SMLE No.1MKIII vet bring back from Afghanistan

[Hagar]

Gang,

A buddy's friend just got back from a combat tour in Afghanistan and brought back a No.1MKIII SMLE. It's been rode hard and put away wet many times and has minor "field repairs" to the handguards. The brass buttplate is so tarnished that it is slightly dark. The bore is excellent (looks like the natives appreciate and care for their rifles) and the only part missing is the safety/locking lever. It looks like it has been tied to a truck and hauled down a gravel road based on the dings to the stock.

I am very impressed with how rugged this rifle is!!

Hagar

Hagar

[Enfieldlock]

Any chance of getting the manufacturer and date.

The choice is whether to "restore" it or just clean it up and use it. The ones I have seen have fore-ends that are well shot away. The "drawers" may well need repairing.

Suggest he ties it to a post and fires it first.

[Hagar]

Lock,

I still have the rifle as I'm degreasing it for him and will replace the missing safety/locking lever. I have an old tire duct-taped vertically to a post up on the farm that we all use for "proofing" our new acquisitions. You put the butt inside the tire, and place the front of the rifle against the sidewall and bungee cord it firmly in place. There's a levee a few feet away that serves as a backstop. I'll use some of my HXP .303 for ammo.

The upper handguards are oil soaked but firm. The rear upper handguard has an area just forward of the receiver where something appears to have been depot removed as there are two crossways inlay repairs and a recessed are with two holes there.

The rifle is marked, "Enfield 1918" on the right socket assembly along with the British crown.

What are "drawers"?

I'll use mineral spirits and soaking in the sun to get as much grease and oil out as I can but beyond that I've told him to leave it as it is as that's the shape it was in while being used by an Afghan villager.

In case he wants to replace the missing part, where would I go to find one? I'd also like a source for a period accurate repro sling and blade in case he wants to add those to the weapon.

Many thanks for your help.

Hagar

[RJW-NZ]

for parts you can't beat springfield sporters or numrich gunparts corp, both are usa, large, have a large range of enfield bits, and best of all, their prices are good.

When test firing; the most important screw to make sure its tight is the larger screw just in front of the magazine. If this is loose, or the wood beneath the trigger guard which it holds is not held firmly, you will split the front wood wide open. Not recommended if that happens close to your face.

For purposes of what we're discussing the drawers area and things that need to be checked dept; take the forend off and see if the wood recoil blocks in the forend are intact and not chewed away by oil and age.
To find them, under the receiver is a pair of lugs that hang down and the trigger bits and magazine release are pivoted in them. The back side of these lugs press against a matching shaped pieces of wood inside the forend. Perhaps another member has a pic or drawing to refer to.
If these are damaged; if oil soaked there's no way to make repairs stick to it, so a replacment front end might be in order, don't worry these are cheap. ish.
If dry then new wood blocks can be shaped and epoxied in place.

Sounds like fun, ...

[goo]

..in which case it might not be prudent to shoot. those folks didn't care much about stuff like headspace or parts interswitchability.
,,,
The Khyber Pass region of the Afghanistan/Pakistan border has long been home to gunsmiths making homemade copies of firearms from whatever materials come to hand, be they railway lines, wrecked vehicles or scrap metal.

During British expeditions in the North-West frontier in the 19th century, the locals acquired numbers of rifles from the British. These were generally Martini-Henrys, but later on Martini-Enfields and even Lee-Enfields were acquired. They then began making copies using the afore-mentioned locally available materials.

The quality on Khyber Pass-made rifles is generally considerably inferior to factory-made examples and they may, in fact, be dangerously unsafe to fire. Khyber Pass Copy rifles cannot generally stand up to the pressures generated by modern commercial ammunition and it is generally advised that they not be fired under any circumstances.

The most obvious way of spotting a Khyber Pass Copy rifle, aside from the overall poor quality, is a reversed 'N' in the 'Enfield' markings on the receiver or 'VR' (Victoria Regina) ciphers with dates after her death in 1901.


...
http://www.victorianwars.com/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=822

[Hagar]

..in which case it might not be prudent to shoot. those folks didn't care much about stuff like headspace or parts interswitchability.
,,,
The Khyber Pass region of the Afghanistan/Pakistan border has long been home to gunsmiths making homemade copies of firearms from whatever materials come to hand, be they railway lines, wrecked vehicles or scrap metal.

During British expeditions in the North-West frontier in the 19th century, the locals acquired numbers of rifles from the British. These were generally Martini-Henrys, but later on Martini-Enfields and even Lee-Enfields were acquired. They then began making copies using the afore-mentioned locally available materials.

The quality on Khyber Pass-made rifles is generally considerably inferior to factory-made examples and they may, in fact, be dangerously unsafe to fire. Khyber Pass Copy rifles cannot generally stand up to the pressures generated by modern commercial ammunition and it is generally advised that they not be fired under any circumstances.

The most obvious way of spotting a Khyber Pass Copy rifle, aside from the overall poor quality, is a reversed 'N' in the 'Enfield' markings on the receiver or 'VR' (Victoria Regina) ciphers with dates after her death in 1901.


...
http://www.victorianwars.com/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=822

Goo,

Many thanks for the warning! My son on his first tour actually went to this area and was amazed at what these craftsmen could accomplish with simple hand tools, a small forge and an anvil. I checked this rifle again and the "N" in Enfield is correct, there is no V.R. and the barrel is clearly legit with strong rifling. The owner wants to shoot it so I'll check headspace on it and the old "tire on the post" proofing will take place while we huddle behind a tractor pulling on the cord to the trigger. I'll take a very close look at the fired cartridge for signs of excessive headspace and will warn the owner of the potential hazard. Many thanks for warning us!!

BTW, what model Harley did you buy? I looked at your photo and the thought occurred to me that a flat olive drab paint job with blaclklogo and black exhaust pipes would make a great military look on a modern bike

Thanks again,

Hagar

[Hagar]

for parts you can't beat springfield sporters or numrich gunparts corp, both are usa, large, have a large range of enfield bits, and best of all, their prices are good.

When test firing; the most important screw to make sure its tight is the larger screw just in front of the magazine. If this is loose, or the wood beneath the trigger guard which it holds is not held firmly, you will split the front wood wide open. Not recommended if that happens close to your face.

For purposes of what we're discussing the drawers area and things that need to be checked dept; take the forend off and see if the wood recoil blocks in the forend are intact and not chewed away by oil and age.
To find them, under the receiver is a pair of lugs that hang down and the trigger bits and magazine release are pivoted in them. The back side of these lugs press against a matching shaped pieces of wood inside the forend. Perhaps another member has a pic or drawing to refer to.
If these are damaged; if oil soaked there's no way to make repairs stick to it, so a replacment front end might be in order, don't worry these are cheap. ish.
If dry then new wood blocks can be shaped and epoxied in place.

Sounds like fun, ...

RJW,

Many thanks for your patient explanation of terminology and technique! Is there a book you'd recommend that would detail teardown, maintenance and accurizing of the SMLEs?

Many thanks,

Hagar

[roughman]

Gang,

A buddy's friend just got back from a combat tour in Afghanistan and brought back a No.1MKIII SMLE. It's been rode hard and put away wet many times and has minor "field repairs" to the handguards. The brass buttplate is so tarnished that it is slightly dark. The bore is excellent (looks like the natives appreciate and care for their rifles) and the only part missing is the safety/locking lever. It looks like it has been tied to a truck and hauled down a gravel road based on the dings to the stock.

I am very impressed with how rugged this rifle is!!

Hagar

Hagar

Say... This is gonna be old info, but you can get lots of SMLE parts from Numrich.

Best advise is to get a "Field" head space guage from Brownells and check the head space before you shoot the gun. But like I said, this is probably old news.

As far as the stock is concerned, you might try Easy Off Oven cleaner. Spray on, let work for 15 minutes, remove with steel wool, wipe with wet towel. Remove wood from barrel and action first. Tip: The rear sight protectors remain with the fore end.

I just bought a Lithgow SMLE the other day, and I am about to try the Easy Off thing.

Hard to believe these almost 100 year-old rifles are still in use. Doubt many M-16's will be hanging around in a similar time, but you can never tell...

[JB White]

Don't ever use oven cleaner to clean up a rifle stock. Oven cleaner works by breaking down organic substances from metal and porcelin etc. Wood is an organic material. What happens is the wood is sapponified when EZ Off hits the surface. That's why all the dirt & grime comes off. It comes off with the disolved wood at the surface along with all the natural oils which belong in the wood.

Sure, it looks good as gold to an untrained eye but the wood fibers are now contaminated with compounds which continue to break down the wood over time. That stock may be 100 years old today. Use oven cleaner and it won't last another 100 years!

That oven cleaner bullcrap spread on the internet more than a decade ago. People who were too lazy and too impatient to use safe methods so they went looking for a shortcut. Then they bragged about how well it worked with little regard to collector value. It's been proven time and time again NOT to use those chemicals but people still insist. Why?

[Guamsst]

You certainly can bring back rifles and bayonets. However, some liberal douchebags and ignorant commanders who won't read the regs will tell you otherwise. If it was purchased from a local, it is not technically a war trophy and can be imported with the correct customs red tape if you plan months ahead. It's easier to get it through as a war trophy if you have a commander that doesn't believe everything is an illegal war trophy. Believe me, I have gotten both sides of this briefing enough times to make me sick.

In reality, the same general rules were in place in WW2. They were just mostly ignored.