honest I’d never heard of a 1903 Mark I. The seller gave me the whole story on the Pedersen Device, very interesting. According to the seller this Mark I is a 1920s vintage (11848XX). I assume like many milsurps the only thing left from 1920 is the receiver. With the exception of the barrel, every part I could see that had a stamp was stamped with an “R”. The barrel is stamped H.S. 6-44 with the flaming bomb and a “P” on the right side; which brings me to my question. If it is an arsenal rebuild and it certainly looks like it is why are there no markings on the stock? My M1 Garand and M1 Carbine have various stamps and cartouches. This 1903 has just the ghost of the circle with the “P” in it and that is all I see. I’m told that the original stock would have had a slight modification on the left side for the Pedersen cut out which this stock does not appear to have. I can’t pick up the rifle until next week so I have not had the chance to take it down and see if there are any marks under the action. Overall it seems in pretty decent shape. The action is smooth and tight and the bore is excellent. It does not look as though it was used much after the 1944 referb. I will take more and hopefully better photographs when I get it home. Again, it is my first 1903 so I’d appreciate any comments especially on the stock. With that lite “P” I suppose it could have been sanded and refinished but it doesn’t seem that way. It does look like somebody put several coats of Tung oil on it with the action in place as it almost looks glued into the stock in some spots.

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