Couple Enfield Questions

lone-wolf

lone-wolf

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
140   0   0
Location
PEI
First of all, I own a Lee Enfield No1 Mrk3* 1917
I bought it Bubba'd, and it was cheap.

I was thinking I may use it as a deer rifle, bubba already drilled and tapped it for me and I have a scope sitting on it right now using the weaver t01 base and tip off rings. Problem is, I don't have proper eye alignment right now, so I'm wondering what I can do to correct it. The stock that's on it right now is the original wood I think, but it's been hacked up.
So I'm wondering if I put a Ramline or ATI stock on it, would I get better eye alignment? If so, which one is the best.
It's a bit heavy right now too it seems, but I'm thinking with one of them stocks I can put a sling on it and not worry as much about the weight.

So I'm looking for some opinions on where I should go from here.

Oh, another question I have is about reloading the 303. I've never reloaded anything, but from what I've read on here is that I should have the headspace checked before I even think about reloading for this rifle, is that correct? Something about the case expanding too much after firing, which really limits it's life?

Thanks guys, the smallest input is appreciated. And I did a search about whether the ramline or ati stock is better, and never really found anything useful.
 
Don't know what you've got on your No. 1 now but the Ramline will raise your line of sight higher than that of the military butt stock. Reloading reps are limited because the Enfield actions don't lock up at the head of the bolt. So cases streeetch more than they would in a front-of-the-bolt locking Mauser. If you want to get into reloading on the cheap, you should be able find a used Lee Loader in 303 British online fairly easily. Be conservative and don't exceed documented loads. If you haven't fired your No.1 yet you should at least try running a gunsmith's no-go gauge through the action which shouldn't close on it.
 
For my No4 Mk1 Jungle carbine (converted, wannabe), I bought a set of Lee Neck Size Custom (something like that) dies that came in a 3 die set and the yellow cylindrical case. I'm told to just neck size and keep that lot of brass for that LE rifle. Saves on the headspace/brass stretch issue.

Cheers,
Barney
 
Thanks guys, the smallest input is appreciated.
Click to expand...


I have just recently bought an ATI stock for my Parker Halerized 1924 Lithgow Mk III. I've found it to be poorly finished and definately not " drop in " as they advertise. The fore stock is very tight at the front of the reciever/ rear of the barrel and is going to require some work to get it to seat properly. The rear stock has a hard plastic butt plate. While I have not seen Ramline's stock, I know they advertise it as having a pachmyer butt pad and it is a cheaper ( as in dollars out of your pocket) stock. FWIW, on the feedback form I sent to ATI for my warranty I told them I'd try Ramline next time. Good luck !! Oh ya, and Hi everyone, this is my first Post .

Martin
 
"...have the headspace checked before..." Before you shoot it with any ammo. Reloading has nothing to do with it. If the headspace is bad, you or your smithy will need a handful of pricey bolt heads to try with proper guages until it's fixed. Don't spend any money until you know about the headspace.
"...don't have proper eye alignment..." How? Is the scope too far to one side or the other or are you not seeing the whole circle? The letter is just a matter of loosening the screws, moving the scope until you do see the whole sight picture and tightening the screws. Sideways likely means the base isn't installed properly. Having any one hole in the wrong place can do that. Not a particularly easy fix.
Synthetics stocks won't fix how the scope is mounted. They will increase the felt recoil.
 
A sporting buttstock will likely get your head much higher, so that using a scope will be much more comfortable. The original comb line is much too low for use with a scope.
Breeching tolerances in Lee Enfields are often generous. If the rifle doesn't swallow a .074" gauge, its fine. If you handload, size cases to suit the rifle. A neck size die will reduce the amount that the brass gets worked, cases will last longer, less risk of a case separation. If the rifle will accept an .074" gauge, cartridges can be handloaded to compensate. There are thousands of well used Lee Enfields around, most seem to work well enough for annual deer hunting at a minimum.
If you do need to try different boltheads, send a PM. I have a sack of these, one of them might work for you, would be trial and error, of course. Without gauges, you can't really tell if the fit is any better.
 
Having shot all but one of the many critters I've killed in my life with a gun very much like yours (a Mk4 with (currently) an ATI stock), here's what I can tell you regarding your complaints.

1. Eye position behind the scope will always be terrible unless you get a custom made stock for it (which will cost more than a new Stevens 200). Nobody makes a stock that sets your head in the right place for a scope - they all seem setup with the idea that you're going to use the iron sights. That said, the ATI synthetic stock is a VAST improvement in this regard. I've also heard of people having a standard weaver style base modified to fit, which will allow you to lower the scope by half an inch or more. Doing both would probably get you in the neighbourhood of "acceptable".

2. The gun will always weigh too much. A sling just lets you put the weight on your shoulder. The ATI stock mentioned above will weigh a lot more than the original stock set (almost a pound more if I recall correctly).

3. All the neck sizing in the world will not make your brass last worth a hoot in an Enfield. I have no idea how many firings I can get out of my bolt action 308's, because I've never worn any out yet (and I've got at least one lot of 50 that's well over 10 firings). With my 303, I get 3, occasionally 4 firings and they are done (about half the brass will be cracked at the base by the third firing). And I'm just doing the 'partial full length sizing' thing so that the gun head spaces the reloads on the shoulder and not the rim. I suppose if I loaded it like a 30-30, it would probably last longer, but I've not done any long term comparisons to be able to tell you how much longer.


All that said - the venerable old 303 is a great little gun - I do like mine a lot (as I said, all but one of the animals I've ever killed, I killed using that very gun - and I do have other options available). I just have given up on seriously 'fixing' any of the 3 items above. I live with the imperfect cheek-weld on the stock, I buy a box or two of Winchester PowerPoints a year and don't bother reloading for it, and I suck it up and pack the 10 pound beast whenever I take it out.

Oh, did I mention that it will put the first two bullets from a cold barrel in the same hole at 100 meters? None of my 308's will even remotely touch that kind of accuracy. If you told me I had to hit something small at 300 yards, the only gun I own that I would feel comfortable with shooting at that range would be my 303 (or The Wife(tm)'s 303 - it's almost as accurate as mine is).

Cheers!
 
Last edited:
If the problem is too low a stock and the stock is already in sad shape then simply mount a piece of wood on the top and carve it to whatever height works for you.

DSCF6323.jpg




DSCF6316.jpg


DSCF6324.jpg
 
I really like the ATI stock I put on my N1 MKIII.
In fact I found it increased accuracy ( better eye positioning for scope) and reduced the felt recoil by a lot.
 
Last edited:
My cheek isn't sitting high enough on the stock to be able to comfortably look through the scope. I can do it, but it's not what I'd prefer. Nothing side to side or anything, scope basically just isn't low enough. I've ordered a ATI stock for it, we'll see if that helps any. I'm thinking one of the strap on cheek rests I've seen may help out if the new stock doesn't. I mean, a 1/4" or 1/2" higher, and I should be able to comfortably use the scope.
The stock that's currently on it is the military one btw. Front forend was cut about the halfway length of the barrel.
That looks pretty damn cool Murf, might do that if the ati stock is a POS.

When I first got the rifle the action was dirty as hell, but the rifling looked good, and it was cheap so I bought it. Took it home, cleaned it, and now it seems pretty smooth to me. Nothing to complain about at least.

I already shot a couple boxes of ammo through it, so it shoots fine, or it didn't blow up yet anyways...

Thanks for all the input, very helpful. I'll get the headspace checked, and decide if it's worth my while trying to reload it then. Might do it even if I get only a limited life from the brass. It'd be a good learning experience :)
 
Good stuff!
Love my old enfield sporter.loads of fun. Been Reloadind 303 for about a year. been full lenth resizing,Hade a mixed box of brass, getting around 3 firings out of them, Also have an American made No.4 and a Ross Rifle and have noticed the actual bore diameter varies gun to gun,My british made sporter fires .312 bullet were the Ross and No.4 fire the .311 bullet accuratlly.so if you going to reload for your 303 you should slug your barrel to see what size bullet will suite your bore. They will vary from .311 to .313 some times higher. Most suppliers carrie up .313. Happy shooting!
 
Or if you have a 2 groove like mine, the hole in the barrel is possibly about .303 and only two wee little grooves are cut to .311. If so, yours will probably (like mine) shoot .308 bullets with very reasonable accuracy. :)
 
I love this thread:)

I shot my first deer 3 weeks ago with my 65 year old MK 4/1 Lee Enfield. Shaking like a leaf I got out of the truck and was hopeing it would give me a broadside, no such luck. 100 metres and head on, crappy shot. The damn thing was bedded down. Thought of spooking it but thought it might bolt. Took the shot, my hunter/spotter buddy yelled out, "6 inches high. Another shell in and got lucky. Not only did it not run it stood up. Second shot and down she went. No fuss, no muss. My buddy said great shot, I asked where did I hit it? Between the eye's, Damn, I was shooting for the chest.
Point is I love my 303,she's a ##### to lug around for sure. I love the action on it. The fact that both my grandfathers used them in WW2 is good enough for me. Elk, moose, deer, good old Lee Enfield does them all, thats why I have four of them.
 
Well - If you've shot the rifle with commercial ammo, and not had any problems, then the headspace cant be too bad... As Tiriaq pointed out, reloading allows you to size the cases quite snug in the chamber. This has the benefit of increasing brass life, but also solves any potential headspace issues you may have. To do this you have to "partially resize" or "neck size" your brass.
I have a Ramline, I quite like it. I recall comparing it to the ATI a few years ago, it definitely has some advantages. Bear in mind that any aftermarket stock may require some fiddling to get things right. Along with reloading, you've got lots of opportunity to fiddle....
 
Where do you guys buy your aftermarket stocks? Marstar doesn't have any, Ramline says they wont ship to Canada? I'm trying to track one down...
 
Hey Cosmic,I got lucky, my neck sized brass functions fine in four of my enfields all No 4's.They doesn't work in my No 5's or my Ross. But its not that hard to keep them apart,just gotta be a little organized.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom