1903 Springfield replace barrel

[bouncer50]

My question is how do you put on rear sight sleeve back on the barrel. What size pin do i need for the sight base. My new old ww11 barrel is a high standard 4 grove barrel. My reason for buying the high standard barrel is they claim it one of the most accurate barrel. Mine had a shot out sporter barrel on it.

[RedJackson]

Is your HS bbl for an 03' or A303'. If an 03, it will have a cut in it for the rear sight base retaining spline.

Go here: https://www.scribd.com/doc/75857340/1903-Schematics

you can see the spline cut where the threads on the bbl end.

There is also a spline cut in the rear sight base. The two spline cuts have to align AND the sight base be upright AND the headspace be correct. That's how it was done back when.

The Germans just sweated on their Mauser rear bases.

In today's world, get the bbl installed with the headspace correct and the front site base vertical.

Put the very rear sight base on a very clean bbl with JB weld. It will never move.

[bouncer50]

Its a 03 barrel with a 1936 receiver.

[gnoahhh]

They can be miserable things to install. AS RJ said above, essentially it boils down to getting the base lined up over the spline cut and driving the pin home. There are actually two splines- one crosswise on the bottom of the barrel, and one longitudinal right in front of the receiver ring on the RH side. That pin goes in from the rear after the base is installed. Truth be told, I always ignore that one because it can be an even bigger PIA than the bottom one. After all, how can the sight base move if the bottom pin is firmly (correctly) seated?

HS barrels are pretty good, but also they were made in wartime so quality can be a crapshoot. On rifles intended primarily for shooting/hunting with no regard for originality, I like Criterion barrels from the CMP. Consistent good quality, scary good accuracy, and perfectly matching original dimensions (based on a sampling of three '03 barrels, plus a Krag barrel).

[bouncer50]

Do you happen to know what size pins for the sight sleeve.

[gnoahhh]

Not offhand. If you are missing the pin there are multiple places to buy them and they cost almost nothing. Try Numrich first.

[RedJackson]

You don't need the splines/pins. That was 1900 tech. JB weld will last forever !

[gnoahhh]

Over years of shooting, and repeated cycling between "too hot to touch" and "so cold your tongue will stick to it"? Maybe, but I wouldn't take the chance!

[RedJackson]

Oh BS they glue planes together that go through far more stress than any gun.

[bouncer50]

JB-Weld i have used it to repair gas tanks. And to repair broken stuff. Nothing wrong with old school pins, screws,Rivets. All the guns i have ever saw had screws and pins and press fit parts. For broken stocks i have seen brass pins and glue to repair them.

[RedJackson]

Again old fashion repair. Pins and screws have no place in stock repair. Today's epoxies are stronger that the wood they glue together. Show me pins and screws in an F-22 !

[eck0313]

JB Weld, and Red Loctite both need over 400 degrees Fahrenheit to break down. You won't get the rifle that warm shooting it, even in the middle of the day in Death Valley. Just make sure the band is where you want it before the epoxy sets up!