Martini Enfield rifle (not carbine) in .303

[recoil]

I have for years owned a Martini Enfield in .303 . It came out of Newfoundland and Labrador and is in stunning condition, Certainly the wood is very figured and not run of the mill. it had very little, verry little wear on rifling and appears devoid of any markings on the wood. zero rust and obviously was carefully stored before I acquired it. The breech and barrel are marked as "WW Greener Maker Birmingham. it has a stamped serial number 5### on the reverse side of the chamber to the greener markings. interestingly the mid barrel band has a WD broad arrow stamp and what appears to be a crown with E below it. I 've shot this several times with my mild handloads and it shoots fine, although has about as heavy a trigger as you might imagine.

The seller who had owned it for 50 or so years speculated that it was either a straight civilian sale or a rifle that had been imported by an Officer to the then colony, or perhaps a constabulary rifle although I'd expect markings if that.. I'm realizing that my log shows I've fired less than 40 rounds in the 10 or so years I've owned it and I'm thinking about selling it. I have NO real idea what "museum quality: actually looks like in a rifle this old but the condition to my eye is excellent. I generally cringe at "what's it worth?" posts but I've got to start somewhere, and it would help me greatly to decide I think. it's the third rifle down below the MH's in .455 and .22. sling is one I made and not original. I appreciate any help/thoughts on origins and on potential value..

 

[tonykimatpl]

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, W.W. Greener converted surplus Martini-Henry rifles—originally chambered in .577/450—into .303 British caliber. These conversions were part of a broader effort to modernize older firearms to use the then-standard .303 smokeless cartridge, resulting in models like the Martini-Enfield and Martini-Metford. Greener’s work included both military-style conversions and civilian target rifles, some of which were later adapted to smaller calibers such as .22 and .310 for training and competition purposes .

Value wise, probably on par with original MH examples, maybe a little less. I'd say $1000 tops.

 

[bearhunter]

OP, I sold a similar rifle to that in your photo for $1200 last year. It may or may not have sold for more, but Martini admirers are a "niche" group and many mistakenly believe these actions are weak.

I have one left, chambered for the 303 Brit, and its been fed a steady diet of IVI made 303 British, surplus Greener and modern commercial offerings for the past 50 years, without any signs of damage, wear, or stretching.

I've magnafluxed the receiver several times, mostly out of curiosity and there aren't any "cracks" or "stress" striations.

Don't be afraid to shoot full power ammo in that rifle. I can fully understand why you wouldn't want to, but it's plenty strong enough for the job.

I've seen these rifles converted to some very powerful cartridges, such as the 7x65R and loaded to the nuts, giving similar performance to the 280rem. I actually have one in that chambering and have taken a few Deer, as well as one Black Bear with it. I won't be using it for hunting anymore as my eyes don't work well with the iron sights on it. the rear sight is a flip up diopter type, mounted on the butt socket. Lovely rifle.

 

[RRCo.]

The forend and butt have been sanded quite heavily. The receiver appears to have had the finish polished off which is not surprising considering the heavy pitting along one top side. The screw in the band has had the head peened to restore the slot etc. The band is military marked, so probably not original to a Greener rifle. It's a nice enough example, but not fully original. I mention that not to knock your rifle, but because you are presumably looking for honest feedback and that's mine.

 

[milsurpo]

The serial number on the barrel may well be the number assigned when inspected to confirm conformance in certain key areas with government pattern rifles for official military-type target shooting matches. Very commonly seen on commercial Sniders and Martini-Henrys but usually accompanied by a Crown/1B or somethin g similar. Market value for these is tough to gauge—my guess would be that in a large auction it could go for anywhere from $800 to $1200. There is a demand for .303 Martinis among those who want to shoot the classic action but don't want to get into loading .577/.450. I sold mine because it wasn't happy with full-on .303 loads. It was a tired old gun.

milsurpo

 

[Jon9021]

The forend and butt have been sanded quite heavily. The receiver appears to have had the finish polished off which is not surprising considering the heavy pitting along one top side. The screw in the band has had the head peened to restore the slot etc. The band is military marked, so probably not original to a Greener rifle. It's a nice enough example, but not fully original. I mention that not to knock your rifle, but because you are presumably looking for honest feedback and that's mine.

Pretty much this. $750-900 in my humble opinion.

 

[AlexisCreek]

Desirable to anyone with a BSA Martini in 22LR.