Lee Enfield C no 7 barrel

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crusoe

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Has anyone got a C no 7 barrel they'd be willing to sell? Am I one of many looking out for these elusive things?

I'm new to this forum, but am a Lee-Enfield collector and shooter with a recent interest in .22s - I have a Pattern '14 no 1 (converted no 1 mk 1, itself a converted MLE), and am now in the process of collecting the parts for a facsimile C no 7, purely for shooting fun (and probably with a Redman insert in an old No 4 barrel, if indeed it proves impossible to find a C no 7 barrel).

Does anyone have any idea how many C no 7s made it out to commercial sale (I mean real originals, not the later parts rifles). I've read previous threads speculating on how many C no 7 military/cadet rifles are still in existence - there were certainly many of them 30-odd years ago when I was in Air Cadets! Am I right in thinking that many of these rifles have probably now been destroyed, and that the Govt will probably never release remaining surplus rifles for commercial sale?

Thanks!
 
We have had a few discussions on gunnutz in the last couple of weeks about these barrels. There was a few of these recievers recently sold by Epps, so a few guys are now on thehunt for barrels. There was a discussion on the gunsmithing section about an alternative way of making barrels.

My information on the Cno7s says there were only two large releases of the Cno7s numbering only 200-300 each. He says he got the good batch (he was a Cdn army armourer) and a commercial dealer got the lessor batch. There were also individual releases of proper rifles to shootong clubs back in the old days. I had one of these in my hands at a gunshow, but made the mistake of putting it down and taking a cool down walk over a difference of $25.

Not sure how many parts guns got pilfered out of the system over the years...I know of a few myself. As well, one board member claims his friend had 100 of the receivers, so theres a lot of parts guns to get assembled as well.

Good luck in your search for barrels. I have a ad in the EE for the last few weeks looking for some myself.
 
Only quantity of barrels released that I am aware of was a lot sold by Lever c1970. Saw one a while ago rechabered to .225 mounted on a bubba'd MM MkVI action.
 
Thanks very much for this - very interesting.

I also got inspired by getting one of those receivers from Epps, so it looks as if there are a few of us! Once I get my hands on a bolthead I'm going to have an insert put into a No 4 barrel.
 
CNo7 Barrel

CNo7 barrel supply has dried up....don't know what you would have to pay for a used barrel let alone an unissed one. Relining is a possiblitiy however you need to contend with the 303 chamber and extractor cut...greater diameter than the commerical liners available today. Also the enfield 25.25" barrel length is a concern as the commerical liners are 24.00", although I seen longer. Reline is not as straight foward and inexpensive as you may be thinking. You would be far better off to purchase a 22 barrell of the correct muzzle diameter, cut 3" off the breech end so you have the knox form and use it to sleeve the new barrel blank. Again will cost.

You should be aware that the bolt heads for the CNo7 range in size from 0 to 5 to compensate for headspace. Making up a bolt needs to be done by an experienced gunplumber/smith.

There are a number of these replacement receiver floating around. They are meant for repair work not building rifle from the ground up. You would be far better to sell the receiver and contribute the funds to purchasing a correct CNo7. You will find that a build up will be more costly than buying an original.
 
What would you folks consider a fair trade or price for a really nice CNo7 barrel?

I've seen numerous requests on this board and others for them however none seem to appear. Has any one latched onto one lately?

Heard that guys are buying No4's that were rebarrelled in 22 caliber and stripping them down.
 
"...many in the Cadet system still..." Army Cadets shoot nothing but air rifles now. They haven't had any real firearms for years. The Air and Sea side had shooting removed from their program about 25 years ago. Had several of the guys I did courses with beg me to take his bunch shooting. Took some of 'em.
The only rifles a Cadet Corps might have, now, are DP rifles for their Colour Party.
Quite literally, there are no No. 7 barrels around.
 
rgg_7 said:
What would you folks consider a fair trade or price for a really nice CNo7 barrel?
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I wouldn't go higher than $200 for a barrel. By the time you add up all the rest of the items tomake a rifle (ie, receiver $100, bolt head $10, magazine $60, rear sight $80, good wood set 100-300) you may as well buy the whole rifle when they show up.
Bitster rifles go in the $700-900 range these days, and origional factory assembled rifles from $800-1400.
 
sunray said:
"...many in the Cadet system still..." Army Cadets shoot nothing but air rifles now. They haven't had any real firearms for years. The Air and Sea side had shooting removed from their program about 25 years ago. Had several of the guys I did courses with beg me to take his bunch shooting. Took some of 'em.
The only rifles a Cadet Corps might have, now, are DP rifles for their Colour Party.
Quite literally, there are no No. 7 barrels around.
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Ehh, that can't be right. When I left Air Cadets 6 years ago, we still had a shooting program with air rifles, Anschutz (They looked exactly like the one sold as the CIL 190), and No. 7's. I've heard that they don't shoot any more, something to do with liability and lead at civilian ranges, but AFAIK, all the squadrons still have their guns, and I think the CIC website still has the regs for range outings.
 
sunray said:
"...many in the Cadet system still..." Army Cadets shoot nothing but air rifles now. They haven't had any real firearms for years. The Air and Sea side had shooting removed from their program about 25 years ago. Had several of the guys I did courses with beg me to take his bunch shooting. Took some of 'em.
The only rifles a Cadet Corps might have, now, are DP rifles for their Colour Party.
Quite literally, there are no No. 7 barrels around.
Click to expand...


that is not correct, some army cadets still shoot .22s however only in outdoor ranges....air and sea cadets still practice shooting.

true, the daisey air is what all cadets practice and complete with.

yes, all the cadets still have their Cno.7 , some uses them and some use them only for drill purpose.
 
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curtton said:
that is not correct, some army cadets still shoot .22s however only in outdoor ranges....air and sea cadets still practice shooting.

true, the daisey air is what all cadets practice and complete with.

yes, all the cadets still have their Cno.7 , some uses them and some use them only for drill purpose.
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I think someone would throw a fit if they began to drill with the no.7's... they've got de-act drill rifles for that.
 
chanman said:
I think someone would throw a fit if they began to drill with the no.7's... they've got de-act drill rifles for that.
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why would someone throw a fit? its not like the cadets are taking it thru an obstacle course.

you and i had this discussion before but im sorry to inform you that no one is taking a fit , you may call army cadet #2827 in port moody , they dust of the Cno.7 twice a year , once when the armourer shows up to inspect, clean and repair (if necessary) and the other towards the end of the year annual inspection when there is drill rifle team.

this cadet is small and do not have enuff interest to pay for shooting outdoors so rather than have them sit in darkness , they come out once a year (bolts removed) and get a good work out.:D

it will a shame if pac command decided to dewat them.:mad:
 
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curtton said:
why would someone throw a fit? its not like the cadets are taking it thru an obstacle course.

you and i had this discussion before but im sorry to inform you that no one is taking a fit , you may call army cadet #2827 in port moody , they dust of the Cno.7 twice a year , once when the armourer shows up to inspect, clean and repair (if necessary) and the other towards the end of the year annual inspection when there is drill rifle team.

this cadet is small and do not have enuff interest to pay for shooting outdoors so rather than have them sit in darkness , they come out once a year (bolts removed) and get a good work out.:D

it will a shame if pac command decided to dewat them.:mad:
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Hrmm, we had seperate drill and range rifles. The range team would probably be the ones having a fit at having rifles knocked around. Many of the Air Cadet squadrons in the GVRD are fairly big.

I do remember having this convo before, I think sunray may have made the 'no shooting in air/sea cadets for 25 years' comment before too when I clearly remember doing so at ranges in Richmond and New Westminster. It just seemed strange to drill with the No. 7's, but maybe I simply went to a more thoroughly equipped squadron.

I hope if they decide to get rid of their various .22's, they'll sell them off instead of dewating or destroying them.
 
stencollector said:
Most likely they will be stripped of parts first to keep the Rangers rifles going.
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arent you happy with that? then at least they will sell off the 22s barrels which they cant use. i know, while others rather buy the whole rifle.

now what are they gonna do with the anschutz ? technically it belongs to the cadet units cos they raised the funds to buy them .
 
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