Lee Enfield Purchase

S

Stoic

New member
Does anyone have any advice regarding the Purchase of a Lee Enfield. I am thinking about purchasing one of the Indian Ishapore Lee Enfield Rifles in .308. However, I also want one in the original .303 British.

What are some of the things to look out for when purchasing this surplus rifle and what is a good price. Also, would it be worth the money to purchase one of the "new" condition Lee Enflieds that are assembled from surplus new Australian parts? Or, is surplus the way to go?

Thank you for any replies.

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I have two: one #4 Mk. I and a Mk. II. They are 'different' but good fun guns in their own way. Both were very reasonable in cost (around $95 delivered, excellent condition). The stocks are, in my opinion, atrocious. I put an Advanced Technologies 'zytel' stock on the Mk. 1 and it made it a whole new rifle. Reloading for the .303 is best done with neck sizing (I used Lee collet dies and got over 8 reloads from cases) which means cases stay with the same rifle. The #4s have good aperture sights and are much preferable to the #1 Mk. III. They are not comparable to a good M1 Garand but they have their advantages. Quite a learning experience, too.

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Hey Stoic,
Enfields are great fun! I think everyone should have a few......

If you are just interested in getting a shooter, go with the No 4 Mk 2 (these are all in 303). These guns didn't see much service (some are NIB) and are very nice and pretty accurate. You should be able to take one of these out to the range without having to worry about anything being wrong. (Some people are paranoid about shooting old guns.) You should be able to find a nice No4 Mk2 for somewhere around $175.

If you are after a collector's piece, definitely go to the gun and knife forum or Tuco's and start researching. There are some great sites on the net that will tell you all about them.

HTH!
 
Stotic:
Will this help?

Lee Enfield, Lee-Metford, Remington Lee

AUSTRALIA:

Rifle #1 Sniper Rifle Mk3 Ht
Manufacture: Royal Austrian, Lithgow,
New South Wales
Year of Manufacture 1944-46
Quantity:
Action: #1 Mk3
Caliber: .303 Rimmed
Length: 44.56"
Weight: 10.30lb
Barrel Length: 25.19"
Grooves: 5 LH concentric
Magazine: 10 Box (detach)
M-Velocity: 2,440fps W/Mk-VII ball

TURN-BOLT PATTERNS:

Lee Burtons:

Developed in the USA, then perfected in the USA and Britain. These guns were service issue in Britain an the British Empire. They were also issued in many former colonies after independence had bee gained, India & Pakistan. Lee Enfield were also used in Irag and the Irish Free State, Eire, prior to 1939. Others were sold to Blgium, Denmark, Egypt, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Thiland, and turkey in the post 1945 era.

The first turn bolt designe, with a single locking lug, sold in small numbers to factions in South and Central America. An improved two lug mechanism was then perfected in Britain, where the .303 Magazine Rifle MkI )lee-Metford), was adopted for military service in 1888

Prior to 1939 the Australian forces were armed with standard SMLE Mks III and III* (No 1) MkIII and No 1 MkIII*) Rifles made in a government factory that had been established in Lithgow, New South Wales, 1n 1912. These guns were dated from 1913-1929, 1938-
1945, and 1953-1956.


BRITAIN

Indicators for year of manufacture:

V.R. (Victoria Regina) 1888-1901
E.R. (Edwardius Rex) 1901-1910
G.R. (Georgius Rex) 1910-1936
1936-1952
E.R. (Elizabeth Regina) 1952 to Date

Manufacturer Marks:

Roual Small Arms Factory Enfield Enfield (EFD)
Birmingham Small Arms B.S.A. & AM Co
London Small Arms L.S.A orL.S.A. Ltd
Vickers V.S.M.
Standard Small Arms S.S.A.
National Rifle Factory N.R.F.

S.M.L.E BRITISH
NO.1 Mark III Short Lee Enfield.
Adopted: 1907
Cal: .303
Length: 44.5"
Wt: 8.6lb
Action: Turnbolt
Bolt: 2 Piece non rotating head
Mag: Detach Bx. Stagg. Column
Capacity: 10 rnds
Bbl length: 25.2"
Bore Dia: 303"
Twist: Left
Rate: 10"

Basic British rifle of WWI and used to some extent in WWII. Over 2,000,000 made by Enfield. B.S.A. made over one million during the same period.

Note: Savage also made a rifle for the .303 British cartridge however, the Brits called it the .301 Savage to distinguish it between the .303 British round.
 
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