Remington model 30?

G

Geezerbiker

New member
Years ago I bought a rifle from a friend of mine that was really hard up for cash. He described it as an M1917 Enfield fitted into a Remington stock. I had it loaned out for several years since I didn't need it and I recently got it back.

Anyway I'm wondering if it could be a model 30 Remington rather than a M1917. I haven't taken it out of the stock but I can't find any markings on it and if someone ground off the rear sight housing they did an excellent job. It's very smooth and no obvious signs of a transition from the round receiver shape.

The butt plate is missing and it had a slip on recoil pad when I got it. When it returned to me from being loaned out, the pad looked kinda rotted, so I tossed it.

If it's a model 30, I'll replace the butt plate and do nothing more to it but if it's a custom rifle, I'd like to refinish the stock and glass bed the action. Right now it has an oddball scope on it with the adjustments in the rear mount. That will have to go either way...

I'll get some pix soon but any opinions so far?

Tony
 
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J

Jim Watson

New member
Ought to be marked, maybe under the front scope base.
I don't know much about a Model 30 that can't be sporterized from a 1917.
 
M

Mike Irwin

Staff
Really need some photos, as well.

The barrels on a Model 30 should also have commercial markings and proofs, not military markings.

Does the action cock on opening or cock on closing?
 
J

Jim Watson

New member
Right now it has an oddball scope on it with the adjustments in the rear mount.
Click to expand...

I can think of several scopes like that; some are kind of prehistoric, some are classic.

More pictures, please.
 
S

Scorch

New member
The Model 30 or 30 Express would be marked as such on the barrel and on the receiver. The ones I have seen had a Remington logo on the top of the receiver front ring or a matted section on top of the receiver ring. Barrels are marked on the left side "Caliber 30 Model 1906" or "Caliber 30-'06". They had the old Enfield dogleg bolt handle. Since they never had the eared military sight, the top of the rear receiver ring is round and drilled on the right side for a receiver sight. They were never super popular because they were heavy and about as graceful as a railroad tie. Good, solid gun nonetheless. Many people sporterizing M1917s would do it the easy way: grind the rear sight off and radius the rear receiver ring, drop it in a Remington factory stock and go hunting. Many just whacked the forend off of the old M1917 stock and called it good. Some bought aftermarket stocks.
 
G

Geezerbiker

New member
I looked up the proof marks and it's definitely a sporterized M1917. After taking off the bottom metal, it's clear that someone adapted a commercial rifle stock to fit. There are a few gaps in the wood to metal fit that shouldn't be there. I'm going to stick it back in the safe until I feel like dealing with it further. I might put it in a Boyd's stock as my finances permit.

I'll get some pix of the scope up later tonight or tomorrow...

Tony
 
M

Mike Irwin

Staff
The barrel should have a number of marks on it near the muzzle, including the "flaming bomb" ordnance mark and a set of date numbers -- unless the barrel has been replaced or has been polished.

I'm assuming from your comments that it's chambered in .30-06 instead of a commercial chambering?
 
G

Geezerbiker

New member
It does have the flaming bomb and it has been highly polished and blued. Whoever ground off the original rear sight did an excellent job. I figure they must have ran out of funds or they would have used a nicer stock. Right now a new Boyds stock cost more than I paid for the rifle so I'll hold off replacing it until I find a good deal...

It's still .30-06 and cock on closing... There's a small chance I'd put a cock on opening kit in it but I have no intention of changing the barrel. That's far more effort than I plan to put into this project.

Tony
 
M

Mike Irwin

Staff
OK, if it's got the flaming bomb on the barrel it's most likely a re-engineered military surplus rifle.

As far as I know, Remington didn't buy any of the barrels back from the military (by the time the barrel was marked with the flaming bomb it was US property) so I don't believe that any Model 30 or 720 would have a military-marked barrel on it.

My guess?

One of the guns that was cut loose right after World War II and it was modified then.
 
G

Geezerbiker

New member
There is a flaming bomb on the left side of the receiver. There are also several small proof marks on the barrel just forward of the receiver but they're faint and hard to read.

I looked at the scope again and it's an early Weaver steel tube. It's also variable power 2.5 to 8. Hopefully the pic will help... BTW, any input on the scope would be welcome. I plan to put it up for sale PDQ...


Tony
 

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J

Jim Watson

New member
I don't know much. Weaver's first continuously variable scope, they used outside adjustments to keep the internals simple.
Does it have a plain crosshair reticle or a complicated crosshatch pattern?
 
T

taylorce1

New member
Those 1917 can make decent sporter rifles!

UjRsB1W
 
G

Geezerbiker

New member
Jim Watson said:
I don't know much. Weaver's first continuously variable scope, they used outside adjustments to keep the internals simple.
Does it have a plain crosshair reticle or a complicated crosshatch pattern?
Click to expand...
This scope has a simple fine wire cross-hair reticle. It's interesting but I'd just as soon have something more modern...

Like I mentioned before I only bought this rifle because I had a friend in a tight situation and he needed cash bad. As I recall I bought this rifle and loaned him the rest of what he needed. He paid the loan back and I then loaned out the rifle not really expecting to get it back. I told the friend that had it loaned to if I croak first, it's yours but if I out live you, I want it back. Anyway, he bought a very nice custom 7mm Mauser recently and I got the M1917 back...

I have 2 or 3 rifles ahead of the M1917 to get new wood so this one will have to wait unless I get something in trade... My Win70 is next in line to either get new wood or the current stock refinished and sent out for checkering. Then...

Tony
 
M

Mike Irwin

Staff
So the scope itself doesn't have adjustments for windage/elevation?

Hum... that's interesting. I never knew that Weaver made a fixed scope in that style. The mount adjustable ones I'm familiar with had a straight front tube...

OK, I see Jim had an answer...
 
S

Scorch

New member
I have a similar scope on my Winchester 1885 Low Wall. My mount looks like that and is marked Bausch & Lomb. The knobs are external windage and elevation adjustments.
 
G

Geezerbiker

New member
This scope doesn't seem to be all that collectable. There's a bunch of them on eBay from $140 to insane and none of them look like they're selling. I was hoping to sell it and use the funds toward a new stock then replace the scope after the rest of the project is done but now it's all on the back burner...

Tony
 
D

dgludwig

New member
Bausch & Lomb made some really nice scopes with etched-on glass reticles from about the late fifties through the sixties, having externally adjustable mounts. I've always liked the simplicity in construction using the mounts for adjustment allow for in the making of scopes but said mounts are unavoidably relatively bulky and heavy when compared with the mounts used for equivalent internally adjustable scopes.
 
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