A gift from a very dear friend:

[GarandMan]

I'm certainly one of the lucky ones this week. I would like to show you some pictures of my new rifle. This rifle has a little bag or kit on the sling which includes bore patches and a small can of grease also a pull through that has a little green corrosion. It also includes some kind of wrench I have never seen before which I think is a chamber cleaning wrench. Correct me if I'm wrong. It was covered in grease, not cosmoline so it is very is to wipe of, just lots of it.

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[David TS]

Nice.

The "wrench" must be a chamber brush

[Amatikulu]

The blue pouch and contents are the kit issued to a Swiss K31 rifle.

[RobSmith]

I concur on the chamber brush. Mind you I've never seen one like that before, and stamps or markings on it ?

Also interesting to note that the specimen doesn't seem to bear the usual civlian proof marks which were applied to surplus rifles sent out for civilian sales.

[Peter Laidler]

The 'wrench' is a thinggy with wire gauze wrapped around it. But I don't think that we ever allowed wire gauze to be used as a chamber scourer. It'd do a LOT of scratching!

[Son]

Silly question, why do so many insist on photographing rifles with the action cocked?

It looks nice. Someone has done a good job of restoring it. I'd check the foreend for the copper recoil blocks. With the absence of any wear marks on the foreend while the metalwork has obviously seen service- it looks very much like one of the "new" '42 dated coachwood foreends that were around a while back that didn't have the copper blocks fitted.
I concur with the comments above about the little bag of stuff- it isn't for a Lee Enfield.

Let us know how it shoots!

[GarandMan]

Son,
Sorry to offend you by taking a picture with the rifle cocked. I did it out of ignorance. It really doesn't matter to me if it has all the correct markings because it was a gift from a very close friend who recently lost her husband. I'm not sure what you are referring to about the recoil blocks needing replaced, thanks for the heads up. I'll do some research on that. Are you saying it will damage the rifle if the recoil blocks are damaged?

[Simon P]

Nice rifle

The main parts all look matching (Barrel, Action & Bolt) with the same serial No & London Small Arms (LSA) inspectors marks.

[Surpmil]

Interesting that they were making MkIII* and MkIII rifles in 1918. I saw a 1918 LSACo. (No "L") a while back with a serial number in the P25--- range as I recall. It was an early 50s FTR in a beech stock, suncorited, replacement bolt (in FTR) etc. Barrel has the BSA trademark on the Nock's Form.

[GarandMan]

Surpmil,
Are you saying the barrel is a BSA?