portuguese Mk 111( pic heavy)

[dances with gophers]

ok i just bought a Mk 111 at Red deer gun show

. it is rather devoid of markings , its def a BSA not sure of year . all matched but bolt has no numbers but it does have this stock disk

It has been repaired and has the mag cutoff which appealed to me as well as the price .

so a bit of an odball perhaps . the blueing is more plumb but the bore apprears sharp and shiny


hopefully one of the knowlegable types will shed some light on this old girl
i have a 1917 wilkinson sword bayonet that goes quite nicely with it .

Information

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[spinecracker]

Wel, I know slightly more than my 2 year old, but it looks like the rifle was made for the civilian market. Didn't BSA do that in the 20's?

[Surpmil]

Portugese butt marker disc markings, BSA commercial rifle and a pretty early one I would guess. The barrel looks to be dated 1915. AFAIK there was not special allotment to the Portugese, but in 1915 the barrel was being scraped for rifles, so perhaps the Portugese received some commercialy made rifles. Their lack of 'proper' markings would probably incline the authorities to issue them outside British service if possible.

On page 111 in The Standard Directory of Proof Marks it shows that this mark is from the Birmingham house. It states... "On rifled barrels for military arms with a bore diameter not larger than .315. In use between 1916 and 1925. After 1925, used by both proof houses for marking all proofed military arms. Barrels were proofed with cordite, sometimes with a nitro powder, and were marked NITRO PROVED or NITRO PROOF, depending on class."

I'd say it is an early mark from the style and neatness of it.

[Jc5]

Is there a number stamped in the location shown in the attached picture?

I'm curious to compare the use of this number on commercial contract rifles and those offered for individual sale.

Thanks!

[dances with gophers]

Is there a number stamped in the location shown in the attached picture?

I'm curious to compare the use of this number on commercial contract rifles and those offered for individual sale.

Thanks!

well i just emailed the military museum in Lisbon so see what comes back from there . this is quite the interesting rifle .
anyways there is only one didgit and it appears to be "8"

[dances with gophers]

i have cleaned her up some the forestock was quite light when degreased .
but darkened up again when i applied toung oil.

this piccy dont really do it justice , its a lot lighter than the original black

i did find another stamp on it behund the rear site on the barrel HV

might mean something to someone , thanks for all your input guys

[Jc5]

"HV" means High Velocity, signifying that this rifle has been sighted for MkVII ammunition.

[Jc5]

Is the nosecap numbered to match the number on the action?

Also, notice the mark below the BSA logo on the knox in the attached photo from a similar rifle...looks sort of like a "T" with a missing stem...does your rifle have one of those stamps?

Thanks!

[dances with gophers]

like busses they always come 2 at a time lol
i bought another BSA tonight , this time 1915 sproterd one .
this puppy definately a candidate for some marstar wood and hardware
the metal is crisp clean and all matching .