should I clean it?

[nattcmars]

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

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[enfield303t]

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.

Yours to enjoy no matter what your decision is.

[gsimmons]

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.


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

enfield303t beat me to it! What he said!

[nattcmars]

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 :-)

[Peter Laidler]

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!

[nattcmars]

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.

[Homer]

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

[nattcmars]

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.

[NRA]

I would clean it and fire it.

[RobD]

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.