Regarding which rifles have which sights...... this is going to be very short, but it either must be very short, or an entire book; there is no middle ground.
The first LEE Rifle came out in 1879, built in .433 and .45-70. It is the ancestor of them ALL. Bolt action, magazine fed, open sights.
The British bought 3 of the early rifles, spent 9 years working with them, adopted the LEE Rifle with an 8-shot Magazine, in .303 calibre, open sights, Metford barrel, late in 1888.
1895 this rifle modified to use an Enfield-rifled barrel because the Metford barrels were burning-out with the hot Cordite powder. Also open sights.
1901 the first SHORT Lee-Enfield rifle built, experimented with until finally standardised in 1910: .303, bolt action, 10-shot magazine, open sights, the standard rifle of WW1, made in 6 factories with 7 names. (National and Standard were the same plant: ugly story there.) Production version was the Mark III and III*.
1908 a very few CONVERTED rifles were rebuilt, called the SMLE CONVERTED MARK IV. Rare, rare, rare. Built from old pre-1901 rifles with new wood and new dates. A vry few served until the end of WW2!
1922/24 a few thousand IMPROVED rifles built, called the SMLE Mark V. FIRST aperture sights here. Rare and Expensive!
1927: a NEW SYSTEM of naming the rifles came out. Anything pre-1902 became obsolete.
ALL SMLE rifles in .303 became Rifle Number 1.
ALL SMLE rifles in .22 became Rifle Number 2.
ALL P-'14 rifles became Rifle Number 3.
Experimenting continued with the Rifle Number 1, Mark VI, which was built with a good-quality APERTURE SIGHT (at last!).
1931 THREADS on the Rifle Number 1 Mark VI are CHANGED to BA THREADS and the rifle is ADOPTED as the Rifle Number 4, Mark 1. THIS WAS TO BECOME THE PRODUCTION RIFLE OF WW2. India and Australia continue production of the older type rifle because they do not have the tooling to make the new rifle (another ugly story here). Number 4 Mark 1 goes into toolroom production at Enfield, only a very few thousand built by the time the SHTF in 1939.
Hitler over-runs Europe in 1939/40. Britain alone, PAAAAAANIC button pushed and held down. Enfield CANNOT MAKE the new rifle: too many OTHER projects. BSA builds a new factory at SHIRLEY, Gummint factories at FAZAKERLEY and MALTBY, SAVAGE (in the USA) takes out a massive contract, CANADA builds giant factory at LONG BRANCH (Toronto) and massive production begins at last. About 7 million Number 4 Rifles are produced but don't start getting into the hands of the troops until late 1941. North African War is fought with the old rifles, the Number 1s; Number 4s are used for the INVASION OF EUROPE.
NEW .22 rifles are developed, 2 types, both called NUMBER 7, a British and a Canadian type.
AFTER the War, the Lee-Enfield continues in slow production until the FN-FAL (which FREE Canadians are no longer allowed to shoot) becomes the issue rifle. Number 8 and Number 9 Lee-Enfields, L-39 and L-42 are made as Match and Sniping rifles into the 1960s. PAKISTAN buys a whole Number 4 FACTORY from England and sets up production. The Indian factory at Ishapore (established about 1912) continues production on the old Number 1 Rifle, Australia makes the last of its Number 1 Rifles at Lithgow.
This is NOT COMPLETE. COMPLETE would require several books. This is an introduction.
You want a good Lee-Enfield rifle with aperture sights, you are looking for a Number 4 Rifle. They have 6 butt lengths, 6 or 7 rear sights, Barrels with 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 grooves, early ones (the majority) have unhung triggers, late ones (and conversions) have hung triggers, they have 2 different bolt releases..... and they are ALL GOOD and the parts change about with wonderful ease. Get a rear sight you don't like, change it out in 10 minutes. Get a butt length that doesn't fit, change it out: 10 minutes.
FINEST BOLT COMBAT RIFLE EVER BUILT.
And that includes the 1903A3 and the Kar 98k.
Hope this helps.
The first LEE Rifle came out in 1879, built in .433 and .45-70. It is the ancestor of them ALL. Bolt action, magazine fed, open sights.
The British bought 3 of the early rifles, spent 9 years working with them, adopted the LEE Rifle with an 8-shot Magazine, in .303 calibre, open sights, Metford barrel, late in 1888.
1895 this rifle modified to use an Enfield-rifled barrel because the Metford barrels were burning-out with the hot Cordite powder. Also open sights.
1901 the first SHORT Lee-Enfield rifle built, experimented with until finally standardised in 1910: .303, bolt action, 10-shot magazine, open sights, the standard rifle of WW1, made in 6 factories with 7 names. (National and Standard were the same plant: ugly story there.) Production version was the Mark III and III*.
1908 a very few CONVERTED rifles were rebuilt, called the SMLE CONVERTED MARK IV. Rare, rare, rare. Built from old pre-1901 rifles with new wood and new dates. A vry few served until the end of WW2!
1922/24 a few thousand IMPROVED rifles built, called the SMLE Mark V. FIRST aperture sights here. Rare and Expensive!
1927: a NEW SYSTEM of naming the rifles came out. Anything pre-1902 became obsolete.
ALL SMLE rifles in .303 became Rifle Number 1.
ALL SMLE rifles in .22 became Rifle Number 2.
ALL P-'14 rifles became Rifle Number 3.
Experimenting continued with the Rifle Number 1, Mark VI, which was built with a good-quality APERTURE SIGHT (at last!).
1931 THREADS on the Rifle Number 1 Mark VI are CHANGED to BA THREADS and the rifle is ADOPTED as the Rifle Number 4, Mark 1. THIS WAS TO BECOME THE PRODUCTION RIFLE OF WW2. India and Australia continue production of the older type rifle because they do not have the tooling to make the new rifle (another ugly story here). Number 4 Mark 1 goes into toolroom production at Enfield, only a very few thousand built by the time the SHTF in 1939.
Hitler over-runs Europe in 1939/40. Britain alone, PAAAAAANIC button pushed and held down. Enfield CANNOT MAKE the new rifle: too many OTHER projects. BSA builds a new factory at SHIRLEY, Gummint factories at FAZAKERLEY and MALTBY, SAVAGE (in the USA) takes out a massive contract, CANADA builds giant factory at LONG BRANCH (Toronto) and massive production begins at last. About 7 million Number 4 Rifles are produced but don't start getting into the hands of the troops until late 1941. North African War is fought with the old rifles, the Number 1s; Number 4s are used for the INVASION OF EUROPE.
NEW .22 rifles are developed, 2 types, both called NUMBER 7, a British and a Canadian type.
AFTER the War, the Lee-Enfield continues in slow production until the FN-FAL (which FREE Canadians are no longer allowed to shoot) becomes the issue rifle. Number 8 and Number 9 Lee-Enfields, L-39 and L-42 are made as Match and Sniping rifles into the 1960s. PAKISTAN buys a whole Number 4 FACTORY from England and sets up production. The Indian factory at Ishapore (established about 1912) continues production on the old Number 1 Rifle, Australia makes the last of its Number 1 Rifles at Lithgow.
This is NOT COMPLETE. COMPLETE would require several books. This is an introduction.
You want a good Lee-Enfield rifle with aperture sights, you are looking for a Number 4 Rifle. They have 6 butt lengths, 6 or 7 rear sights, Barrels with 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 grooves, early ones (the majority) have unhung triggers, late ones (and conversions) have hung triggers, they have 2 different bolt releases..... and they are ALL GOOD and the parts change about with wonderful ease. Get a rear sight you don't like, change it out in 10 minutes. Get a butt length that doesn't fit, change it out: 10 minutes.
FINEST BOLT COMBAT RIFLE EVER BUILT.
And that includes the 1903A3 and the Kar 98k.
Hope this helps.
