03-A3 extractor with a hole

[Merc]

Can anyone tell me the purpose of the hole that's drilled near the top of an unmarked (Smith Corona?) extractor on my Remington 03-A3? I took the old boy to the range today and found that the cartridge case rim sticks 1/2 way between the extractor and the bolt head preventing the cartridge from being inserted into the chamber from the magazine. In the past, I've always loaded cartridges directly into the chamber and never noticed this problem. There are lots of replacement extractors everywhere including some NOS ones with the R stamped on the underside, but none with a hole.

[Rick the Librarian]

Sure it's not a 1903 (instead of 03A3) extractor?

[Merc]

Sure it's not a 1903 (instead of 03A3) extractor?

Not sure. The gun was a mixture of parts so anything is possible. Were the original Remington 03-A3 extractors drilled? I assumed it was a Smith Corona extractor since there was nothing stamped on the underside.

[Rick the Librarian]

A picture would help, but sounds like a Springfield or Rock Island extractor. The "hole" is a gas escape hole.

[Punch the Clown]

Like Rick said, that isn't an 03A3 extractor. Try a new one-they're inexpensive. Unlike the Remington 700 the Remington 03a3 is not a push feed system so tolerances are a bit more critical.

[Merc]

Thanks guys. I ordered an extractor from eBay with an R stamped on the underside so I'll know that it was made for the Remington 03-A3. It doesn't have the hole.

I took the R 03-A3 and the W M1917 to the range yesterday. The weather was mild for our area with little wind so the shooting was great.

[Merc]

The NOS "R" stamped extractor showed up today and the hook was slightly different from the extractor that wasn't working. The non-working unit must have been made for a M1903. I installed the new extractor on the bolt and it worked well. Since it was blued, I sent it out to get Parkerized so it will match the rest of the rifle. With the R stamp, there can be no doubt that it's the correct extractor for a Remington 03-A3 and it doesn't have a gas hole.

[bruce]

Can anyone tell me the purpose of the hole that's drilled near the top of the Smith Corona extractor on my Remington 03-A3? I took the old boy to the range today and found that the cartridge case rim sticks 1/2 way between the extractor and the bolt head preventing the cartridge from being inserted into the chamber from the magazine. In the past, I've always loaded cartridges directly into the chamber and never noticed this problem. There are lots of replacement extractors everywhere including some NOS ones with the R stamped on the underside, but none with a hole.

The hole in the extractor lined up with a hole in the 1903 design that allowed gas from a case failure to safely vent away from the shooter. It was not the best method. Later a larger "Hatcher hole" was added/drilled in the left side of the receiver ring corresponding to a larger hole drilled into the bolt to allow gas a more direct safe route for venting. AFAIK, the extractor on as manufactured 03-A3's did not have a hole as it was not needed since venting would have been via the Hatcher hole.

Tolerances in manufacturer can taken together sometimes cause function problems. Installing a new 03-A3 extractor was your simplest and best way to resolve the issues you were having. I have done it a time or two myself with 03-A3 rifles. Sincerely. bruce.

[Merc]

The hole in the extractor lined up with a hole in the 1903 design that allowed gas from a case failure to safely vent away from the shooter. It was not the best method. Later a larger "Hatcher hole" was added/drilled in the left side of the receiver ring corresponding to a larger hole drilled into the bolt to allow gas a more direct safe route for venting. AFAIK, the extractor on as manufactured 03-A3's did not have a hole as it was not needed since venting would have been via the Hatcher hole.

Tolerances in manufacturer can taken together sometimes cause function problems. Installing a new 03-A3 extractor was your simplest and best way to resolve the issues you were having. I have done it a time or two myself with 03-A3 rifles. Sincerely. bruce.

Thanks for the explanation. The best parts are the original parts.

[ElWoodman]

Curious.......You didn't by chance find a "W" or an "E" on that extractor, did you?.......Extractors for M1903 and M1917 rifles are almost identical, bur are not interchangeable. The ever-so-slightly longer M1917 extractors have a gas escape hole like the 03s too. You did say it was an assembly of assorted parts....My $.02

[milboltnut]

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40068


my Remington extractor on my A3 has a hole in it.

[Merc]

Curious.......You didn't by chance find a "W" or an "E" on that extractor, did you?.......Extractors for M1903 and M1917 rifles are almost identical, bur are not interchangeable. The ever-so-slightly longer M1917 extractors have a gas escape hole like the 03s too. You did say it was an assembly of assorted parts....My $.02

I looked with an eye loupe and didn't see a manufacturer's mark anywhere on the extractor with the hole. The NOS replacement extractor has a R stamped on the inside surface. The hooks look fairly close when you lay both extractors side-by-side, but there must be just enough of a difference to prevent the extractor with a hole from working properly with the 1941 Bonnie Forge bolt.

[Merc]

40067


40068


my Remington extractor on my A3 has a hole in it.

That's interesting. I'll get back to you with a photo of my drilled extractor in a few weeks when we return from a FL vacation. Yours is definitely made by Remington.

[Rick the Librarian]

You have an early Remington M1903 extractor - unless you have a Remington M1917 extractor.

[milboltnut]

I had a the wrong bolt and traded for a Remington A3 bolt body.. I'm surprised the guy didn't trade me the right extractor too.

[Cosine26]

The parts for the 03 and the 03A3 are supposed to be interchangeable but some of the contractor produced "end buy" or " all time buy " parts were pretty rough and would not interchange. Here is an example of a late CC bolt. Note how the bolt sleeve lock and the safety cut is made in one swipe. A cut was changed on the ejector which made them function erratically some times. Even the stamped part were supposed to be "usable on" the 03. I had a couple of bolts that did not have square locking lugs. It looked as if the bold had been chucked into a lathe and turned so that the locking lugs were round. I suspect that the contractors knew that the war was winding down, their contracts were final and they would be out of business before the parts wee needed.
FWIW

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o15/Cosine1/Bolts/P6210001.jpg

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o15/Cosine1/Bolts/P6210003.jpg

[Merc]

Here are a few photos of the two extractors that shows the difference in the claws. The extractor on the left with the hole is not stamped with any letter and will jam the fired case rather than pulling it cleanly from the chamber while the extractor on the right that is stamped with "R" (not visible in the photo) works perfectly. The close-up photo shows the difference in the claws (I've noticed a lot of details and flaws by being able to zoom in on things like rifle parts, etc.)

4058740588

The right claw tip on the extractor with the hole is worn down on the right side compared to the claw tip on the NOS extractor. The post war rebuilder who re-assembled the rifle obviously didn't cycle a dummy round through the receiver to see if the action worked properly.