Want to Restore Enfield No 4 Mk1 - Need your help

[Polymath]

Hello all,
My dad recently gave me a rifle he received as a birthday gift back in the early 70s. He never shot it, and it sat in the basement, forgotten, until now. It fires beautifully, though. Turns out (according to the markings on the receiver at least), it's a Lee Enfield No. 4 Mk 1, but it's definitely not in its original condition - a "sporterized" victim? I'm trying to learn more about these guns, and I know there are a lot of useful resources online, but I'd love to get an Enfield nut's opinion.

So here's my questions...
Based on my light research and knowledge, I can see the stock has been changed, and the sites swapped. If possible, I'd like to try to restore in to a more original condition. Could you possibly give me an idea of what's missing/changed, and what looks original? What are the chances of successfully restoring it, and where are the best sites to get this stuff?

I've included some photos of it, as well as the engraving on the bolt itself - not sure what that means...is the bolt original, too?

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

 

[TheTooner]

It can't be restored to original condition without a replacement barrel. That one has been cut in front of the foresight. The missing portion would stick out from an original full length forestock and is the part that had bayonet lugs.

The foresight is orginal but the protective part with its "ears" sticking up has been removed, and an additional piece of metal added to make the ramp effect. The rearsight appears to be the correct original.

The forestock is cut down from the original which ran all the way to the foresight. It also had two pieces on top that combined to cover the barrel all the way to the foresight. The original sling swivel would have been part of a metal band that wrapped around the stock and secured the two top handguards at the point where they met. If you click on the link amongst the adverts for site sponsors at the top of this page, for Marstar, and navigate their site to rifle parts you will find for the Lee Enfields there will be a schematic diagram of the rifle and the components of the stock will be shown.

The buttstock is original but seems to me to been reshaped a bit to give it more of a pistol grip.

The bolt is for a No.4 or possibly a No.5 - they were interchangeable as long as they were checked for headspace and adjusted for each rifle if necesary by changing the bolt head. The hollowed knob on the bolt handle was a feature of the No.5 which is commonly known by its unofficial nickname "jungle carbine" but was actually the "Shortened, Lightened" version of the No.4 rifle developed initially for airborne forces, but some were fitted to No.4s at the factory and some were fitted as replacement parts to rifles in service. I'm not familiar with the markings on your bolt.

 

[Polymath]

Darn, I was worried the barrel had been shortened - was hoping it could still be restored. Thanks for the in-depth analysis. Much appreciated!

 

[cantom]

The bad news- it is not economically restorable due to the cut barrel. (plus the fact that the receiver is British, less valuable on a good day than a Long Branch)

The good news...wow, is that ever some nice figure in the stock and forend! Lovely wood and please enjoy it just as it is!

Very nice sporter, way above average!

Almost reminds me of a sporterized Ross I just had...also some pretty nice figure.

 

[SKScanuck]

Yep, cut barrel, but it looks like you have enough barrel on there to put the original sight and protector back on. It won't look 100% but good enough till you find another barrel.

 

[mwjones]

You could make a "tanker" with the shorter barrel...you'd just have to bubba up the new forend and top wood that you find. Kinda defeats the purpose of restoration unless you can find wood pieces that are already damaged towards the muzzle end. Either way, with the hig price of the scarce wood, barrel, barrel bands, screws, etc, the parts will probably cost more than the gun will be worth afterward. Unless you've got money to burn, I say keep it as is and shoot it

 

[woodchopper]

You could make a "tanker" with the shorter barrel...you'd just have to bubba up the new forend and top wood that you find. Kinda defeats the purpose of restoration unless you can find wood pieces that are already damaged towards the muzzle end. Either way, with the hig price of the scarce wood, barrel, barrel bands, screws, etc, the parts will probably cost more than the gun will be worth afterward. Unless you've got money to burn, I say keep it as is and shoot it

the other option is to splice wood onto a bubba stock to make your forewood. thats a win win

 

[englishman_ca]

Please be don't disappointed. Here is my tuppence worth.

Perhaps not every sportered rifle can or should be restored back to original. Literaly thousands upon thousands of these were made, and most are still out there. It is a very common rifle.

Even restored to original looking spec, it would just be another 'parts rifle'. There is a bit more to fitting a new stock than just bolting it on. It has to be stocked up correctly or accuracy will suffer. Skill and knowledge is required to do it right, a task that was done by professional armourers who as apprentices, did dozens for practice before being let loose on service rifles.

What you have is a classic sporter, a part of our heritage. Sportered 303s have probably put more meat on the table than any other rifle. BSA made similar style looking Lee Enfield based sporting rifles for many years, some were high end and to custom order.

My suggestion would be to leave it in its current form, just make it beautiful. The wood from which that stock is made would just 'pop' given the right finish. Nice sporting or modern synthetic stocks are available too (but they need fitting and bedding). The metalwork looks clean, the rifle looks to be in overall good condition.

Turn it into a practical and useful hunting rifle (it already is). If like me, your dad's eyes have seen better days, perhaps fit a 'no gunsmithing' scope mount and put on some decent optics. Perhaps QD sling mounts, a nice sling and a low profile magazine to help the carry on a hunt.

Fix it up, it may turn out to be a favourite hunting rifle that gets passed down through the family for generations.

 

[buffdog]

.
In this case, I would tend to agree with ENGLISHMAN CA.

This looks like a typical Factory Conversion, made after WW2, and probably in the mid to late 1950s by an English gunsmith or business. It reminds me of a typical Parker-Hale sporter conversion, and the cover on the front sight might be marked so.

There should be English Proof Marks on the barrel, something in the line of, "England, Made in England, 18.5 tons (square) ", 2.222 (Cartridge length) and a proof mark (Crown BM, Crown arm and Sword, etc.) Although these Commercial Sporter markings could be covered by military wood, they will always be there. Unfortunately, nothing can be done about the shortened barrel except replace it.

As a Sporter, this rifle has a family history of it's own. It was intended as a hunting rifle, and looks in great shape. These rifles were sold by Eatons, Sears and various Hardware Companies during the late 50s and early 60s in Canada.

In fact, this rifle is identical to a Parker Hale sporter conversion that I will tell you one of my favorite stories about. This happened about two years ago.

I walked into one of my favorite gun shops, and there were two women and a man in front of the counter, with a cardboard box and a Number 4 Sporter in it on the top of the counter. The proprieter was behind the counter and knowing of my interest in military firearms, asked me my opinion.

The rifle inside the box could have been a twin to your rifle. It was in the original Parker-Hale box, had a bill of sale from the early 1960s with it, had a hang tag on it, and even had the original string wrapped around the box. Sadly, it was an early Savage rifle, with a "Zero C" prefix, but the barrel had been shortened as your rifle is. Not really a candidate for restoration to Military rifle status without a lot of replacement and expense.

He told me it was from an Estate and the people wanted to sell it, but he was not too familiar with what he should offer them. I explained to the people that I would give them an opinion of what I thought it was worth, but in selling it they should be aware that the Gun Shop had to make a commission on it, so what they got would be lower. This was acceptable with all of them.

I gave my opinion on what the Gun Shop could sell the rifle for. I explained to them that this was on the high side, because of the supporting documents, the original box, and the "like new" condition of the rifle.

I then walked away to the used rifle section, and the people decided to accept the Gun Shop owners offer. After they left, the Owner came over to me and told me the story.

An older lady had passed away, and the two women and man were the children. They were cleaning out the house to settle the Estate, and they found the box with the rifle in it back in the far corner of a clothes closet. They knew that their mother and father did not hunt and were really puzzled as to why there would have been a rifle in the house.

It appears that the Mother had ordered a set of WINDOW BLINDS from Sears back in the 1960s, and someone at Sears had mixed up the order numbers and sent out this Parker-Hale Lee Enfield Sporter. Upon opening it and finding out what it was, the Mother was unsure of what to do with it, or how to send it back, so she stuck it into the back of the closet, where it sat for over 50 years. The original bill of sale had a price of less than $20.

So much for the effectiveness of the Gun Control Laws.

True Story! SMELLIE heard about it from the Gun Shop owner and asked me about it a bit later.
.

 

[m-134]

X2, with the right finish on the stock ( i like that finish, just re-done) it would be a verry nice sporting rifle.

.
In this case, I would tend to agree with ENGLISHMAN CA.

This looks like a typical Factory Conversion, made after WW2, and probably in the mid to late 1950s by an English gunsmith or business. It reminds me of a typical Parker-Hale sporter conversion, and the cover on the front sight might be marked so.

There should be English Proof Marks on the barrel, something in the line of, "England, Made in England, 18.5 tons (square) ", 2.222 (Cartridge length) and a proof mark (Crown BM, Crown arm and Sword, etc.) Although these Commercial Sporter markings should be covered by military wood, they will always be there.

As a Sporter, it has a family history of it's own. It was bought as a hunting rifle, and looks in great shape. These rifles were sold by Eatons, Sears and various Hardware Companies during the late 50s and early 60s in Canada.

In fact, this rifle is identical to a Parker Hale sporter conversion that I will tell you one of my favorite stories about. This happened about two years ago.

I walked into one of my favorite gun shops, and there were two women and a man in front of the counter, with a cardboard box and a Number 4 Sporter in it on the top of the counter. The proprieter was behind the counter and knowing of my interest in military firearms, asked me my opinion.

The rifle inside the box could have been a twin to your rifle. It was in the original Parker-Hale box, had a bill of sale from the early 1960s with it, had a hang tag on it, and even had the original string wrapped around the box. Sadly, it was an early Savage rifle, with a "Zero C" prefix, but the barrel had been shortened as your rifle is. Not really a candidate for restoration to Military rifle status.

He told me it was from an Estate and the people wanted to sell it, but he was not too familiar with what he should offer them. I explained to the people that I would give them an opinion of what I thought it was worth, but in selling it they should be aware that the Gun Shop had to make a commission on it, so what they got would be lower. This was acceptable with all of them.

I gave my opinion on what the Gun Shop could sell the rifle for. I explained to them that this was on the high side, because of the supporting documents, the original box, and the "like new" condition of the rifle.

I then walked away to the used rifle section, and the people decided to accept the Gun Shop owners offer. After they left, the Owner came over to me and told me the story.

An older lady had passed away, and the two women and man were the children. They were cleaning out the house to settle the Estate, and they found the box with the rifle in it back in the far corner of a clothes closet. They knew that their mother and father did not hunt and were really puzzled as to why there would have been a rifle in the house.

It appears that the Mother had ordered a set of BLINDS from Sears back in the 1960s, and someone at Sears had mixed up the order numbers and sent out this Parker-Hale Lee Enfield Sporter. Upon opening it and finding out what it was, the Mother was unsure of what to do with it, or how to send it back, so she stuck it into the back of the closet, where it sat for over 50 years. The original bill of sale had a price of less than $20.

So much for the effectiveness of the Gun Control Laws.

True Story! SMELLIE heard about it from the Gun Shop owner and asked me about it a bit later.
.

 

[kjohn]

That is actually a nice rifle just the way it is. One suggestion I'll make: If you feel comfortable in taking the rifle down to just bare wood - no metal attached - and get rid of that ugly varnish! Clean that crap off and clean the stocks carefully, then apply some boiled linseed oil or other good stuff. Others will likely have suggestions on what to use. Take care to use proper screwdrivers. You will be surprised how nice some of that old wood will look when some care is taken with the finish.

What is the saying with linseed oil? Once a day for a week, once a week for a month, once a month for a year? Something like that. Enjoy your old rifle!

 

[m-134]

.
This looks like a typical Factory Conversion, made after WW2, and probably in the mid to late 1950s by an English gunsmith or business. It reminds me of a typical Parker-Hale sporter conversion, and the cover on the front sight might be marked so.

There should be English Proof Marks on the barrel, something in the line of, "England, Made in England, 18.5 tons (square) ", 2.222 (Cartridge length) and a proof mark (Crown BM, Crown arm and Sword, etc.) Although these Commercial Sporter markings should be covered by military wood, they will always be there.

my rifle has those same markings on it inbetween the bayo lugs, so mine was made as a sporter?

 

[buffdog]

additional comments

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It would appear that your rifle had gone through a factory thorough refit (FTR) after WWII, so it would have been reconditioned and later sold as Surplus.

It has a micrometer type Mark 1 rear sight on it. This is very good as it allows more precise adjustments on the sights. Look at the Manufacturers letter or number on the ladder of the sight. If it is a Long Branch sight, (LB connected), you have a sight that people are presently paying $75-$100 for.

Your magazine is loose in picture #2. Hit it on the bottom with the palm of your hand and it will click into place. There should be no gap between the magazine and the front of the trigger guard. If loaded in this manner, it could either drop out and/or not feed cartridges into the chamber properly.
.
.

In answer to m-134's question.
my rifle has those same markings on it inbetween the bayo lugs, so mine was made as a sporter? .
.
.
NO. Your rifle was originally made as a Military rifle, and then sold off as Surplus, converted into a Sporter by some factory in England, sent to a Proof House for testing, and marked for Export.
.
.

 

[Cdn303]

.
It would appear that your rifle had gone through a factory thorough refit (FTR) after WWII, so it would have been reconditioned and later sold as Surplus.

Your magazine is loose in picture #2. Hit it on the bottom with the palm of your hand and it will click into place. There should be no gap between the magazine and the front of the trigger guard. If loaded in this manner, it could either drop out and/or not feed cartridges into the chamber properly.

I don't think that it was FTR'd. There is no FTR marked on the receiver. It is a Fazakerley.(I think that is an F in the brackets) I just bought an original full military that is marked the same.

Also, my magazine fits like that and feeds fine. Do check and make sure that it is seated firmly though. But don't hit it. Hitting it forces it up into the mag well and may end up bending your tabs. Push it firmly.

My first rifle was a sported Enfeild that looks identical to what you have there. Only mine is a Maltby. If you feel up to it strip the stock and refinish it.

NO SANDING. I use Circa 1850 to strip. Then use FFFF steel wool and rub the stock down with the grain. This leaves all the character in the stock, but softens the edges. Then wipe it down with mineral spirits and let dry several hours. Then wearing old clothing and gloves, you will definatly want gloves, apply some boiled linseed oil. Apply it generously, but not so much that it is running everywhere. Now spend 5-10 minutes hand rubbing the BLO into the stock, working up a good heat in the hand. (perhaps play some Barry Manilow and put out some scented candle ). After rubbing the pieces down let them sit for 15 minutes. After the 15 minutes are up wipe off the excess with a clean cloth. Let it sit 24 hours and repeat. Apply several coats, I do 3. After the last coat is dry, use a new piece of FFFF steel wool and gently rub the pieces, again with the grain. This takes the shine off the stock. Reassemble the rifle and then using a clean cloth buff the stock.

This is where I got the previous proceedure from. The is pictures of finished rifles http://www.surplusrifleforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=120&t=85775

 

[plinker 777]

Is it just me or is the furniture on this sporter abnormal.....as in not enfield. That is very interesting wood grain and beautiful IMO.....Military wood is beautiful in quite a different regard (rugged and usually tight grained hard wood) your grain is very open and appealing to my eye. As such I'm wondering if its aftermarket. Are there holes drilled in the buttstock behind the "trapdoor" (oiler and pull through)?