Help with identification!

Hi all,

I'm a little stumped on some markings on an 1911 Enfield made SMLE. I've trawled the various online resources (but maybe I've missed somewhere?!) and can't get my head around these. Can anyone help?

This is a D struck within a circle....

https://www.milsurps.com/images/imported/deleted.gif

Someone told me this may be an Indian depot marking...??

https://www.milsurps.com/images/imported/deleted.gif

Can anyone help shed just a little light on these two markings?

Many, many thanks in advance.

---------- Post added at 10:46 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:44 AM ----------

In case you have trouble viewing images links to the struck D is:
IMG00056-20100911-1619 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

And to the butt stock marking:
IMG00061-20100911-1620 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I'm so sorry, I'm new to the forum!

http://home.earthlink.net/~smithkaia8/id2.html
4th from the bottom, Indian.

According to Divia V.'s uncle, an active service general in the Indian Army, the mark should be read:

Technical
Establishment

(W)eapon

D----inspector's initial.

Documentation is not available, because the Indian Army doesn't surrender information easily---but Divia's uncle is reliable in other ways, as well.

The JOD in a circle to the left of the TE mark is considered to a depot mark.
-----krinko

Finlog:

I had seen that reference but somehow missed that. Thanks for pointing it out! :)

Krinko:

Fantastic! Thanks to you and your source.

I suppose we can't tell whether this was WW1 or WW2 stamp?

Thanks again for your time.

Can anyone shed any light on the single struck D in a circle which I found on the receiver underneath the woodwork?

The single D in a circle found later, on the later No4's No5's and 8's et al barrels indicates a slight change in the means of indexing the barrel breeching up thread. But wouldn't imagine this would be so on an SMLE.............

If its on the barrel (D in a crcle) = Draw lapped barrel.

I think that was a theory put out some time ago Big Duke and found to be slightly incorrect because of certain inconsistencies. According to the UK MoD, it's the later method of final machining barrels AFTER they'd been breech threaded to save wasting hundreds of barrels that would otherwise be scrapped due to.................... Anyway, I explained the whole theory and practice in a long article some years ago. The later method also allowed the use of (relatively) unskilled machine setters to set up barrel production lines at Fazakerley.

Quite what it means on an SMLE body (if that's what thepsalmsUK is referring to) that's very wisely never even been near to Liverpool means, is anyones guess.

Thanks Peter, I was hoping you might pick up on this thread.

A link to the stamped D is below:
IMG00056-20100911-1619 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Is this consistent to a Draw Lapped Barrell as suggested?

Other pictures of the rifle (For reference) are below:

IMG00069-20100912-1204 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
IMG00070-20100912-1204 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

IMG00072-20100912-1204 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
IMG00073-20100912-1205 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

IMG00068-20100911-1622 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
IMG00067-20100911-1622 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I apologise about the poor quality of phots!

Thanks everyone, your expertise is much appreciated!

I can't decipher head nor tails of the photos generally except the stilson wrench marks (?) that indicate that it's not an Armourer who has attempted to unbreech it and what looks like a D in a circle. But a D in a circle didn't affect SMLE barrels and draw lapping - if it dead mean that in another time warp wasn't the way they did things then. But I could be wrong

Image IMG00067-20100911-1622 | Flickr - Photo Sharing! shows the two broad arrows struck bottom left. Does that then mean it was sold out of service?

Perhaps it then went to India??

I'm completely stumped on this one!

They look very much like sold out od service marks. I looked at the D in a circleand it looks a little odd to me, the D dosn't look central to the circle, it looks kinda off to one side as if maybe some part of the symbol is missing. Is it definatly a D and not another type of mark, have you tried looking at it from a diffrent orientation?

It could just be me looking outside the box when I should be looking in!

Had to delay this until I found the pics its a sporterized 1910 SMLE ( Naval issue), with the same D in a circle ( or half a circle in this case, would say the other half was polished away), barrel and action are matching numbers.

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...DSCF3296-1.jpg

I would say that's the same D bigduke.

But that still begs the question...what does it mean?

:dunno:

Anyone know how common the '.303" BRITISH' mark is on these barrels?

Someone did comment on the "303 British" mark on another thread, obvious stamped at a later date, but the D in a circle is original to the barrel as I,ve seen it on another SMLE I had, which had been religned to .22, and am sure it was a 1909 or 1910.