4,87x,xxx SC rifle question

[IditarodJoe]

As I understand it, in October of 1943 Smith-Corona made an error in numbering upward of 5000 1903A3 rifles. I found this information on Vi Shooter's M1903 Page (http://www.vishooter.net/SC3.txt). On rifles whose serial numbers should have been in the 4780189 - 4784296 range the second and third digits were apparently reversed. An S-C that I bought from the CMP in 2007 is one of those - 487021x. Like most of the ten examples listed in Vi Shooter's receiver/barrel correlation list, mine has an SC 8-43 dated barrel.

My question is, what other references to this numbering error exist? Have other authors written about it? Has any mention of it been found in factory or government records? Just curious to know how well documented this is. Thanks.

[John Beard]

Yes, other authors have referenced it, including Clark Campbell and perhaps Bruce Canfield. But they mistakenly assumed that Smith-Corona, to reach that serial range, had made upwards of 30,000 spare receivers past S/N 4845000 (approximate last serial number) which were unaccounted for in government records. Studies have conclusively shown, however, that the unusually high serial numbers resulted from a serializing error as you describe.

J.B.

[IditarodJoe]

Thank you, John. I appreciate your reply. It would seem logical then that there would not be any properly serialized receivers in the 4780189 - 4784296 range (assuming that there was just one station for stamping the serial numbers).

[John Beard]

Your logic is in error. Smith-Corona caught the serializing error, went back, and resumed serializing where they left off. So the gap you suggest does not exist.

One can reasonably assume that, when Smith-Corona reached the S/N 4870000 range, they would have skipped the previously-used numbers. But alas, production was suspended before they got there.

J.B.

[IditarodJoe]

Interesting choice on their part. (For my "Needle in a Haystack" file: Somewhere out there may still lurk the 478 s/n variant of my 487 rifle!) Do you know if anyone is currently attempting to add to Vi Shooter's "Serial Number/Barrel Date Lists"? As the release of those rifles to the public slips further and further into the past, the opportunity to capture that data is fading. We should certainly be grateful for the information that has been gathered thus far.

As always, John, thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[Rick the Librarian]

I may be mistaken, but I don't think ViShooter has worked on those tables for some time.

[John Beard]

Interesting choice on their part. (For my "Needle in a Haystack" file: Somewhere out there may still lurk the 478 s/n variant of my 487 rifle!) Do you know if anyone is currently attempting to add to Vi Shooter's "Serial Number/Barrel Date Lists"? As the release of those rifles to the public slips further and further into the past, the opportunity to capture that data is fading. We should certainly be grateful for the information that has been gathered thus far.

As always, John, thanks for sharing your knowledge.

A more interesting duplicate serial number variant is the Smith-Corona/Remington serial number overlap beginning at S/N 3708000. The Smith-Corona rifles were subsequently stamped with a C-prefix to the serial number.

J.B.

[m1903rifle]

I more interesting duplicate serial number variant is the Smith-Corona/Remington serial number overlap beginning at S/N 3708000. The Smith-Corona rifles were subsequently stamped with a C-prefix to the serial number.

J.B.

Do you mean like this ?:

[John Beard]

Yes! Now find the Remington with the same serial number.

Thanks for sharing.

J.B.

[Major Tom]

WOW! Sure alot of' Xs' in original post. I always wonder why people do that. Not that I'm being critical tho.