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A large European barrel maker is planning on making a run of No. 4 Barrels. These will be threaded and chambered. They will have 4 groove rifling and will also have the bayonet lugs machined as per the originals. Anybody interested can check out: Welcome to Lee-Enfield Rifles. The more barrels in the first run, the better the price. Anybody interested in replacement No 1 barrels should also let Brett know when you email him.
Think they could be talked into making a run of H barrels for No1 Mk3?, lol,
He's not sure about this. However, the same maker does Gew 98, K-98, and G96 barrels as a stock item. if they get a sizeable enough request, they are apparently prepared to make a run of whatever barrel contour and calibre is requested. For the No 4 barrels, their initial minimal run will only be 20, so I don't think it'd be too tough to get them to do some No 1 H-barrels. I've already expressed an interest in this to Brett myself and I'm sure he'd love to hear from you. He also provides adjustable two-stage trigger retrofits for both No. 1 and No. 4 rifles, if you were so-interested.
The website doesn't say anything about barrels.
Had to dig a little to find it:
Welcome to Lee-Enfield Rifles
Brian B
The trouble with barrels is that you'll occasionally get a real old beaten up barrel thyat shoots like a dream. Stick it on the Enfield rest and it groups likje a champ - but still fails the gauge limits. It's usually the shot-out muzzles that really condemn a barrel in my opinion. Worn muzzle and you don't even need to range test it!
Still, I suppose that if the rifle is a concourse bling example for show, then a pristine barrel is one of the things you need. But a good competitive shooter, then an accurate one is all that counts.
For sniper rifles, we'd always let the sniper be the best judge. ON the other hand, the shooting teams could be a real pain in the bottom. One bad days shooting was ALWAYS blamed on the rifle, barrel, slippery handguards, sling loop loose, wobbly backsight axis pin, glossy foresight, too much sun, rubbish breakfast but one thing you could NEVER blame - and that was the shooting team starlet himself
Already have an early pre-production lother Walther barrel fitted to my 4T. They sent a batch of 10 for evaluation, they do shoot too.
In UK, the Lothar Walther barrels fitted cost about the same as a decent shooting No4 in its entirety. I imagine that, across the Pond, you'd be able to buy at least three very decent Enfields for the fitted cost of one of these barrels!
Lets hope they make the barrels a stock item and do a run of a thousand or so. Maybe that'll make them more accessible.
Don't think we could import tham to the USA - Brian Dick will be able to give the official verdict there I'm sure but I recall that we're not able to. Of course when you can go out an buy a to all intents and purposes unfired No.4 for about $300 here you have to question whether it would be worth it as thunderbox indicates.
Doing a "drop-in" barrel will present a few challenges, especially if the receiver threads have been a bit "stressed". I understand that in the later days of "service" No4s, there appears to have been provision for two grades of barrel: "fit to new" and "fit to used". An advance offset of about 11 degrees of the breech thread on the tenon was the only difference. Torque in the barrel and then choose a bolthead to headspace.
It's a bit of a tap-dancing act with the No4 barrel because of the front sight and bayonet lugs. If you cut the breeching shoulder a bit short so that it can be adjusted to achieve correct torque and alignment, what effect will that have on the headspace?
The civilian market is nothing like an ordnance system in which the armourers, with their gauges, have final say on whether to rebarrel or not. If a receiver is "past it" then, as long as the receiver is destroyed by the authorised folk and paperwork is done correctly, that's it. Not many civilian shooters would be too happy with that.
A better solution is an "almost finished" barrel that requires the attention of a good gunsmith to index and headspace. At least with No4s you have multiple bolt head sizes to play with. Doing replacement barrels for SMLEs is a bit different. Nothing that a competent, Lee Enfield savvy gun plumber can't handle.
Then again, if your bolt is dancing around in the receiver like a frog in a sock, it may be time to get a new rifle.
A while ago I got some .303 blanks made by my local barrel maker. They have 1:10: LEFT HAND, 5 groove rifling. The rifling form is a variation on 5R form found in match barrels. Bore is nom. .3025", groove is .311"; a bit tighter than the original spec. The first couple went into P-14s and shoot quite well with Yugoslav ball and various handloads. A couple of "bitza" SMLEs are being lined up for the treatment soon. Still fine-tuning the process for the No4 barrels; Those little lugs at the front tend to complicate things.