How Did I Do?

[John Beard]

I picked up the 1903A3 below at a gun show here in the St. Louis area last week. I paid $600 for it, just wondering how I did on the price? There were others at the show that were up to $1,200, but they did not seem to be in a lot better shape. But my goal is to use this as a shooter in the JCG matches, not as a collector.

Please take a look and let me know your thoughts.

For $600, you made a very good buy. But, I have some reservations about your rifle as a shooter.

Your rifle is fitted with a pin-reinforced stock. The Army found that these stocks were prone to split when fired. And I have seen a number of them split. The Army, subsequently, ordered the manufacturers to revert back to bolt-reinforced stocks to reduce the incidence of splitting.

Your rifle also appears to be fitted with a straight handle bolt. Straight handle bolts are casehardened and are generally regarded as being less safe for shooting. Should that be the case, you should perhaps consider re-fitting your rifle with a bolt having a curved handle, i.e., a rearward sweep in addition to the downward bend. This can be done relatively inexpensively.

And, finally, the photos show why your rifle was perhaps priced less than the others. Your rifle has been arsenal-overhauled, refinished, and re-assembled from mixed parts. But do not despair. Arsenal-overhauled rifles are valuable also, especially as shooters. But for obvious reasons, they're just not worth as much as nice originals.

Hope this helps. Congratulations!

J.B.