Need help, bought an enfield and need some information

This is my first post on the site/forum, I have a small collection of firearms and I just picked up an enfield for my WWII battle rifle collection (have a CMP M1 Garand and a M91/30). I went to the gun show today and picked up an Enfield for $395, it is supposedly a Canadian Long Breach. I do not know much about it, I have done some research on this site and anything else google has given me but to no avail I cannot find what I am looking for. This Is what I can see/find on the rifle without breaking it down or knowing anything about it. It is stamped OL1XXX, on the left, also on the reciever it is stamped No 4 Mk 1, Long Breach, 1941. The magazine box is stamped A 11XXXX, and on the bottom of the wood is stamped OL 1923. I cannot find any other stamps, none on the bolt handle and I cannot read the other markings. Also the front sight looks different, the metal thing with the holes on the side look like it wraps around the sight housing instead of one piece. I can take photos and post them if need be. Any help would be great. Thanks.

Photos!

Like RobD says plus have you checked the Milsurps knowledge libary ? A 1941 LB is a rare bird, am sure the LB fans will chirp in at some point.

Wow, thanks for the responses. As requested, photos are attached, they are also on my profile page. Shot 10 rounds out of it and it was great. The gun is unloaded as always for photos. If you need anymore photos of anything just let me know.Thanks.


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Well, that's a very nice find, and a very nice price for it too! Congratulations! You should go out and buy a lottery ticket (is it Powerball down there for you?) because you have essentially won the Lee Enfield lottery. Lee Enfield No 4 rifles were manufactured in Canada at Long Branch arsenal in Quebec, and in England at various factories, and in the US under contract by Savage. I am Canadian, so have some bias :) but many including me consider the Canadian made #4's to be the best of the wartime rifles. Long Branch started production in 1941, and the rifles were serial numbered with a series run number in front of an L followed by 4 digits. So, the very first rifles produced in 1941 were 0Lxxxx, being 0L0001 to 0L9999 presumably, and that was followed by the 1L, 2L, 3L series, etc, with 9999 rifles per number series. The first ones produced were No 4 Mk I, with the bolt release being the spring loaded depressor at the end of the bolt run (among other things) and were superseded in 1942 by the No 4 MkI* series.

So, a 1941 production Long Branch 0L series Mk I is a rare rare bird indeed, and much sought after. On our side of the border, nice examples are between $1000 and $2000. Most underwent refit at some point during their service lives, so have a mix of early and late parts. Your front barrel band looks to have been replaced at some point, as has the set of front sight protector "ears", but that is pretty common for a rifle that saw about 4 years of war. Does the bolt match--usually numbered on the rear of the handle? IT's nice that your stock matches, or is at least from another early LB. It should be early pattern wood, in that on the right hand side the stock should be cut a bit low to expose more of the receiver wall--a photo of the right hand side of the gun would be great.

Congratulations on a very nice find, and welcome to the highly addicting world of Lee-Enfields. Bet you can't buy just one!

Cheers

Ed

@Ed,

Thanks for the response. I looked all over the bolt, underneath the bolt handle, and could not find a readable number. Attached are more photos. Thanks for the response!

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Thank god for youtube, I was able to get to the markings on the barrel. Thanks for all the help and support. As always more info on this would be great!

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Very nice indeed! The bolt is a later replacement by the look of it. The wood is indeed original, low cut on the right hand side, as it was originally intended that these would have a magazine cutoff such as was found on the Long Lees and early SMLE's. The cutoffs were dumped from the SMLE Mk III design during WWI, then resurfaced again in the 1930's on the Mk V and early Mk VI/No 4 but were rapidly dumped again in early WWII. These early Long Branches had the wood designed to take them, but that "low cut" was eliminated early on in production. Am I reading the numbers correctly, that the stock serial number is 0L1813 but the barrel is 0L1823--10 digits off What is the serial on the receiver--1823 or 1813? BTW, that is a 1941 dated barrel so original to the gun. You have a nice early production Mk I with original early wood, matching or close to the rifle, with original barrel. Enjoy!

Ed

Actually, one other question out of pure personal interest. On the barrel, somewhere around the '41 date, there should be an inspector mark. Is it by any chance a 56 in a circle?

Thx

Ed

The stock, barrel, and wood are all marked OL1823. The latter I am not sure. I will check. [Update] the only number I can see is a 82 (or a B2 cannot be sure) above the 41

That would be an 82. Photo of mine below. The marking I was wondering about is the 56 over the LB, which is on my barrel and is on a fair number of '41 barrels (but not all). seems to have been an inspection mark as well.

Cheers

Ed

Attachment 43672Attachment 43673

@ Ed

Thanks for the help. Another question, what would an appropriate bayonet be for this model when it was first issued and where could I acquire one (genuine of course, online preferably) and how much do they usually run? Thanks.

Any spike bayonet would be appropriate. Of course a Longbranch made bayonet would be nice have but any of the manufactures would have been used. If you can find one a MkI cruciform bayonet would be the dogs boll....er....dangley bits.


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Very nice LB! Passed on a 1943 Longbranch today. Battle worn with a mismatched bolt $600 US. One fellow had approximately 30 spike bayonets (no scabbard) several LB marked. He is a regular at our local show. If you do not have any luck with the bayo search drop me a PM and I could probably put you into contact.
Attachment 43693 Same fellow fixed me up with the crome female to my male.

Thanks gentlemen for the responses. The next gun show is 29 June for me so ill look if not I will pm you hooked on history. Another question, can I shoot modern ammo out of it, I have some older Indian made stuff that seemed fine, but any Winchester or hornady stuff I can shoot out of it? Is it like the garand that is picky about ammo or more like the mosin where it will eat anything? Also I am apparently missing part of the sight, the flip up sight, i am not sure of its proper title, but comparing it to others I am missing that part, where could I get one, or is it supposed to be like that (it has a flip 300/600 yrd sight no adjustable like everyone else, also the screw might be soldered in there, its not turning)? Thanks.

It's hard to tell from the photos, but yours looks like one of the two position "flip" sights, with just two apertures? Kind of L shaped? If so, the sight you have on it might or might not have been the one it was originally issued with, as they certainly were used on LB rifles. Yours was most likely originally kitted with a more fine adjustable sight. I have a couple of LB's with that simple two stage "flip" sight; both are 1942 dated rifles. I'm not sure which screw you're referring to? If it is that L shaped sight, then it has no screw...........

As for ammunition, it should be able to take pretty much anything, but it is going to like some loads more than others.

Ed

---------- Post added at 06:38 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:31 AM ----------

Oh, are you referring to the screw with its head on the right side of the receiver--the one which holds the rearsight in place? That isn't a windage screw. It actually isn't a screw at all. It's a rod with a slot head on one end, and on the other end, it has a hole with a small drift pin that goes through. If you wish to remove the rearsight, you have to drift that little pin out--it slides in and out vertically in a little groove in the receiver--then push out that long slot headed rod while pushing down gently on the rearsight. Under the rearsight there is a spring loaded plunger which gives the rearsight its tension, so depending on easily your rearsight slides on and off the rifle, it can sometimes pop up into the air when the rod is pulled out............ The slot is primarily there to allow you to turn the rod once its in place so that the hole on the other end will line up to get the little pin in. That was a complicated explanation which I'm sure someone else could do much better....

Ed