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Evening all,
I was sent this rather intriguing picture today by a friend, I will try to find out where it was lifted from, but it appears to show a cutaway L1A1 with a Fazakerley made, 1960 dated receiver.
This is the first example I have come across in my years studying the type, I was always under the impression that Fazakerley never got as far as making receivers??
I wonder how many they made? Attachment 87539
Yes..........., they DID but........ The quality control was dire and production was unsustainable due to industrial action where Fazakerley held the old MoS over a barrel. Or they THOUGHT that they did until patience ran out. Overnight the Fazakerley machinery was divided up and went to Lithgow and BSA to up production there. They continued to make some parts. I used to see F made TMH's on early Lithgow made AD numbered rifles while I was in Aust. but never saw a service UF rifle. We did see a lot of F60 and 61 bayonets there too.
Maybe the fact that the sample shown is a SKN rifle says it all really. Assembled up from rejected parts. It looks as though there are/is some other marking under the ' m/m L1A1' part of the engraving with some vertical file marks? The L60 and 61 series came about during the 70's a I recall
Thanks for the info Peter, much appreciated, I wonder if they ever assembled a rifle? If they did, they must be extremely rare beasts indeed.
Its such a shame that a Factory that made such a massive contribution to the War effort, let itself down so very badly.
That is remarkable...especially since their last No. 4 rifles, from around the same time as the struggling SLR and Sterling programs, look to be very well made.Quote:
Originally Posted by mrclark303
I recall seeing another pic of a Faz-made receiver...as I recall, it was on an Enfield-built rifle. The mark on the left side of the mag well had no year, just "F".
Unfortunately,the Factory management lost control of the workforce and the union shop Stewarts effectively had day to day control.Quote:
Originally Posted by enbloc8
This led to a torturous relationship with the Government of the day, with every production decision questioned and repeatedly delayed.
As Peter has said before, it came to a point where enough was enough and the contracts were pulled, closure was inevitable after Sterling production was completed.
To be honest though, I wonder, even if L1A1 production contracts went ahead instead of being transferred BSA, would Fazakerley have survived past 1968?
I doubt it very much, as the ROF would have been surplus to requirements with a considerably smaller Armed forces operational by that point.
It is a little known fact that Fazakerley were the only ROF to have their own security staff - not Police -, but selected persons who could be armed at a moments notice from an in-house armoury should an armed disturbance take place. Recently a couple of these Fazakerly factory rifles, marked FOR FACTORY DEFENCE USE ONLY on the left rear body side were seen and recorded '.....somewhere'
I saw an ROF(F) wartime No.4Mk.1 marked identically as Peter states in #6 while in Canada many years ago. It was very unique but not for sale at the time.