Besides, that, we are all mortal. We all die. In the "beyond-golden" years money means little or nothing. But the memories brought back by holding an old fiend which is a true custom rifle, while seated before a late Fall fire, are a joy indeed. I'm pretty much there now, and I can tell you, the good times those guns recall to mind are worth every penny of their cost. And more, too.
AC
<small>[ 12-09-2003, 11:02: Message edited by: Alberta Canuck ]</small>
Now that is a mouthfull......well said. I agree.
Posts: 1268 | Location: Newell, SD, USA | Registered: 07 December 2001
The 1903 action is about optimum for smooth feeding of '06 based cartridges like the '06 itself, .270, .280, .35 Whelen, 7x57, etc. Gas handling is not quite as good as an 1898 Mauser. Receiver is stiffer than an 1898 (no thumb cut in the left receiver wall) so it makes up into slightly more accurate rifles. I have several classic 1903s, 1898s and M70s by some of the big name gunsmiths of the first half of the 20th century. I like the 70 best, then the 03, last the 98. I would not touch an 03A3. Too much work to slick it up. As others have said it's best to get a sporter that someone else has already spent a lot of money converting. And unless it has been done right, it will be inferior to a standard factory rifle.
Interesting topic. Think the 1903 and 1903 A3 have great potential as custom rifles. The double heat treat actiona making beautiful customs. But I love the as issued 1903 best. Think there are plenty of lower priced candidates for cutomizing among those rifles already sporterized. It just doesn't make sense to try and modify an original 03 or 03 A3. But I believe God would love a customized 1903 35 Whelen.
Posts: 614 | Location: Miami, Florida USA | Registered: 02 March 2001
For a contemporary 1903 classic sporter of the highest quality, see auctionarms 5082013. Unusual these days to put that much effort and skill into a 1903, I would like to see more done like this.
Jssss... you guys, an 03 thread sans a 'action warning' due to improper heat treating. Thank You!
I acquired an old 1903 Springfield [already set into a sporter stock] last yr and am shooten alot of cast in it. Great fun to wail away at the target some 600 yds off and actually get respectable groups shooten cast. I did some research and all the guns made in 1906- as mine was, none were reported to suffer from blowups. The whole blowup/heat treatment issue is bogus from what I've read.
My 03 well might be the last one standing here.
Posts: 1529 | Location: Central Wisconsin | Registered: 01 March 2001
take it easy on your cast bullet loads in a low no. 1903 and you should be OK....... if you stay lucky, but for my part I would not shoot one with any load. Look in Hatcher's Notebook for the photos of low number actions broken by just tapping them with a ball pein hammer. Scary. Subject has been much discussed on the 1903 forum at www.jouster.com
take it easy on your cast bullet loads in a low no. 1903 and you should be OK....... if you stay lucky, but for my part I would not shoot one with any load. Look in Hatcher's Notebook for the photos of low number actions broken by just tapping them with a ball pein hammer. Scary. Subject has been much discussed on the 1903 forum at www.jouster.com
The cast bullet info I read was....politely put, pure bunk. One fella blows one with shotgun powder and then their all suspect??
Ask the boys on that forum what 'time to peak pressure' is. Their rationale is baloney.
My loading is Blue Dot BTW. 170 gr heat treated spitzers which have edged under 10" @ 600 5 rds with my very average eyesight. Lady Luck visits me from time to time, but I'd like to see what a good pair of eyes could do with the gun.
Posts: 1529 | Location: Central Wisconsin | Registered: 01 March 2001
The only Krag I've owned was a Norwegian 6.5X55mm, but yes, after I had the 03 bolt engine-turned (jewelled), it fed as smoothly as that particular Krag.
I inherited a sporterized '03 Mk1 from my uncle. It had a large, heavy wood stock with the older "target-style" (for lack of a better term) pistol grip and a high straight comb. The pistol grip was checkered but not the forend. To lighten the rifle and make it more usable, I bought a B&C synthetic stock and replaced the sidemounted Lyman Alaskan with a center-mounted compact Leupold. The rifle shot fair with most loads - inch and a half with loads it liked. Then, as a backup for a deer hunt, I tried 52.0 gr of IMR-4064, Winchester brass, Fed 210 primers and 150 gr Ballistic Tips - this rifle loves that load and shoots it under 3/4 inch at 100 yards consistently. (Best group has been 3/8 inch.) For a barrel almost 100 years old, that is pretty darn good. Of course, it took a lot of Sweet's to get all the accumulated copper fouling out when I first got it.
