No 4 Mark 1*Longbranch 1944 Rare Wood Value?

manitou210

manitou210

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Watched owner shoot a 1.2" 5 shot group at 100 yards, bore is like new.
He wants to sell this gun. He got it quite a few years ago from a Lt/Col who had this gun made for him, by friend at longbranch plant, no serial numbers.
Marked on gun is No 4 Mark 1* longbranch 1944 and stick on serial # by CFC
I asked what kind of money he needed to get. He said he turned down $750 3 years ago and feels its worth a little more now, going to look at a 40xb Rem he wants to sell as well. going to see it Friday or Sat. is $900 or $1000 to much ??? for this Enfield. I know the PH 5 sight is worth $250+


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They sure sorted through the bins to find that wood!
If PH5Cs are worth $250, I'm going to have to start selling some.
It is a lovely, non-standard rifle, set up as a DCRA style target rifle. What is it worth to you? I cannot see that there is an established value for a rifle like that.
 
Parker hale sights sell between $150 and $250. Too many to say they are rare and deserve more. They come up all the time on e-bay.

While the rifle is very pretty and sports some find wood and a good finish. I would be afraid to shoot it as its nice looking. Now there’s no significance to it, being without a serial number. Leads me to think it is made from parts removed from the Long Branch factory, a lunch box special?

Like “tiriaq” said, what’s it worth to you?. Hard to put a value on this….$750 / 3 years ago, wow, I would have taken it.
 
Notice that the handguard doesn't have the typical LB "lines".... Looks like the woodwork may be tiger maple, and could very well be an aftermarket, custom job.
 
No there were slabs cut that looked like that. I have a toothpick thin LB stock and butt that were sanded and rasped to next to nothing. Bubba and his gap-toothed cousin tag teamed on the belt sander. Same gorgeous tigerstiping.

The grooves on the rear handguard were either on or not. It all depended.
 
That is one gorgeous No.4. And I thought the standard maple and walnut ones were impressive. I like the grain pattern on the But stock the best.
 
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Beautiful rifle!! The stock is highly figured black walnut. I had a No.4 in 7.62mm nato that had some figure in it, but no where near as much as that. It was obviously hand selected as a special. I'd have no idea of the current value though.
 
That's one beautiful rifle and sure worth $ 1000.00...
just compare it to the AIA models from Australia which start at $ 799.00 plus plus...
or the Irish Contract # 4's which some people try to sell for $ 1000.00 and more...
Considering all that, your Longbranch looks like a great deal...
 
polaris said:
That's one beautiful rifle and sure worth $ 1000.00...
just compare it to the AIA models from Australia which start at $ 799.00 plus plus...
or the Irish Contract # 4's which some people try to sell for $ 1000.00 and more...
Considering all that, your Longbranch looks like a great deal...
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Truly a beautiful rifle.
 
It really makes me wonder if the wood wasn't brought in to the stock making facility and turned out on purpose to make up a presentation piece. I've heard that happened more than once.

The military really didn't like wood with that much figure. I have a 42 dated Long Branch with a butt stock that would be almost that pretty if it were cleaned up. It has a chip out of the top, just under the plate. The fore stock is also very nicely figured and has a visible warp as well.

There was a very good reason why the military wanted clear, straight wood.

I love the look of that rifle Manitou and if you have any way to verify the storey, it is easily worth 800 to 1000 dollars.
 
Pblatzz said:
That's the kicker, if you could verify the story with Which Lt Col, Regt, historical significance if any, etc. It might get more
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That wouldn't be difficult seeing as he has the MBE. With some luck you'd find one of his children alive and maybe get more to the story (when, why, who, what happened to it afterwards, etc.)

I don't know what it's "worth", but I'd probably pay $1000. The story doesn't do much for me, but a basic NO4 in that condition is worth $400, the sight adds a couple hundred and the wood a couple hundred more. Put those three together with a researched story and it adds up to more (for me).
 
Rare tiger stripped, burled fancy stocked rifles are in high demand. If that Lee Enfield is also a shooter, as it is, then $1000 may be about right for value. I have a Long Branch that has all 4 wood pieces fancy tiger stripped plus burled walnut butt. That took me about 10 years to create. It is also a comp rifle, and a keeper.
I once had a 4 piece tiger stripped walnut FN wood set, was offered 500 for it.
 
Pblatzz said:
Parker hale sights sell between $150 and $250. Too many to say they are rare and deserve more. They come up all the time on e-bay.

While the rifle is very pretty and sports some find wood and a good finish. I would be afraid to shoot it as its nice looking. Now there’s no significance to it, being without a serial number. Leads me to think it is made from parts removed from the Long Branch factory, a lunch box special?

Like “tiriaq” said, what’s it worth to you?. Hard to put a value on this….$750 / 3 years ago, wow, I would have taken it.
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i've seen a few sell lately on ebay for over $300
 
A truly beautiful rifle. As to market value, the appropriate comparators would be the unissued Irish Contract rifles ( about $750 - $800 ), the newly manufactured AIA ( $800 + ) and exceptionally good condition but used No 4's ( $600 + ). Add in the value of the PH sight and you can come up with a figure. Personally, I tend to think a $1000 as a psycological barrier that many buyers would rather not cross so, if a relatively quick sale is wanted I would price it a tad below that mark. I am sure there are people who may pay a little more than $1000 but those people will be thinner on the ground.
 
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