Long Branch serial ???

[Seaspriter]

Forum Mates: this thread is a perfect example of how a simple question by a new member has used our world-wide resources to make a new discovery and demystify what is now a myth. Great work gentlemen. A simple anomaly became a revelation.

Merci pour votre question, Billy67.

Now, if the labelling of serial numbers on Long Branch's was a factory origination, can the same be said for Savage Enfields? Mine (early 1944) certainly looks like an original stamp on the birch fore-end that coincides with the original receiver serial #s. We could probably validate or invalidate this theory by sharing photos of the serial stampings to see if fonts all match. Or, easier, if a couple of our members with a relatively large number of unmodified Savage Enfields checked: first, to see if there is a serial number on the fore-end, and second, the fonts are similar.

My fore-end serial # is just the last for digits of the entire serial #

[Brian Dick]

Nope, Savage No.4's were not numbered on the forend at the factory. I've had many of them in near new condition including a couple that were new in the factory cardboard cartons. The majority were out of South African stores and also a few original rifles imported by myself from New Zealand and by Century Arms from Turkey. This encompassed 1941 Mk.1 through 1944 Mk.1* production and none bore serial numbers on the forends. The only time I've seen serial numbered forends on Savage rifles was when they were surplused from British or Greek service and on the sniper rifles converted at H&H.

[Peter Laidler]

Just the NUMBERS of a letter and number serial number was the tacit norm in my experience. For example my old No4 was 53P10385 which was just 10385 on the fore-end, magazine and bolt. But we would NEVER let a rifle go without the serial number on the fore-end. Some snipers even had the last 4 on the backsight leaf

[Brian Dick]

The Savage No.4T conversions have the last four digits of the sn neatly stamped on the forend but not the xxC that precedes it. The Greek issue Long Branch rifles I imported many years ago had all of the numbers stamped on the magazines LESS the letter "L" as Peter states above.

[stencollector]

You're correct L.E.. I just looked at my two 1944 rifles, one has distinctly British numbering on the forend and the other which is "minty" does not. Incidentally; of all the LB No.4's I've had through here, I've never seen a 1951 production rifle.

Only 51 dated LB rifles I have seen photos of were all Cno7s.

[Seaspriter]

If Long Branch was the only manufacturing facility to stamp serial numbers on the fore-ends of No.4.Mk1s, what about the Mk2s?

I have a 10/53 PF series Mk2 that appears to be unissued (IOW has no Armourer's repairs and no dings or usage marks). It has the full serial number "PF3733XX" stamped on the for-end. Was this the practice for all MK2s?

[Peter Laidler]

FTR; fore ends numbered in accordance with the later build standard/spec