L39 owners weekend reading............

[Peter Laidler]

I was having a browse through the Small Arms Committee minutes relating to the L39A1 rifle the other day and found some bits and pieces that I think I ought to pass on. Including some things that I never realized either!

The first bit is that contrary to what I firmly believed, that the rifles were built up to new rifle specification from ‘new’ components (including new barrels obviously) including bodies but the committee minutes state ‘….rifles converted from the Rifle No4 Mk1/2 and 2’ too. I was under the impression from the Armourers technical blurb that all L39’s were made ‘as new’. But this is clearly not so because Mk1/2 type L39’s will exist.

This COULD mean that L39’s were made from brand new, unused ex c.1955 Fazakerley bodies. It could also include USED ex .303” Mk2 bodies. It could also Mk2/1 rifles unbreeched and rebarrelled at the point of conversion to L39 at Enfield and it COULD include bodies converted to Mk1/2 but UNUSED since conversion at Fazakerley in the late 40’s to mid 50’s. However, no mention is made of Mk1/3 bodies.

Paragraph 3 of the build standard states that the rifles will be fitted with the stock butt of the No4 rifle, ‘….identical except that a small recess is machined under the knuckle to hold spare foresight blades in a suitable container. There you have it. The correct, ‘as-issue’ butt is that of the No4, modified as detailed above. But (if you’ll excuse the pun), more later….!

Para 8 of the build standard also states that the magazine will be the standard .303” magazine that will be used as a loading platform. It goes on to state that the rifle may be fitted with a 10 round 7.62mm magazine at the users request

Now here’s a surprise…….. Para 20 states that certain rifles are fitted with a special factory size 00 bolt head. ‘……..at the factory only, it is used when assembly tolerances require a smaller had than a ‘0’. The bolt head is special and is not provisioned as a spare’. There’s a thing to get your know-it-all mates coughing into their beer!

Instruction 1 to the committee says that the first 50 EX type rifles (or should this be XL rifles?) were produced and procured with trigger pressures set to the SERVICE limits of 1st - 3 to 4 lbs and 2nd – 5 to 6.5 lbs. But subsequent series production is to be set at 1st - 2.5 to 3.5 lbs and 2nd – 4 to 5.5lbs pull. To cater for this permissible adjustment, the face of the sear can be adjusted to a maximum angle of 80 degrees ( to decrease the sear load pressure). Additionally, magazine catches with an additional sear spring location recess BELOW the original will be provided or may be encountered. There, that’s the answer if you have one on yours!

Now, in conjunction with the civilian target shooting world and the Army Rifle Association, the Light Weapon Defect and Modification Committee has agreed that build standard of the L39 rifle may be altered to include the following:
A commercial SLING SWIVEL can be fitted in place of the front trigger guard screw
A commercial STOCK FORE-END can be fitted using commercially or UK Military recognized practice to ensure the correct bedding and assembly of the barrel and body
STOCK BUTT can be replaced with the service No5, No8, No4 variants and a commercial ‘monte-carlo type with suitable face pieces (I think they mean cheek rests…..) dependent on the competitors competitive situation (type of competition rules ?)
TUNNEL FORESIGHTS of the PH FS-22A or any similar trade pattern WITH THE CORRECT DOVETAIL ARRANGEMENT. Can be used.
REARSIGHT: Any make of sight, similar to the PH 5C or AJP 4/47 which can be readily adapted can be used providing that it does so without resorting to any alteration of any kind to the rifle.

The inspection of any altered or modified L39 rifle will be undertaken by the periodic REME Armourers inspection which we still call the PRE. They will take into account the competitive nature of the weapon and their inspection will concern only the safety and mechanical condition. Any weapon that includes any deviation from the build standard will be returned to that standard prior to disposal or return to Ordnance.

Well, there it is! What is quite interesting is the fact that no sights are fitted to this weapon according to the build sheet standard, not even a standard backsight! Even to the point that Field and Base workshops required to test them for accuracy were to have available a PH5C sight in order to do so (using the authority of the SA Committee to purchase one!). The report also states that no government stores are to be used outside the build sheet standard. So this means that even if you just wanted to use a standard No4 Mk1 type (or an L42 metric version) backsight, you weren’t allowed. But I don’t expect anyone ever abided by those rules.

There, another few useless bits of Lee Enfield knowledge that you didn’t know about. Anyone want me to go through the L42 blurb too?

Information

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[PrinzEugen]

Very interesting (as an L39 owner) Peter thanks for that - I'd certainly like to hear the l42 blurb when you've got your breath back!
Does anyone know how many L39s were made?

[Alan de Enfield]

Very interesting (as an L39 owner) Peter thanks for that - I'd certainly like to hear the l42 blurb when you've got your breath back!
Does anyone know how many L39s were made?

From my investigations :

No4Mk1T & Mk1*T. Longbranch manufactured 1000, and Holland & Holland converted 23,000 rifles.

No5 Mk1 Fazakerly and BSA combined manufacture 250,000+

No6 Mk1 Lithgow manufactured 100 rifles

No6 Mk1/1 Lithgow manufactured 100 rifles

No7Mk1 BSA manufactured 2500 rifles

Cno7Mk1 Longbranch manufactured 20,000 rifles

No8 Fazakerly manufactured 15000 and BSA manufactured 2000 rifles

No9 Parker Hale manufactured 3000 rifles.

L39A1 RSAF Enfield manufactured 1500 rifles

The last Military Enfield L42A1 RSAF Enfield manufactured 1000.

The last Enfield – Enforcer manufactured by Enfield & Parker Hale. 767 rifles.

Then there is the L59 but that wasnt a 'live' rifle.

[Alan de Enfield]

Peter - so apart from the action, barrel and bolt, 'anything goes' with regard to sights, furniture and magazines ?

[Thunderbox]

I think the highest observed number on an L39 is about A1280 (calling Strangely Brown...).

The L39 number sequence also seems (by observation) to include the near-identical later versions of "7.62mm CONV" rifles, so I'd guess that considerably less than 1300 L39s were actually built.

(What were the "7.62mm CONV" L39-clone rifles intended for? Distribution to Service clubs not entitled to L39s?).

All four of the last L39s I've had in had "00" boltheads.

[Thunderbox]

[Peter Laidler]

The 7.62mm CONV rifles were nothig to do with the Army. Maybe they were made for sale via the usual firarms dealers. Interesting picture of the 00 bolthead Any idea of the measurement against the others Thunderbox? Of course it's easy to get a 00 bolthead by grinding it down a gnats knacker on the surface grinder.

We've seen an L39 (above) with a 00 bolthead and also above, an L39 built using an used Mk2 body (also above - note the cut-off block). But does anyone have an L39 based on a Mk1/2 body?

[Thunderbox]

I recall Fultons had an L39 with a visible "1943" date on the left butt socket, so that was presumably a Mk1/2.

The "No4 7.62mm CONV" seem to be a bit of a mystery. These markings seem to first appear on various types of converted No4 in military configuration - eg L8-type. Then come a few L39-type rifles but with the markings electro-pencilled, similar to FTR'd rifles. Finally, there seems to be a run of this type of rifle (below):

This example is mint, brand new condition.

It is L39-spec, except:

- a No8 butt appears to be fitted as standard
- a 7.62mm mag is fitted, and is numbered to the rifle (as on an Enforcer or Envoy)
- the sights appear to be fitted as original

Note that the date is 1970, so this rifle was produced at Enfield in amongst contemporary Envoys, Enforcers, L39s & L42s. It also has an "A" prefix number. I bet no-one out there has an L39 with the number A498, but it would be interesting to be able to prove one way or the other.

The rifle has never been in civilian retail (but I won't go into that on a public forum....). I can only surmise that Enfield built them as "de lux" versions of the L39 for some reason.

[Brian Dick]

The No.4 7.62 CONV was built as a commercial target rifle for civilian sales and was the predecessor to the Envoy which was also a commercial sales variant. However, many or the No.4 7.62 CONV rifles wound up in places like the RAF shooting club and other service related organizations so not all were sold only to the commercial target shooting market.

[Strangely Brown]

I think the highest observed number on an L39 is about A1280 (calling Strangely Brown...).

I think 1280 was in the parish for the last L39A1 recorded by our "short haired" friend in Fultons.
Just looked at my two; A850 has a number "1" bolt head and A1025 has an "O" size.
Also A1025 shows additional stamps on the reciever which look as if they have survived a "scrubbing".

Peter,
Does Warminster have paper work attaining to the inception of the L39A1 for Inter Service Target Rifle use?