7.62 No.4 Coversion kits?

LeeEnfieldNo.4_mk1

LeeEnfieldNo.4_mk1

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Picked up a book and it had a section on Conversion Kits to convert No.4 rifles to 7.62 repeaters. The kits included a barrel, magazine, bolthead, ejector and stripper clip guide insert to use 7.62 stripper clips. My DCRA rifle I am restoring has everything except the stripper clip guide. So Im wondering how common they were.

Anyone seen one of these?

If anyone has pictures Im particularly interested in the stripper clip guide. If its not too complicated I might be able to fabricate on for mine.

So, anyone seen one?
 
The DCRA conversions were intended for single shot target shooting. .303 magazine as loading platform.
In the years since, a lot have been altered with Sterling and L-42 bits to turn them into repeaters.
 
Yes. The Sterling kits had all the bits, including a breeching washer, iirc. The L-42 conversions were similar, but not the same.
I've never seen one of the charger guide inserts, but no doubt one could be made.
 
I've seen the charger inserts. I had a pic of one on a DCRA rifle but can't find it now unfortunately.

I've had a few of the Sterling mags and a couple of the Enfield mags. Prefer the Sterling mags for smoother feed but something has to be done re ejection. For a Sterling kit a hole has to be bored in the left sidewall of the receiver for the ejector.

The conversions never work as smoothly or reliably as the rifles did in .303 in my experience.
 
Ditto on the remark about single loading. The dominant fullbore shooting discipline of the day was DCRA, and their bolt-action only rules kept things on the flat and level for everyone.
 
The original kits as made by Sterling did not have a snap in charger guide adapter. They had a charger guide that you had to drill and tap to install. The Sterling kit (original) also did not have breeching washers. The kit came with a button type ejector, as Cantom mentioned and you had to drill the receiver to install it. I still have a couple of the kits (unopened) around here somewhere and will see about finding one and opening it up and posting a picture of the contents.
The kits I have came direct from old Major B.B. Keene who was managing director of Sterling back in the 80's.
There was a HUGE patent infringement flap over the conversion kits between Enfield and Sterling and by the time the law suit ended the need for them was gone as the FN rifle was in full production. The remaining kits in stock at Sterling were sold off to Ceylon (Now Myanmar) and the Enfield kits disappeared into the UK woodwork and were sold off by a few gun shops in the London area.
The Enfield kits had breeching up washers and with so little known of the kits there a bit of confusion on who used the breeching up washers.
The Enfield kit had the snap in charger guide. I'll dig one out and post a picture of that as well.
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John and I bought all the sterling magazines and the few Enfield magazines that BB Keene had left at Sterling
 
300Spartans said:
Is there a conversion kit for allowing it to shoot 7.62x39?
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Let your fingers do the walking. There have been a couple of attempts to sell kits for a .45ACP conversion. Rhineland (or something close to that name) was one. I think they got washed away with the last US recession. A gunsmith in Sudbury or T'unner Bay who is on CGN has done some conversions for guys here. The name Juan comes to mind. Expect to pay for the man's time, which is not the same as a drop in kit from the interweb.
 
300Spartans said:
Is there a conversion kit for allowing it to shoot 7.62x39?
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Basically, no.

But the good news is....you can make cheap plinking ammo from the cheap corrosive 7.62x39 ammo that's around by the case.

Get primed .303 brass ready...(clean, non corrosive primers)

Pull the bullets and powder from the 7.62 ammo and load it as is into the .303 cases. (if you wanted to make it consistent you could weigh the powder charges and make them all the same)

Works excellent and nice light .303 plinking loads with hardball for a cheap price. And, it actually works in the mag and feeds, unlike shorter 7.62 x 39mm ammo.

Throw in the excellent trick of putting pony tail elastics around the base of the case so it fireforms to your chamber (credit to Big Ed and Smellie) and Bob's your uncle for brass life.
 
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cantom said:
Basically, no.

But the good news is....you can make cheap plinking ammo from the cheap corrosive 7.62x39 ammo that's around by the case.

Get primed .303 brass ready...(clean, non corrosive primers)

Pull the bullets and powder from the 7.62 ammo and load it as is into the .303 cases. (if you wanted to make it consistent you could weigh the powder charges and make them all the same)

Works excellent and nice light .303 plinking loads with hardball for a cheap price. And, it actually works in the mag and feeds, unlike shorter 7.62 x 39mm ammo.

Throw in the excellent trick of putting pony tail elastics around the base of the case so it fireforms to your chamber (credit to Big Ed and Smellie) and Bob's your uncle for brass life.
Click to expand...

I've done this before when I was into Enfields.

I am surprised though that there isn't some sort of conversion kit.
 
tiriaq said:
Yes. The Sterling kits had all the bits, including a breeching washer, iirc. The L-42 conversions were similar, but not the same.
I've never seen one of the charger guide inserts, but no doubt one could be made.
Click to expand...

I've always wondered what this "breeching washer " was for ? :confused:

Grizz
 
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