Long Lee Enfield/CLLE WW1 Sniper rifle.

Ian, I had sent you my e-mail address via PM but never received your pictures. Did you send them?

Attachment 96383Attachment 96384Attachment 96385Attachment 96386Attachment 96387

Sorry, I forgot to do this earlier. These are the pictures that Harlan sent me. I hope people find them of interest.

Captions (reproduced verbatim):

48th Highlanders with Long Lees.
1904 rifles training at Hythe (presumably '1904 rifles' refers to Mk1 SMLE's).
A sniper June 1916 likely at Mont des Cats, France.
Black Watch snipers.
Mont des Cats June 1916.

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And the rest!

Scout snipers 5 Bn July 1918.
Scout snipers 2 BN CEF July 1916.
Scout snipers 8 Bn CEF June 1916.
Scout snipers unidentified Bn Aug 1916.
Scout snipers unidentified Bn Aug 1916.

And a few more Harlan kindly Attachment 96392Attachment 96393Attachment 96394Attachment 96395Attachment 96396sent me.


4 Gordons leave.
APX on CLLE 1915.
Mont des Cats June 1916 with Long Lee.
Mont des Cats June 1916.
Riflemen WW1

Roger,
Thread 22 fourth photo from the left is indeed The Black Watch in August 1916 doing a Sniper Cadre in France. Its in my book SNIPERS DOWN SOUTH.
Still can't identify the location definatively as their museum thought it was Edinburgh Castle but was later changed as they couldn't find the door in the background at the castle, so had to revert to Mons De Cats.

Thanks Gil. Is the book out yet?

Roger,
No just waiting till the other book has had a fair run, as ours is a fundraising book for the museum so no mad rush, but the funding to put it all into motion and get them printed and launched should be 31st October next Trustee's meeting.

Interesting mix of rifles.

Amateur question here likely: Some of the rifles in these pictures look to be half-stocked like sporters, and in post #22 last picture the fellow furthest right (Closest to the camera) looks to have a rifle in this configuration but also with no rear sights on the barrel nor a scope. Is it possible that under his hand is a rear aperture sight? If so was this setup, as well as the other sporter looking rifles, something taken from rifle clubs at the time, a one off armourer's take at a marksman rifle with what was laying around, or not a Lee-enfield at all?

Also I hope you guys keep adding to this thread with any more info or pictures that crop up, its great stuff.

I think it's going to be difficult to be precise what that chap is using, although it's definitely of sporter configuration & does not appear to bear a scope. Not absolutely sure I could say unequivocally that it has no iron sights.....but my eyes are getting old! It's even difficult to say if it is an Enfield. The firer has his hands obscuring the view of the butt socket area, which might otherwise have helped.

Yes, I gather civvy target sights were used by marksmen, particularly early on, along with a vast array of assorted scopes using various mount systems. Later, the PPCo., Aldis, & Winchester A5 predominated.