My New Old Project.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I have a Springfield Barreled action I bought from my metal shop teacher about 15 years ago.

I wanted to turn it into a Springfield Sporter and got a decent stock for it. It fit fine but I didn't like the look of it and I decided I actually wanted a Springfield NRA Sporter instead. However I searched for years for a stock, bought one from an outfit in MO and it was trash and went back where it came from.

The gun sat in my shop safe for years.

Recently one came up on Ebay and it was a real live NRA Sporter Stock duplicated off a Real LIVE NRA Sporter Stock! The wood was nice and had some figure in it but it was gone. I called the guy in Oregon who made it. "Murray's Gunstocks," and talked him into making another one for me.

It arrived and I was not disappointed. There was minor fitting to get the action into the stock, mostly at the Recoil Lug. I still have to do some more massaging on it to get it to where I want it and then it gets finished.

I had bought the correct buttplate and barrel band for it some time back and I still need a proper Front Sling Swivel and Recoil Reinforcement Studs to complete the hardware.

This will be a "Replica NRA Sporter" because my barreled action is a A3-O3. I have already mounted a Lyman #48 Receiver Sight and have a Lyman 17A front sight on it. It also has a Timney Trigger. The Barreled action was purchased by my friend in 1965 from the DCM for $15. I gave him $150 for it and it has a brand new never fired two groove barrel.

The Left side of the stock ahs some pretty good grain going on which I will enhance slightly. The Right side is kind of bland but has some decent Fiddleback on it and it will get some "enhancement" as well. Sharpies are a wonderful thing and when used judiciously,,, totally undetectable. Looks like it came that way.

This is a spare time project which will move along fairly quickly as I really want to shoot it.

Randy

[metricmonkeywrench]

Pix please!!

[ulav8r]

The Right side is kind of bland but has some decent Fiddleback on it and it will get some "enhancement" as well. Sharpies are a wonderful thing and when used judiciously,,, totally undetectable. Looks like it came that way. Randy

Jack Belk liked to use an artist's charcoal pencil to do enhancements.

[Green Frog]

Nice project Randy. The NRA Sporter has always been attractive to me and I have repeatedly thought how nice (and relatively straightforward) it would be to build my own. Perhaps if my venture into High Power competition hadn’t ended so soon...

Like others, I’m looking forward to more pictures as this build proceeds. :coffeecom

Froggie

[W.R.Buchanan]

Waiting for some screws for the buttplate and rear sling swivels to come in. I have to put the stock in the Mill Vice and open up the cutout for the Timney Trigger. Then some more minor fitting to get it to sit right. Then on to finishing.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

Got the action into the stock. Still needs a little refinement.

Here's pics.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

I went to my local Hardware Store yesterday looking for a drill bit that centered itself in a chamfered hole like on a hinge or striker Plate on a door. You've all seen them. Not in stock!

But the guy who was helping me told me that the hot tip and what they normally had in stock was a tool made by a guy in Minnesota named Vick, His tools are called "Vix Bits." He told me where to get them in Ventura so I went and purchased a #6 and #8 tool. Not cheap at $13 each but I could see that they would do the job better than anything I had used before.

The drill bit is changeable and the plunger that shrouds the bit is the moving part that gets pushed up to allow the bit to go deeper. Also that plunger doesn't rotate with the tool so you don't have to worry about gooning the surface of whatever you are drilling thru.

The whole reason I got these is because I needed to locate the Buttplate and Rear Sling Swivel on my NRA Sporter Replica and any movement in either of these rather expensive piece parts would have ruined the stock.

They worked perfectly on the first try!!!

Well worth the cost. You can google them as they are sold on Amazon and a variety of other places.

Here's pics of the installed pieces. Only parts left are the Recoil Reinforcements for the stock and I'll make those as I refuse to spend $20 each for something I can make from a piece of 10-32 all thread, and 2 custom nuts which will take me a good 15 minutes to make. Will take me longer to find the All Thread in my shop than it will to make the parts !

Randy

[smithnframe]

Looks like a fun project.......good luck!

[W.R.Buchanan]

Just about got the stock ready to finish. There's some gaps around the floor plate but most of it fits right and it all cinches down solidly. I found the Reinforcement Screws on line for $10 so I got them, and have them ready to install permanently.

Looking at filling some of the gaps with Black Epoxy to make it look a little better. It probably won't show as much with the wood darkened to the finished color.

I have one problem with the barrel. There is a large undercut where the barrel was held by a Steady Rest. It is about 2" in front of the fore end and about .015 deep so it shows up like a sore thumb. I'd have to put it is a Big Engine Lathe to deal with it and I don't have one. I doubt anyone would want me grinding with a Disc Grinder on their machine, so I have to come up with another way to deal with it. After closer examination and taking some measurements there is no way to fair this in without leaving a longer whoopie that would still be under cut.

Cogitating on other solutions, Maybe filling and fairing in Devcon? , like Bondo but much stronger.

I plan on a Black Cera Kote Finish on all the metal when done. The bolt handle will be polished.

And just another little tidbit. The Elevation Mechanical Stop Set Screw on a Lyman #48 sight is 3-56. This is a totally bastard size and I was amazed that my Hardware Supplier actually had one in stock. IE: they had exactly one in stock!

Randy

[elmacgyver0]

Beautiful project, mine never come out as nice as yours.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Just some history on the NRA Sporter. The complete history of these guns is in the book entitled "The Springfield 1903 Rifle" by Lt Col. William S. Brophy Ret. But this is just some of it to acquaint some of us to the existence of such a piece of American History.

These guns were originally built up by the Springfield Armory Starting in 1925 There were plenty of Surplus Barreled Actions laying around after WW1 so Springfield decided to make some Sporters and sell them thru the DCM. They got National Match Air Gauged Barrels, Lyman #48C Receiver Sights, and a Nice Sporter Stock. The actions were hand fitted and the guns were purported to be more accurate than the Existing Target Rifles of the time. The finish on these guns was industry standard for the time and well executed. Many Specials were produced as Trophy's for Military Personal as recognition for some exceptional feat they had performed.

These guns were the Quintessential American Bolt Action Sporting Rifle and essentially set the standard for this type of gun. Starting in 1925 and running until 1932 and they ended up costing right at $50. They were finally discontinued after Winchester and Remington complained that they were cutting into the sales of their Model 54 and Model 30 Sporting Rifles. Too bad as the NRA Sporter was a much better gun than either of the commercial offerings at the time.

I have had a Springfield M2 .22LR for some time and these guns were originally designed to supplement those guns in a Major Caliber. As I said in my first post, my gun will be a "Replica" of these guns and a relatively "Loose Interpretation" at that, since my Barreled Action is a Remington 03A3. However it will fulfill my need for such a gun to shoot and enjoy, and that's all I want from it. Only wish I had the refined skills of the gunsmiths that originally made these guns. Still it should come out reasonably nice.

Randy

[Green Frog]

Thanks for the update Randy. I’d been wondering how you were coming along with it. Know that I am vicariously right there building it with you! :drinks:

Your latest post also reminded me of something I had often wondered about. :coffeecom At a glance it appears that the stocks of the M-1922 and the NRA Sporter are pretty much the same. In fact, I had considered ordering a surplus 1922 stock back when Numrich had a bunch available and dropping in a 1903 barreled action. Of course I could never find time or get a round tuit, so I never actually tried to do it. What say you about the possibility?

Froggie

[W.R.Buchanan]

Froggie: the Stocks are completely different. the .22 stock has a different buttplate which is shorter than the Sporter. The Sporter Buttplate is peculiar to the Sporter. The Barrel Band is the same as the .22. The .22 stock has Finger Grooves on both sides. The .22 stock is closer to a "C" stock than a Sporter Stock.

Randy

[Green Frog]

Thanks Randy. To continue my line of questioning, since the 1922 action is a close derivative of the 1903 action, would the latter action fit into the stock of the former, or would the fine details of their respective actions prevent this? :confused:

Regards,
Froggie

[W.R.Buchanan]

It looks like the .30 cal. action would fit into the .22 cal. stock or vice versa. The early versions of the NRA Sporter were made with the same stock or what appears to be the same Stock. Without taking them both apart I can't say for certain.

Randy

[fiberoptik]

Thanks for the update Randy. I’d been wondering how you were coming along with it. Know that I am vicariously right there building it with you!

Of course I could never find time or get a round tuit, so I never actually tried to do it. What say you about the possibility?

Froggie
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[Tazman1602]

Just not many of us left to appreciate an 03-A3 or Argentine Mauser action but I LOVE those old actions!

NICE BUILD!

Art

[W.R.Buchanan]

Thanks All,,,, just about done with the stock fitting and about ready to start finishing. Been working on the Jeep build as well so that still gets in the way of the gun projects,,, but the Rear Bumper/ Tire Carrier is now painted and finished. I just have to re install it.

Randy.

[fiberoptik]

Prefer old vs. new myself. Except for women. [emoji41]


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[W.R.Buchanan]

Moving along to finishing the wood. Not exactly the color I was going for but I can push it towards the red zone with tint in the oil.

I was looking for something more like this. I believe this was/is Charles Garfield's rifle.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

getting there on the color. The left side of the stock is very cool. the right side is kind of bland . Not much figure but supposed to be some fiddleback which you won't see until the finish is a lot deeper.

Here's a pic of the right side.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

Finally got some time to finish this build up, Will post pics soon. Can't believe it's been a year + since I worked on it. I have the stock colored and most of the coats of oil on it. Went a little ape with the burgundy tint in the oil and I want to push it a little back to the orange side. Also have to get the floor plate to stay Closed and I think that will require a little welding and filing .

Randy

[Gobeyond]

That’s an nra sportier stock? And it was all fitted for a 03-a3 action? Are they made for other guns? It looks authentic. I mean for its generation.