Civilian special order/private purchase FNC1??

[Lee Enfield]

I have had another look at the rifle I referenced in the thread about the C1 Leitz scope, and am appending some photos. The man who had it has had it since the 1970's. He bought it from an armourer/dealer who got it from the original owner, who was a soldier from Gagetown. The soldier bought it directly from the factory through Century apparently. According to the fellow who has it, for a very brief period of time CAL manufactured rifles for direct sale to shooters, somewhat akin to what Ross did with sales to shooting clubs, etc? Since I was not even born in 1962 I have no idea if that is correct or not, and there are no records that I can find anywhere about that. (Still, buy the rifle, not the story as they say......) Blake Stevens' book on North American FAL's makes no mention of it, but it would make sense I suppose. CAL was fulfilling its contract demands and by 1962 would likely have been looking for other outlets and markets. Canada used to be considerably more firearms friendly--that changed under Trudeau senior, when the FN was prohibited.

In any event, this rifle is identical to my other issue 6L series rifles, but has no military marks. It has an engraved serial number starting with EX in the spots where the serial number is usually found on the C1 military, has CAL 1962 stamped into the right upper, and has the CAL engraved proof on the bolt and breech block. Otherwise, it has no marks, and in particular does not have the usual C1A1 model designation stamp on the left frame. I have appended photos of all the markings I can find. The serial number is odd, in that it appears to be the year of manufacture. One wonders if they were indeed making rifles to sell to the public if they went EA, EB, EC, or ??????? The C1 was well refined by 1962 (the year the A1 designation came out I think) and there would have been no need for "experimental" units. If this was a lunchbox special, it wouldn't have a serial number in this fashion.

I have no idea how many of these would have been manufactured or sold, or what happened to most of them over the years. Anyone run into such a thing? Did any documents survive at all from the CAL death throes?

Ed

CAL sold C1 rifles, C2 Machine Guns and C1 SMGs direct to civilian DCRA and PRA members in the early 1960s.


I note 2 things,

1- The receiver does not have the rifle designation on the left side of the receiver, ie) Rifle, 7.62mm. FN (C1A1)

2- The pattern of engraving used for the serial number is a commercial pattern usually used for engraving things like trophies

I have seen 2 C1 rifles which have never been serialed, and an unserialed C2 receiver which was used to rebuild a (registered civilian owned) C2 which suffered a crack while shooting.

My conclusions are that I believe that your rifles receiver was originally un serial numbered, and a past owner took it to the local trophy shop and had it "serial numbered" for registration purposes.

From the lack of rifle designation markings the receiver may have been "liberated" before completion, or it could have been a replacement receiver which was not numbered, or (noticing the apparent finish smoothness difference between the left an right sides) a C2 marked receiver which was wiped of designation markings to make it a rifle rather than a machinegun.