1946 Advertisement Sporterize your Enfield

[smle-man]

That would cost $543 in today's bucks! That sure seems expensive. The rifle itself cost $84 in 2009 dollars. Hunters and shooters must've been desparate for sporters right after the war.

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[kcw]

That would cost $543 in today's bucks! That sure seems expensive. The rifle itself cost $84 in 2009 dollars. Hunters and shooters must've been desparate for sporters right after the war.

The "fair trade" laws of the time, under which the manufacturers dictated the retail prices of commercial items, made new guns very expensive. Moreover the conversion from military to civilian production took some time. Ammo was still rationed well into the 1946, early 47. Add to that the HUGE demand for anything that shot by returning veterans who'd developed a love of shooting during their service..
SMLE's seemed to be a popular surplus choice in my neck of the woods. I'm guessing that the Brits dumped them in huge quantity right after the war. They were the cheapest thing on the rack at the "Outdoor Store" on Main Street. Various U.S weapons showed up some time later but were always much more expensive.
As a kid I recall the "gun corner" of that store being greasy,dark and smelly, just like the guns on the rack. Loose rounds from torn cardboard boxes cluttered the floor. The lady shop keeper just swept them into the corner. I recall a sign that ammo was 5 to 8 cents a round depending on caliber. Everything dried up quickly after the 1968 ban on surplus importation.