BSA Very Early SMLE No.1 Mk.III

Hi All, I have just recently acquired the above rifle which I find very interesting and having searched Milsurps, the internet and the reference books can find very little information about the rifle.

It’s a very early configured Mk.III with long rage volley sights marked LES III and with the No.2 magazine with full matching numbers of 5333 on the bolt, action, barrel, rear sight and cocking piece although it has a further serial number of 646A on the barrel and action as well as a marking of those areas of “Sale Permit” and over stamped with AG Parker.

Looking at how the rifle is made with component parts in 1911 the likes of the volley sights and magazine was changed.

There is also on the brass disc the following “12 LR 301”

Anyone seen anything like this before or offer any explanation on its background or better still have one just like it.

It’s a lovely looking rifle although the woodwork does have usually bruises from use. There appears to be no military markings on this at all but the addition serial number is interesting along with the sale permit markings

Welcome people’s comments and views

Many thanks

What a nice looking rifle that is...

Thanks it really is a wonderful rifle in great condition

Looks to be a commercial rifle - probably explains why it is in such good condition.

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Originally Posted by NORTHOF60

Looks to be a commercial rifle - probably explains why it is in such good condition.

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Yes agreed but it have a second serial number and also the sale permit stamped which I’ve not seen before

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Originally Posted by bravo2zero

Yes agreed but it have a second serial number and also the sale permit stamped which I’ve not seen before

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Standard (pre WW2) UK markings used by the Chief Examiner of Small Arms

Item 14 on the attached :

"Serviceable rifle suitable for competition shooting for sale to the public"

You invited comments.

I just discovered that one cannot utter aloud the word "Wow!" with one's tongue hanging over one's lower lip...

I've got a very similar one. The second serial is part of the government viewer's mark, so that it is eligible for S.R. (a)

I would hazard that this may have been a club rifle, accurized (and sold) by A.G. Parker, and that the 646A serial number is Parker's.

Very nice rifle! Yours is 400ish rifles older than mine and I do not have any AG Parker marks, well done.

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Originally Posted by Alan de Enfield

Standard (pre WW2) UK markings used by the Chief Examiner of Small Arms

Item 14 on the attached :

"Serviceable rifle suitable for competition shooting for sale to the public"

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The attachment looks very familiar but I can't place it. What is the source document, please?

Enfield-Stuff

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Originally Posted by Enfield-Stuff

The attachment looks very familiar but I can't place it. What is the source document, please?

Enfield-Stuff

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Sorry I don't know.

I have a fair few Enfield related documents, both in PDfs and on paper, but unfortunateley in many instances I did not reference, (or list the source of) odd 'extracts' to the original documents, we live and learn.

Thanks for your comments so far

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Originally Posted by Enfield-Stuff

The attachment looks very familiar but I can't place it. What is the source document, please?

Enfield-Stuff

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This is out of Reynolds I do believe. The Lee Enfield Rifle

So e with a no2 type magazine would this rifle be sighted for Mk6 ammo?

Yes it would be for the earlier Mk VI round head ammunition

MkVI ammunituion is still manufactured by Kynamco (Kynoch) for 'Big-Game' hunters.

Kynoch .303 British



The original MKVI specification was :

Ball Cordite Mark VI

"Cartridge S.A. Ball .303 inch Cordite Mark VI" was approved in January 1904 to design RL 10781 and shown in LoC Paragraph 12411 dated October 1904. The design number was later changed to DD/L/14006 and "Cordite" was dropped from the title in 1907..

Like its predecessor Mark II, the Ball Mark VI had a round nosed 215 grain bullet but with a thinner cupto-nickel envelope to increase lethality. The core was an alloy of 98/2% lead antimony.

The propellant charge was 31 grains of Cordite size 3 3/4 with a single glazeboard wad to give a muzzle velocity of 1,970 feet per second at a pressure of 17.5 to 18 tsi.

Initially the case bore the letter "C" for Cordite but this was omitted from future manufacture from April 1907. At the same time, two further changes took place in the headstamp. The last two digits of the manufacturing year were added (this being the Financial Year from 1st April to 31st March) and for ammunition supplied by commercial contractors two Broad Arrows were added to the headstamp on acceptance by government inspectors.

The army supported the National Rifle Association matches at Bisley with a free issue of ammunition and specially selected lots of Mark VI were supplied as Match ammunition. These were identified by parts of the case being blackened and in some cases by an overstamp of "NRA" on the headstamp.

Superb, and it seems to have avoided being conscripted after Dunkirk.