Overall opiniols of Enfields/Mausers

A

Adamantium

New member
Hi Guys, I just had an discoussion about them with some of my knife knut friends in the Bladeforums.com mIRC chatroom.

The thing is, now that I've gotten a good 22LR and a .357 mag I still need a rifle and a shotgun, and was concidering buying a Enfield. From what I read on TFL.com they were cheap and reliable, albiet a bit beat up.

Anyway, from what they have said, they are total POS(never did tell me why thought).
What do you guys think of them?

Sincerely,
Adam

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Self improvement is a hobby of mine :)
 
Enfields are rugged, inexpensive, built to last military issue bolt action rifles. Many claim the British Enfield is the greates bolt action battle rifle ever. (I still like the 03 Springfield) but at any rate.

It may not look pretty, may have a few dings on the stock, but I guarantee it will be reliable and good in the accuracy department.

All in all a good rifle.

As for the mausers "ditto". The 98 is the bolt gun that everybody copied.
 
It's been said of those old WWI rifles that the German Mauser 98 was the best hunting rifle, the '03 Springfield the best target rifle, and the SMLE the best battle rifle.

Please don't underrate any of these guns. Their design is quite sound. Naturally, if you're buying, as a precaution, be sure to have it headspaced before shooting.

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Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt
 
Yeah, about the only nice thing about the .303 British rimmed cartridge is that headspace isn't as critical as on the other, rimless, rifles/cartridges. My No4 Mk2 was way off and the only problem was a pretty stiff bolt and bulged brass. I had it headspaced and the bolt head went from a #1 to a #3 and now the bolt is nice and smooth.

The first thing I did with my $99 Enfield was to strip the greasy, dented stock. I used Easy-Off Oven cleaner (if you can believe that) and a Scotch Brite pad to get rid of the grease. Then, I used a hot iron (like to iron your shirt) over a wet washcloth to raise the dents and dings in the wood. I steel wooled it lightly, restained, and used a spray-on Man-O-War Marine spar varnish (satin), but not to the point of being glossy in any way. Because I'm an idiot, I had all of the metal parkerized for $80. Now my Enfield looks and feels pretty original and pretty dang good.

As long as you keep aware of the proper way to stagger the cartridges, so that the rim of the upper is forward of the rim of the lower, it can be quick and reliable. Besides, how can you go wrong for $100 or less?
 
For years I collected 98 Mausers and have about 15 of them. I never looked at Enfields. But recently I picked up a couple and have been very satisfied. In fact I have another one on the way even as we post(my fourth). I paid over $200.00 for a 99% gun that shoots 1.5 moa with surplus ammo, I haven't tried reloads yet. It's a No.4 Mk2, the last common variant and it has great sights. I also like having a 10 round interchagable magazine.

I can't say enough good things about Empire Arm in Ormond Beach FLA (www.empirearms.com)for good rifles, they ain't necesarily cheap, (although I did get one for $125.00), but they are exactly as advertised and are safe to shoot. Check him out for military rifles.
 
While .303 will be around a long time, you might consider the Ishapore 2A rifle, which is a SMLE in .308/7.62NATO caliber. If buying a .303 Enfield to shoot, go with the No. 4 rifle; they are stronger and more accurate than the No. 1 rifle and can be bought new unfired.

Anyone who calls the SMLE or the No. 4 a POS suffers from serious lack of knowledge.

Jim
 
I love shooting my 1944 british .303 #4 made in Birmingham England, But I won't hunt with it. I'll use my Ruger .270 for that.

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FREEDOM AIN'T FREE!
 
The Enfield rifles are a great way to get into shooting rifles cheaply. The down side of them is their weight. Not a light rifle to hump through the brush. If you want a hunting rifle that can be carried and scoped easily, you may be better off buying a NIB rifle from Wally World for $340. (It killed me to say that!) If you want a fun gun to shoot, hunting without much walking, and are at all into the history of guns, you just HAVE to have one! Or two, or three...
 
You won't go wrong with any of those rifles (K98, '03 Springfield, or Enfield). Myself, I prefer the Enfield, but the others would probably make better hunting rifles after a bit of work. I own several Enfields and I can say they are not crap.

When buying surplus rifles, watch out for wartime production military rifles, particularly ones manufactured after 1943. The British were making shortcuts (like 2 groove rifling), and the Germans were using slave labor to manufacture them (can you say intentional sabotage? Late war G43's in particular, I understand, have a nasty tendency to go kaboom - and not in a good way!). The U.S. and Canadian made rifles tend not to suffer from wartime shortcuts. If you want a wartime Enfield, look at the No. 4 Mk. 1* - they're made in Canada. If you don't care about the date, then the No. 4 Mk. 2's are probably the best of the No. 4's.
 
While some deplore "cutting" of military surplus rifles, or the creation of "fakes", there is at least one out there that I think is an improvement on the original. Navy Arms and Southern Ohio Gun distributors sell Lee-Enfield No4 Mk1 rifles that have been converted to look like the No.5 Jungle Carbine. I always liked the looks, but more importantly, it is a much handier length and weight. The old No.5, while a great collector piece, had a fairly common problem of a wandering zero. It was attributed to all of the lightening cuts made in the receiver to reduce the weight. The No4 conversions don't have the lightening cuts and so their zero doesn't wander. Dealer cost is $149. Mine had like new wood and a new finish. It is definately my favorite carbine. As someone else said, anyone who says the Lee-Enfield is a POS, has either never shot one, shot a really bad one, or is suffering from a serious case of cranio-rectal inversion.

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Dorsai
Personal weapons are what raised mankind out of the mud, and the rifle is the queen of personal weapons. The possession of a good rifle, as well as the skill to use it well, truly makes a man the monarch of all he surveys.
-- Jeff Cooper, The Art of the Rifle
 
Greetings, all. I love '98 Mauser action rifles and the Enfields. In fact, a few years ago, I got a No.4 MkII new, still in the cosmoline. I shot it and got very good groups. It became the base gun for a "scout rifle" project that wound up costing much more than the $200 I paid for the rifle...but well worth it! First, a trigger job was done and a stop put in. Second, the bbl was cut to 20" and a new ramp front sight was added such that it is compatable with the "ghost ring" type battle sight that's visible with the ladder rear-sight down. Next, the stock was painted black after being sealed inside and out and a Pachmayer decelerator pad installed. Then, via Redfield bases dovetailed into the rear of the very thick bbl, a Leupold 2X pistol scope was added. The gun does not make weight for a true scout, but I figure it's sort of a "battle scout." How does it shoot? With selected handloads, three-shot 1 1/4" groups are fairly easy. It's very quick to operate and is flawless in feeding. In short, I've become an Enfield fan. Best.
 
My personal opinion. Mausers first. Probably one of the best designed bolt action battle rifles ever made. (I think they're prettier too :). ) Controlled feed, stripper clip loading, a well tuned Mauser is probably the most idiot-proof of the three.
In second place? Reluctantly, I give it to the Enfield, primarily due to its 10 round magazine, stripper clip reloadability, and reasonable accuracy.
I placed the Springfield in third place, due to the stupidity of Its designers giving it a two piece firing pin. I know they did this to get around Mausers patents. I don't like the coned breech either, although it does make for smoother feeding and is safe with proper ammo. You also have to watch out not to get one of the low numbered guns. JMHO.
Paul B.
 
If you want to start collecting nice mill rifles you can't go to far wrong with a Sweed M-96 or M-38 as for the 98's both the CZ m-24 and the Ugo-M27 are very nice in 7.92x57S. If the enfield is you choice you have 2 basic choices No4's with peep sight or No1/MkIII's with leaf sight, I have both and love them dearly but if push came to shove and I HAD to HIT what I was aiming at the No4 would be my choice (was trained with apature shights) I hate to say it but you are about 24mo's to late for the Sweeds at 75-100 each but even at 150-200 they are steals. I also like the Finn M-39 in 7.62x54R but that is another story....

good luck deciding
 
Yesterday I was at the range doing some practical rifle work with about 10 different shooters most of whom, including myself were using ARs of one flavor or another.

As a change of pace I had brought along a 1940 Mauser 98K that had been rechambered to .30-06 by Norway after WW2.
To make a long story short, this almost 60 year old battle rifle KATN! The best $250.00 that I have spent in long time.
After reading the earlier posts I am ready to go out blow $200.00 on an Enfield #4 MK2.
 
Hi, Paul B.,

The designers of the 1903 used a two-piece firing pin because they were copying the Krag, not because of concern about Mauser patents, which they just ignored.

The main deficiency of the 1903 as a battle rifle are the sights, designed by target shooters for target shooters. Terrible in combat. The 1903A3 was some improvement.

Jim
 
The .303 Enfields are a very rugged battle rifle. Ammo is readily available and cheap. There is certainly nothing "wrong" with the Enfield but there are better choices.

For my first rifle, I would buy a M38 Swedish Mauser in 6.5x55, making sure to get the one with the bent bolt. These are nice short carbines which are superbly accurate and easy to handle. A nice one will set you back $150 - $200, probably closer to the latter. But the fit, finish, and just plain utility of the rifle will be much more satisfying than the Lee Enfield.

Hope this helps, Mikey
 
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