Ok, So i picked up an unmarked M48BO at my shop yesterday at a great price and a cruddy bore. Some shots and cleaning later, its now a great bore! Numbers match, and overall its a solid piece. From what I can gather, its an Egyptian contact rifle which are pretty uncommon. I can't find any published sources, however, to back up the claim that only 3000 made it to Egypt as part of the contract. Apparently these are linked to the Suez Canal crisis?

The best give away that it saw at least desert service is the smooth and almost 'polished' metal finish remaining on the exposed surfaces so common to middle eastern firearms. Supposedly the fine sand in the wind causes this look. Coupled with what I have seen that most other Middle Eastern countries marked their contract rifles with something, I would make a stab at Egyptian. It does not have the sometimes mentioned 'stock disk.'

The long and the short of it is, is there any way to know for sure, and is there any subsequent documentation? Most importantly, how much is it worth!? I got into it for a good price so I am not overly concerned, but it's nice to know. ;-)
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