How hard would it be to restore a BSA MKIII 1918 .303 British? Is the wood beech? Are all the parts BSA marked[mag]? Mag missing metal and bore G+-VG condition.I have some 150 and 180 factory ammo to try not sure what it will like till I shoot it I guess? Would it take .311 bullets or the .312 If it's any good I'd like to shoot cast bullets in it.Poured a couple liters of boiling water down the bore between bronze brushing and you should have seen the crap that came out but the rifling is strong and bright.Slight throat erosion unless it's the lead for 1/4" or so..........What would it be worth?Only thing BUBBA'ed is the forestock..................Harold
Bsa Mkiii 1918 ...............
- Thread starter mbogo3
- Start date
Restore it and enjoy it.
Claven is a grumpy old fart so ignore him.
Your other option is to buy a VG SMLE from Jean Plamondon for $350 and be done with the hassle of finding parts, then sell your sporter for $100.
Entirely your choice however half of the adventure (when you're new to milsurps) is doing it on your own to bring a milsurp back to its former glory. Just make sure your time is well worth spent - the cost effective person knows the bore is like new before they attempt a full restoration (unless its a very rare piece).
My 2 Cents
Claven is a grumpy old fart so ignore him.
Your other option is to buy a VG SMLE from Jean Plamondon for $350 and be done with the hassle of finding parts, then sell your sporter for $100.
Entirely your choice however half of the adventure (when you're new to milsurps) is doing it on your own to bring a milsurp back to its former glory. Just make sure your time is well worth spent - the cost effective person knows the bore is like new before they attempt a full restoration (unless its a very rare piece).
My 2 Cents
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- Location
- Vancouver Island BC
Sarco or Numrich should have the parts that you need to restore it. Be sure you order all the metal parts needed as well as extra screws. Any restored 303 is worth more than a Bubba rifle.
Since when does economic sense apply to the hobby of collecting and restoring Lee Enfields?
Not unusual for it to cost me $250 to build a $200 rifle.
Not unusual for it to cost me $250 to build a $200 rifle.
Start by checking the headspace and slugging the bore.
Lee-Enfield barrels can measure between .311" and .315" and still be considered ok. If the bore measures more than .315", the barrel is shot out.
If the bore is ok, check the headspace.(Brownell's wants $25US each for headspace guages) If the headspace is bad on a No. 1 Mk III, fixing it is far more expensive than a No. 4. You need a handful of bolt heads to try with proper guages to find one that gives safe headspace. No. 1 bolt heads run $11.90US each with no extractor or spring from Gunparts. A stock set runs $71.65US. Likely has mixed manufactuure parts too.
Lee-Enfield barrels can measure between .311" and .315" and still be considered ok. If the bore measures more than .315", the barrel is shot out.
If the bore is ok, check the headspace.(Brownell's wants $25US each for headspace guages) If the headspace is bad on a No. 1 Mk III, fixing it is far more expensive than a No. 4. You need a handful of bolt heads to try with proper guages to find one that gives safe headspace. No. 1 bolt heads run $11.90US each with no extractor or spring from Gunparts. A stock set runs $71.65US. Likely has mixed manufactuure parts too.
