To shoot or not to shoot.

[D-BOMB]

Alright I used a poor choice of unissued to describe it. Let's call it minty low round count.

[Peter Laidler]

We call that a 'first quarter of lifer'

[Brian Dick]

A small observation. I've never seen an unaltered 1950 production Long Branch with a grooved handguard. It's been through workshops or changed by a civilian owner at some point. I've had a few hundred of them so that's just my observation. Shoot and enjoy it. I'd bet money you can't hurt it in a lifetime with a bit of proper care.

[D-BOMB]

Hmm interesting, can anyone else confirm that? The wood seems to be matching and original to the rifle. I have seem them before with the grooved hg but who knows if it was original or not.

[tlvaughn]

Rifles tend to be delivered from Ordnance to the unit is green plastic sealed bags with the usual labels tied of threadad through them. When you open the bage, the rifles are bount at the ends and extremes, like foresight blocks, backsights over the cocking handles - you know the sort of thing - with cream coloured heavily waxed 'amalgamating tape' that's difficult to pick apart when it's amagamated.

Did it look something like this?

[Brian Dick]

I should probably clarify. There are lots of unaltered factory Long Branch No.4's with grooved handguards but they are WWII dated rifles. I've never seen a 1950 production rifle with one as produced at that time. That doesn't mean that they don't exist because anything's possible but ALL of the late Canadian Arsenals marked handguards I've seen have been smooth. That goes for both walnut and birch. You should pull them and check the markings underneath in the barrel channel. I'd bet it's wartime woodwork marked as per Long Branch and not post WWII Canadian Arsenals marked with the "A inside the C".

[Peter Laidler]

That's JUST how they looked when issued from Ordnance. But that doesn't mean that they were NEW. It indicated to us that they were used, refurbished/rebuilt to new standard and put back on the shelf for re-issue.

The green bags were vacuumed then heat-sealed top and bottom but those I used to see always looked as though some blanket stacker that didn't quite inderstand the reason for vacuum sealing, would dig a hole through the sealed bag and put the label through!

[jmoore]

Since the previous owner shot it I can't think of a reason not to continue to do so.

[D-BOMB]

I will update with a range report soon, thanks for the wisdom everyone!