On the No.#4 MK2 POF would the higher # bolt heads mean sloppier work /wear? And being I'm long armed would I be better off with a Long marked stock given the choice?A 13.5" factory gun fits fine.The 62 POF I'm looking at has a #2 bolt head.Would this be a factory headspace setting ?Harold
No.#4 bolt heads+ stock lengths.....
- Thread starter mbogo3
- Start date
1) No, it means the rifle might have had some use and or perhaps the headspace was adjusted prior to you seeing it.
2) Long butt stock is a good idea if your LOP (lenght of pull) is long.
3) Yes, and no? Hard to say if the bolt had was changed at the factory. They key item would be, "is the headspace correct on this rifle now". Does it matter to you? I would rather have a safe rifle.
Pete
In my opinion: Lee Enfield in good shape with correct headspace (be it with a No 0, 1 or 2 bolt head) = many years of fine shooting. Problem is if you end up with, say, a #3 bolt head and a headspace above 0.074 thousandth - that would make me worry.
I'm trying to re-org my thoughts, so bear with me on the poit by point's.
1) Tight headspace for one on the .303 Brit cartridge. That's a big problem.
2) Neck resize if you can to get long life out of the 303 case.
3) If possible, slug the bore. is it .312", .311", .310. God help it if it's .314" as in the older smle's. That should not be the problem with the No.4Mk2 from POF.
4) Get a parker hale Model 5C sight for the No4 action.
5) tighen up the king screw in front of the trigger guard. Tight as possible.
6) The .303 Mk7 ammo used a flat based 174 gr bullet. Well I can't seem to find a good jacketed flat based bullet, so I reload wit the hornady 174gr 303 bullet (.3105" dia) works for me.
S&B makes 303 FMJ cartridges which is good ammo. But you can shoot anything if you want, try out different loads.
BTW surplus ammo, WWI, WWII, etc. can be fun to shoot but as it get older it can be less reliable or accurate. Now always, but often.
I'll add more if I can. I am sure there will be others to contribute too.
The best group I had ever achieved wit the Lee Enfield was 1” moa @ 100 yards. That was with a Faz No4Mk2 1954 Lee Enfield.
Regards
Pete
"...higher # bolt heads mean sloppier work..." Nope. Just different headspace.
"...factory headspace setting..." Every rifle has different headspace. The bolt head required was used to adjust the headspace. There was no 'factory' number. You won't know if your #2 gives proper headspace until you check it. Thousands of Lee-Enfields have been assembled out of parts bins with zero QC.
A 5 groove LB is likely a post war rifle. They were/are the best Lee-Enfields ever made. A 5 groove is more likely to have a barrel diameter closer to .311" too. Not guaranteed though.
"...factory headspace setting..." Every rifle has different headspace. The bolt head required was used to adjust the headspace. There was no 'factory' number. You won't know if your #2 gives proper headspace until you check it. Thousands of Lee-Enfields have been assembled out of parts bins with zero QC.
A 5 groove LB is likely a post war rifle. They were/are the best Lee-Enfields ever made. A 5 groove is more likely to have a barrel diameter closer to .311" too. Not guaranteed though.
