1903...Bubba'd or a beauty?

My vote is bubbafied. I just don't like the customs made out of old military rifles. I feel that customizations erase all the history of the firearm.

That being said, the work was nicely done. I like the figure of the wood. There was some serious time, money and effort put into that sporter.

Looks pretty nice, don't see many sporterized surplus with such nice wood and checkering.

Is that a replacement barrel? If so, what caliber?
The big old Weaver scope looks like a pretty high power fixed mag, so seems suitable for a varmint or maybe antelope rifle.

Used to have a side mount on it.

As far as the Bubba stuff goes, I will give it the benefit of doubt and assume it was sporterized back when it was a cheap obsolete army surplus rifle and not the Significant Historical Artifact and Valuable Collector's Item that the Internet Generation is accustomed to.

Tastefully done, I don't mind custom work like that, although I do prefer un-modded Mil-Surps...and that is VERY well done

Now if you're talking about a real Bubba job, done at the coffee table by Bubba, Jim-Bob and Dremel....yeah that bothers me

I think it looks great, very tastefully done.

I don't really like sporterized rifles unless the rifle was previously beat up horribly and has little to no historic value.

I think it's done well for the conversion. I'm not a huge fan of most conversions but this looks done well. It's previous condition makes a big difference but I'd guess it's more useful now than previously.

Beautiful rifle. Very tastefully sporterized. I like it. And you're right, that rifle was an ex-sniper. Should be extremely accurate. I'd be proud to own that piece.

It's only taboo to newly sporterize a classic rifle because there's a dwindling supply of good-condition ones. However, I have no issues with ones that were sporterized in the past in a tasteful manner. I picked up a nicely sporterized Nazi K98 last year. While I'd never consider doing that to a historical piece, the modification was probably done in the 1950s to 1960s, when there were plenty of good machinists and gunsmiths to go around. It clearly wasn't a recent modification.

I really just wanted a scoped large-caliber hunting rifle, and wasn't about to butcher one of my milsurps. I also couldn't afford a new one. For $250, I got a nice-looking rifle that shoots 1" groups. No complaints here.



Here's a closeup of the work that was done on the bolt by the person who sporterized it:

Kiln: I don't really like sporterized rifles unless the rifle was previously beat up horribly and has little to no historic value.

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If it was a battlefield pickup and beat up horribly. I would say that has more historical value than the seldom if ever fired immaculate safe queens collectors gush over.

Bubbafying ends up ugly, THIS is an improvement! Don't let the snobs get you down. It could use some irons though. The whole thing looks great. I would love to have one that good looking.

I really hate military rifles unless they are sporterized/bubbaized. The best ones, IMO, are the ones that employ an altered version of the original stock. The more rare and collectable, the better.

Looks very nice, tastful, my vote however is contengent on when it was sporterized. there are too few '03s out there now to be cutting one up when you can buy a new gun for the same money.

Looks very nice...


But I much prefer un-bubbad myself.

Looks nice to me.

I'm not a fan of bubba'd guns unless the work is done well and that to me looks very professional and attractive. There are still plenty of 1903's out there that are in original historical configuration so don't fret over it and just enjoy it, I would wager it's a pretty decent shooter and that's what really matters.

Looks better than the poor A3 with modern rings and leapers scope that was for sale at the Medina show for $1,000... A4 indeed.

Beautiful piece of wood in that stock. Looks like a clean job of customizing, not at all bubbafied via hacksaw and sloppy work. Nice sporter.

That scope looks much like the K-10 my uncle put on a Varminter setup: Bishop stock, Mauser 98 action, and a Jerry Gebby Varminter barrel (forerunner of the .22-250).

A heckuva lot of those old custom-built rifles really put today's factory stuff to shame for fit and finish--and, quite often, tight groups. Labors of love, not just some accountant's notion of bottom line.

While I would not sporterize a nice 1903 these days, I have one right now that I am working on since somebody already ruined the collector value. Plus I put myself through college many moons ago by sporterizing mil-surp rifles into what the customers of that time wanted.
Yours was nicely done...

WOW!! Beautified!

I'd take that over a surp 03 any day! than I would buy a stock 03 surp and put em in the same cabinet together! one for plinkin the other for huntin.

It was a different mind set in the 1950's and 60's. Mil-surp rifles could be bought for $15 on average, with a little skill a guy could have a very nice, custom hunting rifle for 1/4-1/3 the cost of a commercial rifle. Every hardware store in the country had 55gal drums full of mil-surps, they had little collector interest at the time. Most of the guys buying these had just spent 5 plus years carrying them in war, they wanted a cut down, light weight rifle that was different from the rest.

If you've ever walked fifteen miles with a full rucksack and an M249, you can really appreciate what old bubba does to a combat rifle to get her down to sporter weight. Bubba knows.

hang fire said:

If it was a battlefield pickup and beat up horribly. I would say that has more historical value than the seldom if ever fired immaculate safe queens collectors gush over.

Click to expand...

Hey I can't really say much, I bought an Enfield No. 3 that had been cut down into a No. 5 a few years ago just because I was so impressed with the work. I'd rather have found an actual No. 5 in that condition but am satisfied with what I got.

I like it OP, but I just can't love a Monte Carlo stock...

I would love to own that rifle. A very nice piece of work. Bubba didn't have anything to do with it.

As madcratebuilder has already pointed out, it WAS a different mind set back when all the surplus rifle sporterizing was being done whether by Bubba or someone that knew what they were doing. They were just ugly old military rifles that were a source for cheap hunting rifles. They were everywhere and dirt cheap.

I don't have a problem with those that want to keep them original now. I do have a problem with those that condemn past generations for their actions
then when entirely different conditions existed than what exist today.

I'll normally hate on anything bubbified, but this was done REALLY well.