What's the value of this Smith Corona 1903 a3?

I have a very nice Rem 03A3. Had it re barreled with a new date correct Rem 2 groove barrel a few years ago. I really have no idea about a value but do want to say it is the nicest to shoot and most accurate cast bullet military rifle I own. Have shot inch and a half groups at 100 yds when my eyes were younger!

They are not common in Canada. I've only seen a couple others and they are for sale very occasionally on EE.
 
Old Ranger said:
I have a very nice Rem 03A3. Had it re barreled with a new date correct Rem 2 groove barrel a few years ago. I really have no idea about a value but do want to say it is the nicest to shoot and most accurate cast bullet military rifle I own. Have shot inch and a half groups at 100 yds when my eyes were younger!

They are not common in Canada. I've only seen a couple others and they are for sale very occasionally on EE.
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Wow sounds like you have a very nice Remington. You are right I have seen very few of them for sale on cgn. I was at a gunshow this morning and saw they had a nice Remington and were asking 2500 for it.
 
I would say 2000$ would definitely be the high side. Last really nice ones I saw for sale sold around the 1300-1500$ mark. That being said it is hard to find excellent condition milsurps of any flavour, and as such they do demand a good premium.
 
Value depends on condition and originality. From what we see in the pics this looks to be an original SC in nice shape. Any non SC parts would be stamped withe the letter "R" to indicate Remington made parts. SC made the fewest number of 03A3s. With a nice bore the rifle should get $1400-$1500.
 
I agree with Purple on value. I can guaranty that rifle was issued at sometime & refinished. It could have been an arsenal refinish or done privately.

Stamps could all be found commercially at one time. Hard to say without seeing it 1st hand. Great piece either way!!!
 
DANCESWITHEMPTIES said:
I agree with Purple on value. I can guaranty that rifle was issued at sometime & refinished. It could have been an arsenal refinish or done privately.

Stamps could all be found commercially at one time. Hard to say without seeing it 1st hand. Great piece either way!!!
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You are correct. It has an OG mark which I researched means that it had a refurb at the Ogden arsenal. I also read that many were stamped even though they had no work done to them.
 
Smith Corona used barrels made by High Standard, but marked SC, for their 03A3s. High Standard also made replacement M1903 barrels which are marked HS. The High Standard barrels are excellent shooters.

I recently built 2 03A3s on SC receivers using NOS Remington 2 groove barrels. I've never seen a NOS 03A3 replacement barrel other than Remington.
 
purple said:
Smith Corona used barrels made by High Standard, but marked SC, for their 03A3s. High Standard also made replacement M1903 barrels which are marked HS. The High Standard barrels are excellent shooters.

I recently built 2 03A3s on SC receivers using NOS Remington 2 groove barrels. I've never seen a NOS 03A3 replacement barrel other than Remington.
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Oh awesome. I love this rifle. It shoots and groups fantastically. The barell on this one is marked sc so it is most likely the original barell. It's within the same time frame as the serial number
 
I have an immaculate 1943 Smith Corona 03-A3 with all markings and cartouche' intact. I'm sure it was arsenal refinished and then unissued as there are no flaws in either wood or metal. The phosphine is perfect. I was offered $1900 and I'm sure the potential buyer would have gone higher if I had shown any inclination to sell. However a firearm is only worth what someone will pay for it and if I put it up for sale now I'm not sure if I would get $1500 for it. As Philthy1 said it's a small market in Canada for these as there is no military tradition with them here. My Springfield will eventually be owned by one of my boys.
 
I found a SC 03 A3 a few years ago and it had the stock hacked off at the barrel band.
I mean cut and attempted rounding of the stock with a hatchet, no joke.
The gun was in the same condition as the one you have in the picture.
It nearly brought a tear to my eye.
I found a replacement stock but not a SC stock with the cartouches like the ones forward of the mag well.
Still looking for the proper stock in new condition.
 
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Dr. Gonzo said:
I have an immaculate 1943 Smith Corona 03-A3 with all markings and cartouche' intact. I'm sure it was arsenal refinished and then unissued as there are no flaws in either wood or metal. The phosphine is perfect. I was offered $1900 and I'm sure the potential buyer would have gone higher if I had shown any inclination to sell. However a firearm is only worth what someone will pay for it and if I put it up for sale now I'm not sure if I would get $1500 for it. As Philthy1 said it's a small market in Canada for these as there is no military tradition with them here. My Springfield will eventually be owned by one of my boys.
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Really eh. That's great. Do you have any pictures of your smith corona by any chance? It's the only other one I've heard about in Canada. I was reading that many 1903a3's were never issued because they were made close to the end of the war and didn't make it to the front in time. Despite not seeing use they still visited the arsenal and revived a refurb mark on the stock like mine. Don't know if that is true or not
 
albayo said:
I found a SC 03 A3 a few years ago and it had the stock hacked off at the barrel band.
I mean cut and attempted rounding of the stock with a hatchet, no joke.
The gun was in the same condition as the one you have in the picture.
It nearly brought a tear to my eye.
I found a replacement stock but not a SC stock with the cartouches like the ones forward of the mag well.
Still looking for the proper stock in new condition.
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It's always sad seeing such a beautiful rifle destroyed by bubba. I'm sure the stock it's in now looks much better then it had before. Keep your eyes out on eBay. I've seen a few 1903 stocks on there in the past
 
Remington made the majority of 03A3s with slightly more than 700,000 built. Smith Corona built a bit more than 234, 000. Over the years I've found 03A3s less common than M1903s, but they can be found.

If doing a restoration of a SC the hardest parts to find are original stocks and barrels. I've never seen a SC 03A3 barrel on the loose, but Remingtons can be found in NOS condition. Remington parts are much more common and are interchangeable with SC parts. Military maintenence and overhaul procedures used any 03A3 parts regardless of maker.
 
purple said:
Remington made the majority of 03A3s with slightly more than 700,000 built. Smith Corona built a bit more than 234, 000. Over the years I've found 03A3s less common than M1903s, but they can be found.

If doing a restoration of a SC the hardest parts to find are original stocks and barrels. I've never seen a SC 03A3 barrel on the loose, but Remingtons can be found in NOS condition. Remington parts are much more common and are interchangeable with SC parts. Military maintenence and overhaul procedures used any 03A3 parts regardless of maker.
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Fairly small production numbers combined. I wonder how many have survived!
 
purple said:
Remington made the majority of 03A3s with slightly more than 700,000 built. Smith Corona built a bit more than 234, 000. Over the years I've found 03A3s less common than M1903s, but they can be found.

If doing a restoration of a SC the hardest parts to find are original stocks and barrels. I've never seen a SC 03A3 barrel on the loose, but Remingtons can be found in NOS condition. Remington parts are much more common and are interchangeable with SC parts. Military maintenence and overhaul procedures used any 03A3 parts regardless of maker.
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Purple do you know if there's any truth to what I read in regards to some never were issued because they were made close to the end of the war but they still made a trip to the arsenal, were inspected and stamped as if they were refurbed?
 
Bruce Canfield alludes to this arsenal inspection process in his book on the Springfield. A good number of 03A3s probably went unissued as there were sufficient of the preferred M1 Garand and other small arms available for issue to troops in the field by 1944 when 03A3 production finished. A lot of M1903s and 03A3s were disposed of through military aid and DCM sales to NRA members in the post-WW2 period.
 
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