Buttplate screws

[gravityfan]

I have a number of No.4 Mk.1 and Mk.2s, plus a couple of 1/ upgrades. Between them they have the brass, the alloy and the steel buttplates.

The buttplate screws are blackened (paint?) or self-coloured. Probably means that the self coloured are just blackened ones with some wear.

Talking with a guy the other day, he said he has brass-coated screws, and sent me some photos with buttplate screws from No.4 and No.1 rifles with either brass-coloured screws, or worn screws with some traces of brass colour remaining in the slot and at the edges.

I can't find any reference to brass or brass-coloured/plated/covered buttplate screws. Anyone know for sure if they were used, on what, by who, and when?

For rifles that stopped production over 40 years ago, isn't it surprising (and fun) to find that there's always something new to find out about them?

Cheers.

Information

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[tbonesmith]

I've never seen them plated in brass. Always blued or mabe parkerized steel

[Bruce_in_Oz]

Never seen brass plated butt plate screws.

Sea Service experiment regarding electrolysis??

Anyway, I don't have the materials and finishing data on the No4, but SMLE butt plate screw information reads as follows:

Material:-Steel, B.S.S. 5005/101 (NOTE: early production material is listed as "wrought iron", composition as yet unknown.)
Finish:- Case hardened and blacked.

There are references to a process called "blazing off" as a finishing process. This involved heating the component to a "dull red", then plunging it into "oil" (unspecified in my documents). The trick was to then quickly withdraw the (basket of) components from the oil and allow the residual heat of the components to ignite the oil on their surface; hence "blazing off". This left a dull black finish on the parts.

[RobD]

Brass screws are used on some variants of the Mk IV Martini Henry; they look similar to Lee Enfield screws though I have heard they are not interchangeable.

[Rowdy]

Most of the Lee Metfords had brass screws.

[englishman_ca]

Brass butt plate screws were in use on Lee Metfords and Enfields up until mid 1896, I believe.