i have the option on a model 1917 that has been sporterized. the military sights are gone, a scope has been put on, and the original stock was replaced by a synthetic sporter.
Just how bad would it be to get back to military?
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i have the option on a model 1917 that has been sporterized. the military sights are gone, a scope has been put on, and the original stock was replaced by a synthetic sporter.
Just how bad would it be to get back to military?
Bezoar, I hate to sound negative BUT forget about it right now! If the rear sight ears are cut off or the barrel is cut and/or receiver drilled for scope --it is definately not worth thinking about. Please just save up and find one that has not been modified. You can still find them. There! I just saved you much time and money! Salt Flat
Recovering a Sporterized M1917/P1914
In recent months I have seen several questions from people who want to restore a sporterized M1917 or P1914 to full military configuration. I was around when the M1917 was sold off through the DCM for $7.50 with a new barrel available for $1.00. Pattern 14 actions were available through several commercial sources for “conversion to a Magnum caliber”. There were many articles in the AMERICAN RIFLEMAN magazine and in various publications available from the NRA or other sources (Williams Gunsights Co for example) with instructions of how to convert your “Enfield” into a sporter. There were several organizations like Johnson Automatics or Stogers that would do the conversion for you – for a price. Some of these modifications were minor and some were major. Before beginning such a reconversion project I would suggest that you evaluate carefully the rifle to be reconverted looking for the following characteristics.
FIRST: Examine the action to see if the “ears “have been removed. If they have – forget it. Next determine if the rifle has been converted to a 300 H&H Magnum- quite a common conversion then. Conversion to the 300 H&H entailed several modifications to the action such as reshaping the guide rails, lengthening the magazine opening (because of the extra length of the 300 H&H), altering the magazine box and receiver and opening up the bolt face. If the receiver has been modified significantly - forget it. Many gunsmiths of the era would not make this alteration. They felt that the barrel of the M1917 was too thin and the material removed from the area of the lower locking lug weakened the action.
SECOND: Examine the barrel to determine if it has been shortened. It ws quite a common practice to cut the barrel to 24” and add a commercial front sight. Original M1917 barrels are getting scarce and expensive, while spare P1914 barrels seem to be nonexistent. Evidently the British did not order a significant number of spares. Again examine the barrel to see if it has been converted to a 300H&H. When considering the replacement of the original barrel with one of commercial manufacture, remember that the shank of the M1917/P1914 is larger than that of most other commercial or military action and most manufactures charge extra for the larger blank required. In the 1970’s Douglass charged an extra $5.00 for an “Enfield” blank. .
THIRD: Examine the bolt assembly very carefully. Cock-on-closing did not seem to be of great consideration to many hunters; however it bothered enough shooters to cause the development of several cock-on-opening systems: some good, some so-so, and some absolutely horrible. If such a conversion has been done, it may require replacement of the entire bolt assembly to correct the problem. Some only affected the cocking piece, some modified the bolt, and some modified the bolt, the cocking piece and the sleeve. The best conversion, though the most expensive, was replacing the M1917 bolt with a bolt assembly from a Remington Model 30. Remington sold these after the war until the supply was exhausted. Some conversions were made by welding up the bolt and converting the cocking piece. Done correctly this was good- done poorly this could be a disaster. The best of these conversions was by a gunsmith named Viggo Miller, as it modified only the cocking piece and the sleeve. To return to original operation one only had to replace the cocking piece and the sleeve. See the above discussion for some of the problems. I used one of these on a target rifle for years and it worked as well as the Remington 30. (Miller has been dead for many years.) Numrich made a conversion that used only a modified cocking piece. It required an extra strong spring, resulted in a very short firing pin throw and provided only marginal performance. (I have one.) If you are not familiar with the M1917/P1914 bolt and trigger functioning, consult someone who is. This problem can be solved by replacing the bolt assembly – though it may prove to be expensive.
FOURTH: Examine the trigger guard and magazine assembly. Quite a common action was altering the trigger guard to eliminate the “dogleg”. This usually involved some cutting and welding. After straightening the TG, the magazine box was usually, though not always, cut to a five round capacity. There was also a problem with some M1917’s feeding the then available sporting cartridges with odd shaped bullets Magazine boxes and receivers were often modified to correct this “problem”. On one of these modifications examine the trigger. When the magazine box is reduced to a five round capacity, the M1917 trigger is too long and must be cut and welded. In some cases a M1903 trigger was substituted. Some of these modifications required that the trigger safety stud be reduced in length to allow the conversion to work-otherwise the action would “lock up”-see above posting. This reduces one of the safety features of this type of action, but the commercial triggers available at the time eliminated this “safety” feature anyway.
FIFTH: At one time, a couple of companies were advertising modified M1903 trigger guard assemblies for use with the M1917. I never saw one so do not know how much, if any receiver modification, if any, was required to make one of the operate correctly.
Just something to be aware of. I hope this will be of value.
Pics would make it simple to tell if it's worth restoring, or Salt Flat's right.
Sadly from the description it seems enough that its not. Keep as a Sporter shooter for fun (and finding out what caliber it is for sure)
New barrel, stock and all the machine/gun smith work is pushing well over $1000
buy one in good condition on Gunbokrers for that.