should I clean it?

I was recently given a Savage No4 Mk1* 63c serial by a good friend. My friend is elderly and cannot remember how or when he got it. It is 100% Savage, every little part that I can see. I went to take it apart and clean it so I could shoot it, but realized there is absolutely no wear on it at all. Not a screw head buggered, not a scratch or nick, and it is resting in a nice heavy coat of cosmo. I ran a few patches through the barrel and there were no traces of copper fouling at all so I brought it over to a friends house who is a well respected gunsmith. He ran a bore scope down the barrel and every 2 seconds he would say "wow, oh... wow" it ends up in his opinion the gun was only factory test fired. So here I am in a dilemma, should I leave it as is, or should I clean it up and enjoy it? What would you advanced collectors do?

Thanks in advance,
Eric

Well I think it depends on why you bought it. If you bought it as a shooter then maybe you would want to shoot it.

If you bought it to add to a Lee Enfield collection and have others you can shoot then possibly it would be a good idea to keep it as it is. It would not be common to get a unissued gun, probably not rare but I don't see them that often.

You will get lots of people on here saying shoot it, personally I wouldn't but some would say I am nuts, and I can accept that. :D

Yours to enjoy no matter what your decision is.

Please post pictures! In the condition you describe I'd consider leaving it. There aren't that many WWII rifles in that condition anymore. Yes I understand it was made to shoot etc. but there are also a lot of them out there you can shoot without having to worry about devaluing it. Just my opinion.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

---------- Post added at 10:23 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:21 PM ----------

enfield303t beat me to it! What he said!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

well I will post pictures tomorrow when it is light out. I didn't buy the rifle, I was just over helping my friend out and he said "you want this old hunk of junk" so of course it had to come home with me :-)

Think of it another way.......... If he gave you a factory new, straight out of the box MGB or Triumph TR6 with 22 miles on the clock what would you do? Knowing that you could use it and gradually devalue it or keep it brand new, factory fresh and pristine KNOWING that you could buy relatively cheaply, use and if necessary, flog to death any old MGB. AND know that you'd still have the original new one sat in the garage just gathering both dust and value.

I know what I'd do. So go and find a space in your garage for that new MGB or Triumph and keep it. It don't eat nothin' either!

Well I was waiting for some nice outside shunshine for pictures but that didn't happen. So here it is, sorry for the bad pics.
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...d8d62075-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...b16eddb2-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...b16eddb2-1.jpg


https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...2d68c03a-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...45a4a52c-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...012a9e8b-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...c3bcda27-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...36fe219e-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...db49d7bc-1.jpg

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...954537a4-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...bf685292-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...60d73c9e-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...a34aafbf-1.jpg

So I assume you've decided to clean it then, having pulled it apart. I would have preserved it as it was

I didn't clean it, just took it apart a little to inspect and see if there was any rust hiding. I got a unissued 1903 a couple of years ago and under the wood line there was a bloom of rust starting. So all I did was take it apart and inspect and put back together. I dont think any harm was done.

I would clean it and fire it.

Personally, I would clean it and shoot it. My experience is that most of the next generation are not really interested in historic arms, so the idea of preserving things intact for them seems a bit futile.

Hi
I would just fire it , don't get me wrong its a nice looking rifle but its not quiet mint I would say its probably had a couple of hundred rounds down the barrel already. The link below is of some pictures of my No4 i have posted them before but some time ago. These pictures where taken after I had fired 40 rounds from it so the ware to your bolt etc would indicate yours has certainly fired a few more than that , I also know there are more number No4`s out there in this condition than most people think. So shoot it and enjoy it

Lee enfield savage no4 mk1* - a set on Flickr

This rifle deserves preserving

nattC: Shooting and preserving are not really mutually exclusive goals. I would suggest the furniture would be better preserved by cleaning the gunk and soaking in RLO, while a light coat of grease on the metal parts will be adequate protection unless you live in the rain forest. As far as the bore is concerned, there seem to be lots of No.4's (and even older No. 1's) out there with excellent barrels. I have yet to buy one with a truly awful bore but have found 110 year old Lee Enfield Carbines, SMLE Mk I's, etc with exxcellent bores and I'm pretty sure they've fired a few rounds. Very nice rifle- enjoy it.

Ridolpho

Well speaking as a collector and shooter I'd say leave it as is. Put it back together and tuck it safely away. There are still thousands of affordable No4 rifles out there that have been fired. With the passage of time the few remaining unissued and unfired rifles grows smaller and smaller and the value both monetarily and to history grows. If given a choice a collector will almost always choose and pay a premium for the as new, unissued and unfired example. If you shoot it and your honest about it should you choose to shoot it that first shot is going to devalue the rifle by at least 25% and possibly more. No it's not all about money but you hold in your hands a time capsule so for me the "need" to shoot it wouldn't exist.

Load of different advice there Natt. But just remember, that if your dad gave you the new MGB or TR6 in 1970, you'd have used it - and rightly so. But he's giving you a virtually new one 1970 car today. It's only new once. Take your choice. I'd be clearing a space in my garage............

Unless you have the very first/last or a rare variant of any of these firearms we collect I say shoot it. There were millions of each made. Nobody is going to retire 100yrs from now because he sold his great grandads No4 mk1 that never left the safe. In my opinion if a guy is looking for investment buy gold.
I see no reason why a mature adult can't take $1000.00 rifle to a gun range and enjoy himself for a few hours when he drove there in a $30.000 truck.
Sorry for the rant......nice rifle by the way:)

Well on the serious side don't shoot it and don't let anyone talk you into doing that. Peter Laidler gave you a great analogy and it literally hits the nail on the head. MG's were made to be driven and enjoy however getting one in new condition as it hasn't been driven much would be beyond rare and a shame to drive to where it is just another old car.

You might not find another near perfect Savage No4 again, they are not common like any unissued gun. There are countless thousands of No4's that have been well used and make a perfect shooter. I have two (Savage) that are very nice but don't compare to yours and to be honest would swap you one any day of the week.

Buy a good quality gun sock to protect it in your safe, take it out once a year and give it some love and a light coat of oil. Thirty years from now you will thank me, I'll be long gone but maybe you will remember this advice.

Why the mentality that you have to shoot everything? What if you have 100 rifles, would you shoot all of them? Do museums shoot all the rifles on display?

Homer, I stand by my comments. The poster asked a question and I gave my opinion. A guy can dig foxholes in his back yard and play army with his rifles it's his business. Me, I shoot mine.

"Why the mentality that you have to shoot everything? What if you have 100 rifles, would you shoot all of them? Do museums shoot all the rifles on display?"

yes ................ the only one I will not shoot is a Chinese 1941 by the 21st arsenal in Chungking, I value my face way too much

Just a little off topic but this reminds me of a No4 I saw at a gun show two years ago. The owner had unwrapped it and it was perfect. Now to make things more unbelievable it came with a matching bayonet and he sold that as a seperate item to someone??

I know how rare wrapped guns are and to think he was asking a high price after what he did and adding insult to injury he seperated the gun from the bayonet... YOU REALLY CAN"T FIX STUPID.

This Savage is in beautiful condition and if you really LOVE Lee Enfields then you will preserve it out of respect.... SERIOUSLY.

I have a 1950 Long Branch with a transit case, appears to never have been issued, would I shoot it NEVER and told my son when he inherits my guns he must NEVER shoot it. He agreed and gave me his word.

Thank you for the input everyone. I have decided to leave it as is. I have a couple of unissued rifles in the collection so this one will go in the "dont shoot" safe. I was thinking that I have about 15 other Enfields that I can bring out to the range so let this one rest while the others get a workout. This is why I appreciate this site, the educated opinions and inputs of its members is extremely helpful. Once again, thanks everyone.

Wise man Natt. Clear a space for the MGB...... Or better still, the Triumph TR6

I can certainly understand nattcmars decision not to shoot this rifle although I've shot a couple of equally newish ones simply to experience shooting an as-issued No.4. I worry more about shooting well used, but very collectable models that might be damaged by further use without rectification of problems. But a question, with reference to naatc's rifle, is this the typical appearance of Savage metalwork? One of his photos (I've attached it) shows what appears to be a parkerized finish while other shots look like my own well used Savages- some kind of smooth, shiny finish. Lots of old posts about Du-lite which Brian Dick has pointed out is actually a "blued" finish. Did Savage use multiple finishes through time? I know how tough it is to capture in a photo the subtleties of tone but I would like to know if this is a good example of typical Savage finish. Thanks.

Ridolpho

The bolt was extremely hard to get a photo of because the gun, especially the bolt, was slatered in tar like cosmo. Dark as the night. It appears the bolt body was polished and the handle was parked. When I get home from work in 2 weeks I will try to get some better pics of the bolt area if that would help any.

I commend your decision Natt. I would not shoot that rifle. I would hang it on the gun rack and show it off. Very nice rifle.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Peter Laidler

Wise man Natt. Clear a space for the MGB...... Or better still, the Triumph TR6

---

Hello Peter.

Must be the same Peter as known on the MGOC long since?

Any how, there made for shooting. So look after them, and shoot them