Remington '03A3 Auction Find

[Kirk]

Your rifle appears to be refinished, a very common condition. They were refinished after the war & put in storage. Are there any inspection stamps on the stock like a boxed "RIA/EB"? Small parts like the upper & lower bands, shroud, trigger guard, etc., were blued; yours look like a dark park. Your rifle is likely an old DCM sale rifle.

The butt plate is an SC & the stock appears to be as well. It has been sanded, a common rebuild practice.

Sorry to say but the stock tip is split & missing a chip under the upper band. This should be a minor, easy repair.

I can't be sure but it looks like your stock has pins (appear as brass dots under the action about .08" dia) rather than stock bolts. Pinned stocks are famous for splitting in the area behind the recoil lug. You may want to glass bed that area plus where the tang seats to reinforce them. Again, an easy fix and, since your fore end tip has damage, you will not be altering a irreplaceable sock, just making it useable for shooting. Also, make sure there is a metal sleeve in the rear trigger guard hole; it is there to reinforce the wood.

All in all, you got a good deal! The metal looks perfect and should be a good shooter. Now, sight in & find the nearest Springfield Match!