A real or fake L8A2 Enfield
- Thread starter superbee
- Start date
In my opinion, the barelled receiver is real, but it's a restored sporter. The forestock is clearly Indian - and before anyone gives me that "Ishy Screws don't mean India" baloney - look either side of the middle band - it has the relief cuts for an Indian Energa grenade sight - though the band is a replacement as it does not have the energa sight mounting holes in it.
So in my view, a restored real L8A2, that someone has set up as a target rifle. It does have the correct pinned bridge insert too.
So in my view, a restored real L8A2, that someone has set up as a target rifle. It does have the correct pinned bridge insert too.
I would be very suspicious. Looks like a rifle that was made up for target shooting. Would a L8 rifle not have an issue magazine rather than a Sterling? Not only does the forend have the Indian screw, it has the little Indian cutouts at the band. I wonder what the barrel is, what marks are on it?
Lee Enfield
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Poor pantographer for sure- or is that freehand e-pen onto a stencil?
ON the extremely few No8 photos, it appears that they wiped the original markings... or at least barred them thru.
ON the extremely few No8 photos, it appears that they wiped the original markings... or at least barred them thru.
"Ishy Screws don't mean India" baloney
Well its not baloney. Why do people think that fore end cracks were only repaired in India and no where else?
But in this case it looks like an Ishy screw. If it goes all the way through the stock and you can see metal where the point of the screw has been filed off it is Ishy .
Much neater repairs that do not go all the way through were done in the UK and Canada.
Be aware that I do not claim to be an Enfield expert but have looked into this as extensively as I can. have collected Enfields for 50 years plus etc etc. Because Enfields were produced in many different countries, over many years and different versions beware of anyone who calls themselves an Enfield expert. There are even errors in the Enfield bible written by Skennerton.
After thought. The markings on the side pf the receiver look far too crude to be a real L8 IMHO
Well its not baloney. Why do people think that fore end cracks were only repaired in India and no where else?
But in this case it looks like an Ishy screw. If it goes all the way through the stock and you can see metal where the point of the screw has been filed off it is Ishy .
Much neater repairs that do not go all the way through were done in the UK and Canada.
Be aware that I do not claim to be an Enfield expert but have looked into this as extensively as I can. have collected Enfields for 50 years plus etc etc. Because Enfields were produced in many different countries, over many years and different versions beware of anyone who calls themselves an Enfield expert. There are even errors in the Enfield bible written by Skennerton.
After thought. The markings on the side pf the receiver look far too crude to be a real L8 IMHO
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lol. Sure.
Best of luck in your collecting guns with screws in their forestocks.
Peter Laidler is not some inaccessible deity. He’s on milsurps.com daily and is something of an online friend. It’s worth talking to him about how prevalent ishy screws are in non-Indian no.4 rifles (I.e. it was an allowed repair for an already cracked stock, but almost never done, because replacement forestocks were generally readily available). The Indians, on the other hand, put them in every enfield in inventory. All of them. Without exception.
Your above post is the only claim I have ever heard that Canada adopted the practise. Even on grenade firing rifles, Canada used a recessed double headed machine screw, not a wood screw, on every example I have ever observed.
L7 rifles were theoretically made from 1/2, 1/3, mk2 and even original 1 and 1* rifles according to the list of changes. Not sure if examples of all of them have been observed or not.
I have personally seen a Long Branch and a couple of British No 4s with reinforcing screws in their fore ends that are neatly and well done. Much better than those done in India. There was no other evidence to suggest that these rifles had ever been to India. Like I said I don't claim to be an expert on anything. I have been collecting Enfields for over 50 years. Have about 40 or so in my collection, look at them all at gun shows, have all the books etc.
I may be wrong and it is certainly rare on non Indian rifles but I still stand by the statement that not all fore end screws are Ishy
I may be wrong and it is certainly rare on non Indian rifles but I still stand by the statement that not all fore end screws are Ishy
In the case of this rifle, I would suggest it is highly unlikely that a screw reinforced forend would have been used to set up a L8 rifle.
The rear sight attachment and the aperture front sight are evidence that the rifle was set up for range use.
Without proof otherwise, I would assume that the rifle was made up.
The rear sight attachment and the aperture front sight are evidence that the rifle was set up for range use.
Without proof otherwise, I would assume that the rifle was made up.
I suspect that on non-Indian rifles the screw was used to repair an already cracked stock, with a glued crack.
At any rate, I have asked Peter over at msc.
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