Martini Henry in .303
- Thread starter superbee
- Start date
A small point of clarification:
Th don't believe there is a Martini Henry in 303. Martini, of course, refers to the action and I believe Henry refers to the henry rifling in the 577-450 rifles. A Martini in 303 would be a Martini Metford, if metford rifling, or a Martini Enfield, if enfield rifling.
Th don't believe there is a Martini Henry in 303. Martini, of course, refers to the action and I believe Henry refers to the henry rifling in the 577-450 rifles. A Martini in 303 would be a Martini Metford, if metford rifling, or a Martini Enfield, if enfield rifling.
There is actually a 303 caliber Martini Henry, the MH Mk.VI rifle.
Later re-designated as the Martini Metford Mk.II, for the reason that Blue-noser mentions.
Later re-designated as the Martini Metford Mk.II, for the reason that Blue-noser mentions.
Hello,
I found one of those at a gun show in Nova Scotia a year ago, for 400 dollars. May be they go for more than that normally. I asked around about them and it seems they pop up from time to time, commercial or military. The two I’ve seem both had enfield rifling and so were fine to shoot. If they have Medford rifling the barrel will wear out faster with regular ammo but it is still safe to fire, Martjni actions are some of the strongest out there. The military one I saw sold for 450, it had a badly varnished stock though. As long as the action is reasonably tight fitting and the extractor works it should be fine. There’s a lot of variety in them but functionally the main difference is rifling, if you can get one with enfield rifling if you intend to shoot it a lot.
Hope this helps a little bit.
Thanks
I found one of those at a gun show in Nova Scotia a year ago, for 400 dollars. May be they go for more than that normally. I asked around about them and it seems they pop up from time to time, commercial or military. The two I’ve seem both had enfield rifling and so were fine to shoot. If they have Medford rifling the barrel will wear out faster with regular ammo but it is still safe to fire, Martjni actions are some of the strongest out there. The military one I saw sold for 450, it had a badly varnished stock though. As long as the action is reasonably tight fitting and the extractor works it should be fine. There’s a lot of variety in them but functionally the main difference is rifling, if you can get one with enfield rifling if you intend to shoot it a lot.
Hope this helps a little bit.
Thanks
also one thing to do if you have it in hand is to open the action and pull the trigger it should close completely on its own without assistance ,when it does that the actions internal parts are in good shape and properly fitted
I stand corrected. Thanks for the info. I was not aware of that. I have had a number of Martini Metfords and Martini Enfields over the years - both rifles and carbines and they are indeed a lot of fun to shoot. The Metfords can be a little finnicky, and I echo the advice to try for one with Enfield rifling. The one I currently have is a rifle to which I have adapted a Central sight to compensate for failing eyesight and it is a tack-driver.
I lucked on a LSA.Co martini enfield a few years ago. Pleasure to shoot, the sights however leave a little to be desired. Check the bores because alot of them are sewer pipes. That joe salter example looks a bit different than mine, as its missing all the markings. Mine had the original manufactures date 1886 with the big VR crown, then its conversion date 1899 on the other side, and its British nitro proof marks and the regiment marks. All those stamps were fairly deep, so I dont see them all washing out, especially the BNP stamps at the front of the receiver.
Has a little engraved shield in the heel of the stock, makes me think it was maybe a club rifle at some point? No ramrod groove in the stock to speak of or provision for handguards.
Has a little engraved shield in the heel of the stock, makes me think it was maybe a club rifle at some point? No ramrod groove in the stock to speak of or provision for handguards.
They're around. I traded an old Cooey for one that a coworker found in his potato bin when he moved into an older house. It was rusted almost solid.
I had to do some soaking in Coca Cola for a week or more just to work the lever enough to clear the chamber.
I only fired it a couple of times by tying it to a tire and pulling on a string.
Had it rebarreled but still have the old 303 barrel. All of the old aresenal repair stamps add up to around a dozen times the old gun was repaired or updated.
I had to do some soaking in Coca Cola for a week or more just to work the lever enough to clear the chamber.
I only fired it a couple of times by tying it to a tire and pulling on a string.
Had it rebarreled but still have the old 303 barrel. All of the old aresenal repair stamps add up to around a dozen times the old gun was repaired or updated.
