Ross Rifle M10....questions

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fd4413

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Hey everyone,
I'm a newbie here and have a couple of questions. I was handed down a Ross m10 from my grandfather. It has a serial number (on the bolt) of LU 424. Wikipedia says... rifles with the "LU" in front of the number means they were manufactured as a "sniper rifle" in 1917. There is also a marking on top of the barrel (other than the "Ross Rifle Company Canada M10") that looks like 2 flags crossed like an X. At the top, looks like a crown, and then going clockwise from the top, there is a C, then a P (at the bottom), and then a D (to the left). Can anyone give me any info on this gun?? Even if it's general info...would love to have it!

Thanks,
Adam
 
Go to milsurps.com. there is a photo study of a genuine Mk. III sniper rifle with WS scope.
Does your rifle have any scope mounting holes?
Photos of your rifle would really help.
 
Here are a couple pics...sorry...still figuring out how to post pics on here!

ross3_zps8bb4b4e6.jpg

ross2_zps5ed9cdab.jpg

ross_zps96bbeb28.jpg
 
When made, issue Rosses were serialized on the right side of the butt. There will be a combination of a number, a date, and letters. Bolts were normally not numbered.
The rear sight is not standard service issue.
Do you have any more photos?
 
The rifle is sported, of course. The rear sight is a one made up for hunting. The bolt is pinned to prevent disassembly, a WW2 modification. There were more Rosses than Lee enfields in Cdn. stores in 1939; they were used for training. The original stock numbers were lost when the stock was cut down and refinished.
How is the bore? If it is respectable, the rifle should shoot very well.
 
So what are the markings? ie- the crossed flags/ letters? I've actually followed a step by step and have completely disassembled the gun and cleaned it. What do you mean by the bolt is pinned? should i not have been able to disassemble it? You reffered to a mIII earlier...is that the same at a M10? thanks for all your insight thus far..very informative. Oh...and I've never shot the gun. I've been told is a 303....does that sound right?
 
The only thing we can say about the rifle for certain so far is that it didn't go back to the UK in WWII as most of them did, as it has no UK proof marks, only the original Canadian proof mark.

The chamber is enlarged to standard dimensions, and thus marked "E"

The Wikipedia article is wrong about the "LU" marking, it was not "U" but another letter. One of many mistakes in that article.

Some Rosses were used for sniping without scopes, but in those cases the sniper used the standard military backsight, or his own target sight if he had one that would fit.

Someone has gone to a bit of trouble to make up that peep sight, but it isn't much lower than the standard one, and you have no scope bases or holes so it wasn't put on to improve the scope clearance.

We need some more photos as Tiriaq says, especially the butt markings.
 
What do you mean by the chamber has been enlarged? does that mean it's a 303? how can i tell? also...in one pic you can see that i'm pointing to a "tab" that folds down...does anyone know what this is for?
also....where there is no scope bases or holes...does that mean it won't support a scope?
 
fd4413 said:
What do you mean by the chamber has been enlarged? does that mean it's a 303? how can i tell? also...in one pic you can see that i'm pointing to a "tab" that folds down...does anyone know what this is for?
also....where there is no scope bases or holes...does that mean it won't support a scope?
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The Ross MkIII chambers were made .002" under the standard British size originally. This was later changed to the standard dimension by reaming out the chambers. The "E" mark indicates a rifle that was reamed out or built with the standard dimension.

The "tab" is the bolt stop. You have the early pattern there which is a little odd for a 1917 rifle it seems to me. That early type were found not to have a large enough contact area with the left rear bolthead 'tooth' or 'thread' so an enlarged type was fitted that did not have the overhanging 'lip' where you see those grooves.

You seemed to think it might have a sniping history of some kind, so that was the issue I was addressing with the other comments. If you had holes or bases in the right places combined with that lower profile sight, there would be a chance this was a sniping rifle. Most of the Rosses used for sniping were converted in France from regular run-of-the-mill Ross MkIIIs. The Ross was accurate enough that selection of rifles wasn't necessary. Nor would it have been practical after the rifles left the factory.

I guess you know that that you have the remains of the original sight bridge there that someone has cut off and modified into a sort of sight arm?

Unfortunately the top of the bolt handle has been rather crudely filed down for clearance. I can't see any reason for that unless they wanted to slightly bend that arm with the sight on it down a bit to get it zeroed. That would save having to get a higher front sight blade if you wanted to raise the point of aim.

The "308" and "923/1" on the barrel and butt are probably unit numbers put on to help control the issue of rifles. The lack of serial numbers on the metal was one bizarre feature of the military Rosses that I have never seen explained, unless it reflected a belief that the parts were made so accurately as to be completely interchangeable between rifles.

The number stamped on the bolt may have been put on when the numbers in the stock were sanded off. It looks like it was done a long time ago.
 
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There are no butt markings (anymore at least). The only markings left on the gun are in the previous pictures. Would I just take it to a gun smith to ensure that it is a 303? Thanks for all the useful info!! love learning stuff about this gun.
 
oh....and i've never put 2 and 2 together...but the stamp of "308" on the barrell....does that mean it's a 308?? haha
and ONE MORE question lol...can this gun have a scope fitted to it?
 
fd4413 said:
oh....and i've never put 2 and 2 together...but the stamp of "308" on the barrell....does that mean it's a 308?? haha
and ONE MORE question lol...can this gun have a scope fitted to it?
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Merely a coincidence I think.

You could fit a scope, but it would require either a custom made sleeve soldered to the barrel or receiver or drilling & tapping. Neither of which I would recommend.
 
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It really would not be economically feasible to have a scope fitted to this rifle. By the time a gunsmith was finished fabricating a mount, and even a moderately priced scope bought, it would cost you about twice what the rifle is worth. There are better and easier rifles to scope if you desire a scoped rifle.
 
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The "0" between the 3 and the 8 on the barrel is an Inspector's mark. Note the small Crown.

The "Tab" you are pointing to is a magazine cut off. It has three positions, one for letting the cartridges in the magazine feed into the rifle, one to disassemble and take the bolt out of the rifle, and the third so you can load and fire single shots, one at a time, while keeping the full magazine in reserve for emergencies.
 
buffdog said:
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The "0" between the 3 and the 8 on the barrel is an Inspector's mark. Note the small Crown.
Click to expand...

I think that's a separate mark buffdog. I see a 308 with the small mark you mention next to the bigger 0 of the 308.

Interesting how the 308 is stamped so that it would be right way up if the rifle was stored muzzle down.

Ross did make a rifle holder that screwed into the floor into which the rifle's muzzle was placed. There must have been some kind of rack to hold the buttstocks obviously. The thinking behind that must have been that any fluids in the barrel would then drain out the muzzle instead of running down into the bolt and over the stock.
 
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How is the bore? Dark? Shot out with no rifling? Or shiny, deep rifling, like new?

It's almost certainly still in .303.

With the pinned bolt, you pretty much can't go wrong re bolt assembly, but still check it before firing it. Just search Ross Bolt with the search function set to 36 months.
 
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