Why am I trolling for No1 MK3 rifles?

I

I Dont Care About You

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This Milsurp thing is playing on my mind. For 30 years I have never had any interest in LE rifles.

Then dumbass started banning stuff and I bought a bunch of guns in the last couple of years, including a Luger, because I kinda always wanted one but didn't think I could afford one. A friend has an awesome collection, which includes a bunch of LE's. That started playing on my mind and eventually I broke down and brought home a minty No4 MK2.

Now I find myself trolling No1 MK3 rifles ... which have sights I will greatly struggle with. I really do not need another LE, I have no use for a rifle I will rarely, if ever take out to shoot. But here I am. :bangHead:
 
Lee Enfields can become an addiction. I have I believe 17. Some original, some rebuilt and some sporters waiting to be rebuilt. Counting other 303’s I have over 20. I keep checking most ads out sporters or originals looking for something I don’t have. The #1 sites aren’t all that bad and they are a nice rifle. I shoot my #4’s more than 1’s but do enjoy just having them. Go buy one if you don’t like it you can always sell and get your money back.
 
For me the No. 1 MK III has not just so much history associated with it, it also has classic lines. I much prefer the look of the SMLE to the No.4. And they are, bizarre as it seems to me, more affordable to buy these days compared to the No. 4.
 
I have no idea how many Lees I have owned bought sold traded. I did thin out the herd a few years back and tried to keep the more promising ones, things like early No4MkI savage, DCRA, and a Ishy 2A along with about a dozen more examples and projects like LEC and Medford Carbines.
 
They have always been my favorite too. But with the costs of buying and even reloading 303 these days, I sold almost all them off. But i did stumble into a 22lr converted No1 that I will be picking up shortly. Same look adn feel, but much cheaper and fun to shoot.
 
RangeRover said:
For me the No. 1 MK III has not just so much history associated with it, it also has classic lines. I much prefer the look of the SMLE to the No.4. And they are, bizarre as it seems to me, more affordable to buy these days compared to the No. 4.
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Are they really? Cause trolling #######, I'm not seeing that, at least not by much.
 
In the past I have owned a 98K and a Garand. Other than the price those rifles would be worth today, compared to what I sold them for, I don't regret selling either of those rifles. I had a TRW M14 for a long time and really enjoyed that rifle. Sold it for about twice what I paid for it and nowadays it is limited to being a safe queen anyway.

I also have to say the No4 has a good feeling in the hands and the trigger is 10x better than I thought it would be. Ammo availability is bad but I reload which negates that problem.
 
For me it's the unknown stories that a rifle like that will carry. Sounds hookie, I know but just makes me think of all the action some of these rifles have seen. The places they've been or the people that had to use them. I have a 1961 Paki NO.4 mk 2, wife's uncle seems to think it might have been a taliban rifle, I doubt it but who really knows?
 
masterdom2 said:
For me it's the unknown stories that a rifle like that will carry. Sounds hookie, I know but just makes me think of all the action some of these rifles have seen. The places they've been or the people that had to use them. I have a 1961 Paki NO.4 mk 2, wife's uncle seems to think it might have been a taliban rifle, I doubt it but who really knows?
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My No4 is an Irish Contract rifle so it went straight into cosmoline at the factory and languished in a warehouse for decades until someone bought it for a collection ... and then subsequently sold it to me. Other than coming to Canada it hasn't been anywhere or done anything.
 
After you get the No I Mk III bug worked out, you'll get the No 5 Mk I bug, then the EAL bug, the Long Lee bug, and the LEC bug. As far as the sight problem goes try looking here www.magwedge___ /product/lee-enfield-raveneye-peep-sight/. Link broken 'cause we have to, add dot com in the gap. You'll get a whole lot more fun out of the rifle that way.
 
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Butcherbill said:
You kinda need at least one of each, at least that’s the way I look at it lol.
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There was a time when I BSed myself with that logic and by the time it became obvious it was an obsession, there were just over 200 models/variants, some duplicates etc and building a special safe room just for the milsurps, there were over 300 Lee Enfields, Enfields, Long Lees, Martinis etc.

Then there were the different Mauser variants, which of course led to French/Italian/Russian/Japanese and whichever other milsurps in decent condition that reared their pretty stocks and were at reasonable prices.

I no longer have most of those rifles, simply because most of them sat in dark safes, which are now mostly empty.

I enjoyed them when I took them out to inspect once or twice a year, but when prices started going through the roof and it was time to retire????

Because I only have a small collection left, doesn't mean that I don't really enjoy each and every one of the variants I see now, mostly at gun shows or at the very odd collector's home.

Eventually, we all reach a point when it comes time for another person, with a love for such things, to take care of them until it's time for another individual to take on the task.

Collect them, shoot them if you must, just enjoy them while you can. Encourage friends and acquaintences to come out with you and enjoy them as well. Research them and pick up on their amazing historical ramifications and how they were involved in changing the world.

The history behind firearms and getting in depth knowledge on their use personally and researching why and how they were developed for the worlds militaries to use/abuse for all sorts of good/bad, depending on who wrote it up history.
 
It's an iconic rifle...and the most visually impressive and appealing available milsurp IMHO.
Because of that I also "had to have one".
Within a year of first getting my pal I found one used here on CGN and bought it for $600.
It's a 1945 Ishapore production numbers matching rifle with full wood and nose cap.
I've never shot it lol!
 
EL34/6L6 said:
It's an iconic rifle...and the most visually impressive and appealing available milsurp IMHO.
Because of that I also "had to have one".
Within a year of first getting my pal I found one used here on CGN and bought it for $600.
It's a 1945 Ishapore production numbers matching rifle with full wood and nose cap.
I've never shot it lol!
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I shoot all my guns. Guns are for shooting. :) I want to shoot everything I can get my hands on. A friend is a wealthy collector and I want to shoot so many of his toys, some of which are probably worth more than I make in a year. Of course there are a few really rare and historical pieces that shouldn't be shot ... even if I want to. Sometimes ya gotta respect the historical pieces.
 
Only ever wanted a long branch Mk4 ..I don't want it bad enough to buy though. My Sporter SHTLE is my only 303 and I'd bank on her days being numbered. I've less than 100 rounds of the caliber and don't plan on buying more. Since I was taught that not having ammo for a rifle you own is a sin against God, I will be forced to sell her.
 
well I've chased the bug around, yes I've had Patt' 13 and Model 17, No1, No4, No5, Ross, several flavors of Martinis, (577/450, 303, 12/14, 310) carbines, EAL, DCRA, LEC, AC, Long Lees, and .22 trainers,

and then sold most of them.

I still have some gems, like a 1912 RN short .22RF started life as a Long Lee and then was converted to .22RF, great little gun for plinking, I also have its sister that was sporterized by Slazenger and is a 22Hornet, and the Cadet Martini in 310, all great little plinking guns.

I also have a good sampling of 303 and 7.62 enfields, and when I'm done enjoying them I will pass them on to other shooters

as for other milsurps I sold the few Mausers but still have a few red rifles, Nagants 91, 91/30, Finn M24 and 91/30, and SVT40. Again the pile I had was thinned out a few years ago and I made good profit on selling the M44s and 91/30s I really didn't use or care much for.

I think it's fairly common to amass a collection / hoard of rifles then sell off the more common ones and just high-grade the collection over time.
 
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