No.4 of unknown make

[Mk VII]

Anyone care to speculate on the maker of this one, which has no maker's identifier at all that I can see:-



The barrel is a '50s replacement and useless as evidence.
It has been a target rifle (dirt from the outline of a converted PH5B still visible). Someone's shoved it in this ratty old Savage forend. The cocking piece and the sight I substituted for what was in there already.

Information

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[Patrick Chadwick]

In general, the format of the numbering is a good clue. If, for instance, that number is LETTER + 4 digits, then it ought to be a BSA Shirley product.

Just a guess, others will doubtless add their opinions!

Patrick

[me2]

according to Skennerton you have an early BSA (4 numbers after a letter prefix). Also the cocking piece in your pic appears to be the early style.

[Mk VII]

It's 11252 - no letter

[barbarossa]

Is it just me or does the buttsocket look like it has been ground slightly below safety spring? BSA Shirley would not have used a five digit number in production. Under high resolution it appears the surface is slightly smoother under the safety in comparison to the machine marks immediately below it on the buttsocket. Another hint it may be ground is the lack of the early "B" marking used by BSA at the beginning of production and a date such as '1941' or '41'. Perhaps the rifle was renumbered at the time of FTR refurbishment.

Something to contemplate....

[krinko]

1. The "FTR" mark negates the certainty of the Maltby serial number.
2. The unprefixed number would be from 1941, but the sidewall marking is wrong for a Maltby of that year.

The sidewall mark looks BSA to me---but it could be pre-'43 Fazakerley as well, although it's a bit low, lined up with the ejector screw. So I'd say a BSA receiver renumbered at FTR.
Is there a prize?
-----krinko

[Thunderbox]

I'd come to the same conclusion as Krinko - side wall engraving and finish looks like BSA, but the butt socket markings have been obliterated during the FTR.

[Peter Laidler]

BSA without doubt

[Surpmil]

And presumably an early rifle from the fluted trigger (RSAF(E)-marked?) and MkI cocking piece.

[Brit plumber]

Don't forget, the cocking piece was sustituted for the original MK VII so has no bearing on the origin of the rifle.