1903 Springfield Sporter, Researched, Unusual? Please Weigh In!

[HiBC]

The hole is a gas vent.
James,I have seen the atrocities of a side mount like a Weaver "N" drilled and tapped by someone who grossly overestimated their skills and sobriety.
Yes,none of the holes in line,a few extra holes,a mix of screw sizes,up through 1/4-20,and ,of course,the brass round head stove bolt with a goobered slot.

It was nice to see this rifle was well done.

 

[4V50 Gary]

If that buttplate is 12 LPI, then it is a national match buttplate.

Good catch James K. Regarding the receiver hole in front of the G&H scope base, I originally dismissed it as a Hatcher Hole and didn't give it any further thought. Upon rexamination of the image, you can see there is a distinct step almost beneath the outer surface of the receiver. Deeper down there is another step. I don't have an 03A3 in front of me, but that may not be a Hatcher Hole but a boo-boo hole. Anybody got an 03A3 at hand to check? I thought a Hatcher Hole should be a simple, flush hole and not a stepped affair.

I also concur with Jim Watson on his advice not to remove the G&H base.

 

[Jim Watson]

The "step" you see is from the receiver vent hole down to the bolt vent hole.

And what does an 03A3 have to do with a Sporter made on the 1903A1?

 

[4V50 Gary]

What does it have to do with it? Hatcher Hole is a Hatcher Hole. Why should they change? I maintain that a drill bit (or straight mill bit) is easier to use rather than making it stepped..

 

[Jim Watson]

The hole in the receiver and the hole in the bolt were not drilled at the same time with the same drill. I think that the hole in the receiver is larger so as to reduce the requirement for finicky alignment of holes in two separate parts.
Further, the real "Hatcher Hole" was drilled long after manufacture to give you a chance if you blew a casehead in a brittle low number action.
My Mk I has the vent hole in the bolt, but not in the receiver. The original thinking seems to have been that the bolt lug raceway and magazine well were enough.

 

[4V50 Gary]

Concur that the Hatcher Hole was not drilled with the bolt inside the receiver. I never said that in any post. What I am pointing out is that the hole is a bit strange in that it's stepped. I don't recall the Hatcher Hole being stepped at all and it could be the "gunsmith" messed up with the location of the G&H scope base hole.

 

[Jim Watson]

I don't see a step. I see a bright streak inside the vent hole that might be from a rough cut or the light on the side of the hole.
The hole is far too large to be a scope mount hole out of position.

 

[supercub99]

Gentlemen, I have copied, pasted and blown the picture up. My thoughts are this....it is a hole!

A little background on the Hatcher hole to begin with:

Canfield's "An Illustrated Guide to the '03 Springfield Service Rifle" on page 108, it states - "The Hatcher Hole - In July 1935, the U.S. Army Ordnance Department mandated that an additional gas escape hole be added to the left side of the receiver in order to increase the margin of safety in the event of a cartridge case failure. Around this time, the bolt was also altered by enlarging the gas escape hole. This modification was incorporated in new production rifles shortly afterward and will be found on rifles made from 1936 until the end of production.
The U.S. Marine Corps followed a short time later and added the hole to the '03 receivers in inventory. The extra hole was added to many earlier receivers during arsenal overhaul. Any '03 receiver manufactured prior to 1935 with the additional gas escape hole on the left side of the receiver has been modified from its original factory configuration. This modification is known among some collectors today as the HATCHER HOLE, in recognition of Gen. Julian S. Hatcher, an early proponent of the feature. "

Although this rifle was made in 1937, I'm not certain of when the receiver actually made. Many parts and pieces were made and stored while production slowed to a crawl during that time.

That said, from what I can tell, it's a Hatcher hole, perhaps a little crude (unless you've seen some of the marine jobs) but none the less, it's a hatcher hole.
I will say though that I have seen mounts that did incorporate the hatcher hole in mainly T-3 Weaver side mounts. Those and some that used a T-4 and modified it a bit. They threaded the hatcher hole and stuck a screw in it. Here's a T-3 https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vintage-weaver-side-mount-scope-4-119104373
I only mention this as one could possibly say what your seeing is threading. I doubt it though. You can see the gas escape hole in the bolt.

These were actually a good system in that you didn't have to line up with the bore and were easier to load with the extra space on the right side. I had a Rem 03 sporter with a T-3 and a Weaver 330, shot great!

 

[J.G. Terry]

My NM made into a hunting rifle

Many years ago got lucky and picked up a 1903 NM that had been restocked making up a sporter. The number was 127XXXX. It was necessary to undo some Bubba Custom Shop work. The work getting the cosmoline from the wood continues. The bolt matches etc. with Star Gauge. A recent book on custom sporters made a comment that may have had to do with our rifles. During the depression custom makers survived by making basic sporters that were unmarked. No gunsmiths name. Those are difficult to trace. Those old NM were astoundingly accurate. No joke. I'd say your rifle, like mine, has an interesting history remaining an unfolding mystery. Don't think Bubba installed the side mount. No Hatcher Hole

 

[Rabid1]

I'm overwhelmed by the selfless responses to my original post!

Due to some financial difficulties, I now have to sell my rifle. Being that I'm a novice at this I was hoping sone of y'all experts could suggest a starting bid price. I put a lot of weight in you guys opinions!

All the best,
Rick

 

[4V50 Gary]

Speaking strictly from ignorance, I'd start out at $1.5k

BTW, if you want to sell it, don't post it in this forum but in the marketplace forum.