-.060 Blade, foresight on a Lee Enfield No 4 MK 2 rifle !

[Peter Laidler]

You're right of course Beery. If you can't zero a No4 rifle using all of the blades and foresight block combinations, using UK spec Mk7 ammo, then there is something else wrong. If we couldn't do it at Field workshops, then we'd sentence the rifle Z (that's Base repair don't forget) with a copy of the zeroing target attached to it. This would indicate to the bods at Base workshops that it was a zeroing problem and required a barrel change. There should never be a time when you need to file down or braze UP foresight blades in order to zero a No4 - unless you're using some non UK milspec ammo

[OxfordAndy]

I have to say I can't see any reason to hack anything - Ebay and similar are chock full of complete sets of No4 and SMLE foresights....even up to +.090 as well as individual sight blades.

I keep a full set of each and they cost around £25.00 a set.

Even before reloading rears it's head, there are enough suppliers of 174Gr .303 to relatively easily find something that works with a standard foresight and sight ramp without resorting to reloading or the hacksaw/file.

I'd agree that you may find that your "-060" is actually a ".060" as I have a couple of blades where the "." could easily be mistaken for a "-" until you compare the actual height to others.

[Snowy Owl]

Maybe I should have added that picture with my first posting.

Here is what the camera sees : is it really a +.060 blade ? I have my doubts about it, with or without magnifier.

Attachment 16647

[Steve H. in N.Y.]

...here's another one. It measures 0.252" from the bottom of the dovetail to the top of the blade, 0.030" shorter than another one marked -030. If not for a Lee-Enfield, could this be a submachinegun thing? Would a Sten or whatever use a sight with a non-split base?

[Snowy Owl]

Steve H. in N.Y.,

Answer to your question : I do not know.
As you can see, I am the newbie here - and I have that -.060 foresight blade on my rifle.

If you use the "Expand to actual size" function on my picture, it is quite ... obvious that the numbers are -.060, no more no less. Your blade has an "arrow" on the right (top on the picture) side and mine doesn't have it.

I will leave it to the experts. I can't make head or tail of it.

[Mk VII]

It certainly says -060.

I've been frustrated searching through trays of blades to find nominally correct ones which someone has filed down.

I have a note here from some time ago, of the measurements I made of the stocks I had at that time:
-.045= .269 dev 256
-.030= .292 dev 289 275
-.015= .303 dev 294
0= .316 dev 322
+.015= .336 dev
+.030= .342 dev 350
+.045= .364 dev 368
+.060= .380 dev 382
+.075= .396 dev
+.090= .408 dev 410
plus a .015 that measures .435!

[Thunderbox]

As with bolt heads, the number indication on No4 sight blades often seems to be rather random! These days I just choose & change sight blades by comparing their actual heights....

[Peter Laidler]

The -.060" and then presumably a -.045" foresight blades probable riginate from the same stable as the No4 size bolt heads! But wherever they come from, they ain't from the UK Military orbitory planet Mr Spock!

[dpbowser]

Seems that there alot of discussion on foresight blade heights going on. I am newbie, but have found sight height correction calculator on the Brownell's website. It comes up with the same 1.87"@ 100yds per 0.15" change in blade height that I have seen quoted on this forum.
http://brownwells.http.internapcdn.n...rection_F2.swf

Hope this helps

[Simon P]

I got that Snowy but I've had a search through all of the parts lists and EMER's and the LOWEST blade listed, and to my limited knowledge, is -.030". If you have a -.060" it means that there's a -.045" blade out there too!. I think that if you look at the size of your blade through a magnifier, you'll find that it's a .060" and the + looks like a -. Just my hunch............ Not all plus sizes were marked + either.

I have just checked out in the workshop I have some that are -0.45 & -0.60 they are still in the white and made by parker hale