Lee EnfieldCombination Tool/Tool Implement Action No1 Mk 2 - Brand New "In Wrap" ????

[Peter Laidler]

Not having ever been an Ordnance Corps blanket stacker, I would think that these combination tools were simply re-packed and re-labelled in 1962. All parts and accessories (for rifles, they are usually called 'B2' items) are usually cross referenced against the main item. So that when the main item becomes obsolete, the accessories are culled as well.

Let me give you an example.......... Rifle, No1 is a B1 item and a lot of the accessories are B2 items. So when the No1 rifle is declared obsolete (not obsolescent remember, but obsolete - as in 'withdraw NOW'), the same applies to all of the odds and sods which will all be cross referenced. But as the No1 rifle wasn't declared obsolete until the mid 70's because some Cadet Forces still had it, the parts associated with it were still current and available. Some No1 parts, such as striker tools and stock bolt screwdriver bits etc etc were also crioss referenced to the No4 rifle, so you would still find some of these items dated 1911 still in the Ordnance system.

Same as the Bren Gun. Because Cadet Forces had the .303" guns, you could still find old .303 Bren CES items and accessories available.

The answer Paul is that these items were very probably stockpiled until the old No1 rifle was declared obsolete in the mid 70's. It was about this time that the MoD found that there were still about 300 or so in the Cadet system and they couldn't be converted to L60A1 DP status for several reasons and they didn't fit into the Cadet system, so the best thing to do was to do a final cull and declare them obsolete and replace with DP or standard No4 rifles. Even then, you'd be amazed at the amount of No1 spare parts were still available from Ordnance Stores.

There, a bit about the Ordnance system. Mind you, the Ordnance blanket stackers always seemed to me to treat the stores as their own as though they'd paid for them privately out of their pocket money. While I and everyone else, like Tankie and Skippy, did our utmost to rip them off and mess their accounts about with nifty bookwork and dodgy paper trails...............

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