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dokcop
03-29-2015, 08:53
I just acquired SA #482476, bbl date 4/11, and would very much appreciate an SRS check.

To my eye the gun is untouched, probably out of someone's attic. Metal is unmolested and crisp, J1 bolt, crisp JFC stock and plenty of bright nitre blue peeking out from underneath original grime and what may be either/or hardened crud or very light speckled corrosion. The bore is bright and crisp with muzzle of zero and throat of 2. Not a screw has been turned. The only possible departure from the descriptions I have read about guns of this era is that mine has what appears to be a smooth rather than a serrated trigger.

I'm wrestling with cleaning it (most carefully) to expose the lovely bright blue and removing the crud vs leaving it alone, which I would prefer to do. The deciding factor will probably be the pristine but frozen rear sight. I hate having a nonfunctional piece. With a lesser gun I would carefully inject Kroil in the base, tape absorptive paper around it to try and prevent drips with the gun upside down in a vise, and wait a week, but because of the 104 year old gorgeous, deep reddish patina on the stock I am reluctant to get anywhere near it with any kind of solvent. I have made that mistake before.

Can anyone suggest a non-solvent approach to the frozen sight without dismantling the gun? Low heat followed by very light lateral pressure perhaps? All suggestions sought and gratefully accepted. Dokcop.

Rick the Librarian
03-29-2015, 09:49
Without seeing pictures, it appears to be an NRA Sales rifle. I have 477,541.

dokcop
03-29-2015, 11:24
Thanks, Rick. That would explain the condition.

Rick the Librarian
03-29-2015, 02:57
To my knowledge, there are no pre-WWI Sales rifles in SRS.

Can you post pictures? Always like eye candy! :)

joem
03-29-2015, 06:43
Place a small drop of Kroil on it and turn it upside down in your cleaning stand. Let stand for a couple of days and try it to see if it loosened up.

John Beard
03-29-2015, 11:15
I agree with Rick. You may have a sales rifle, although no serial numbers are known within 1,500 of your rifle's number.

The rear sight is spring-loaded. If you very lightly tap on the left side of the sight at the rear, you may be able to break it loose. Use a plastic mallet or a hardwood block to cushion the blows.

Hope this helps.

J.B.

dokcop
03-30-2015, 04:33
Thanks to all for the very helpful replies. A more thorough examination of the stock revealed a rack number just forward of the buttplate; perhaps a service rifle after all...

Rick the Librarian
03-30-2015, 06:41
Does the stock have one stock bolt, or two? Again, pictures would be helpful.

dokcop
03-30-2015, 10:23
One stock bolt and from what I can gather from the various references….Campbell, Brophy, Canfield, Ferris... all other features of a correct ca. 1911 rifle, including the fixture slot in the hand guard and original witness marks on the front sight. The only variance seems to be a smooth trigger rather than the serrated variety, which does have the appearance of originality to the gun. Is that a serious discrepancy or simply an example of exhausting supplies of older parts?

The Amoskeag Auction catalog #105 from which I bought the gun (#685) notes "Interestingly the next sequentially numbered rifle is listed as having been shipped to Fort Benjamin Harrison in Indiana on 10/28/1925." This note prompted my interest in an SRS check, from whence I assume that statement originated.

Mr Beard's suggestion proved successful. The rear sight responded to a careful overnight dose of Kroil and the slightest tap of a leather mallet. No windage lash and it is tight as a drum. Thanks again.

I hear you guys re pictures… Dokcop

Rick the Librarian
03-30-2015, 12:07
Does the trigger have a "sharp" or "blunt" bottom tip?

John Beard
03-30-2015, 04:16
Thanks to all for the very helpful replies. A more thorough examination of the stock revealed a rack number just forward of the buttplate; perhaps a service rifle after all...

A rack number is indeed a strong indication of a service rifle. Thanks for pointing that out. As I mentioned, sales rifle serial numbers abruptly end about 1,500 rifles before your rifle. Of course, they resume later.

And I am pleased to learn that your rear sight has been loosened.

J.B.

Rick the Librarian
03-30-2015, 06:05
A rack number is indeed a strong indication of a service rifle. Thanks for pointing that out. As I mentioned, sales rifle serial numbers abruptly end about 1,500 rifles before your rifle. Of course, they resume later.



J.B.

...but pictures would still be appreciated! :)

John Beard
03-30-2015, 07:35
...but pictures would still be appreciated! :)

Concur.

J.B.

dokcop
03-31-2015, 05:22
Sharp.

dokcop
03-31-2015, 05:29
Does the trigger have a "sharp" or "blunt" bottom tip?

The bottom tip is sharp

Rick the Librarian
03-31-2015, 06:11
That is an "early"-type trigger. A good possibility it is original to the rifle.

dokcop
03-31-2015, 07:06
That is an "early"-type trigger. A good possibility it is original to the rifle.

Thanks again to you, Mr. Beard and the others who responded. This forum is a great resource!