New guy here with new to me 03a3

[USMC2147]

Hey guys new guy here on the forums been lurking for awhile now reading up. But i just picked up a Remington 1903a3 S/N 42059xx, a RA barrel 8-44, 2 groove. The barrel looks clean and shiny. I measured muzzle wear with a live round(prvi 150gr) and have about 1/16" of copper showing, what does that translate to in terms of wear, 3.5-4? I know its not the proper way to measure it, just want it to be a safe shooter. Anything i should look for or be aware of before shooting it? It appears to be a Greek lend/lease? Vibropeend last 4 #'s of the s/n on bolt handle, and stamped in the right buttstock to. It also has stamped FJA on the left side as well as RIA EB in a box on the left buttstock. I will post up some pics later, i hope you guys will be able to answer my questions and shed some light on what i have.

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[Kirk]

Congratulations! You have one of the very last M1903A3s made. Production ended in Feb 1944 around s/n 4209xxx. Yours is just a few hundred before that.

The "bullet test" is entirely subjective. It depends on the consistency of the bullet used. The ogive (profile of the nose) of Prvi ammo may be different that US GI M2 ball ammo and hence give an entirely different reading.

You can tell as much with the eye. Is the crown nice and round without any dings or dents? Do the lands come all the way to the crown and are they strong and even at the muzzle? This photo shows one in VG-Ex condition.

Attachment 30563

ViShooter has an excellent M1903 reference website

http://www.vishooter.net/m1903.html
http://www.vishooter.net/ra_serialization.txt
http://www.vishooter.net/RA3.txt

The FJA is an inspector's stamp found on Remington & SC rifles; the RIA EB is a post-war rebuild stamp from Rock Island Arsenal.

[USMC2147]

---------- Post added at 11:41 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:37 AM ----------

Heres some pics i will try to get some of the bore and crown. Hard to get a pic of a rifle this long with a cellphone! Anything you guys see wrong or an info you can give would be appreciated. I got a pretty good deal on it so i hope i did good.

[Dad]

Is the rear sight bent or is it an optical illusion?

D.

[USMC2147]

I looked at that too. It is just over to the right and the angle i had the rifle sitting at when i took the pic. I moved the sight alll around and it is fine. atleast appears to be. will know for sure after i shoot it.

[Mike D]

Nice rifle. Let us know how it shoots.

[USMC2147]

Nice rifle. Let us know how it shoots.

Thanks. Just hope its safe to shoot. Going to try and get out tommorow. sometime. Have to remember camera! Will post up a range report.

[USMC2147]

Pics of the bore and crown, best i could do with cell. Battery charging for digi-cam. Its a 2 groove like i said before. I can clearly see the rifling go all the way from the chamber up to the muzzle. Seems ok for a 70 year old rifle! Looks like a shooter to me! Anything i may have missed? Any input is welcome! Plan on shooting some 150gr. to test her out.





[IMG][/IMG]

---------- Post added at 01:14 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:13 AM ----------

one more..

[Dad]

Looks great!
Enjoy your range time.
Don't forget the pics.....

D.

[Midmichigun]

Nice rifle!
Looking foward to a range report!!!