The more the stamps, the less the value?

[King carp]

Hello: I purchased a Remington 03A3 rifle. The price seemed right from what I have studied from this forum and sales from internet sights. This rifle has the following stamps, FJA, crossed canons, RIA FK, and RIA EB. It also has a P in a circle, a small w behind the trigger, the no.3 in a square, no. 5 in a diamond. No.4 in a triangle. And no.12 in a circle. The rifle is in NRA very good to excellent shape. My question is do all these stamps add or subtract from its value? Or does the overall condition trump all the stampings? The bore is excellent. I am looking forward to shooting my new purchas,e.
Thanks in advance, kc

[IditarodJoe]

Welcome to the forums, kc. Other things being equal, legitimate stampings add to the value of the stock. I don't have my reference books handy at the moment to discuss those you've described. Sounds like a nice rifle. Enjoy!

[King carp]

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[King carp]

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[twh]

The answer is that the rifle having been through a rebuild does negatively impact the value of the rifle and rebuild stamps on a stock reduce its value as well. The FJA is an original manufacturers stamping. The RIA/FK and RIA/EB are rebuild marks.

[King carp]

Thanks for the reply. If one rifle was never rebuilt and one like mine with two rebuilds of the same condition what percentage of value would you knock off on mine? Say the never rebuilt one was 1000 dollars. I am asking to see if I made a good purchase or not. I paid $500.00 for my rifle and thought it was a good deal. It came with 60 rounds of ammo. I must admit this was an impulse buy. I am more knowledgeable with krag rifles. This rifle just seemed like a good buy.
Thank you for the help on this

[twh]

You got an excellent deal I would expect yours to go for around $7-800 hundred.

[King carp]

Thank you for the information. That is great news. I think this rifle is a keeper. It's nice to know it is worth more than I paid for it. I know I should research before buying but I do not think the rifle would be there if I waited. I took chance and got lucky. I look forward to seeing how it shoots. The 60 rounds of ammo that came with it is in bandoleer and marked FA 37. Does anyone know if it is corrosive primed? This will give me a heads up on proper cleaning.
Thanks again for the info, kc

[98src]

Yes....the FA 37 is definitely CORROSIVE. Check for any deterioration such as cracked necks before shooting.

[King carp]

Thanks, will do.

[ut1seabee]

The stock on your rifle is SC. The markings are not applicable if your rifle is a Remington.

[JOHN COOK]

All of the markings look to crisp to me. :icon_scratch:

john in SC

[King carp]

The reciever, barrel and small parts are remington marked. The bolt is not marked except for a dot on the handle.

[togor]

$500 is a great price. Good for you without it being outright larceny on the poor widow.

[King carp]

This rifle came out of a local gun shop that is closing up. I have known the owner for years and he was nice enough to give me a long time customer discount.

[Sunray]

"...the overall condition trump..." Does to most collectors. The stamps do tell the life/service story of that rifle though. They also mean the thing has been rebuilt by professionals vs some guy.
"...FJA is an original manufacturers stamping..." Inspector not the maker. Lt. Col. Frank J. Atwood to be specific. He only worked at Remington inspecting new rifles though.
Rummage around here. https://m1903.com/
FA 37 may be collector stuff. Depends mostly on the head stamp, but if it's still in the original boxes it'll have collector interest. The head stamp should tell you what variation of ammo it was. It is not .30 M2 though. It'll be either M1906 or .30 M1. No such thing as M2 in 1937. No non-corrosive primer ammo until 1952.

[Tom in N.J.]

To me, it looks like that stock was originally on a Smith- Carona M1903A3, large proof "P" is a dead give away. (along with the number in a diamond inspection mark ).

[King carp]

Thanks for the info. I guess the rifle is what is called a mix master. It is in great shape. I hope it is an accurate rifle. I look forward to trying it out
The ammo was not in original boxes. It came on stripper clips in a bandoleer.46338

[Merc]

There is one sure way to tell if it’s a Remington or Smith Corona stock. The spring groove end is square on Remington Stocks and rounded on Smith Corona stocks.

[King carp]

I take it this is from a Smith Corona stock?46348

[Merc]

I would say you’re correct.

[Merc]

Thanks for the info. I guess the rifle is what is called a mix master. It is in great shape. I hope it is an accurate rifle. I look forward to trying it out
The ammo was not in original boxes. It came on stripper clips in a bandoleer.46338

Probably all military rifles that went through an arsenal rebuild came out with a mixture of parts. It’s totally up to you to decide whether to replace the mixed parts with original parts, or keep it the way it is. Replacement parts are just about everywhere on the internet at reasonable prices if you decide to make it original. There are purists on both ends of the question.

My Remington 03A3 had a few Smith Corona parts that were worn (extractor) or damaged (butt plate had a dented trap door and lower barrel band had stripped threads). Replacing them was an easy decision and East Coast Bluing refinished the replacement parts to match the rest of the rifle. Remington parts are stamped with “R” and SC parts are blank.

The good part about owning an 03A3 is parts from both mfrs are almost identical and only when you look closely can you see the difference. You also have to know what to look for. However, mixing 03A3 parts on a Springfield M1903 becomes an obvious appearance issue since ‘03 parts are milled and machined and 03A3 parts are stamped from sheet metal. They’ll fit on an ‘03 but look really bad.

Shooting the 03A3 should be OK if the bolt and barrel are in good condition. I had to tinker a lot with the windage adjustment on mine to finally zero the sight. The rear sight was moved to the rear of the receiver on the 03A3. It was a lesson learned from the M1917.

[King carp]

Since the action and barrel and parts are Remington and the stock is S.C. i think I will leave it as is. A Remington stock in similar shape would probably cost a bundle. Then I would be searching for a mint S.C. barreled action
I would think that the arsenal did a good proper job putting this rifle together. It should be up to specs. If it was ready to be issued to our troops it's more than good enough for me.

[Merc]

Since the action and barrel and parts are Remington and the stock is S.C. i think I will leave it as is. A Remington stock in similar shape would probably cost a bundle. Then I would be searching for a mint S.C. barreled action
I would think that the arsenal did a good proper job putting this rifle together. It should be up to specs. If it was ready to be issued to our troops it's more than good enough for me.

It’s still a good idea to check out muzzle/throat erosion and headspace since you don’t know what’s been done to the rifle since it was rebuilt. The gun shop owner may have done that prior to selling it.

The stock is in fine condition and no-one would know it’s a SC stock unless they knew what to look for.

Let us know how the rifle shoots.

[King carp]

I know the rifle passed the no go gauge test. I do not know about the bore and chamber wear. I will let you know how it performs.
Thanks again.

[Merc]

'https://www.fulton-armory.com/muzzleweargaugefor300-303bores.aspx

Here’s a muzzle wear gauge.

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[King carp]

Thank you: a friend has both gages. I hope to see him and have him check the rifle for me. I mostly own krags so this is new territory for. Thanks again for your knowledge.

[Johnny P]

"...FJA is an original manufacturers stamping..." Inspector not the maker. Lt. Col. Frank J. Atwood to be specific. He only worked at Remington inspecting new rifles though.
Rummage around here. https://m1903.com/


Col. Frank J. Atwood wasn't an inspector, and did not work at Remington. He was the commanding officer over inspection and acceptance for the Rochester Ordnance District, and his initials indicate that the weapon or whatever made in his district had been accepted by the U.S. military by his authority. His initials also appear on the Smith-Corona 03-A3, Remington Rand and Ithaca 1911A1 pistols, National Postal Meter M1 Carbine, binoculars made by Square-D, and the M6 knife sheath made by L&C. His initials also appear on the Model 11 Remington shotguns purchased by the military.

Civilians working for the military carried out the inspections.