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The fact that it dates to WW2 and doesn't look like anyone has severely messed with it is good enough for me. I don't have tons of money to throw around (or rich old relatives with huge Lee Enfield collections to give away when they pop off), so I have to stick to the cheaper end of the market and be very careful with my purchases.
Your '41 Savage or LB (rather scarcer) might be lurking at the local pawn or seedy gunshop that NEVER has anything worth looking at. You just gotta be prepared to sift out the 99.99% of other stuff. Sometimes it makes for long dry spells, but the hunt's the thing!
Already got my route for the quarterly hunt through the local, and not so local, pawn shops and seedy gun shops laid out. Looked in 1 a very short time ago that was selling a Savage with a VERY chewed up bolt release slot and in a poor condition - for $300. I had great difficulty keeping a straight face. The 1 gun shop that has plenty of Lee Enfields in Reno refuses to sell them as the are part of a collection that used to belong to a now deceased collector, stating that they only put any of the rifles up for sale if something nicer comes in - almost broke my heart seeing 12 to 14 Lee Enfields on display just out of reach. Dog in a manger comes to mind lol.
jona, The A within a C is a manufacturer mark, rather than an ownership mark.
Brad
That bit I do know, but all the markings I see in the pictures are a broad arrow inside a C, no "A"s.Quote:
Originally Posted by bradtx
Sorry, Jona. I meant to say broad arrow within a C. I really shouldn't triple task myself!
Brad
One sure sign of a post war refurb is the force matched bolt serial number. Also hard to tell fore sure from the photos but it looks to also be parked as would be expected in a refurb as apposed to the correct blued. No matter it's a very nice rifle. I'm a bit of a Long Branch snob though.Quote:
Originally Posted by jona
On the computer I'm using the receiver socket looks blued. Not sure about the numbers on the bolt handle, but it looks like the last one was applied over an electropenciled proof mark, MAYBE(?). Need more pics to be sure. The receiver side surely has that bead blasted "parked" look, Mk1 eyeball will help determine the actual finish.
BTW If the rear of the bolt handle is actually "white" then its for sure a renumber.
In this case I was referring to the fact that the fonts do not match between the bolt and receiver numbers. Also the LB stamp at the root of the bolt handle has almost been removed when the previous serial number was removed. I’m going on personal observation here but the fully correct examples I’ve seen have always had the fonts on the receiver and bolt match. Also on late war examples the area at the back of the bolt handle where the serial number is stamped is also quite smooth. I have one rifle with the same font 6/9 and it is a known post war Canadian referb. If I’m in error on this one I apologize and you can feel free to correct me at will.Quote:
Originally Posted by jmoore
On my screen the photo of the receiver side wall has that slight greenish tint to it denoting the parked finish.
No matter what I like this rifle. Most of my LB’s are referbed. It’s getting harder to find all correct examples.
Heck, I was beginning to think I had got a lemon :P
If nothing else, I have (or will have) a nice example of a 1944 Long Branch, which has not been bubba'd, but has gone through reasonable, minimal changes.