Done - Remington 1903A1 USMC M41 Sniper Conversion

[lencac]

Hello everybody :1948:
This is the finished result of my conversion project. I've posted previously this rifle with the 3 inline punch marks.


The guy that installed the mounts and did the hand guard work said in a book he had it mentioned those 3 inline punch marks are firing proof marks for Navy rebuilds. What say you? Somebody for sure will know.

So anyway, here's a few pics and a link to my YT vid doing a first time range test.

Oh yeah, almost forgot to ask. I think I'd like to have a polished bolt with electro-penciled number on it. Much like the original M41's. I realize the real M41's started life as a NM 1903. But were all of them NM 1903's? The Bolt I have in it now is a B&S with flaming bomb. Do you think that would be, or can be the correct type bolt to polish?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydPZid_bLEY

3579535796357973579835799

[lencac]

35800

[Johnny P]

The Brown & Sharpe bolts were replacement bolts, and not original to any rifle.

[IditarodJoe]

Nice job, lencac. Good looking rifle.

[cplnorton]

All the original snipers I have seen, had either NS or D1 National Match polished bolts that were blued. Because of the polishing before the blueing, the blue is almost a transparent finish and looks watery looking. A polished bolt, that is not blued, is not correct for a Marine sniper.

On the Navy connection, it could be possible. But I don't think anyone knows for sure. Until we find the document in the archives, it's all a guess on who or whom did it.

Beautiful rifle by the way! You will have to let us know how it shoots. :)

[cplnorton]

On the subject if any were built on rifles other than factory NM rifles. The books say they did, but just reading the documents from the program, I seriously doubt it. The Marines had a pool of a 1047 NM and Special Target (rebuilt NM) rifles that they set aside for sniper conversion. I think many of us disagree with how many were actually built. But it's pretty clear they never came close to using all the 1047. So to me it only would make sense if they used up the original 1047 and needed more rifles.

That and the fact that the Unertl contract was cancelled barely a year after they started to build the Unertl rifles in favor of the A4. The reports coming back were the rifles were not well suited for the Jungle type environments, and by the time they got to terrain that was suitable for a 1000 yard plus 8x telescopic rifle. The war was really over.

I always say, never say never with the Marines. But all I've ever seen were factory NM rifles converted. So I guess it would just surprise me if they did.

[lencac]

Ok the book my gunsmith referred to is The Collectable '03 by J.C. Harrison.
So perhaps someone here has that book.

What do you guys think is the best 03 book to get for historical data?

[cplnorton]

Brophy's book is probably the best, but it is more on the history than than the individual parts. John Beard and Ferris did a great one on early rifles.

The others are so-so, it's just you have to take them all with a grain of salt. I think they are all known as having inaccuracies here and there.

[IditarodJoe]

I suspect for your purposes you'd probably like Bruce Canfield's "An Illustrated Guide to the '03 Springfield Service Rifle".

[jgaynor]

Ok the book my gunsmith referred to is The Collectable '03 by J.C. Harrison.
So perhaps someone here has that book.

What do you guys think is the best 03 book to get for historical data?

Clark Campbell's "The 03 Springfield Era" (2003 Edition) has a good section on the USMC M1903A1 sniper.

Peter Senich "The USMC Sniper in WW2 and Korea" has extensive coverage on the M1903A1 sniper including reproductions of a lot of the original USMC sniper documents of the period from 1940 to 1950~.

[Jeff L]

Looks good!

[lencac]

Evidence? ................... take look at this photo. See the three punch marks on the receiver? .........looks much like the three punch marks on mime except in a different location on the receiver.
Here's a link to another forum.

http://forums.gunboards.com/showthread.php?538193-U-S-M-C-1903-Springfield


36175