M1903 Springfield

The Springfield M1903 was the first service rifle to be adopted by all branches of the United States Armed Forces. It is a Mauser-style turnbolt action with a 24" barrel, 5-round staggered-column box magazine contained within the stock, and straight-grip single-piece stock. It fired the new high-velocity .30-'06 caliber cartridge which would become the standard US rifle and machine-gun round for the next 50 years.

Springfield M1903 Mk 1 - .30-06

Closeup detail of the M1903 Springfield above - this model is receiver cut for a Pederson Device.

Springfield M1903 Transitional (pre-WW2) issue - .30-06

Development

During the Spanish-American War, US Army troops in Cuba found their Krag-Jørgensen rifles severely outmatched by the Spanish Army's M1893 Mauser rifle. The high-velocity and flat trajectory of the 7x57mm cartridge compared to the .30-40 Krag made the Spanish rifle more accurate, and the Mauser design allowed for immediate reloading of the entire magazine via stripper clips, whereas the Krag could only be loaded singly. This gave the Spanish a decisive advantage in rate-of-fire. A more powerful .30-40 cartridge was developed in 1899, but generated too much chamber pressure for the rifle to withstand repeated firings. It was decided that an entirely new rifle was needed. Thousands of M1893 rifles -surrendered by Spanish troops in Cuba- were returned to the US and extensively studied at Springfield Armory, where it was decided that the Mauser was the superior design. A prototype rifle was produced in 1900; interestingly, it was very similar to Rifle No.5, the final M1892 Mauser prototype in the US Army rifle trials of 1892. This design was rejected, and a new design combining features of the 1898 Krag rifle and the 1893 Spanish Mauser was developed.

Design

The new M1901 prototype combined the cock-on-opening bolt, 30" barrel, magazine cutoff, stock and sights of the Krag-Jørgensen with the dual locking lugs, external claw extractor, and staggered-column magazine of the 1893 Mauser. Taking a cue from the Gewehr 98, a large safety lug was added to the side of the bolt behind the extractor, which would engage the receiver bridge and prevent the bolt moving rearwards. The bolt handle was also bent downwards, to make operation of the bolt faster. It fired an entirely new .30 caliber cartridge, which propelled a 220gr round-nosed bullet at 2,300ft/s. The design was unsuccessful, however, and returned to the drawing board for further improvements.

Following then-current trends in service rifles, the barrel was shortened to 24" after it was discovered that a longer barrel offered no appreciable ballistic advantage, and the shorter barrel was lighter and easier to handle. This "short rifle" also eliminated the need of a shorter carbine for mounted troops or cavalry. A spike-type bayonet with storage in the forend of the stock was added to the design, and the new design was officially adopted as the United States Rifle, Caliber .30, Model 1903.

Almost immediately it underwent two important modifications. In 1905, with 80,000 rifles aready produced, then-US President Theodore Roosevelt ordered the spike bayonet redesigned; he believed it was too flimsy for combat. A conventional blade-type bayonet, the M1905, replaced it and all rifles already produced were retrofitted for the new bayonet. The .30-'03 cartridge was also troublesome; the bullet caused excessive wear on the rifling, and the round-nosed bullet was aerodynamically inefficient. A new cartridge, propelling a 150gr spitzer bullet at 2,700 ft/s (820 m/s) with improved propellant and redesigned case was approved in 1906, becoming the ubiquitous .30-'06. All existing rifles were re-chambered and re-sighted for the new cartridge.

The M1903 Springfield has appeared in the following movies, television shows and video games used by the following actors:

Specifications

• Weight: 8.65 lb (3.9 kg) depending on wood density
• Length: 44.9 in (1,140 mm)
• Barrel length: 24 in (610 mm)
• Cartridge: .30-03 Springfield; .30-06 Springfield
• Action: Bolt-action
• Muzzle velocity: 2,800 ft/s (853 m/s)
• Feed system: 5-round, 25-round(Air Service variant) stripper clip, internal box magazine
• Sights: Leaf rear sight, barleycorn-type front sight
• M1903A3: Aperture rear sight, barleycorn-type front sight

Film

Actor	Character	Title	Note	Date
Leonardo DiCaprio	US Marshal Teddy Daniels	Shutter Island		2009
	Prison Guards	Shutter Island		2009
	US Army soldiers	Public Enemies		2009
	Prison guards	Public Enemies		2009
	Vigilante	Public Enemies		2009
Tim Blake Nelson	Mr. Theopolis	Fido		2006
	US Army soldiers	Fido		2006
	Zomcon guards	Fido		2006
	Cuban rebels	The Lost City		2005
	US Army soldiers	King Kong		2005
	US military personnel	Pearl Harbor		2001
	US military honor guard	Clear and Present Danger	With metal parts chromed	1994
Gary Sinise	Lt. Dan Taylor's ancestor	Forrest Gump		1994
	Kent Military School students	Child's Play 3		1991
Lee Marvin	Private Possum	The Big Red One		1980
	Vigilantes	Dillinger		1973
	Texas Rangers	Big Jake		1971
	French soldier	Two Mules for Sister Sara		1970
Steve McQueen	Jake Holman	The Sand Pebbles		1966
Richard Attenborough	Frenchy Burgoyne	The Sand Pebbles		1966
	Mexican soldiers	The Professionals		1966
	Rebels	The Professionals		1966
	South American soldier	The FBI Story		1959
	US Navy sailor	A Bullet For Joey		1955
	Mexican soldiers and rebels	Viva Zapata!		1952
Ward Bond	Bert the cop	It's a Wonderful Life		1946
	US Army soldier	The Story of G.I. Joe		1945
John Wayne	Lt. JG 'Rusty' Ryan	They Were Expendable		1945
	US Navy sailor	They Were Expendable		1945
Robert Taylor	Sgt. Bill Dane	Bataan		1943
Thomas Mitchell	Cpl. Jake Feingold	Bataan		1943
Barry Nelson	F.X. Matowski	Bataan		1943
Louis Mercier	Jean 'Frenchie' Leroux	Sahara		1943
	German soldiers	Sahara		1943
Gary Cooper	Sgt. Alvin York	Sergeant York		1941
James Cagney	Private Jerry Plunkett	The Fighting 69th		1940
Jeffrey Lynn	Sgt. Joyce Kilmer	The Fighting 69th		1940
James Cagney	Eddie Bartlett	The Roaring Twenties		1939
Humphrey Bogart	George Hally	The Roaring Twenties		1939
Jeffrey Lynn	Lloyd	The Roaring Twenties		1939
	Army National Guard soldiers	Each Dawn I Die		1939

Television

Actor	Character	Show Title / Episode	Note	Air Date
Hugh Quarshie	Solomon	Doctor Who / "Daleks iin Manhattan"		2005 - ????
	Hooverville citizens	Doctor Who / "Daleks in Manhattan"		2005 - ????

Video Games

Game Title	Appears as	Mods	Notation	Release Date
Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven				2002
Forgotten Hope				2003
Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth				2005
Call of Duty: World at War				2008
7554				2011
Hidden & Dangerous 2				2003

Animation

Film/TV Show	Actor	Character	Note	Date
The Iron Giant		US Army soldiers		1999

M1903A1 Springfield Rifle

M1903A1 Springfield - .30-06

M1903A1 Springfield sniper rifle with 7.8x Unertl scope - .30-06

M1903A1 Springfield sniper rifle with 7.8x Unertl scope - .30-06

The M1903A1 Springfield has appeared in the following movies, television shows and video games used by the following actors:

Film

Actor	Character	Title	Note	Date
.	.	Best Seller	.	1987
MSgt. Tom Minder	US Marine sniper	Letters from Iwo Jima	With 8x Unertl scope	2006

Television

Actor	Character	Title	Note	Date
	US Marine Sniper	The Pacific	With 8x Unertl scope	2010

Video Game

Game Title	Appears as	Note	Release Date
Forgotten Hope 2			2005
Heroes & Generals	Springfield M1903	onli scoped	2012

M1903A3 Rifle

Remington M1903A3 rifle .30-'06

An M1903A3 Rifle manufactured by Remington Arms for use during World War II. Note the C-type pistol-grip stock - .30-'06

Anticipation of American involvement in World War II lead to the US War Department contracting with Remington Arms and Smith-Corona Typewriter Company to produce M1903 rifles to supplement production of the M1 Garand. Remington began production at serial #3,000,000 in September 1941 using old tooling from Rock Island Arsenal put in storage in 1919. As the older tooling wore out, Remington replaced unnecessary milled parts with stamped replacements, which helped to simplify and speed up production. By serial #3,330,000 the design had been modified so much that it was decided to give the model a new designation, United States Rifle, Caliber .30, Model of 1903-A3. In October 1942 Smith-Corona began production of the M1903A3 in Syracuse, New York. Smith-Corona rifles were produced using a number of subcontractors, primarily barrels made by High-Standard Manufacturing and Savage Arms. Production of the M1903A3 ended February 12, 1944 when production of M1 Garand rifles was deemed sufficient for the war effort.

The M1903A3 was extensively used by Allied forces in World War II; it was the primary battle rifle of the 1st Brazilian Infantry Division in Italy, and was extensively used by Free French forces after August 1943. It would see action with postwar French forces in Indochina and Algeria.

The M1903A3 Springfield has appeared in the following movies, television shows and video games used by the following actors:

Film

Actor	Character	Title	Note	Date
Jared Swartout	U.S. Army officer	Ironweed	.	1987
.	US Army soldiers	Dillinger	.	1973
Ben Johnson	Tector	The Wild Bunch	.	1969
Strother Martin	Coffer	The Wild Bunch	.	1969
.	US Army soldiers	The Wild Bunch	.	1969
.	Mexican Army soldiers	The Wild Bunch	.	1969
.	US Army Soldiers	Battle of the Bulge	.	1965
.	Police officer	Badlands	.	1973
.	US Army soldiers	Courage Under Fire	With metal parts chromed	1996

Television

Actor	Character	Show Title / Episode	Note	Air Date
Keith Nobbs	PFC Wilbur 'Runner' Conley	The Pacific		2010
Joshua Biton	Sgt. J.P. Morgan	The Pacific		2010
Josh Helman	Lew 'Chuckler' Juergens	The Pacific		2010
Tom Budge	PFC Ronnie Gibson	The Pacific		2010
Sam Parsonson	Pvt. William LaPointe	The Pacific		2010
	US Marines	The Pacific		2010

Video Game

Game Title	Appears as	Mods	Notation	Release Date
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault			With scope	2002
Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault			With & without scope	2004
World War II Online: Battleground Europe			Released with 1.34 update	2011

M1903A4 Springfield Sniper Rifle

M1903A4 Springfield sniper variant with M84 scope - .30-06

M1903A4 Springfield sniper variant (Remington markings) without scope - .30-06

The M1903A4 Springfield Sniper Rifle has appeared in the following movies, television shows and video games used by the following actors:

Film

Actor	Character	Title	Note	Date
Barry Pepper	Pvt. Daniel Jackson	Saving Private Ryan		1998
	South Korean soldier	Tae Guk Gi	With scope removed	2004

Video Games

Game Title	Appears as	Mods	Notation	Release Date
Commandos 2: Men of Courage	"M1903 .30-06"			2001
Commandos 3: Destination Berlin	"Allied Sniper Rifle"			2003
Call of Duty				2003
Forgotten Hope				2003
Call of Duty: United Offensive				2004
Call of Duty: Finest Hour				2004
Call of Duty 2				2005
Call of Duty 2: Big Red One				2005
Call of Duty 3				2006
Call of Duty: World at War				2008
Hour of Victory				2007
Far Cry 2			Incorrectly shown loaded with a stripper clip inserted into the bottom of the weapon	2008
Forgotten Hope 2				2005
Medal of Honor				1999
Medal of Honor: Frontline				2002
Medal of Honor: Rising Sun				2003
Medal of Honor: Airborne				2007
Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30				2005
Resident Evil 4		With upgradable scope	Inaccurately chambered in .223 Remington	2005
Silent Storm				2003
Day of Defeat				2004
Day of Defeat: Source				2010
World War II Online: Battleground Europe			released with 1.34 update	2011

Anime

Character	Film Title	Note	Date
	Mayoi Neko Overrun!		2010
Lemure sniper	Baccano!		2007
	Hanasaku Iroha		2011

Sporterized M1903 Springfield

The M1903 and its descendants have long been popular as the basis for custom hunting/target rifles. Famous gunsmith Reginald F. Sedgely and the sporting house of Griffin & Howe (in business since 1923) are two of the most well known makers not to mention the thousands of self-taught hobbyists working in their basements and garages over the past one hundred years.

M1903A4 Springfield Sporter Rifles have appeared in the following movies, television shows and video games used by the following actors:

Sporterized M1903 with Weaver telescope.

A Griffin & Howe M1903 Sporter with iron sights.

Springfield M1903 in a Mannlicher Schönauer Carbine stock - .30-'06 This is the screen used rifle (and sling) carried and used by Don Johnson in A Boy and His Dog.The same rifle was also used in The Book of Eli (2010).

Film

Actor	Character	Title	Note	Date
	Town guard	The Book of Eli	Same sporterized rifle as used in A Boy and His Dog (1975)	2010
	Colony Resident	The Howling	Griffin & Howe	1981
Robert Shaw	Maj. David Kabakov	Black Sunday	Scoped	1977
Don Johnson	Vic	A Boy and His Dog	Customized with Mannlicher Schönauer Carbine (Stutzen) stock	1975