Lee Enfield Rifles

J

johnwilliamson062

Moderator
The pawn shop in my town has a Lee Enfield on sale which caught my eye, although their price is not good. Looking into it I have one huge question. Why is their wood above the barrel? Like a stock above and below. This would have to slow cooling, increase weight, cost, and a whole lot of other bad things. I can see little benefit. There seem to be some Lee Enfields without the extra wood.
Looks like the gun in this auction:
http://gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=101820311#PIC
 
In battle, the upper wood guard is to prevent 2nd and 3rd degree burns, when you pick up the rifle at the balance point to move to a new position.
 
Why is their wood above the barrel? Like a stock above and below.
Click to expand...

Its known as a "handguard" as RJay pointed out its to keep you from burning your hand on the barrel.

You mean you have never ever seen a rifle with a handguard before?? Or did you just not know what it was for??:p
 
A small but not important addition to the comments:
The handguard (upper wooden piece) also allows more accurate aiming with a hot barrel, because it reduces "ondulation". Sometimes in summer, but also winter time you notice, when looking over greater distances, a shimmering or moving image. Those are caused by differential temperatures in the air, which leads to deflection of light.
Shoot ten rounds in rapid fire from SMLE in .303, and measure the barrel temp.
You'll be surprised.
 
Pretty much a standard configuration for military rifles. Except maybe 19th century and back.
 
One of the "defects" (to me) of the German K.98k is the lack of a handguard behind the rear sight. The VZ-24 system is better, IMHO, because it protects the hand better.

The handguard also protects the hand from barrel heat when using the bayonet, a major consideration at the time those rifles were adopted. (The "hooked" pistol grip on the SMLE is so the bayonet can be withdrawn easier.)

(It doesn't take a lot of rounds to make a barrel hot enough to cause severe burns. Twenty will do it, and fifty will heat a barrel enough to sizzle flesh.)

Jim
 
I sold a #1 MK III like the one in the pic last year with a sheathed bayonet for 175.00. It wasn't converted to .410 tho.
 
"...some Lee Enfields without the extra..." Those have been 'sporterized' AKA bubba'd. The full stocked rifles are known as being in full military configuration. Unaltered milsurp rifles have condsiderably more value than a bubba'd rifle.
 
BTW if it looks like that one in the picture, is it for sure a British SMLE, or Australian possibly? or a third world version from India or Pakistan? Because the last two should not bring as much money at all.
 
does the * after the number denote "factory" re-worked?
I think they changed the trigger assembly after the original manufacture.

??
 
"...does the * after the number denote..." Nope. It means there was a minor change to the design that wasn't large enough to warrant a new Mark. A 'Mark' is like the 'A1' etc used by the U.S.
 
I beleive the * on the nbr 4 mk1 was to designate a US made weapon. Savage made them for Britain during Lend LEase. We couldn't "sell" them to a warring nation, so we "lent" them to the UK and stamped US Property on twm. I think I am right onthis, someone correct me if I got it wrong...
 
Lee Enfield:

Well, it sure worked for Sgt York in World War I. That is the rifle he used to kill all those Germans and take the machine gun nests........Very accurate rilfe.
 
The Rifle No. 4 Mk 1* was made only in the U.S (Savage) and Canada (Long Branch) but the star does not mean American made.

The "star" indicates a wartime expedient modification by which the bolt is removed by lifting the bolt head at the notch in the right hand raceway rather than by depressing the bolt release. The notch was cheaper and easier to make than installing the bolt release assembly.

Jim
 
Well, it sure worked for Sgt York in World War I. That is the rifle he used to kill all those Germans and take the machine gun nests........Very accurate rilfe.
Click to expand...

Sergeant York was issued a 1917 US Enfield, not at all the same thing as a Lee Enfield. There is some thinking that he swapped that for a 1903 Springfield upon arrival in France.
 
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