1917's and 1903A3 and A4 clone

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Majja13

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Hello all! I was hoping you all could provide me some guidance with a good dilemma that has been bestowed upon me. I have recently been going through my grandfathers safe to help dividing up the collection between me and my little brother. The only hard part of this is I am some what of a gun nut and my little brother could really care less. Here are a few of the rifles working on at this moment. I have shot the non sporterized 1917 several times before, but have not really even looked at the others until now. What I do know is both 1917's were mfg in 1918 and the A3-03's were mfg in 1943. The A4 clone is not an true A4 however it is a M73B1. Just wondering if I could maybe get some approx value so that when we start the dividing process it all comes out equal. I do understand that price is subject to what the market will bear. Here are a few pictures of all 4 rifles, and some more close up ones of the clone. Any info would be helpful and greatly appreciated.

All_Right

All_Right

The collection of 1917's and 1903-A3's
All_left

All_left

11 Ring Markings

11 Ring Markings

11 Ring Markings

11 Ring Markings

10 TS

10 TS

9 LSScope

9 LSScope

4 BP

4 BP

5 RSA

5 RSA

6 LSA

6 LSA

7 LSSM

7 LSSM


Thank you
Majja
 
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Majja13 said:
Hello all! I was hoping you all could provide me some guidance with a good dilemma that has been bestowed upon me. I have recently been going through my grandfathers safe to help dividing up the collection between me and my little brother. The only hard part of this is I am some what of a gun nut and my little brother could really care less. Here are a few of the rifles working on at this moment. I have shot the non sporterized 1917 several times before, but have not really even looked at the others until now. What I do know is both 1917's were mfg in 1918 and the A3-03's were mfg in 1943. The A4 clone is not an true A4 however it is a M73B1. Just wondering if I could maybe get some approx value so that when we start the dividing process it all comes out equal. I do understand that price is subject to what the market will bear. Here are a few pictures of all 4 rifles, and some more close up ones of the clone. Any info would be helpful and greatly appreciated.

Thank you
Majja
Click to expand...
No pictures?
 
If it were me, i'd go for the 2 M1917's, and would return them to full mil-spec.

But I may be compensating for the butchery that I performed on one a kid.
(A 14 year old boy, a primo M1917, a copy of William's Converting Military Rifles, a old bench mounted grinder in a neighbor's garage, and Old Man Murphy watching on in horror as the receivers "ears" glowed red under the grinding wheel)
 
I can’t value the scope. I have no real knowledge of older scopes. But as far as the guns go.....

1. $350
2. $450 depending on what was done to the receiver for the scope.
3. $450
4. $600-$1200. Depending on manufacturer, SN, rebarrel, cartouches, and overall condition.

Were it me, I’d keep the 03’s....

Actually, that’s not true. Were it me, my brother can have anything he wants. I don’t fight with family over “things”. I only have one brother. And he’s my best friend. If I had to sell every gun I own to help him, I wouldn’t think twice.
 
The two sporterized rifles are likely $400-500 guns. Original configuration M1917 Eddystones and Remingtons are goin for just under a grand now- if its a Winchester manufactured gun, add $2-300. The scoped A3 is a bit of a pickle- hard core collectors wont want it because its not original, so it will depend on finding a shooter who will pay a premium for the scope......Im sayin $900 on that one, IMO.

Welcome to the forum and good luck!
 
Question: was the M1917 stock altered to fit the recoil pad? If so, it will take a big hit on the value, but if you can simply swap the pad for a military buttplate ...

You can get good quality, brand new M1917 replacement wood from GPC, but it costs.
https://www.gunpartscorp.com/products/1571830A

I bought one of these for my P14 and it came with a nice oiled finish and very nearly a drop-in fit:

numrichstock.jpg

As for the mock A4, my own choice (assuming the rear dovetail is still present) would be to remove the Weaver bases, loctite plug screws into the holes, and then buy and mount a repro A4 mount to hide them. I could live with a faux A4 if it has the right look, and that kind of rig would be worth much more that way at resale (but be sure to tell the new buyer what's hidden under the mount!)

https://www.amazon.ca/United-States-Springfield-Rifle-Reproduction/dp/B00BOZ50Y6

Of course, if the rear sight dovetail was milled flat, I think you're stuck with what you've got.

I'm with Bigbore44 -- let your brother choose first. I suggest alternating choices, like picking players for a neighborhood baseball team.
 
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And, if the brother really doesn't care, keep them all and care for them until he is interested.
If you are selling and both agree, just cash them out and split that.
I always assume there is harmony in the family since there is in mine.
My wife's family - not!
 
I think the stock has been slightly modified take a look at these. If it were up to me we would just do the alternating picks. But my mom is involved, and she says that is not fair, since I am into guns and he isn't I am going to just pick the ones that are valuable, and leave him the crap. So I need to place some numbers on them for her so that we end up with an equal amount. I have to say some I really want, and some I am probably going to sell as they just do not interest me.

My grandfather had an interesting collection. My mom worked for Browning for a bunch of years so there are several Browning's but I know about them. It is the really old stuff I do not know much about like these. He also has a Colt New Type revolver in 455 Eley that I am having a hell of a time trying to find out its history. It does not have original grips but seams to be in real good condition. And then there is one or two 22 Gallery guns that I am guessing have to be form around the turn of the century that again I am not finding much on. I like the history of some of this stuff.

Again thanks for all the help and please keep it coming. And the 1917 that is mostly original is a Winchester. the sporterized 1917 had an R roll mark on the barrel with the number 5 18 and a flaming bomb roll mark. Both of the 03's have RA the flaming bomb roll marks and have 5 43 and 9 43. I am assuming that the number are dates of mfg. That seams to match up with what I found when I ran the SN's of the guns.
 

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That "recoil pad" on the "A4" is actually the one created for rifle grenade launching.
It's "soft" in the way shocks for a 1.5 ton truck are.
They were widely available back in the day (and pretty available now, if well aged).
They are a slip-on fit (if one involving a lot of wrestling) and require no stock modification.
 
Dave DeLaurant said:
Question: was the M1917 stock altered to fit the recoil pad? If so, it will take a big hit on the value, but if you can simply swap the pad for a military buttplate ...

You can get good quality, brand new M1917 replacement wood from GPC, but it costs.
https://www.gunpartscorp.com/products/1571830A

I bought one of these for my P14 and it came with a nice oiled finish and very nearly a drop-in fit:

View attachment 938399

As for the mock A4, my own choice (assuming the rear dovetail is still present) would be to remove the Weaver bases, loctite plug screws into the holes, and then buy and mount a repro A4 mount to hide them. I could live with a faux A4 if it has the right look, and that kind of rig would be worth much more that way at resale (but be sure to tell the new buyer what's hidden under the mount!)

https://www.amazon.ca/United-States-Springfield-Rifle-Reproduction/dp/B00BOZ50Y6

Of course, if the rear sight dovetail was milled flat, I think you're stuck with what you've got.

I'm with Bigbore44 -- let your brother choose first. I suggest alternating choices, like picking players for a neighborhood baseball team.
Click to expand...
You got me thinking last night. The receiver is killed flat. So I was thinking that I swap all the furniture to the sported, and put new rings and a more modern scope and use this for a deer/elf rifle? If I needed a barrel on her is that an issue. Or am I over complicating this.
 
Majja13 said:
You got me thinking last night. The receiver is killed flat. So I was thinking that I swap all the furniture to the sported, and put new rings and a more modern scope and use this for a deer/elf rifle? If I needed a barrel on her is that an issue. Or am I over complicating this.
Click to expand...

Sounds like a plan. That would give you one complete mixmaster Milsurp and one sporter -- probably the best compromise. If the mixmaster looks OK after the swap, I'd price it around $600 or more.

Here's a suggestion to satisfy your mom: pay a local shop a few bucks to give you a written quote/offer on each of the four. Then you can either alternate informed choices, or simply pick the two you want and offer your brother the difference in cash to make things completely 50/50. An estimate is still just a guess, but getting a written quote puts the gunshop's reputation on the line.

If you need a new milspec 30-06 barrel installed, CMP Custom shop does good work on 1903s: https://old.thecmp.org/cmp_sales/custom-gunsmithing/services-for-the-1903-springfield/

Others here could recommend additional sources for fitting a new sporter barrel in your choice of chamberings. My last rebarrel job was a Ruger No.1 by PacNor, and they do offer prefit 03 barrels if you have a trusted local smith to do the swapping. They'll also do the whole job for around $600, barrel included. http://pac-nor.com/prefit/

Springfield actions have always made very nice sporters. When it comes to rings for your existing Weaver bases, I'm partial of the Warne QD ringsets: https://warnescopemounts.com/product/warne-1-inch-qd-medium-gloss-rings/
 
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Majja13;
BE really, really careful hunting/shooting elves.
They are known to be vindictive, cunning, and relentless if wounded. Besides that, if Santa finds out, woe to your offspring every December 25th!!!!
 
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