1903a4 redfield base

[jgaynor]

what barrel date have you seen on this late of a rifle? Notice the small ping at the 3 o'clock position in the picture with the front sight portion still in place. I bet the gun was an old dmc release that didn't have a base and someone added the sights to shoot, after all I wouldnt call a finishing nail left in the white armory work...haha. Also, what doesn't S.A. "O" mean?

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Virtually all the examples of 499XXXX M1903A4s have December 43 or January 44 Barrels. Barrels that date much later in 44 (May, August etc.) typically have other indications of a rebuild. I do have one rifle in the data, 4995408, with an August 43 barrel. That record came from one of peter Senich's reference books on USMC snipers.

The "SA/O" is a rebuild mark of Springfield Arsenal with "O" being the initial of the inspector.

I have no idea why the counterbore for the head of the mounting screw would have been changed. I suspect the front screw was an ill-fitting civilian replacement.