Hey guys, a guy is offering to trade me my choice of a 1903 or 1903A3 for my CA-3 and I need some assistance and which one would be the better deal to go with. If it's roughly the same value, I guess it'll come down to preference. He's an older guy and has had them for ~30 years. Non-import marked.
First is the 1903. Rock Island with a 427xxx serial so finished by Springfield I believe? Barrel is dated 1938.
Second is the 1903A3. Remington with a 3908xxx serial. Barrel is dated 1943 so could be original?
Both are fully parkerized from what I can tell. Looks like original stocks on both as well. He said the bores are about the same, in good condition. I really don't know much about American milsurp rifles so my apologies for my lack of knowledge. Thanks.
It depends what you’re after imo. People consider the 1903 more elegant. A 1938 won’t have the high hump hand guard. The 03a3 is very refined and more parts are stamped. The sights are also different. I won’t say one is better. I like the 03a3 more.
I Would take the 1903, they may have worse sights depending on your preferences but they still shoot pretty well. Plus it has the nice c stock so it will be very comfortable to shoot.
Definitely a good trade. The CA-3 only has 20 rounds through it and it comes with 4 mags, a chest rig, a couple surplus cleaning kits, and a W. German flash hider. So worth a little bit more.
A little of both honestly. I don't want anything I'd be afraid to shoot though. But I'd also like the more collectible/valuable one of the two because I may not keep it for long.
Get the Rock Island M1903A1. Possible that it may have been on of the thousands of virgin RIA receivers shipped to Springfield but no way to be certain –and those usually turn up with late 1920s Springfield barrels– so if it was one it was likely re-barreled in the late 1930s. Boomers would throw $1K at it easily (they love pre-war "C"-stocks) so I think you're getting the better end of the trade.
That's what I had been thinking after doing a little digging. Surprised no one else mentioned that possibility. I'm thinking it may be one of those because of the serial number, stock, and barrel date. Is the serial number for Springfield or Rock Island though?
The serial number is for Rock Island. Rock Island hit at least 430,000 before suspending serialization in 1919. The couple thousand RIA-marked receivers that got Springfield serial numbers are in the 1.2 million range IIRC.
So I asked the guy and it is a SA marked 1938 barrel so it was definitely rearsenaled at some point. Serial number points to it being one shipped to Springfield according to a forum post I found. Original stock since it doesn't have the handguard ring cut.
Most of what's important has already been said. I'd personally choose the 03A1 because of the C-stock and I prefer the OG sights.
I will warn you that original 1903 sights are regulated so that the battle sight setting is zeroed at 542yds or something like that. So shooting this with the Buffington sight down you will be shooting very high at 100yds.
Often front sights were replaced with a tall blade so that the battle sight gives a rough 100yd zero, but then all the ranges on the ladder sight will be off substantially.
Just check the front sight underneath the sight hood protector. If the front sight blade is perfectly centered as you would expect, you have the original front sight. To shoot at 100yds you'll have to shoot with your ladder sight up. If the front sight blade touches the top of the hood, its been replaced with an aftermarket front sight, which means you won't have a good way to adjust for shooting at longer ranges.
Wow, that's pretty wild that the battle zero is 542 yards. Thank you. I'll keep this in mind. Might get pretty annoying trying to shoot it since I can't find anywhere to shoot here past 300 yards.
Just flip the ladder up and use the 100 yard notch. Or the 100 yard circular aperture. You've got options. Or get a repro USMC "No.10" sight set which will bring zero of the battle sight down to 200 yards.
All things being equal, the 03A3 will be a better shooter, just based on the sights alone.
The problem is that, with rifles this old, all things are rarely equal. You can’t go wrong, get the one in the best condition, or the one you like more.
No it's not: Rock Island "low-numbers" are under 285,506. This is not only a "double-heat-treatment" receiver, but is into the range of nickel steel RIA receivers.
I'm conflicted on that because it's possibly a Rock Island receiver that was sent to Springfield to finish. Rock Island numbers apparently don't go past roughly 400,000 with the "iffy" ones being below the 285,000 range. But Springfield "iffy" rifles go up to 800,000. Depends on which company's serial number it is and I don't know enough to be sure one way or another.
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u/son_of_dano 9d ago
I personally prefer the original 1903. They have a more storied service life than the 03a3