Battle Queen SMLE

This used to belong to my Grandpa. He bought it in the 50's and used it for hunting here and there and for killing pigs for butcher. He passed away before I was born, and this rifle sat in my Grandmas closet for over a decade. She found out that I was very into these old military rifles and remembered where it resided, so she gave it to me. It was missing a magazine, so I ordered one online for it and went to town. I gave it a good cleaning and got the cobwebs out of the barrel and used steel wool to get off most of the surface rust. You can tell that this thing has saw action somewhere besides in the hills of Kentucky hunting deer. If only it could talk! It still groups amazingly and fires like new. :)

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...CEBOOK21-1.jpg

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

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...CEBOOK31-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...CEBOOK41-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...CEBOOK51-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...CEBOOK62-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...ACEBOOK8-1.jpg
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nice looking rifle , and its intact , dated right at the point of transistion from mkIII to III* ,

A fitting link to the grandfather you never knew. Beautiful old girl.

Nice rifle and a nice connection to your grand-dad. Thank heaven he wasn't named Bubba.

:lol:

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Originally Posted by Paul S.

Nice rifle and a nice connection to your grand-dad. Thank heaven he wasn't named Bubba.

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Classic.

Great looking rifle! I love that wood. It's hard to beat 'character' like that. I hope you don't ever think of 'restoring' it.

Attachment 34477 They seem to look "right" in that condition. My unmolested No 1 Mk III* is the foundation of my collection. I only wish it had belonged to my Grandfather,

Restore? This is the condition that it's meant to be in. I would never think of that! So no worries. :)

Les Paui

Very nice rifle. Glad to hear that you are going to keep it as is.

Interesting that the first and last digits of the serial number on the receiver appear to have been overstamped with an "S"

It appears that the serial number may have originaly been F 3594. (The last digit is cleary an overstamped 4. The first appears to have originally been a 3.)

What serial numbers appear on the other usual locations: bolt handle; nose cap; wrist/butt socket; under the leaf of the rear sight; on the forend?

Enjoy the rifle and the link to your grandfather.

Cheers

Paul

All serials except for the magazine say 8598.

Are the other serial numbers stamped in a similar manner?

Perhaps the overstamping occured in the factory, or very early in the rifles history.

Given that it is almost 100 years old, we will probably never know.

It just makes a beaut rifle even more interesting.

Cheers

Paul

I'll have to look and I'll get back at ya buddy!

I wonder what the odds are that this thing was being slung around in the trenches somewhere in Europe in the early 1900's?

The odds are very good that an SMLE produced in 1915 saw action in the Great War. Very very good.

The rest of the numbers are not like that.

Yup, what they said, about family connections, priceless.

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Originally Posted by jrhead75

The odds are very good that an SMLE produced in 1915 saw action in the Great War. Very very good.

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And it looks like it did. Perhaps the next one too.