Which milsurp rifle for use as a light-ish hunting rifle?

I watched a vid on the #5, I think it was published by a reputable source (Skennerton), it was found that after firing thirty or so ball rounds in quick succession, the zero would become inconsistent until the rifle cooled down again. The culprit was found to be the lightening cut in the right locking lug and the reciever scallops. The soldiers in Malaya liked the rifle but this was deemed unsatisfactory. Again according to the source, British Army armourers found an interim solution, which was to replace certain parts. I don't understand if they replaced the bolt body, the reciever, or both. So this implies the fake #5's may be superior shooters depending on the quality of the work. Joe Salter has a nice #5 sporter conversion for not a lot compared to some of the asking prices you see.

You are not likely to unleash a fusillade of thirty rounds while deer hunting, are you?

It would be interesting to shoot one of the Hungarian M43 rifles against a #4 rifle to compare performance. The Huns copied the two piece stock of the LE in the M43. However the butt socket piece was a separate component unlike that of the LE series.
 
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Maybe it sounds like trolling, but my absolute favorite 303? A Martini Enfield with a PH No. 4 bbl shortened to 19"
At present only have an bubba'd M10 Ross and a nice Siam SMLE in that flavor in the locker. My son traded me out of the M-E...they are a really cool action.
 
fat tony said:
I watched a vid on the #5, I think it was published by a reputable source (Skennerton), it was found that after firing thirty or so ball rounds in quick succession, the zero would become inconsistent until the rifle cooled down again.
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This condition is not considered a wandering zero, just simply loss of accuracy. A condition found with many different rifles.

Since no one has been able to replicate the wondering zero phenomenon with any regularity. It has been suggested a number of times that it was likely just an excuse to stop building the No.5 MkI rifles, and stay with one style of bolt rifle.

WW II had just ended and the Brits had more than enough rifles, and they were thinking about adopting some kind of autoloader.
If they had to build new bolt rifles they would want them to be No.4s
 
Ax.338 said:
tokguy, usually like your posts, but you sound like you have never even shot a Jungle Carbine. It`s twice the gun of a M44, and it looks cool.

I have owned a half a dozen of these, and still own two. Never experienced any wandering zero, and all were good shooters to varying degrees.
With good sights and a 10 round detachable magazine as a bonus.

As to the kick and the muzzle blast, what a bunch of girlymen. I never even thought about it until I read someone whining about it here.
The kick is no worse than plenty of other rifles, like the short Mosins, 95 Winchester and 1905-R Ross that no one seems to complain about.
Blast is no worse than any of the any other short carbines out there. The m-94 Swede that I carry sometimes when I walk my dogs comes to mind.

I hunted with one for a couple of years and it worked great. My BIL used one for many years killed a few moose and a bunch of deer with it.
One of my hunting partners and his dad both had one and both got their deer and moose most years for probably 15years or more with them.

The No.5 Jungle Carbine is a fine choice for any 100-200 yd. hunting.
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I'm glad this forum has real men like you.....
 
One thing I have seen up close and personal with No 5's is absolute sh*t fitting up. I have (as best as I can determine) a new, unfired since proofing No 5. it's bedding and fitting is horrendous. That may be because it probably still has Cosmoline under the wood, but you can easily eyeball the offset in the barrel channel. If they didn't catch this one in QC, what other less visible defects were ignored. As far as recoil goes, the LEC is vastly more abusive with Mk VII ammo, but a little bruising is a small price to pay for the cool factor.
 
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MiG25 said:
I'm skeptical of the "Wandering Zero".
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It should be relatively easy to put the claim to rest or the opposite. Shootoff between a good quality #5 commercial fake, and a genuine #5 with the same ammunition. For a control fire some groups with a Lithgow #1MkIII*.

The term 'wandering zero' sounds pretty flakey for something supposedly in the British military lexicon. One wonders at the choice of the term.
 
Which surplus rifle shall we use for tactical tasking comrades

enefgee said:
One thing I have seen up close and personal with No 5's is absolute sh*t fitting up. I have (as best as I can determine) a new, unfired since proofing No 5. it's bedding and fitting is horrendous. That may be because it probably still has Cosmoline under the wood, but you can easily eyeball the offset in the barrel channel. If they didn't catch this one in QC, what other less visible defects were ignored. As far as recoil goes, the LEC is vastly more abusive with Mk VII ammo, but a little bruising is a small price to pay for the cool factor.
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Thanks for pointing that out. Imo this is a key observation, and one people may have overlooked over time for some reason. I wonder how widespread or prevalent this was?
 
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I really have an affinity for the enfield no1 Mk3/Shtle actions and I haven't really played around with many other milsurp bolt guns.
I have been killing deer/moose/black bear with one in various forms since the late 90's.
Took my first deer and biggest deer with the same rifle.... my Dad's old Sears BSA Shtle 3*
Since then I have taken to customizing non collectable sporters and turning them into handy , lighter, hunting rifles.
Here's a nice Lithgow I just recently finished , all work done inhouse.
It is wearing a custom scope rail that fits the weaver T-01 hole pattern that was on the rifle already.
Scope is a Busnell Engage 2-7x32
19" barrel from chamber face to muzzle and iron sights removed.
Had a box of trigger parts and bits so mixed and matched until I found the ones I could work with and polished things up.
The Stock is actually a varnished Fajen monte carlo wood stock that I primered and painted over the varnish. I may strip it and refinish is to a Tung Oil finish down the road. First pic is the lastest build in Camo paint. Second build is a refinished Tung Oil Fajen stock and one I hunted deer and moose with and later sold here in the EE. Took a nice fat young bull moose with it first though ;)
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I know it's already been said but maybe a pic will help. The top rifle in each pic. Very slender, light weight and points like a dream.

It's an LEC cavalry carbine. There is nothing hanging off it and nothing to get caught on anything it's very stream line. Near flush 6 round mag, no long range sights or anything extra. (It's built to slide in and out of a scabbard while on a horse)

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My Zastava factory sporterized M48 weighs just a hair over 6.5lbs. Pretty light in my books.

If you don't mind 8.5'ish lbs :) an SKS is pretty versatile.
 
alpining said:
Hi all - I don't know a thing about milsurps, so any input is welcome.

I just saw the Carcano cavalry carbine is available for peanuts, and I thought that with handloaded ammunition it might work reasonably well for deer hunting. Just thought I'd ask here if there are any other similar options I should consider. Let's say we keep the weight around 7lbs (the Carcano is apparently 6.4lbs), and no need to mount a scope.

Thanks in advance...
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https://intersurplus.com/collections/6-5-x-55
 
i got a cheap sportized lee enfield for my first hunting rifle, the weight never bothered me but i don't walk very far most of the time
 
The Kurgan said:
My Zastava factory sporterized M48 weighs just a hair over 6.5lbs. Pretty light in my books.

If you don't mind 8.5'ish lbs :) an SKS is pretty versatile.
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Iirc my Russian sks is a bit under 7.5lb with the bayonet, cleaning rod, and sling all taken off. Not light, but not terribly heavy.
 
I've picked up PH #1 sporters for $200 for the deluxe versions. Nice and light, handle nicely, 303 is plenty for most hunting scenarios, they are pretty well done and shoot well, the PH irons are not complex but fine enough for decent precision.
Can be scoped if you want to go the extra mile.
Plus they are already mutilated so not wrecking anything and most work already done sans scope mounting.
33951-zpszadfljri.jpg
 
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fat tony said:
The PH conversions do not seem to exactly conform to clearly defined standard models. There is a degree of variation in them for some reason. Maybe they did small contract jobs where the client asked for certain configurations?
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There is a few catalogs pics out there..they had 3 different models for the no 4 and the no1.

I have a 'custom no1" that was their top model. It has al kids of PH stamped sporter parts.

Then the deluxe was below that and even a lower model too that was just a cut down sporter using all factory parts.
 
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