M44 carbine or Enfield #5 ?
- Thread starter ATeaM
- Start date
Neither. Get a No. 4 Mk1 or No. 4 Mk2. The sights on the M44 are horrid and the muzzle blast outrageous. Not terribly accurate with those dinky sights. The sights on the No. 4s are great. Yes, they weigh more than the butchered No. 5 clone, but you're talking about the range, not carrying it all day. And it will have less muzzle blast.
M1911
M1911
Doesn't Century Arms have a batch of real Jungle Carbines in stock right now?
The M44 is, I believe, lighter and probably more accurate than an original No.5 with its infamous "wandering zero" (caused, I believe, by lightening cuts in the receiver; a problem not shared by the replica "No.5" conversions on the market), plus it has that groovy folding bayonet.
The Enfield has a faster and smoother bolt, a ten round magazine, and looks snappier. Plus, if'n you buy a real No.5 from CAI, that's a certified future collectible.
The M44 is, I believe, lighter and probably more accurate than an original No.5 with its infamous "wandering zero" (caused, I believe, by lightening cuts in the receiver; a problem not shared by the replica "No.5" conversions on the market), plus it has that groovy folding bayonet.
The Enfield has a faster and smoother bolt, a ten round magazine, and looks snappier. Plus, if'n you buy a real No.5 from CAI, that's a certified future collectible.I second M1911's recommendation for one of the longer Enfields if you are looking for a shooter. I have a No4 Mk1 with micrometer sights that I am really pleased with. As also stated, the jungle carbines have a "wandering zero" and the M44s have poor sights, although both are a lot of fun and would make a nice addition to any military rifle collection.
In two weeks, when the gun show returns, I'm buying an M44 in the Russian flavor. I never wanted an M44 until I saw a guy at the range with one last fall. That gun was a real cannon. BIG fireball, BIG bang, BIG recoil, BIG fun, little price! Our range has a gong at 200 yds., and that old guy was dinging it no problem. I guess it depends on what you're looking for.
Who sells the #4 Mk 1 ? Tamara I was thinking about those #5's from Century, any idea how much those cost ?
Whatever I got I would most likely end up scoping it, so I'm not too concerned about sights. Also, any aftermarket companies make original looking stocks for the #5 that corrects the wandering zero ?
Whatever I got I would most likely end up scoping it, so I'm not too concerned about sights. Also, any aftermarket companies make original looking stocks for the #5 that corrects the wandering zero ?
I have seen a couple of the No.5's from SOG and they were genuine, though pretty beat up. Still, I agree that neither of the rifles you mention are what I would choose for fun shooting. I do agree that the M44 has a whole lot of blast and flash, and if that is what you want, go for it, but what does noise making have to do with accurate rifle shooting? The accuracy problems with the No.5 are related to the lack of stiffness in the barrel and action due to the lightening cuts, not to the stock (though mine shoots pretty well). If you are not concerned about originality, maybe one of the Gibbs fake jungle carbines made from a No. 4 might be OK for you. Just make sure the fake flash hider is solidly in place - they have been known to take off down range.
Jim
Jim
Hey TwoGuns, that is cosmoline
The grease should be the stuff they put on the gun when it is wrapped for shipping. You clean it off. But don't use refinishing stuff like they use on furniture. I am not sure what they use to clean them, but you can go here and some people on the site are very helpful. some are dicks.
http://www.gunandknife.com/cgi-bin/boards/enfconfig.pl
As for the #5, I have two of them. I like shooting them alot. Supposedly the wondering zero is due to the lightening cuts made on the receiver to make the gun not weigh as much. I was shooting mine at a metal ground hog size target, open sites, from 100 yards and hit it with no problem. I recently added a scope mount (non-gunsmithing type). Have mounted a Sightron 4 - 16x42mm MIL-DOT scope. Have not gone to the range yet to zero it in, but I will report back as soon as I have some results.
One problem I have found reloading .303 is that (because of the springy, rear locking bolt) the case life is very short. You should not full length resize the case, but just neck size. You have to keep your brass separated if you have more than one .303, but at least the brass lasts longer than one or two reloads. If you full lenght size you end up getting cracks running around the case near the head.
Ammo is cheap for the old 303s. I found brass case, boxer primed in 50 round bandoliers for $12. When reloading you want to use .311 or .312 diameter bullets. .308 usually don't work well since the 303 is typically a bit larger than your standard 30 caliber. I have found that the Speer 125 grain for the 303 is very good for varmits.
I rambled.
The grease should be the stuff they put on the gun when it is wrapped for shipping. You clean it off. But don't use refinishing stuff like they use on furniture. I am not sure what they use to clean them, but you can go here and some people on the site are very helpful. some are dicks.
http://www.gunandknife.com/cgi-bin/boards/enfconfig.pl
As for the #5, I have two of them. I like shooting them alot. Supposedly the wondering zero is due to the lightening cuts made on the receiver to make the gun not weigh as much. I was shooting mine at a metal ground hog size target, open sites, from 100 yards and hit it with no problem. I recently added a scope mount (non-gunsmithing type). Have mounted a Sightron 4 - 16x42mm MIL-DOT scope. Have not gone to the range yet to zero it in, but I will report back as soon as I have some results.
One problem I have found reloading .303 is that (because of the springy, rear locking bolt) the case life is very short. You should not full length resize the case, but just neck size. You have to keep your brass separated if you have more than one .303, but at least the brass lasts longer than one or two reloads. If you full lenght size you end up getting cracks running around the case near the head.
Ammo is cheap for the old 303s. I found brass case, boxer primed in 50 round bandoliers for $12. When reloading you want to use .311 or .312 diameter bullets. .308 usually don't work well since the 303 is typically a bit larger than your standard 30 caliber. I have found that the Speer 125 grain for the 303 is very good for varmits.
I rambled.
Hey Twoguns!
I bought an M-44 about 1 1/2 years ago. It arrived with the thickest, nastiest coat of cosmoline you'll ever see. Yes, it looks like road tar. Here is what I do with my rifles when they come in. This worked GREAT on my M-44:
1. Go to Menards, Wal-Mart, etc. and buy a wallpaper tray. It's a plastic pan that looks like a car's valve cover.
2. Completely disassemble your M-44. Fill the wallpaper tray with camp fuel (the white-gas "Coleman" kind, although generic works just as well). Drop all your metal parts in the camp fuel. Wait a few minutes and the cosmoline will just wipe off. Have a washcloth and an old toothbrush on hand to wipe/scrub the cosmoline off.
3. Remove the parts from the tray. They will dry VERY quickly. Wipe your metal parts down with a coat of good gun oil.
4. For really greasy stocks, dip the stocks in the tray as well. Warning, though, this may change the hue of the wood some. If it does change the hue of the wood or discolor it slightly, apply boiled linseed oil (no, you don't actually boid it, that's just what it's called) to the wood. That's the most common and most accepted method of "refinishing" military wood stocks while keeping them "authentic."
There you have it! The camp fuel is GREAT for getting that caked on, "road tar" cosmoline off the old Ruskies!
I bought an M-44 about 1 1/2 years ago. It arrived with the thickest, nastiest coat of cosmoline you'll ever see. Yes, it looks like road tar. Here is what I do with my rifles when they come in. This worked GREAT on my M-44:
1. Go to Menards, Wal-Mart, etc. and buy a wallpaper tray. It's a plastic pan that looks like a car's valve cover.
2. Completely disassemble your M-44. Fill the wallpaper tray with camp fuel (the white-gas "Coleman" kind, although generic works just as well). Drop all your metal parts in the camp fuel. Wait a few minutes and the cosmoline will just wipe off. Have a washcloth and an old toothbrush on hand to wipe/scrub the cosmoline off.
3. Remove the parts from the tray. They will dry VERY quickly. Wipe your metal parts down with a coat of good gun oil.
4. For really greasy stocks, dip the stocks in the tray as well. Warning, though, this may change the hue of the wood some. If it does change the hue of the wood or discolor it slightly, apply boiled linseed oil (no, you don't actually boid it, that's just what it's called) to the wood. That's the most common and most accepted method of "refinishing" military wood stocks while keeping them "authentic."
There you have it! The camp fuel is GREAT for getting that caked on, "road tar" cosmoline off the old Ruskies!