By Scott Mayer
The Pig Buster from Gibbs Rifle Co. are made from reactivated1903A3 Springfield drill rifles.
The folks at Gibbs Rifle Co. have a history of taking surplus military rifles of arguably minimal collector interest and turning them into sport specialty rifles that have a serious “fun gun” factor and “tough as nails” demeanor. Perhaps the best known of them are the Summit and Quest chambered in .45-70 and .308, respectively. Those were built on surplus Enfield actions and were not attempts to reproduce any sort of historical military gun at all. Instead, they were practical, utilitarian rifles that made good use of surplus military and some new parts. “Commercial sporterizing,” probably best describes it, and as Gibbs puts it, they “…take the best features of historic military arms and translate them to meet modern sporting needs.”
In the fall of 2012, Gibbs is introducing a new sport specialty rifle called the Pig Buster that’s every bit as tough as its predecessors, and in true Gibbs Rifle form, makes good use guns that might otherwise never see a live round again. The Pig Buster is built on reactivated 03A3 Springfield actions, and was originally conceived as something of a “scout” rifle. Gibbs showed the first one at the 2012 SHOT Show, and darn near everyone who handled it said, “That’s a hog hunting rifle,” and thus the Pig Buster was born.
Original 03A3 Springfields had 24-inch barrels and full-length handguards and stocks. The Pig Buster has an 18 ¾-inch barrel, and the stocks are shortened, respectively, to just in front of the rear barrel band.
There are generally two main types of hog hunters: those who go high-tech with night vision and suppressors, and those who see their gun as a tool on the level of a hammer. The Pig Buster is military tough, and definitely for the latter. I don’t know what it is about the gun, but holding it triggers something in me that makes me want to bludgeon something with it as much as I want to shoot it.
In a nutshell, they’re reactivated drill rifles with modified synthetic drill rifle stocks and new four-groove barrels topped with new-production No. 5 Jungle Carbine flash hiders. Metal parts have a super-tough, olive-colored Parkerizing treatment and stocks given a new green and black “spider web” finish. Chamberings are .30-’06 or .35 Whelen, both of which are more than suitable for makin’ bacon. Each Pig Buster comes with a new-made Malcom Hi-Lux/Leatherwood 2.5-power scope mounted in a new reproduction Redfield-type steel scope base, The cost of the complete set up is $725.
As part of reactivating these rifles, Gibbs had to break the weld on the magazine cutoff. You can see there is no trace of that weld under the new Parkerizing finish.
If you’re like me and are inspired to use this rifle with not so delicate a touch, then you might want to opt for an 03A3 rear peep sight that simply attaches to the rear receiver bridge–but you’ll have to find the sight on the surplus market, it’s not an option on the Pig Buster.
Deactivated guns are ones that have been made inoperable and I’ve seen a lot of stink raised about reactivating them because you can’t safely reactivate every one. Whether you can or not depends a lot on how a gun was deactivated in the first place, and to what degree. I’ve seen reports of companies reactivating Garand receivers that were cut completely in half, so suffice to say nothing short of miracles are possible by someone knowledgeable about welding and metallurgy. Gibbs has more than 50 years of experience reactivating tens of thousands of guns, including machine guns, and it’s not a process the company takes with a cavalier attitude. If a gun can’t be reactivated safely, they won’t bother. It’s not worth it.
The Malcom Hi-Lux/Leatherwood scope is a high-quality steel optic fully adjustable for windage and elevation.
These rifles were originally working 03A3 rifles from World War II that were deactivated for drill use by welding a steel rod in the bore so a bullet cannot pass through. To make sure someone didn’t simply swap barrels to make a working gun, barrels were spot-welded to the actions. Heaven forbid someone actually manage to chamber and fire a live round in a gun with its bore welded shut, so firing pins were removed, and bolt faces welded closed so even if you did replace the firing pin, it couldn’t reach the primer. Lastly, the magazine cutoffs were spot-welded in place. You remove the bolt from an 03 by placing the cutoff between “on” and “off,” so spot welding the cutoff prevented someone from putting in an active bolt.
Reactivation is a little more involved than simply reversing things. To begin with, not every one of these drill rifles is suitable for reactivation, so Gibbs hand selects which ones to use. Next, Gibbs breaks the welds and scraps the barrel and bolt.
There’s no sense in removing the rod from the bore and trying to salvage the rifling when you can simply use a new barrel. The barrels are fitted with new reproductions of No. 5 Jungle Carbine flash hiders because the barrels are only 18 ¾ inches long and, depending on your load, produce spectacular fireballs from the muzzle.
The drill rifle stocks are synthetic and solid all the way through except for the storage compartment in the butt. It’s a great place to keep a small, personal suture kit in case the pig wins.
I’m personally not so concerned about the muzzle flash. Instead, I like the fact that the hider is also the mount for a No. 5 bayonet. One method of hunting pigs is to bring the boar to bay with dogs, hold it with a catch dog, and then dispatch it up close and personal with a large knife. I’ve handgun hunted pigs with dogs and there’s a little too much excitement going on for me to get my face that close to a pissed-off pig slashing its razor-sharp tusks at everything nearby. Instead, mounting a No. 5 bayonet on the Pig Buster would provide a margin of safety so I could use it like a spear and stick a pig from a little distance, and if I chickened out at the last minute, could always blast it instead—poor form or not!
Reactivating bolts is a little dicey because the heat used on them during deactivation welding can anneal the metal making the bolt lugs too soft to be safe, so instead of taking any risks, Gibbs uses its supply of original, un-issued 1903A3 bolts that were made by the U.S. during World War II. The only modification they do is to give the bolt handle a little sweep so it clears the scope when cycling the action.
One of the sight-in groups measured right at one-inch spread. Groups were consistently about two inches or less with the largest recorded group being 2 ¼ inches.
Pig Buster stocks are repurposed drill rifle stocks. I’ve seen grousing on Internet forums about the suitability of them because they weren’t originally intended for use on firing guns. It’s true that they weren’t, but that doesn’t mean there was any specification to make them unusable for firing guns, either. They’re not plastic like you think of used on newly made kids’ BB guns. Instead, they’re dense synthetic more like nylon and solid all the way through except for the compartment space in the buttstock.
Gibbs is not far from me so I was able to go by there and see for myself what the stocks are like before and after modification. No doubt, the “before” stocks took a beating from drills, but I’m pretty confident in saying they’re a lot sturdier than any value-priced synthetic stock on the market today, and they’re way more sturdy than any wooden stock. I’m pretty sure I can curb stomp one with a small car and not break it. Inside the stock, the molded inletting mates almost perfectly to the action, but understandably is not nearly as tight as you get with a true bedding job. Generally, the more intimate the mating surfaces are between the action and the stock, the more accurate the rifle.
Gibbs showed the first of these rifles at the 2012 SHOT Show. Nearly everyone who saw it said looked like a hog hunting gun and thus the Pig Buster was born
As for the modification, original 03A3 Springfields had 24-inch barrels and full-length handguards and stocks, so Pig Buster stocks are abbreviated to better suit the 18 ¾-inch barrels. Both the handguard and stock are cut off just in front of the rear barrel band and rounded smooth at the front before getting the green/black spider web paint job.
While visiting at Gibbs, the owner, Val Forgett, III, and I, decided to pop a few caps with the Pig Buster, so we went to the public range at the new Peacemaker National Training Center in nearby Inwood, WV. Some folks think that review guns are cherry-picked before going out to writers, but I can assure you that was not the case. The rifle had only recently been assembled and the scope just snugged into the rings. This would be its maiden trip to the range, so we had to square the reticle and zero it before attempting any shots for accuracy.
A reproduction No. 5 Jungle Carbine flash hider tops the barrel. It not only helps control the muzzle blast, but is also where you attach a No. 5 bayonet.
The little Hi-Lux/Leatherwood scope has a ¾-inch tube, which is quite a departure from the norm for a lot of shooters who are more used to one-inch or even 30mm tubes, and its 2.5x magnification makes pinpoint accuracy a challenge until you get accustomed to using it. With that magnification, you’re never going to have the target precision a higher magnification provides, but for hunting situations I find myself on the lower power end of things more often than the higher. When hunting it’s generally good practice to keep your scope on a lower setting. What that does is allow a shot if you suddenly have a close-range shot opportunity. If you have an opportunity at longer range, you usually have a moment to crank up the magnification, but rarely do you have that when the situation is reversed. If you have a scope cranked up to 9x and are suddenly presented a shot at 75 yards or less, it’s going to be hard for you to find your game in the scope because everything is so magnified.
Bolts are new, un-issued bolts made by the U.S. during World War II. The only modification is that Gibbs sweeps the bolt handle slightly so it clears the scope.
I’ve previously used the Hi-Lux/Leatherwood brand scopes when reviewing Sharps-style rifles and can say they’re extremely well made and hold their zero. Unlike the original Malcom scopes they replicate, these are water- and shock-proof, sealed to prevent fogging, and the lenses are coated for a clear, bright image. If you want a more powerful scope, there aren’t many ¾ tube options. Most of the ones you find are billed as “rimfire” scopes where you get what you pay for, so sticking with the Hi-Lux/Leatherwood is your best option for an optic. When you look through this scope with both eyes open, the svelte, steel body all but disappears leaving you with a sight picture that’s more like crosshairs superimposed on the target instead of viewing them through a tube. The crosshairs are really fine, which makes it easier to aim more precisely despite the low magnification.
Forgett brought along a mixture of military surplus ammo for the zeroing, and Remington 150-grain roundnose factory loads to see how well the gun shoots with ammo similar to what a pig hunter might use. He bore-sighted the rifle at the range the old fashioned way by removing the bolt, looking through the bore, and centering an object in it. Without moving the gun, he aligned the crosshairs on the same object resulting in the first shots being on the target backer at 100 yards. A few shots and scope adjustments later, the rifle was on paper where Val shot a really nice one-inch, three-shot group. After another adjustment, the rifle was zeroed in and between the two of us we were consistently shooting groups that measured around two inches or less. Groups got larger as the barrel heated up, which is often the case with rifles, but even the largest group, 2 ¼ inches, was pretty darn good considering the barrel was really hot and the bore arguably dirty and was easily “minute of pig.”
The steel scope base is a new-made reproduction of the Redfield-type originally used on these rifles. If you opt for iron sights, an original 03A3 peep fits right on the rear receiver bridge.
Gibbs kept the original two-stage military trigger on the Pig Buster instead of going with an aftermarket single-stage unit. On a two-stage trigger, there is a long, light take-up prior to the trigger reaching its full pull weight and it takes a little getting used to if you haven’t used one before. Judging by the small groups we were shooting, it’s safe to say neither of us found the long take-up the least bit distracting or problematic. I did not have a pull gauge with me to measure it, but I estimate the pull weight to be around 4 pounds.
Also kept original is the safety lever. It’s a tab on the cocking piece at the rear of the bolt that you flip up to put on “safe” and flip down to the left to “fire.” In the safe position, it rests right up against the scope and might be difficult to operate if you have really thick fingers. If that’s the case, then Dayton Traister makes a low profile Mark II replacement safety lever your gunsmith can install.
In the “safe” position, the safety lever presses right up against the scope. If you have trouble operating the safety, Dayton Traister makes a low-profile replacement that your gunsmith can install.
In doing my homework prior to my visit to Gibbs, I read concerns from shooters about recoil from the Pig Buster. The .30-’06 really is the upper recoil limit for most shooters and, fired from a carbine-size rifle, it’s worse because the gun is lighter so it really does kick harder, and the muzzle blast is a lot louder and closer to your face and that rattles folks just as much as the kick. At 8 ¾ pounds though, the Pig Buster is in the same weight class as full size guns so you don’t experience any more actual recoil because of weight, and the flash hider does a decent job of directing the muzzle blast away from you. I’m probably not the best judge of recoil because I shoot a lot and am conditioned to it, but in this case I made a conscious effort while shooting the Pig Buster to gauge whether or not I thought recoil was over the top. It’s not. Even though the gun retains the drill rifle’s steel buttplate, so long as you keep it tight to your shoulder and maintain a good cheek weld and follow through, recoil won’t be any worse than shooting any other .30-caliber non-magnum deer/pig rifle.
While not nearly as tight a fit as a custom bedding job, the inletting for the action is really good.
I have to hand it to Gibbs for coming up with the Pig Buster if for no other reason than it revives drill rifles that would otherwise be wall hangers. Springfields were such well-made guns that to me seeing one inoperable is as sad as seeing a bird dog that’s too old to hunt be left at home on opening day. You don’t have to be a pig hunter to appreciate the Pig Buster. It is what it is: a utilitarian rifle that you can beat the ever-lovin’ snot out of and not worry about hurting it, and it shoots groups every bit as tight as most modern sporting rifles. Best of all, if you ever get a chance to pig hunt, you can carry a No. 5 bayonet with you and at the moment of truth decide if you want to go up close and personal with just the bayonet, fix it to the flash hider and have a margin of safety, or simply pull the trigger.
MSRP $725
A take-off drill rifle stock (bottom) is modified for use on the Pig Buster. It’s a tough synthetic that will stand up to years of abuse.
The Pig Buster’s flash hider accepts the No. 5 bayonet in case you want to “stick” your pig instead of shoot it. Photo courtesy libertytreecollectors.com.
I have 5 1903a3 I shoot 210 bergers bullets and they work I wouldn’t trade them for anything
seems like a huge amount of work and an unjustified point of sales price at over $700.00 beans for a pork chopper. his job you obviously want the best bolt action, a long barrel for accuracy and if in the right location, the ability to take a long shot with a hefty caliber for the big boars often seen 500 yards or more in pastures on cattle ranch land like in many states.
Taking the nod from the author, using military surplus quality actions that have low grade collectability, I’d chose the Mauser bolt action, arguably the best/strongest ever created to this day. Cheap, relatively speaking, and variants can be had ready to go for only several hundered dollars or less!
Add to the fact you have a long cased 8MM cartridge and a wide rage of modern day bullets (no FMJ’s for etical hunting) you kave a, pardon the pun, “killer combo.”
Custom loaded ammo might be some folks preferences adding to the ambiance.
Now, you have optics only to add.
The feature Pig Buster with scope reminds me of a Nagant variant, lol.
Now to let all, including my “air out of the ballon.”
serious hog hunters when dealing with open range hunting or close in brush hunting are going to want SEMI-AUTO cyclers, not a bolt action.
When pigs are “flying” you need to rock n’ roll. agreed, for that mid-florida dominant open pasture boar hog going 450 or more, with a tropy the object of the hunter’s affection and focus, I’ll take a higher caliber bolt action. It’s the right tool for that job.
Over $700.00 for all that rework doesn’t interest me, whe that MAUSER in 8MM is just what the Doctor ordered on a 1/3 budget.
Yes, I’d line up at Mac Dill’s long range and go one on one, rifle vs. rifle. FWIW, that bolt action they are using was a copy variant of the Mauser. “If it ain’t broke, no sense trying to fix stuff to make it work.”
Dont be a fool Kenn! Edged weapon hunting of hogs is a centuries old traditional method of hunting all over the globe from Europe to Asia to Africa to Central America. Who do you think WE learned it from? Jeez the amount of wussification this country has undergone in the last 50 or so years…..
Pierce Brosnan, as Bond, wore a wide variety of totally different styles of the Rr Seamaster.
Over her heaviest, Ruby Gettinger weighed an impressive 716
pounds. Talking about great shows, this episode is the one of the greatest.
These items basically withstand the test of time and they
respond well to colors. http://www.sosd.org/index.php/member/25322/
I have an 03a3 my father gave me for my Christmas present when I was 14 yrs old. It was already sporterized i.e. someone had cut the stock down to make it appear to be a normal hunting rifle. The barrel is as clear as glass and it kicks a solid as any 06 I have ever shot. I can shoot as tight a group as my Remington 700 30-06 with the difference being negligible. After 41 yrs, I finally handed down that wonderful shooter to my oldest son who is now a Dr. and he has the rifle that just doesn’t miss… Thank you for a great article. My next rifle will probably be another Remington 700 in 06 and then I want just for grins a 338 lapua. The weapon can hit whatever you aim at and I believe will challenge me, I am thinking a black gun, AR platform.. well see… 🙂
I did the same thing with a Mosin M-44 (7.62X54) a number of years ago.
Picked up the base gun from Big 5, had it parkerized and dropped into an ATI stock for less than half the price.
It already has a swing-away bayonet built on; for back up.
Works like a champ. I can’t help thinking about Farmland radio commercials. LOL
Sure it’s easier to buy a rig already set up, but I find it more satisfying to create your own.
“One method of hunting pigs is to bring the boar to bay with dogs, hold it with a catch dog, and then dispatch it up close and personal with a large knife. I’ve handgun hunted pigs with dogs and there’s a little too much excitement going on for me to get my face that close to a pissed-off pig slashing its razor-sharp tusks at everything nearby.”
Please DO NOT advise people to hunt pigs this way!
That’s totally illegal in too many states to count, and sounds like a serial killer training course.
That is now on my wish list be contacting Gibbs soon
Enfield jungle carbine can be had for a lot less and the 303 british has enough ass to drop them piggies!
Any chance this could be had in 7.62 x 51 NATO? Could a chamber adapter be set into the bore?
Ask Gibbs to do a makeover on the Jap. Arisaka Model 99 7.7mm. Nobody makes custom stocks or accessories…. It has a very strong action, stronger than the Enfield 303…. It’s a great rifle and we need more interest in these weapons…. Info for custom work is requested.
I had several Arisaka,s in 7.7 and one in 6.5. I took them to a friend of mine (Henry,s Guns and Ammo) in Minerlwells Texas. Lawrence Henry was a WWII vet and a hell of a gun smith. He re-barreled some of these for me. In the 7.7 he made one a 25- 06, one .270 a 300savage(this one was reamed not re-barreled) a 30-06 this one was reamed as well. The 6.5 was re-barreled to 22-250. All of these are tack drivers and even with the refinished and sportarized stocks (done by Lawrence Henry (Larry to his friends) made very nice no beautiful rifles. Unfortunately he is no longer with us and I for one miss him, He is my best friend and always will be. His son has reopened the shop. Butch is a Minerwells police K-nine officer team and opens the shop on his off days. His Dad tough him the trade. You might try him out on a Arisaka sportorized Project. I do not have the new phone number to Henry,s Gun and Ammo but He is the only Gun Smith in Mineral Wells Texas so it should not be hard to find him. Just tell him Ronny sent you.
Thanks Ronny for this info on your 7.7’s ….. My father-in-law brought this rifle from Japan just after the surrender of Japan at the end of WW-2. He was a Gunners Mate working off the USS Missouri . He was part of a working party removing weapons from a arsenal and was allowed to keep one weapon as a souvenir. The rifle is in great condition but needs a new sportier stock and I need to mount a good scope to help my old eyes.
Sounds like your friend Lawrence was a very talented gunsmith. I will see if I can find his son on the internet. Texas isn’t very far from central Missouri. Thanks again for your “Flashback” Terry
A few years ago they were kicking a similar rifle around and was calling it “The Tunnel Buster.” I like short carbines and wanted one. They were too late in producing this similar rifle. I love .03’s by the way. I bought a Scout Rifle. This “Pig Buster” would be better if they offered it with a picatinny rail so a red dot could be installed and not this itty-bitty scope. Afterall, this isn’t a commemorative like their sniper versions. I want to be able to get on target fast. Mr. Forgett….nice but no cigar.
the 03a3 was my first hunter as a rifle it was my fathers long range comp rifle while in the Navy . Now the rifle I am used to has a anschutz stock douglas medium weight barrel timmeny trigger and shoots the old school loads all day long in a tee shirt with no more felt recoil than a 22 -250do to the heavy stock and sporterization. I hate to see ANY 03a3 in this condition down in the mudd butt for the old drillers whether they were M14s enfields or the springfield if its a drill rife its a wasted gun and if the price is right and a gun to get dirty is what ya need these are good nay great guns to pick up/ I no longer hunt with a gun i prefer my pig hunting on the ground with a bow. But there are times after I have taken my two pigs that many of the landowners wish you would massacre a dozen who knows they wouldnt go to waste meat wise and would be landowners here in TX a big favor if I combined a hunt and a cull.
I have a “real” Winchester Model 70 CARBINE made in 1940 in .30-06. I would expect this hog rifle to have about the same kick as this Winchester, which is a close – to me – to the kick of my Model 70 in .375. Still, I want to get one of perhaps have one of my “lesser” 03s converted if my smith can find the stock.
I don’t get it. I could go out and get a brand new Savage with sub-MOA accuracy and an accutrigger for less. And it seems to me that the only original part of this remake is the receiver–every thing else has been replaced. If you’re trying to refurbish an old military rifle, this seems to me to defeat the purpose.
Understated elegance. That’s all I have to say.
wow, this is a very nice looking rilfe, I am a big 30-06 fan, a great caliber for all around shooting in the brush, I am going to be saving my money for one these great gun!!!!!,
great design too, thanks for sharing the info with me.
J.R. Stavely
502 E. Johnson St.
Apt.3
Newbern, Tennessee
38059
Gibbs has had a way of making a nice, compact, and tough rifle/carbine. I liked the way they chopped the Enfields (I own a .308) to make a nice carry and brush gun. Here is another example. The ’06 will be an ass-wooper to shoot but the results should be a real blessing at the target end. If they are carried a lot and shot a little, it is a better ending than hanging on a wall with the capability to shoot ended. Thanks for putting the old drill rifles back into shooters.
Love to have one.
Ill pass on the bayonet, PIG STICKINGS a little too gruesome,thanx
I haven’t gone pig hunting myself, but I have been told and seen in YouTube videos that sometimes pigs get up close and personal. A bayonet might prove useful.
I PROMISED MY WIFE “I WOULDN’T BUY ANY MORE FIREARMS”. OH WELL, SHE’LL GET OVER IT OR I’LL BE TAKING NOURISHMENT THROUGH A STRAW FOR AWHILE.
It is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission…..
When I was a kid hunting meant taking an old rifle, putting it in the gun rack in the back window of the pick up and hitting the back country in search of game, of course there were times when the rifle would ride between my knees with the muzzle pointed either at the roof or the floor. Rarely would one of these guns find its way into a rifle case, we could barely afford a firearm let alone a fancy case for it. Once in the field I would tote that ol’ rifle, usually equipped with an old, worn and frayed sling through waist high brush, through numerous barbed wire obstacles, and even scale rocky outcroppings for the best vantage point. During the course of this expedition the rifle would inevitably hit one obstacle, or scrape up against another, and I knew these would be addressed when the rifle was later dressed and cleaned. These scars were reminders of the hunt that I had just returned from and usually represented memorable hunting experiences. Now fast-forward 40 years; the same scenario plays out only it commences with a high dollar rifle, with an equally expensive scope, safely stashed in an indestructible gun case. That rifle is now carefully carried into the back country, with equal caution devoted to ensure that it is not marred by brush or rock, as is given to the stalk on the intended game. I long for an old school rifle like this that can be toted either on the quad or in the truck without a case, or fear of damage, boldly ready to be put into quick action to take care of business.Hell yes!
Please forward an avenue to purchase this Firearm,I am Interested in obtaining it !
there is a link to their website
I couldn’t find any reference to the Pig Buster through the link to their site.
I was wondering if the 10 round detatchable mags available for the 03 Springfield would work in the Gibbs.
Talk about a perfect scout/brush/fun target gun.
I want one.
I spoke with Gibbs this morning and the planned launch is Sept. The article mentions a Fall release. As for the mag conversion–I’m not sure. I didn’t make a mental note of the floorplate while I had the gun and am not sure which it is, though I assume 03A3. If you go with iron sights, though, stripper clips are an option and they’re pretty darn fast if you’ve ever tried them.
Numrich Gunparts Corporation carries a 10-round magazine extender for the Springfield 1903. If you’re serious about having an ’03 Carbine with 10-round capacity, then one way you could do it would be to buy a milled 1903 trigger guard (as opposed to the stamped one for the 03a3) and fit it to your carbine. Then you can get the 10-round magazine extender and install it by removing the floor plate to the trigger guard and replace it with the extender. It comes with an elongated follower spring and it’s own follower. You may have to inlet the carbine stock a tad, since it was probably molder to accommodate the 03a3 trigger guard. Heck, the Numrich folks probably have the Jungle Carbine bayonet as well.
I was just wondering if this is the Robert Hall I knew in Vietnam @ CamRahn Bay. sure sounds like mean weapon, I enjoy pig hunting, whats the price on your rifles?
Do you have a catalog
I think it would make a great Elk Rifle for late season hunting in the Colorado high country with a foot of snow on the ground. Got to get one of these when I get back to the US.