problem with ejection for n0 1mk 3 and no4 mk 1

[boltcarrier]

Have a close look at the chamber(s) of your rifles in case there is anything stuck to the walls, or, as I have seen before, there are any patches of corrosion in the chambers. This might also give hard extraction & would put scratches down the sidewalls of the cases when you did finally get them extracted. Just a thought.......many years ago I bought a MkV SMLE that had recently been submitted to & passed proof, but the first time I took it down to the range the bolt stuck shut after firing the first round. It turned out that whilst the bore was fine, headspace was fine, but the chamber was badly pitted. Neither I nor the Proof House had noticed......we look for pitting in the bore, but how often do we routinely closely examine the chamber? It taught me a lesson....!

There's so much to learn about the lee enfields, so much history. i will check the chamber, but how about the roughness on the rims. do you think it's the extractor being too tight,

Information

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[Roger Payne]

The rims can get damaged just with regular use. If you have used them a lot it might simply be that. You've got fairly forceful steel against brass contact going on over & over..... I used to have some U MkV Inspectors' dummy rounds & some of these had dinged rims. Just a bit of a mystery how the scratches going down the side walls of the cases came about.....

[WillSarchet]

Rims get chewed up normally. You need a tight extractor as it has to push the cartridge against the action wall for it to eject properly. Aluminum snap caps will last longer than brass dummies, but even those will need eventual replacement as they wear out. Remember brass is ultimately a disposable.

[Parashooter]

Axial scratches in extracted cases may indicate a corroded chamber or the presence of embedded grit. In either event, standard procedure is to polish the chamber interior with a fine abrasive medium. Image shows a setup that works. Wet/dry paper or emery cloth no coarser than 400-grit to start, finishing up with 600- to 1200-grit. Use light oil on the abrasive. Quickest results come by turning with a power drill. Don't overdo! Clean abrasive residue thoroughly afterward.

[Surpmil]

Have a close look at the chamber(s) of your rifles in case there is anything stuck to the walls, or, as I have seen before, there are any patches of corrosion in the chambers. This might also give hard extraction & would put scratches down the sidewalls of the cases when you did finally get them extracted. Just a thought.......many years ago I bought a MkV SMLE that had recently been submitted to & passed proof, but the first time I took it down to the range the bolt stuck shut after firing the first round. It turned out that whilst the bore was fine, headspace was fine, but the chamber was badly pitted. Neither I nor the Proof House had noticed......we look for pitting in the bore, but how often do we routinely closely examine the chamber? It taught me a lesson....!

One would expect the "case adhesion" to have been even worse with a regular case and a proof charge, or was it an oiled case perhaps?

[muffett.2008]

Maybe the case damage is occurring on feed.
If the base has sharp edges it will mark the case below it when feeding in.

[Roger Payne]

AFAIK the civvy proof houses only fire with an over loaded round, not an oiled round, but when I'm next in there I'll try & get a little more precise info.

[CINDERS]

Yeah I had a Lithgow MKIII with a pitted chamber, I did not pick up on when I brought it first round fired could only get the bolt open by bashing it against a strainer post! New barrel was fitted it was then stolen along with my Parker Hale 22/250