Inherited: What have I got?

Demonical

Demonical

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Whitecourt, Alberta
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I was given this fine old .303; inherited it from the father-in-law.

Pretty nice stock in my opinion; it has black inlays with white diamonds, clear spacers on the fore-end, grip cap and recoil pad, plus there is some very nice checkering on the pistol grip.

It has a black fore-end tip and grip cap. The rifle has an old Pachmyr recoil pad.

In the markings on the receiver is an apostrophe '18 stamped, which I assume to be the year of manufacture, plus the words 'Nitro Proof'.

The original rear sight is removed, and it sports a Williams peep sight. The side of the receiver has been drilled and tapped for a side-mount scope (I guess).

The serial number is 5 digits.

The barrel rifling looks deep, with no pitting what-so-ever.

So what is this rifle? Any info' would be appreciated. :)
 
A guru should be along...
They can help with the stamps/markings...

In the meantime, I'd guess (repeat, guess) Parker Hale.

Parker hale re-worked many milsurps for "commercial" use. They usually used very nice wood. I have a PH1200C in 30-06...it's not a milsurp re-work but, uses a commercial Spanish '98 action...
 
A sporterized Lee Enfield No1MkIII* made (at-least the barrel I can see) 1916. The holes on the left hand side were for the charging guide.
 
Demonical said:
OK, what's the charging guide?
Click to expand...

It is a "bridge" over the action, in which the soldier could insert a 5-round stripper clip. With the bolt pulled back, he would then push down on the ammunition, which would go into the magazine. Pushing the bolt forward would make the empty stripper clip bounce off and chamber a round.

In this picture, it is the poor part which was attacked by an unskilled man with a drill.
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I suspect it was removed on your rifle because it may have prevented the use of a rear-mounted peep?
 
Charger guide; A bridge across the reciever that allowed you to load five rounds at a time with a charger/clip.
The pic is rather dark, but it looks like the rifle has a floorplate rather than a removeable magazine.
In any case its a nice looking professional conversion rather then a basement chop job.
 
Demonical said:
^ No, the rifle has the standard Enfield clip magazine, it's just not inserted in those pics.
Click to expand...

First of all, the standard Short Magazine Lee Enfield used a TEN round magazine, not a FIVE round one.

The Magazine was left in the rifle, and the rifle was loaded by using a stamped steel FIVE round charger. This stamped steel piece was inserted into the Charger Guide, (which is missing on your rifle) and the five rounds were pushed down into the Magazine, preferably using one motion. The charger was then removed and a second five round loaded charger was then inserted and the cartridges pushed downward into the magazine.

If you notice the picture in LOUTHEPOU's post, (post #6,) the charger guide is the piece on the left side of the picture attached to the receiver, and has four holes drilled into the flat on top. The slot in it facing the front of the rifle is where the charger was inserted, and it was held there by projections that fit into the two spaces on the left and right sides of the slot.

This rifle is a sporter conversion. It looks like a Gunsmith job, or someone who has a talent for woodworking. I would lean toward a Gunsmith, because of the checkering on the pistol grip. The fore-end tip looks a bit loose. The stock design, with the severe drop is typical of 1920-1930 ideas on the way stocks were designed. In those days, most people used open sights, and not scopes.

Parker Hale would not have left the ugly space with the rivet holes in the receiver like that. The rifle was sold as Surplus after WW1, and has Birmingham Proof marks on it.
 
^ I'll have to check the magazine; I don't know how many rounds it holds.

With that Williams peep(aperture) sight on there, how do I get the bolt out? Far as I know, I've got to rotate the bolt lugs up and the damn thing is in the way so I cannot withdraw the bolt by the sight!?
 
Demonical said:
^ I'll have to check the magazine; I don't know how many rounds it holds.

With that Williams peep(aperture) sight on there, how do I get the bolt out? Far as I know, I've got to rotate the bolt lugs up and the damn thing is in the way so I cannot withdraw the bolt by the sight!?
Click to expand...

You are probably going to have to loosen off the elevation slide locking screw on the right side of the sight, and raise the bar that holds the sight in place. There is usually a small screw in these sights that comes down vertically from the top. Do not turn this screw - it acts as a stop AFTER you set the elevation for a particular load or distance. You back this screw out a bit, zero the rifle, tighten down the large slide locking screw on the right side of the sight, then turn this screw inwards until it contacts the receiver.

Then, if you need to remove the sight again, it is a simple matter to push it downwards until it is stopped by the screw hitting the receiver, and tighten tthe slide to lock it.
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Demonical said:
I cannot get the bolt lug to rotate up, to withdraw the bolt. What's up with that? Is there a trick to it? Is it because the bolt needs lube?
Click to expand...

When the bolt is pulled all the way back, you need to rotate the bolt head counter clock wise. There's a retaining "spring" that prevents the bolt head from rotating on its own. Sometimes you need to persuade the bolt head with a bit of effort; especially if it's been a really long time since it last bumped over the spring. Sometimes, dust, grime etc. gets behind the spring and blocks its movement, making it even more difficult to pop the bolt head straight up. you may, then, need to use a flat punch and hammer... and gentle taps with the hammer.
 
I kept fiddling with the bolt and finally got it to release. Removed the Williams sight in order to remove the bolt. I then removed the forestock, trigger assembly etc...

Pretty evident that the father-in-law didn't know how to clean this rifle (or never bothered). Holy s**t, was this rifle ever dirty!! :eek:

I've given the barrel a starting course, scrubbing, solvents, patches to get it cleaned. I had to go to work so have to follow up on this, but I'm going to dis-assemble more of the action (as much as required) and get everything properly cleaned.

In spite of the lack of cleaning, what I see is a barrel that seems to be in very good condition. Rifling looks awesome, but I guess we'll see what happens, when I get around to shooting the old jewel.



Btw, where is the best place in Edmonton for Enfield parts?
 
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