Since the late 1870s, the Army had been looking for a replacement for the existing service rifle of the average soldier, the trap-door Springfield (i.e. The situation from which the 1903 resulted itself stems from a previous period going back nearly thirty years. was adopting a new rifle after only a few years was not actually much of an oddity, as many nations were switching to new firearms in this general period. It was around the same time that work on a new rifle began. A stripper-clip arrangement was also worked out for loading the Krag. Army attempted to introduce a higher-velocity cartridge in 1899 for the existing Krags, but its single locking lug on the bolt could not handle the extra chamber pressure. troops were greatly impressed, however, with the volume of fire that the Spanish troops could produce with their faster-loading Mausers, compared to the U.S. The smokeless powder used by both was an advantage over the older black-powder rifles still used in the war (on both sides of the conflict), such as issued to volunteers and the local militia.U.S. Both cartridges had round-nosed bullets pointed, streamlined bullets (spitzers) were later introduced by Germany. 30-40 Krag and the 7 x 57 mm Mauser rounds were actually not that much different.
REPRODUCTION 1873 SPRINGFIELD TRAPDOOR RIFLE FOR SALE TRIAL
Also, the Mauser model in the trial had about the same muzzle velocity as the Krag.Īfter the Krag's adoption, however, there was a trend to greater cartridge power, such as the Model 1893 Spanish Mauser, which generated a flatter trajectory, and a higher muzzle velocity (about 2300 ft/s) from the 7 x 57 mm Spanish Mauser cartridge. Note that a special sort of stripper clip for reloading the Krag magazine all at once came later. What is known is that the Mauser design that competed in the 1890s competition with a stripper clip magazine was defeated by the Krag (as well as many other designs) with its rotary magazine reloaded one cartridge at a time. Which of these was more important is a matter of debate, as is the impact of the Mausers encountered in the 1898 Spanish American War. The two main problems usually cited with the Krag were its slow-to-load magazine and its inability to handle higher chamber pressures for higher-velocity rounds. While the Krag had been issued in both a long rifle and carbine, there would be only one Springfield type this was a break from the existing trend. Navy and Marine Corps, as well as the remaining trap-door Springfields (Model 1870). The M1903 not only replaced the various versions of the Krag, but also the Lee Model 1895 and M1885 Remington-Lee used by the U.S. Models 1892-98 Krag and contemporary German Mauser bolt-action rifles. The 1903 adoption of the Springfield bolt-action was preceded by nearly 30 years of struggle and politics, as well as lessons learned from the recently adopted U.S. Furthermore, it remains in use as a civilian firearm and among some drill teams. It was also used as a sniper rifle in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. The M1903 saw notable use in World War I and World War II, and some cases in Vietnam. It was officially adopted as a United States military service rifle on June 19th 1903, and was officially replaced as a service rifle by the faster-firing, semi-automatic M1 Garand, starting in 1936. 30, Model 1903, is an American magazine-fed, bolt-action rifle used primarily during the first half of the 20th century. Number= |The Springfield M1903, formally the United States Rifle, Caliber. "M1903A3": Aperture rear sight, barleycorn-type front sight Sights= Leaf rear sight, barleycorn-type front sight
Part_length= convert|24|in|mm|0|abbr=on|lk=onįeed= 5-round, 25-round(Air Service variant) stripper clip, internal box magazine Weight= ~ convert|8.7|lb|kg|1|abbr=on|lk=on depending on wood density Velocity= convert| 2800|ft/s|0|lk=on|sp=us|abbr=on Wars= World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War (limited)Ĭartridge=.