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No.3 MK 1, need a little id help *photo heavy*
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Not a "No.3 MK 1" but rather an SMLE MK III* (No.1 MK III*), made at Australia's Lithgow factory. See https://www.milsurps.com/content.php...Infantry-Rifle for details including an explanation of the aftermarket "JJCO" marking.
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As he says...just a clean example of an Australian rifle produced for WW2. Nice end war marks and the marking disc...Artillery? Cocking piece is Enfield, otherwise looks to be all Aussie...
By the way, welcome to the forum...
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Nice Lithgow. J. Jovino must have imported containers full of the Lithgow inventory back in the day. Everything from nice been there don that originals like this on to Bitsters assembled in house.
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I think the 5/45 mark is a refurbishment to store mark.
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AGA - Australian Garrison Artillery.
The butt is originally off another rifle but the stamps indicate a refurb in the orange factory in 1945.
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Well I picked the right spot to ask, thank you all for the comments and information it is much appreciated. This is a great site I plan on spending more time on.
Cheers to you all!
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beautiful, I love the really dark looking timber you see on some LE's
the "CMF NSW" markings show that at some stage the buttstock was on a rifle in the Citizen Military Forces (in in the state of NSW Australia), sort of an army reserve. i'm far from an expert but I thought that the buttstock disks were long gone by 1941, plus doesn't show the normal Lithgow cartouches, hence the butt originally being on an other rifle. the stamp on the underside of the stock looks to be a british inspectors mark (note the crown) but no idea which company.
the "HV" shows the sights were correct for the "high velocity" ammunition aka the standard ww1/ww2 mk7 ball ammunition.
the trigger guard shows an English government broad arrow stamp and a BSA? inspectors stamp. so I expect was originally on a british built rifle.
as stated above the cocking piece was made at Enfield and that style went out of production at enfield during ww1.
the crown over L over crossed flags on the knox form is the Lithgow proof mark.
the marking over the VII on the knox form looks to be a poorly stamped "OA" which is an Orange Arsenal manufactures mark. the Lithgow rifles included parts from various manufacturing plants, "arsenals" named after the towns where they were situated.
I think the top mark on the underside of the fore end may once have been a "SLAZ over 4?" showing Slazenger manufactured timber made in 194?. Slazenger in this case being the Australian arm of the british sporting goods company.
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...63d7de1c-1.jpg
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MA LSAF post 1926 (on both rifles & bayonets)
MAO Rifle Factory No.3 Orange (butt marking)
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No one has picked up on the 10/12 date on the butt.