M1903 rebuild

[Donkey376]

I found most of what I need there...taking a trip down to Numrich's at some point for the rest soon!

[Rick the Librarian]

Careful ...a lot of the parts now available at Numrich and Sarco are foreign knockoffs.

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

Might check before you go I think I got an e-mail indicating the were closing their retail store soon.

[browningautorifle]

Last time I was there was way back in 1989 on a flyby by sheer accident...neat place. Too bad if it closes. (The retail store)

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

Last time I was there was way back in 1989 on a flyby by sheer accident...neat place. Too bad if it closes. (The retail store)

Reminds me of a Jimmy Buffett lyric "yes I am a pirate 200 years too late".
I think I am only about 30 too late for the heyday of milsurps.

[Donkey376]

Reminds me of a Jimmy Buffett lyric "yes I am a pirate 200 years too late".
I think I am only about 30 too late for the heyday of milsurps.

Yeah that's why I figured I'd go to see what I was getting...kinda mulling over putting an era-correct scope on it. While it won't be correct at all..I think it'd be a fun rifle. I spoke with them yesterday...I think they said June 1st the retail desk closes

[browningautorifle]

Glad I stumbled in there when I did then. A memory that may won't have...

[Sentryduty]

Glad I stumbled in there when I did then. A memory that may won't have...

Kind of like when there was an S.I.R. mailorder before there was Cabela's Canada, when I was a kid those SIR catalogs were the best reading at the hunting camp .

[JGaynor]

While a lot of minor parts between the M1903 and M1903A3 are interchangeable (or at least can be made to fit) one of the harder things to deal with is the rear sight.

In theory, it is probably possible to weld or hard solder a piece of key stock to the receiver bridge and have it milled to the profile of an 03-A3 dovetail. However, this modification has been proposed in these forums several times in the past but to the best of my recollection there was no overwhelming response to the effect "yeah sure i can do that!".

If it must to go back to military trim an easier path might be to obtain an 03 barrel complete with rear sight and the front sight base already installed. Then rebuild it as an M1903 or M1903 Mk1. As you probably know most Mk 1's were stripped of their Mk1 trigger parts and and cutoffs after the Pedersen Devices were destroyed.

I think there is a lot of wisdom in leaving the rifle as a sporter. Particularly if the barrel is nice and the sporter stock is good.

other potential sources for original parts:

billricca.com

thecollectorsource.com

[Doco overboard]

If money is not your primary concern, and your looking for a near correct shooter and want to enjoy the rifle for what it is ,get a sarco parts kit and scant stock. You will still need to install a sight collar and finish off those ghastly sight screw holes. Just be aware that you will end up with some knock off parts and some you will not be able to use at all. Make sure the perpetrator of those holes has not compromised the integrity of the locking lugs with his drill bit. I bet if you hunted down another donor on the cheap you would be hard pressed to find one with a decent enough bore and you would have to swap barrels any way and by that time you would be in the range of a better example altogether. You may consider selling what you have off and starting over as well, but if you want to enjoy a project and develop a new skill set -have fun, I'm not a collector {still trying} but more of a a user so everything in my opinion has some value or merit as long getting back to original is your purpose.