Springfield 1903 Style T Target Rifle Blue 30" Heavy Barrel .30-06 Bolt Action Rifle 1931Our Assessment: When the US Army was looking for a rifle design to replace the 1898 Krag rifle, they looked directly at the Spanish Model 1893 Mauser. This was due to the fact that the performance of the Model 1893 Mauser was far superior than that of the 1898 Krag during the Spanish-American War. The Model 1903 is basically a redesigned Mauser clone. A U.S. Patent Court eventually found that the U.S. Army had violated Mauser's patents and required the U.S. Army to pay the German Mauser manufacturers patent royalties. Payments were stopped once WWI started. The 1903 has a strong reliable action that served the Army for over thirty years in two world wars. This Model 1903 Style T Target Rifle was built back in 1931. The Style T was sold to NRA members through the Director of Civilian Marksmanship (DCM) which later became the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP). This Target Rifle has a 30 inch heavy profile barrel, target sights, and headless cocking piece installed.
Make: Springfield Armory
Model: 1903 Style T (Target Rifle)
Serial Number: 1380606
Year of Manufacture: 1931
Caliber: .30-06 Springfield
Action Type: Bolt Action, Internal Magazine
Barrel Length: 30 Inches. The extra heavy profile barrel measures 1.25 inches at the receiver and .75 inches at the muzzle.
Sights / Optics: The front sight is a small globe sight with a post insert. It is set atop a raised base. The rear sight is a fully adjustable Lyman aperture. The top of the barrel and top of the receiver each have sight blocks attached by screws.
Stock Configuration & Condition: The hardwood stock has a pistol grip, barrel band, 2 sling loops, 2 through bolts, cutout for the rear sight, and a checkered metal buttplate. The buttplate shows oxidation and wear. The wood shows scrapes and scratches, mostly on the left side of the butt. The right front of the forearm shows some paint residue. The LOP measures 13 1/2 inches from the front of the trigger to the back of the buttplate. The stock rates in about Very Good Plus overall condition.
Type of Finish: Blue
Finish Originality: OriginalThe metal has been treated with cold blue.
Bore Condition: The muzzle and grooves are semi bright. The rifling is deep. There is fouling in the bore that should clean up some. There is light erosion at the muzzle. The bore shows an M.E. of 0.5. In this writer's opinion, this bore rates 8 out of 10.
Overall Condition: This rifle retains about 70% of its current metal finish. The metal has been treated with cold blue. Areas of light surface erosion show through the cold blue. The metal shows scrapes, scratches, and discoloration from oxidation. The barrel shows areas of thinning. The action shows operational wear. Some of the screw heads show heavy use. The markings are deep. Overall, this rifle rates in about Very Good condition.
Mechanics: The rifle has the correct headless cocking piece installed.The action functions correctly. We did not fire this rifle. We have cleaned this firearm and performed a mechanic's check but expect many will want to clean the firearm again depending on their standards.
Box, Paperwork & Accessories: None
CA LEGALITY: CA Classified C&R: YES. PPT: NO
RIFLE