r, |I iirÌlr, r,l l,',, ]'lli ,!',''." i I :,.r I 1 ]' t:",ti',i NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA ?a(/A/,nttt' of THE AMERICAN RIFLEMAN lóOO Rhode lsland Ävenue, N. W. r Washington ó, D. C. Dlstrict 7-3412 li'ìi j¡1r' i'¡j I lrl ll '',' , , ,i' Information on rhis reliable u. s. Service afm and the carrridges rhar it is chambered for PAGE ITEM PAGE ITEM PAGE ITEM PAGE ITEM 14 Sight Setting l7 Notes on 0343 2 NATO Cartridge 8 Jacket In Balrel Seals Under Primers I8 Style T Springfield 2 Militaly to Spolting 9 Orclnancc N¿rtncs 2 Bolt Stop 9 '03 Cocking Piece 18 0343 T'alget Sights J Idcntifying Powcler 9 0342 Springfield 18 9 Splinglìcld Numbers 3 Beldan DecapPing Blank Ammunition l8 Heaclspacc Pl'oblcrn 4 How to Check HeadsPace 10 Decapping Gov't. C¿tscs Itl 2-Ct'oovc B¿u't'els 4 Rod Bayonet '03 10 4 Case Life 11 Removing '03 Sight Bases 18 N. M, Springficld 16 5 Tin-Can Ammunition 11 Cas Escape Hole l8 Points of Windage '()3 16 .30-30 Ancl .30-'06 5 Sight Micrometer 1l Ejeclór Trotrblc Springfielcl llolts 16 Barrel Shortening 19 5 Springfiel<l Barrels l1 0343'Guald Sclew Hich-Altittrde Zeto t2 Lapping Action Parts 16 '03 Llarrel On Mauser t9 I)o"u blc- t' tr I I Tli ggcr 5 '03 Bolt Number 1,2 Basés On 0343 16 l9 llody Split 6 Auxiliary Caltlidges Replacing Ilarrel t2 Accurate Service Amt.tro 16 19 l{ecoil 6 '03 Dcvelopment C^P '06 Blank Cartridge 6 '03 Filing Pin Fall 13 Firing Thlotrgh Mt¡zzlc 17 Bullets 19 '03 Magazine Ctrt-OfI 17 Boattail 7 Winclage Rules 13 Seasoì Clacking t9 A Bettcr Soltltion l3 Bandoleers l'l Flangible Ball Pedcrscn Device 7 Springfield Sight l7 AP Bullets t9 8 Parkerizing 13 .30-'06 Ammo Militluv Cartlidges l4 Range Dummy l7 Neck Cracks 20 Air Space I '03 SafetY l0 LEGEND { il 2. 3. l{ 4. ó. 8. 9. 0. 20. Salety lock assembly 21. Boh sleeve lock sPring 22. Bolt sleeve lock 23. Bolt sleeve locl Pin 24. Firing pin rod 25, Aperture sPring screw 26. Aperlure sPring 27. Aperlure 28. Windage Yoke 29. Windage Yole sPring 30. Windage Yoke Plunger 31. Rear sighl base screw 12. Windaqe inde¡ knob screw 33. Windage indcx l¡nob 34. Winda!e indcx knob sPrìn9 35. Rear sight base tl 5{ 3ó. Windage Yole scre* 41' 37. Eiector- 44' 38. Eieclor Pin 45' 39. iut-off Plunge. 46' 40. Cul-off plunger sPring 47' 41. Cul-off 48' 42. Cut-off screw 49' EXPTODED VIEW OÍ flIODEt I9O3A3 R'IFLE 5th Printing Notesofl ... STYLE T SPRINGFIELD I have notetl RlnlnvnN a(lveftisements offering so-called St)'le T 1903 Springfield The Modet f rifles. Hotv do thesc difler from the orcli- 90343 Springfield ntrlt 1903 Servíce rifle7-L.A.N. Answer: The Style T 1903 Springfield ,Taru story behind the development Except for receiver markings, 190343 rifles produced at Springfield Ar.mory prior I of the U.S. Rifle, Cal. .30, Model liflcs made by this firm are of identi- lo World War II were special rifles made 190343, stems back to the Br.itish cal pattern to those produced by Rem- up for long-range and lnternational shoot- evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940 which ington. Plodtrction of 190343 rifles was ing. They were made with straight-taper left England with less than one million cliscontinued by Remington Feb- in heavy barrels in 26", 28", and 30" Iengths, rounds of ammunition and sufficient ruary 1944, and the Model 1922 walnut rifles on hand to equip abouf 2 divisions Old-timers familia¡ with stock with- the beauti- out upper handguard was of pistol grip only. Neally a million 1917 Enfield fully-machined 1903 rifles rifles of Spring- half-stock sporting type nrinus finger with amntunition immediately field Armory or Rock Island Arsenal shipped grooves and v/ith checked steel shotgun to England from our own war rnanufacture are somewhat critical of reserve stores buttplate. A single front barrel band en- were only a stopgap. To these relatively crude 'war babies' of worsen matters, circled barrel and forearm and incltrded a Springfield Armory Remington or L. Smith-Cor.ona was at that time just getting C. sling swivel. The rear sling swivel was at- into the manufacture. It is quite true that war- swing of Ml (Garand) rifle production tàched to the buttstock with 2 screws. time expediency dictated many manu- Sighting equipment consisted of and the comparatively few 1903 and facturing a Ly- shortcuts, but the fact still man 48C micrometer rear sight and either l903Al rifles on hand were badly renrains that needed by the Model 190343 is an Winchester globe or L_yman l7A hoocled our own folces and could entirely serviceable and not be spared. inher.ently ac- flont sight. Telescope sight mounting bases cur¿rte lifle capable In June of excellent scores for Lyman and Fecker sights wer.e ín- of 1940, Sir Walter Leighton, on the a personal repl'esentative target l'ange or convcrsiorì to a stalled on barrel and receiver ring. The of Pr.ime fine sporting arm. Minister Chulchill, came to ¿ìctions were of conventional 1903 type Washington with polished with the request that U. S. industry Strong by ony stondord bolt and extractor. The,se were fitted and adjusted to the same stand_ tool up to produce the .303 cal. Br.itish The modeln alloy steels used in its ards as those of the National Match rifles. selvice rifle. Due to a critical shortage fabrication, abetted by up-to-date heat- Some were made up with headless cocking of machine tools at that time this tleatment methods, provide reserve a piece and special reverse safety. Thé request could not be granted, but as a malgin of stlength far gr.eater than the reverse safety will also be found on Style T ¡'ifles with conventional knobbed coók- ing piece. The 10" twist barrels wer.e rifled with the conventional 4 Iands and grooves and star-ganged. The completed rifles wer.e târ'geted at 200 meters and were required to average apploximately 2/2,, ¡o 23/4,, for lO-shot groups with National Match am- munition. Barrel, stock furniture, ancl action, ex_ compromise meastrre machinery for average chambe¡ pressure of both clusive of bolt and extractor, were polished producing the mili_ Model 1903 Springfield tary and commercial .30-'06 a¡nmuni- ¿rntl blued. Weight of complete rifle with_ rifle was removed from storage at Rock tion. In short, the receiver ancl bolt of orrt sling was approxinrately 1ZV2 lbs. Island Al'senal and leased to Remington the 190343 r.ifle are exceeclingly when lìtted with 30" barrel. Arms strong Co. by U. S. Or.clnance. by any stanclard. Proclu heavy barrel Completed 190341 rifles began com- Riflemen accustomed to barrels with rifles ha and no parts ing off the assembly line by October conventional 4-, 5-, or 6-groove rifling peculiar be now pur- 1941, only 9 months after Renrington view with suspicion the 2-gr.oove barrei chased r M.D.V/. signed the British contract. A totat of common to many 1903A3 riffes. This 348,085 190341 rifles were subsequent- system of r.ifling was not adopted, how_ ly manufactured, but due to the com- ever, withont extensive tests. It was ORDNANCB NAMES plex machining operations demanded found that ther.e was little diíïerence in I lnvc seen designations of U. S. milíurry by this model, daily procluction require- the performance capabilities ments of the 2_ rífles by yenr and olso sinply by the could not be met. To circum- and 4-gloove barrels; thus this mode letter qtul vent this problem, of M a nunthet'. Hotv is it decided Remington enginêer.s rifling was approved for use in 1943. which designation is ttsedT-S.P.L, effected a redesign of the tSO¡et Answer: Until the 1920's, small which was approved on May 21, 1942. the number of Ordnance items and the com- Thus was the Model 1903A3 rifle con_ parative simplicity and ceived. Only 24 parts of the original small scale of the Model 190341 remained development process did not require any unchanged. fixed Twelve minor parts were eliminated system for designating items under ãnd development. ng forging On adoption as standard, items were given names which eir produc- identified ceiver blidge where them by their fundamental characteristics period, the rect optical relation and usually stated their origin, and the The range scale on year of adoption was addecl. For example: contract since our .*., *"tf i,,Brttt"'j of this sight is triggered mark Browning Automatic Machine Gun, Cal. by Pearl Harbor, created á ations. The slide ape demand for .30, Model of 1917. Sometimes the "of" rifles which could not other- tup and down this scale wise be met. for desired was omitted. ranges from the minimum 200 yds. set- After World War there was a tendency Later production of 1903A3 I rifles by ting up to 800 y<ls. The windagã index to make the existing nomenclatures L. C. Smith-Corona Typewriters, shorter Inc., knob is click adjustable, with each click and more exact. The final change began on OcL 24, 1942, in this and, did not representing a change of I minute of dilection was prìt into eflect Apr. 11,1922. stop until Feb. 19, 1944, after total a angle or a horizontal change of impact It provicled that the designation of stancl- of 234,580 rifles had been produced.