picked up an Enfield 2A1 "Carbine"

Attachment 129438I found a good deal on an Indian Enfield that had been converted to a jungle carbine. The gun was made in 1966 and the guy that sold it to me thought it was an arsenal conversion, though I reckon that the importers were primarily the source of the conversions.

I have had an Eddystone, as well as a couple of No 5 carbines in the past and always loved the looks of them but I wasn't a huge fan of the 303 cartridge.

I decided to grab this one because it was chambered in 7.62 Nato, since I have heaps of the ammo, factory and reloads, and plan on running some mild to mid pressure loads through it.

I noticed that the bolt on this clean shooter was a little tight and when I first tried to pull the mag I found it really snug...initially I wondered if someone had glued it in place. I got it out and, saw drag marks along the sides and the leading edge. Its a military magazine, but the serial number doesn't match the gun and the fit of the magazine proved itAttachment 129436Attachment 129437. A few minutes of light grinding and polishing with a dremel rendered a magazine that seated fine.

Now this interesting oddity feeds and ejects fine. I am throwing together some mild loads to run through it and I expect it to be a fun shooter.

Some purists pan these weapons as fakes (which I guess they technically are, if the seller is passing them off as No7 Jungle Carbines) but I like the looks of them, and it makes a fun plinker.

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Originally Posted by crowtalks

Attachment 129438
I noticed that the bolt on this clean shooter was a little tight .

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That is of concern as these rifles barely passed factory proof testing - the bodies can warp if loads hotter than it was designed for are used. It was designed for the old 7.62 M80 50gr round and as many folks seem to think that all 7.62 is the same and that 308 Win is the same as 7.62 the rifle could have easily become overstressed by a previous owner.

If home-loading then use 7.62 cases or if using 303 win cases then download by 1gr. as the case specification is different and the volume on the 308 is greater.

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Originally Posted by Alan de Enfield

That is of concern as these rifles barely passed factory proof testing - the bodies can warp if loads hotter than it was designed for are used. It was designed for the old 7.62 M80 50gr round and as many folks seem to think that all 7.62 is the same and that 308 Win is the same as 7.62 the rifle could have easily become overstressed by a previous owner.

If home-loading then use 7.62 cases or if using 303 win cases then download by 1gr. as the case specification is different and the volume on the 308 is greater.

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I was planning on starting with mild loads and maybe working up to maybe midrange, but no hotter...I know I have to work up hot loads for my M1A to cycle well, but for the most part, I'm not a fan of hot loads.

The action is smooth as butter, its just tighter than I expected rotating the bolt home against the spring tension when its cocked.

Nice rifle! I have one of these made by Gibbs and it's been fine with M80. Stick to light handloads and it'll last forever.

If it is chambered for 7.62 NATO, it may well have a shorter throat than a SAAMI-spec .308 Win has. Having a competent gun-plumber extend the length of the throat (leade) will reduce The "peak" of the pressure curve and extend its duration slightly. In the "trade" this is known as "free-boring".

Roy Weatherby was a big fan of the concept, for what that is worth.. If the bolt is "stiff" on closing on a factory cartridge, is it still stiff when closing on an empty chamber?

A set of Brownells / Forster "one-thou" incremental headspace gauges (1.630" to 1.638", inclusive) will quickly establish the true headspace state of affairs. One thing about Lee Enfield actions: When subject to serious over-pressure, they do not explode like grenades, but stretch and distort laterally. Not pleasant, but not usually fatal to the firer and colleagues. May you never go there!

Who knows what other indignities these rifles endured at the hands of the "converters"?

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Originally Posted by Bruce_in_Oz

If it is chambered for 7.62 NATO, it may well have a shorter throat than a SAAMI-spec .308 Win has. Having a competent gun-plumber extend the length of the throat (leade) will reduce The "peak" of the pressure curve and extend its duration slightly. In the "trade" this is known as "free-boring".

Roy Weatherby was a big fan of the concept, for what that is worth.. If the bolt is "stiff" on closing on a factory cartridge, is it still stiff when closing on an empty chamber?

A set of Brownells / Forster "one-thou" incremental headspace gauges (1.630" to 1.638", inclusive) will quickly establish the true headspace state of affairs. One thing about Lee Enfield actions: When subject to serious over-pressure, they do not explode like grenades, but stretch and distort laterally. Not pleasant, but not usually fatal to the firer and colleagues. May you never go there!

Who knows what other indignities these rifles endured at the hands of the "converters"?

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Thanks for the info.

One thing that's interesting is the bolt is smooth but seems tight when closing empty...but, when I load ammo, then it closes a lot easier...more like I would expect.

I have shot light reloads through it and it fires and cycles fine. I inspected the bolt pretty closely for any defects and I didn't see anything.