Stopped by FedEx last night....

[cdkayak]

...and picked up my new 1944 CMP 03A3.

It looks pretty good through the cosmo. The cosmo isn't as bad as some I've seen, although it's still going to be a messy job to clean it up. I had one of these on my list to get over the next couple of years to go with my '03. The CMP pushed my hand by saying they were just about out of them.

If it shoots anywhere as nice as my '03 I'll be very happy. It's got some of the black finished hardware & barrel bands that I'll probably replace with parkerized parts. & it also looks like it needs a new rear trigger assembly screw, doesn't look like it goes far enough into the receiver tang.

I'll try to get some pics up by the end of the weekend, I'm at work now & we're heading out tonight so I probably won't have a chance until tomorrow evening.

Well, back to work.

CD

 

[C-pher]

Congrats. I can't wait to see it.

 

[dwarven1]

What's the difference between the 03 and the 03A3?

 

[C-pher]

Are you kidding?

Let's look at that.

03

Then we have

03A3

Looks like the difference is the A3 at the end.

Man, I can't believe that you can't see that. Some people.

 

[cdkayak]

Are you kidding?

Looks like the difference is the A3 at the end.

The '03 has a flip up rear sight that is in front of the receiver. The sight has very fine adjustments but can be a pain to adjust quickly since there are no detents. The '03A3 has a peep rear sight that is similar to the m-1 carbine, easier to adjust and on the back of the receiver so there is a longer sight radius.

Besides that there are a few other differences; angle of the bolt handle, milled versus stamped trigger guard & floor plate, & variations in the stock.

There's a picture of each on this page:
http://www.odcmp.com/Services/Rifles/m1903.htm

I'll see if I can dig up a good picture of the sights.

CD

ETA

This page has a good comparison of some of the variations:
http://www.labradorman.com/Guns/M1903A3_SPRINGFIELD.htm

My 03 has the stock that's on the A4 in that picture of all 4. The new 03A3 has the same stock as the A3 in the picture.

Sight comparison:

 

[dwarven1]

Ah... the labradorman site seems to have some good info. I'd looked at that page on the CMP site, but it seems to assume that the reader already knows what the difference is... and I don't, yet. Still learning.

 

[Shigma]

What's a good place to find an M1 garand? That CMP site seemed to offer them but you had to be part of their club? I'm a rookie so please bear with me.

 

[JonJ]

Read everything at the CP site http://www.odcmp.com/
And yes, you must have membership in one of their affiliated organizations. If I'm not mistaken many gun clubs may fit that bill. If not, you can join the Garand Collectors Association for $25 a year and that'll do.
I bought 2 Garands last year. Ask any and all questions. Everyone is here to help.
Jon

 

[Republic of Mass]

Im looking to get a project gun from them, but I'm a little intimidated.

Im on my own, as far as firearms, as none of my friends / family are really "into" them....

Maybe I'll take the plunge after christmas into a Garand or somethine else from them....

Any good resources for their products for newbies?

 

[JonJ]

Im looking to get a project gun from them, but I'm a little intimidated.

Im on my own, as far as firearms, as none of my friends / family are really "into" them....

Maybe I'll take the plunge after christmas into a Garand or somethine else from them....

Any good resources for their products for newbies?

CMP products? Their web site has it all. There's even a discussion board/forum. Some of the people that hang out there know their stuff.

 

[Shigma]

Read everything at the CP site http://www.odcmp.com/
And yes, you must have membership in one of their affiliated organizations. If I'm not mistaken many gun clubs may fit that bill. If not, you can join the Garand Collectors Association for $25 a year and that'll do.
I bought 2 Garands last year. Ask any and all questions. Everyone is here to help.
Jon

the club i'm looking to join is listed

 

[C-pher]

Read everything at the CP site http://www.odcmp.com/
And yes, you must have membership in one of their affiliated organizations. If I'm not mistaken many gun clubs may fit that bill. If not, you can join the Garand Collectors Association for $25 a year and that'll do.
I bought 2 Garands last year. Ask any and all questions. Everyone is here to help.
Jon

the club i'm looking to join is listed

If you belong to GOAL, you're eligible

 

[Len-2A Training]

Im looking to get a project gun from them, but I'm a little intimidated.

Im on my own, as far as firearms, as none of my friends / family are really "into" them....

Maybe I'll take the plunge after christmas into a Garand or somethine else from them....

Any good resources for their products for newbies?

Excuse me, what are we? Chopped Liver? [roll] [lol]

You've got shooting friends right here on this forum, that's what we are all about. If you or anyone needs advice/help/etc. we're all here to offer whatever knowledge we have.

Seriously, almost every club has some very serious M1 shooters or veterans that can field strip a gun blindfolded and backwards. Some folks here are also experts on the M1 (I am not one of them ).

Take a shot!

 

[cdkayak]

I'm sure there are several people here who can help you out on the Garands. I'm still relatively new to them myself, but I'm really enjoying learning about them and shooting.

Here's a link to the CMP Forum:
http://www.odcmp.org/new_forum/

Another great resource is Jouster's forum:
http://www.jouster.com/cgi-bin/guntalk/config.pl?

Our club has several historical matches each year where only rifles correct to the battle can be used. That's what sparked my interest in the Garand, 1903 & m-1 carbine.

Hopefully get some photos of the greasy 03A3 on here tonight, never got a chance last night.

CD

 

[KMaurer]

What's a good place to find an M1 garand? That CMP site seemed to offer them but you had to be part of their club? I'm a rookie so please bear with me.

Well, there's one more reason to join GOAL. Even if your current club doesn't happen to be affilliated with CMP, GOAL is.

Ken

 

[cdkayak]

Finally had time to resize & post the pics.

Hopefully I'll get some time this weekend to remove some more of the cosmoline, check the wood over thouroughly and see what the bore looks like. The action is smooth as silk.

CD

 

[JonJ]

Thanks for sharing, CD. Nice rifle.
The guy at work who I bought my M1A from had offered me a CMP 03A3 for $400. I was going to grab it but the finish was black, it was a Greek return and I didn't like the looks of it. I like yours much better.

 

[cdkayak]

Thanks, I'm happy with it, I do like the grey finish better as well. The front band with the bayo lug & the second band have a black finish, I'll probably replace those when I order a couple of parts I need to get. I'm just hoping it has a good bore. I'll find out soon.

CD

 

[JonJ]

Did you request the grey finish or was it luck of the draw?

 

[Nickle]

What's a good place to find an M1 garand? That CMP site seemed to offer them but you had to be part of their club? I'm a rookie so please bear with me.

Not THEIR club, but an affiliated club. You may already be a member of one.

Gun Owners Action League (GOAL) [Massachusetts]
Gun Owners of New Hampshire, Inc.
New York State Rifle & Pistol Assoc. Inc.
Vermont State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc.

All of the above qualify.

And here's a search page: http://clubs.odcmp.com/cgi-bin/clubSearchState.cgi

 

[cdkayak]

Did you request the grey finish or was it luck of the draw?

Pure luck of the draw.

 

[cdkayak]

What's a good place to find an M1 garand? That CMP site seemed to offer them but you had to be part of their club? I'm a rookie so please bear with me.

Not THEIR club, but an affiliated club. You may already be a member of one.

Gun Owners Action League (GOAL) [Massachusetts]
Gun Owners of New Hampshire, Inc.
New York State Rifle & Pistol Assoc. Inc.
Vermont State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc.

All of the above qualify.

And here's a search page: http://clubs.odcmp.com/cgi-bin/clubSearchState.cgi

If you don't already belong to an affiliated organization the best one, as far as ease is concerned, is probably the Garand Collectors Association. Link:http://www.garandcollector.org/

One of the clubs I belong to is affiliated so that was the easiest route for me.

ETA: link

 

[Nickle]

Yeah +1 on GCA. I'll be joining.

I almost forgot to say congrats on the Springfield.

 

[JonJ]

Well, the 03A3's are SOLD OUT.
I should have bought that Greek return for $400 when I had the chance, damn..... :x

 

[Dirigo]

Did you request the grey finish or was it luck of the draw?

Pure luck of the draw.

all 03A3s were parkerized

 

[JonJ]

But the Greeks refinished them in an unattractive black.

 

[cdkayak]

all 03A3s were parkerized

There were a variety of different parkerizing colors depending on when the rifle was built or when/where it was re-built. As JonJ said, some of the greek rebuilds had a very dark black parkerized finish. The barrel bands on mine look like they have that finish it and as well as some chips in the finish. There were also some reports of blued parts, but I haven't seen any myself.

CD

 

[JonJ]

Well I found an 03A3 [lol]. Not from the CMP of course (dummy for missing out). I should have it in a week or so.

 

[cdkayak]

That's great! Post some pics when you get it.

The end of the CMP 03A3s came up fast. At least you shouldn't have to clean off the cosmoline.

 

[JonJ]

That's great! Post some pics when you get it.

The end of the CMP 03A3s came up fast. At least you shouldn't have to clean off the cosmoline.

It's cleaned and the best part is it's a Smith Corona.