Lithgow No1 Mk 111 info needed

[Nickjc]

*** UPDATE ***

NEVER EVER EVER Believe what someone tells you.........CHECK IT YOURSELF !!!..

Thanks to the valuable information here and on other boards about this rifle, I did the following (as it all got me thinking):

I PURCHASED A .303 FIELD .074 Head space gauge...

I checked EVERY rifle here....EVERYONE....they all checkout fine......HOWEVER......this rifle WILL FULLY close on this .074 gauge.....

So much for the last owner saying he checked the head space and it was fine....

So the search will start for a new bolt head for it to bring it to spec.....

I will measure the existing bolt head and report back as to the dimensions...then a recommendation can be made as to what size I should look for....

I hope that is a reasonable assumption !

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[841NER]

Hi Nickjc,
How did you go with your search for a bolt?

[Nickjc]

Hi Nickjc,

How did you go with your search for a bolt?

I elected not too.

I decided it was better to keep the rifle in the condition it is in for the sake of it's history. Maybe I'm nuts but that is what I am doing....

[841NER]

I elected not too.

I decided it was better to keep the rifle in the condition it is in for the sake of it's history. Maybe I'm nuts but that is what I am doing....

You'll be certified sane if anyone here calls you 'nuts'. I'm here because I love the history...good for you!

[Peter Laidler]

I think you're right NickJC. I could see that the butt had been scraped down to get rid of the yellow paint as the sanding wasn't the work of an Armourer of any sort, by any stretch of the imagination either. So why don't you re-paint the yellow band around it and then stencil the DP marks back on, in red. There, you'll have a genuine DP rifle, Not rare but the real McCoy and another example of the breed. And if you do, I'll send you a set of the real DP stencills to use. You can't get more real than that can you?

This is a good example of what you CANNOT see in a DP or ZF rifle. I wouldn't mind betting that if you try hard enough you might get a bolt or a bolt head to close up the headspace. All very well so far but what you cannot see is the fact that the induction hardening of the locking shoulders has/may have broken through and it's THIS that has increased the CHS and not a worn bolt or bolt head

[Nickjc]

I think you're right NickJC. I could see that the butt had been scraped down to get rid of the yellow paint as the sanding wasn't the work of an Armourer of any sort, by any stretch of the imagination either. So why don't you re-paint the yellow band around it and then stencil the DP marks back on, in red. There, you'll have a genuine DP rifle, Not rare but the real McCoy and another example of the breed. And if you do, I'll send you a set of the real DP stencills to use. You can't get more real than that can you?

This is a good example of what you CANNOT see in a DP or ZF rifle. I wouldn't mind betting that if you try hard enough you might get a bolt or a bolt head to close up the headspace. All very well so far but what you cannot see is the fact that the induction hardening of the locking shoulders has/may have broken through and it's THIS that has increased the CHS and not a worn bolt or bolt head

Many thanks

I would love to take you up on that! I would have course need a relative color match of the yellow as well as a pattern of the bands. The stencils would be neat as well

thank you!

[Nickjc]

Didn't have any RED paint but opted for a nice gloss black.

Does it pass muster??

Thank you to all for your contribution to this thread and lending your collective knowledge to my fledgling attempt at Enfield collecting !

** SPECIAL THANKS TO PETER FOR SENDING ME THE STENCIL **

[Peter Laidler]

A good genuine addition to any Lee Enfield collection. It looks a bit creamy in the pics Nick. Is it yellow? Incidentally, and I know I've mentioned it before but the UK MoD considered a variation of the DP No1 rifle for Cadet Forces. Originally to be the L60A1, due to an oversight, the No1 variation was designated the L59A2. Common sense prevailed and after 6 (?) prototypes it was abandoned and the DP No4, the L59A1 was the general issue

[Nickjc]

A good genuine addition to any Lee Enfield collection. It looks a bit creamy in the pics Nick. Is it yellow?

Oh it is yellow...I think the color space profile on my iPhone then to the PC is mismatched/not calibrated correctly... But it is YELLOW....

[P-07ShortLee]

Looks like the ears on the nosecap are milled.
Looks nice anyway.