Lithgow Rifles Survey

[muffett.2008]

Not yet, pick it up on Saturday when I go down, pre bought it off the list of 47 rifles as part of a estate collection.
Attachment 64108
Taking a few grand with me in case there is something else of interest.
Did see a '17 and 18' on the list, but have enough of them.

[ufo8mydog]

Not yet, pick it up on Saturday when I go down, pre bought it off the list of 47 rifles as part of a estate collection.
Attachment 64108
Taking a few grand with me in case there is something else of interest.
Did see a '17 and 18' on the list, but have enough of them.

Looks good so far. Nice to see the 34 dated barell as well.

Ps if there is anything else good left let us know

[Wombat]

Mk.III, 1917, #63458. An odd ball. All parts except windage back sight & trigger guard are Lithgow. Butt is dark Queensland maple with all issuing marks (6/17, 3rd MD, 45474), fore end, and hand guards are walnut, plus dial sight, all Lithgow marked. Barrel is 1915 Lithgow #24794. Nose cap, receiver, bolt & butt are all from same 1917 rifle (#63458) WWI rebuild? Mlore recent rebuild? I don't know.

Mk.III, 1918, #98820. All numbers match. Stocked in Queensland maple with all issuing marks (8/18, 8/44, 3rd MD #55052, steel marking disc (Royal Aust. Navy) Barrel is "P" marked, but is also 1918 and numbered to receiver.

Mk.III*, 1922, #A96370. All numbers match. Stocked in Queensland maple and not cut for marking disk. No issuing marks on butt. However, on the upper right side butt socket is what appears to be an NZ acquisition number, C 8594. 1922 Lithgow barrel.

[muffett.2008]

Thanks Wombat, it seems your 1917 was rebarreled out of service, otherwise the number would have been xxxxed out and the new one applied. I have one the same.
Prior to 1925 the barrel was the control item, it's number was normally transcribed onto the new part, after that timeframe, the receiver became the main part and barrels were numbered to match.

Can you tell me if there are three stars in front of the nocks? and is there a number (1,2 or 3?) or a letter (s or L)

[Wombat]

Thanks Wombat, it seems your 1917 was rebarreled out of service, otherwise the number would have been xxxxed out and the new one applied. I have one the same.
Prior to 1925 the barrel was the control item, it's number was normally transcribed onto the new part, after that timeframe, the receiver became the main part and barrels were numbered to match.

Can you tell me if there are three stars in front of the nocks? and is there a number (1,2 or 3?) or a letter (s or L)

None of the above. No marks on the nocksform itself, but plenty on either side of it on barrel reenforce.

[muffett.2008]

Like this oneAttachment 66253

[muffett.2008]

October update.
Attachment 66339
Attachment 66340
Attachment 66341
Attachment 66342
Attachment 66343

[Wombat]

Like this oneAttachment 66253

Yes, quite similar.

[muffett.2008]

Thanks Wombat, the reason I am so interested in a 1915 barrel is that there are very few surviving original barrels from 1913 to 1917.
It was this time frame that saw most change at Lithgow, from bad steel supplied from England, double proofing of barrels, component steel identifiers, and non factory Inspection.
I have pulled a couple of early barrels, 14, 15 and 16's to verify what was covered in some of the notes of Herbert Wright, the first head barrel setter, and the barrels from 1914/15 had the steel batch identity on the breech face...........Attachment 66345Attachment 66346
this was subsequently moved to the barrel exterior(as previously discussed)..........Attachment 66347
It was later changed from numbers to letters Attachment 66348Attachment 66349 from 1917 and seems to disappear after 1926, though still on the action near the main screw.
So there's a good chance, if there is no number near the star cluster, that your early barrel has it's identifier on the breech face......big problem is you can't see it without pulling the barrel

[Wombat]

muffett.2008,

Thanks for all the information on early Lithgow's. I can appreciate your research efforts from personal and similar experience. My barrel had a lot of dried grease clinging to the breech area. I removed all of that just to be sure there were no numbers, or letters, hiding under it. No luck. The barrel still has some WWII green paint scattered in places. The bore is about as perfect as a hundred year old barrel can have.

Wombat