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Hi all,

I have the chance to purchase a M1903 MS. This is full wood and has been converted to 308. The asking price is $1450 Australian and the owner tells me it is pre war production. Stock looks to be well used but action looks in good order. All this from photos.

Please educate me on any pitfalls to look for and would the asking price be reasonable. Also can these actions be easily scoped and what sort of scope mounts would I need to look at.

Thanks in advance.

Greg

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When you say "converted", do you mean re-bored or re-barreled?

Is the rifle a genuine MS 1903 sporter? If it is/was, it will have 'Patant Mannlicher Schoenauer M. 1903' stamped into the steel on top of the front receiver ring.

Do all the parts to the receiver and magazine have a matching number? They should.

When buying MS rifles be aware that it is not uncommon to find military Mannlichers that are passed-off as genuine MS sporting rifles.

And finally the price. I'd have thought $1450 'Ocker' is quite a lot to pay for a heavily modified rifle of this type; particularly as this one doesn't sound in great condition. And as others have noted above, the mags in these rifles are specific to the chambering. The rifle may feed ammo perfectly (if the conversion was done by a good G/smith) or it may not. I would absolutely insist on seeing see first hand evidence that it actually feeds smoothly. There is a very good chance that is doesn't. Again, to my way of thinking, the rifle sounds very expensive for what it is. I'd be inclined to give it a miss and keep looking.

Edited by lonewulf (26/04/16 08:50 PM)

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