Gary Cooper's "second" sporterized M1903 - pictures

[Fred]

Is the receiver double or single heat treated?

[Bhauer]

I don't know how to tell the difference. How can you tell if it's one or the other?

[jgaynor]

Unless the original serial number is still legible it would be difficult to determine with certainty. Some of the custom builders like R. F. Sedgley re-heat treated low numbered receivers. I don't know if G&H did this as well but their archivist might know. Naturally the small number of "burned" receivers would have been beyond salvage.

In this case the rifle gets the major portion of its value by virtue of who built it and who it belonged to.

[Bhauer]

The only serial number is Griffin & Howe's 4 digit number. The rifle was made in 1936 but I don't think that will tell me anything.

[RickM]

Omg yet another thing to obsess about that i can never have lol

[Bhauer]

I've been a little obsessed with it since I got it. I'm always on the Internet trying to find out more about Gary Cooper and his hunting and shooting habits. One of the most interesting things I discovered was Cooper was good friends and hunting buddies with Earnest Hemingway. I would guess at least at some point Hemingway had his hands on this rifle. I keep searching for more photos hoping one will turn up with Earnest Hemingway and Cooper together with the rifle. Hemingway's favorite hunting rifle was also a 30-06 Griffin & Howe. There are a lot of photos of him with that. Hemingway's Guns is a good book if anyone is interested.

[Fred]

I'll bet that Earnest had shouldered the rifle and even fired it.

[Bhauer]

I like to think so. The rifle was originally chambered for 220 swift. I wonder if it was Cooper that had it re-bored at some point to 30-06 because of Earnest Hemingway's love of his Griffin & Howe 30-06. The record at Griffin & Howe shows Cooper bringing the rifle back to their shop in the same year it was sold, 1936, for a repair or modification. It may be possible it was rechambered at that time. Or, possibly to mount the Zeiss scope which is still on the rifle today. No way to know. Their records don't specify the reason firearms were brought back in to the shop.
When I look through the scope I like to imagine Gary Cooper and Earnest Hemingway shouldering the rifle and looking through optics.
I love the Griffin & Howe QD scope mount. The rifle is super accurate with both the Lyman peep sight and with the scope. I am planning on hunting deer and Elk with it next fall.

[Fred]

Wow, I know you'll enjoy That!
Have you been able to identify the rifle with an identical scope on it in any photo's?

[Bhauer]

Yes. The two photos of Gary Cooper holding the rifle have the identical scope. I'm almost 100% positive it's the same scope.