I took a WWII-dated SMLE Mk III to the range at the weekend to sight it in and was more than a little surprised to discover the target (at 100m) looking like this:
Attachment 54485
Same results with different ammo (Prvi Partizan, Federal, and Remington) but the rifle is in pretty good shape with a bore in good (not great, but still good condition) so it was causing a bit of headscratching as to why the bullets were not going through the target pointy end first. On closer inspection of the barrel, however, it seems there is an issue (circled in red) - the hole at the end isn't completely round!
Attachment 54484
According to a couple of Enfield enthusiasts at the range, apparently it's not an unheard of problem with some of the SMLEs (can't say I've ever encountered if before, though) and is related to wear from continued use of pull-throughs. Seems a bit unlikely to me (they're designed to withstand tens of thousands of nitro-propelled metal projectiles being fired through them so I'd like to think a pull-through would be like a gentle massage by comparison), but it doesn't change the fact the barrel has an issue which needs addressing.
I'm hoping one of the knowledgable people here can tell me how this problem can be fixed - I'm not sure if it's something a recrowning or counterboring will rectify, or whether it's going to require a replacement barrel. Any thoughts?Information
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