Remington 03-A3

[what now?]

I picked up this Remington 03-A3 from a customer of mine, to see if it was something I wanted to buy from him. It has been sitting in his basement for quite a while and looks it. It is marked at the muzzle with R A, (inspector at the time?) has an exploding canon ball and is marked 12-43, I assume dec. 1943 manf. date? Has peep sight and is marked U.S. Remington 03-A3 sn-4167911. The handguard is missing, along with the clamps or rings that hold it on the gun. After looking on-line for a while I understand there is supposed to be some stamp marks on the stock of the gun, which I do not see. the stock appears to have seen a lot of use but I think it would clean up pretty well. It would have a lot of character. I am confused in my searching as to whether I should look for purely Remington hardware or if Springfield is ok. parkerized or blued? Not sure. I have not done any cleaning on it. The action appears to be in good shape and with some cleaning, I think it will be fine. What's the best way to clean up the wood? I has some mildew on it. I am not a collector, but enjoy the idea of having a piece of history in my hands, even if it isn't all original. I would like to get this gun in good shape and think it would be an awesome thing to shoot it.. I understand they are very good guns. Any information would be appreciated.

 

[rcmodel]

RA on the barrel is Remington Arms.
12-43 is Dec 1943.
The flaming bomb is the ordinance acceptance mark.

An 03A3 would have had Parkerized stamped sheet metal hardware except for the bolt body which would be blued.

Try cleaning the mildewed stock with 0000 Super-Fine steel wool and Lemon Oil Furniture Polish.

rc

 

[what now?]

Thank you. Any idea where I would pick up the handguard? If I find parts, Is it important to have the remington stamp on them?

 

[rcmodel]

It would be best if you can find them.

You might try this guy, although I have no personal experiance with him.
http://www.billricca.com/03_springfield.htm

rc

 

[what now?]

I was able to find a hand guard at www.collectorsfirearms.com. I am wondering if anyone has advice & ideas on how to get the color to match as close as possible. From what I can tell, the piece will be natural wood when I receive it. was there a particular stain or treatment used on these?