January Purchases

My Lee Enfield Savage No4Mk1*....

Not the stock it came in. The stock was cut down and both the forestock and butt stock were hand carved....shame, the butt stock was in good shape...

Anyhow...here it is in the "new to me" wood
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So I got two forestocks and a set of handguards off flea-bay and I have a walnut butt stock (unissued) in the butt bin...:rolleyes:

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These are the forestocks, the lower has a better finish on the wood, the top is greyish...

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Now the "challenges" of my restoration project...

The steel but plate does not fit the butt stock too well, the wood has a gap all around..
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I have a few brass ones and an aluminum looking one? So should I fit the stell but plate or switch to brass or aluminum?

The top hand guard is cracked. Any advice on gluing it? I was thinking of using JB weld on the inside..

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And the front handguard has been stained black...

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I'm missing the front band screw and the front sling swivel and the swing swivel screw head is a bit mashed up..
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As well, no rear stock band...hence the tie-wrap...

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But you gotta luv the markings:dancingbanana: ...

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Oh yeah, 1943 manufacture date based on serial number.
 
Use the greyis forestock as it's proper birch. The other is beech. Front handguard should strip OK. Soak it in circa 1850 or Polystrippa overnight. Should be fine.

Savages had the Zamac alloy buttplate, not the steel one. Alter the wood, not the metal parts if it needs fitting.

Watch e-bay for a birch buttstock - they are fairly common.

Don't use JB weld on a stock!!!

Spread the crack and either utty knife some carpenter's glue into the crack or use a cyanate based super-glue.

That's my $.02 worth...
 
Use the greyis forestock as it's proper birch. The other is beech. Front handguard should strip OK. Soak it in circa 1850 or Polystrippa overnight. Should be fine.

Savages had the Zamac alloy buttplate, not the steel one. Alter the wood, not the metal parts if it needs fitting.

Watch e-bay for a birch buttstock - they are fairly common.

Don't use JB weld on a stock!!!

Spread the crack and either utty knife some carpenter's glue into the crack or use a cyanate based super-glue.

That's my $.02 worth...
 
Use the greyis forestock as it's proper birch. The other is beech. Front handguard should strip OK. Soak it in circa 1850 or Polystrippa overnight. Should be fine.

Savages had the Zamac alloy buttplate, not the steel one. Alter the wood, not the metal parts if it needs fitting.

Watch e-bay for a birch buttstock - they are fairly common.

Don't use JB weld on a stock!!!

Spread the crack and either utty knife some carpenter's glue into the crack or use a cyanate based super-glue.

That's my $.02 worth...
Click to expand...

Sounds like a plan...
 
Hi all,

Technically late December purchases but as I haven't had time to enjoy them until now then I'll just class them as January :D . Please let me know what you all think.

Cheers,
Greg

First up a nice M1911A1. Seial # puts it to a late 1943 production. It has British BNP marks on it snd she's a beauty. Can't wait to hit the range with it.

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Close up of some of the markings. You can just barely see the Ordnance Dept. mark in the top left corner. It was inspected by Col. Atwood.

M1911A1_2.jpg


My M1 Carbines. Both WWII Production but both have gone through many refurbs over the years. Top one is an Inland and the bottom one is IBM. Both lots of fun at the range.

M1Carbines.jpg


Last but not least. My Lee Enfield No.4 MK I*. It's a Long Branch and dated 1943.

No4MK1_1.jpg


The Long Branch marks. I should mention that it's all matching.

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Yesterday evening I received the latest addition to my collection of Canadian/British military firearms.

It is a Canadian-made Inglis No. 1 Mk1* Browning High Power pistol - i.e. the "Chinese" model - SN 1CH4149, which indicates that it was manufactured in late August 1944.

The pistol is in good overall shape, with all-matching serial numbers (though it has been re-parkerized, which is by no means unusual for these, actually.) Quite a few of this Chinese model (i.e. with the tangent-adjustable long-range rear sight and cut for the shoulderstock) were diverted to Canadian (and British) service during WWII to supplement supplies of the No. 2 pistol adopted by them, but both countries had a program a decade or two after the war to convert all such No. 1 pistols in their inventory to No. 2 configuration. This was accomplished by removing the tangent sight and milling its base off the slide, then installing the simple non-adjustable rear sight of the No. 2. pistol - the stock attachment slot on the rear of the gripframe was simply left in place.

What is interesting about this pistol is that it appears to have been in Canadian service - there is a C-Broadarrow mark on the left side of the slide at the rear, which is unusual in itself (since most Canadian pistols are not marked there, to my knowledge) but to my mind is definitely indicative of Canadian ownership and use - yett the gun is clearly still in the unaltered "No. 1" configuration. This suggests to me that the pistol must have been surplussed (or otherwise "removed" from military service [;)] ) before the conversion program affected it.

Quite some time ago, I acquired a repro shoulderstock/holster - in anticipation of eventually filling this niche in my collection - and am pleased to report that it firts perfectly! :D

Some pictures (click each thumbnail for full-size image ...)

First, the C-Broadarrow stamp on the left side of the slide:








 
Well, today I bought a JFK special.
It's a '41 M38 Carcano Carbine.
I haven't scored a stripper clip for it yet, worse luck but the dealer is going to look through his boxes of bits next week when his assistant returns from hols and he said any Carcano clips or ammo he comes across are mine, gratis.
Fortunately Highland Ammo (better known as Privi Partizan anywhere else in the world) make factory ammo and brass for 6.5x52.
So I picked up a pack of ammo to play with on the weekend.
So here's a pic:

1941_CarcanoCarbine_01.jpg


And here's the receiver stamp:
1941_CarcanoCarbine_02.jpg


I'll be picking up a set of Lee dies and some brass in the near future and hope to screw some decent groups out of it.
Another friend has a couple just like mine and he gets quite good groups out of them.
A bit of practise it may even end up a good little field rifle for goats or pigs. ;)
Incidentally, does anyone know how the safety works on these things?
Edit: Just worked it out! :redface:
You push the safety forward a little and then it rotates anti-clockwise to a vertical position.
 
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Yeah, it balances real nice.
Just gotta get a clip or 2 to feed it and I'll be done.
Brass is dirt cheap and my mate feeds his 2 with .264" cal bullets and they shoot well so I can't see mine will be any different.
Mind you, if I bring it home, my other January Purchase is LOTS cooler.
 
GrantR said:
Yesterday evening I received the latest addition to my collection of Canadian/British military firearms.

It is a Canadian-made Inglis No. 1 Mk1* Browning High Power pistol - i.e. the "Chinese" model - SN 1CH4149, which indicates that it was manufactured in late August 1944.

The pistol is in good overall shape, with all-matching serial numbers (though it has been re-parkerized, which is by no means unusual for these, actually.) Quite a few of this Chinese model (i.e. with the tangent-adjustable long-range rear sight and cut for the shoulderstock) were diverted to Canadian (and British) service during WWII to supplement supplies of the No. 2 pistol adopted by them, but both countries had a program a decade or two after the war to convert all such No. 1 pistols in their inventory to No. 2 configuration. This was accomplished by removing the tangent sight and milling its base off the slide, then installing the simple non-adjustable rear sight of the No. 2. pistol - the stock attachment slot on the rear of the gripframe was simply left in place.

What is interesting about this pistol is that it appears to have been in Canadian service - there is a C-Broadarrow mark on the left side of the slide at the rear, which is unusual in itself (since most Canadian pistols are not marked there, to my knowledge) but to my mind is definitely indicative of Canadian ownership and use - yett the gun is clearly still in the unaltered "No. 1" configuration. This suggests to me that the pistol must have been surplussed (or otherwise "removed" from military service [;)] ) before the conversion program affected it.

Quite some time ago, I acquired a repro shoulderstock/holster - in anticipation of eventually filling this niche in my collection - and am pleased to report that it firts perfectly! :D

Some pictures (click each thumbnail for full-size image ...)

First, the C-Broadarrow stamp on the left side of the slide:








Click to expand...

I got to get me one of those.......:) I'm on a surplus pistol kick these days.
As far as the C->, I have a US M1917 that has one stamped in the receiver, which I have never seen before, and from what I'm aware, is not where it should be stamped anyway.....apparantly we just stamped the stocks with the C->. I suspect with mine anyway that someone has a stamp and has decided to be creative........
 
kombi1976 said:
Yeah, it balances real nice.
Just gotta get a clip or 2 to feed it and I'll be done.
Brass is dirt cheap and my mate feeds his 2 with .264" cal bullets and they shoot well so I can't see mine will be any different.
Mind you, if I bring it home, my other January Purchase is LOTS cooler.
Click to expand...

Hornady also makes .268" bullets just for the Carcano.
Look here:
https : / / w w w .hornady.com/shop/?ps_session=27756430d240f02fa7ca5c99f7c0d469&page=shop%2Fbrowse&category_id=ad8aeb5cc45afdcbc32a796dfb401107
 
Claven2 said:
Hornady also makes .268" bullets just for the Carcano.
Look here:
https : / / w w w .hornady.com/shop/?ps_session=27756430d240f02fa7ca5c99f7c0d469&page=shop%2Fbrowse&category_id=ad8aeb5cc45afdcbc32a796dfb401107
Click to expand...

Another (cheaper) option is to get a custom Lee Lube-Sizer and either size 270 (0.277") cast bullets to 0.270" (1-2 thou above groove diameter), or 270 jacketed (of the thin jacket persuasion or you risk jacket separation) down to groove diameter or the next higher even number above groove diameter (e.g. 0.268" or 0.269").

This is not theory - I have done it. Depending on the depth of the lube grooves, you can typically size a cast bullet down up to 0.010" and retain symmetry as well as enough groove depth to hold the lube - you also end up with more bearing surface. With jacketed, I've also done this for the Steyr M95, by sizing down 0.338" to 0.329" - haven't bothered with cast for that gun because Lee makes a good mold in the correct size (maybe a bit undersized for some bores, but a whole lot better than 8mm).
 
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Claven2 said:
Hornady also makes .268" bullets just for the Carcano.
Look here:
https://www.hornady.com/shop/?ps_se...&category_id=ad8aeb5cc45afdcbc32a796dfb401107
Click to expand...
Yeah, I know about those bullets getting them in Oz could be an interesting exercise.
I'll see how the M38 shoots with the Highland ammo on the weekend and go from there.
One thing is certain, if I did want them they'd be special order and that always means months. :(
Sadly I can't order them from an American retailer or the like.
But who knows?
Fortune may've smiled on me and I may've bought one with a nice tight bore.......and the rest! :rolleyes: :p
 
Beautiful looking Carcano my friend.

Mine shoots and handles great but yours looks much nicer than my old beater.
Yours is made one year later than Lee harvey Oswald's, same arsenal and calibre though.

Let's see some more glamour pics of that baby to crash the mosin party.
 
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Skippy said:
Let's see some more glamour pics of that baby to crash the mosin party.
Click to expand...

Not going to happen. I have at least two more highly rare and top-secret Mosin acquisitions to degrease and post for this month ;)
 
Hitzy said:
... As far as the C->, I have a US M1917 that has one stamped in the receiver, which I have never seen before, and from what I'm aware, is not where it should be stamped anyway.....apparantly we just stamped the stocks with the C->. I suspect with mine anyway that someone has a stamp and has decided to be creative........
Click to expand...
Not sure if you are talking about a M1917 Enfield rifle, or a Colt or S&W Model 1917 revolver, but on a revolver, the frame (upper left side, toward the rear) was the "regulation" location for the C/|\ ownership mark - I can't say for sure with specific reference to M1917 rifles, but it does appear on the receiver of at least some Lee-Enfields and other military rifles, IIRC ...
 
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