Hi Guys

Well, a year after purchasing my first cut-down stocked Pattern 14 (which turned out to be a real mixture of parts and a stuffed barrel) I've gone and bought another Pattern 14 with a much better barrel and at the same time got my hands on a M1917. Both new additions are Eddystone manufactured and have had their stocks re-worked.

The Pattern 1914 is predominately Eddystone marked, except for the rear sight which is just stamped 'W' so I'm assuming its a part of a M1917 right? Seeing as I'll never find the original rear sight, what do you guys think should be the appropriate (i.e most authentic) rear sight to replace the Winchester marked sight, should I use a M1917 'E' marked sight as it's come from the right factory, or should I be looking for another Pattern 1914 sight that will of course have an odd serial number but at least was manufactured for the Pattern 1914?

The M1917 is pretty much Eddystone marked, but some of the internals of the bolt aren't unfortunately.

The stocks for both rifles are going to be a pain to get a hold of given that I'm in New Zealandicon and either most people in the US don't ship stuff like stocks to NZ or have a US$100 limit my options are somewhat limited. The M1917 is probably only about 10cm (4 inches) short, but it may as well be cut right back past as a new stock would be required to make everything work. Do you guys think that a Boyds stock would be the way to go to try and get an authentic looking rifle (are they frowned upon by purists?), or should I try and find a way to get an original stock out of the US.

I'll post some pictures over the weekend to show you what I'm working with. The Pattern 1914has a Maori carving all down one side of it, which is certainly a point of difference, but not how it would have left the factory I suspect.

Anyway, I would really appreciate your thoughts on what's the best way to go about restoring my new additions to the most authentic possible given the limitations of living in NZ, but having all the parts I need pretty much locked up in the US.

Cheers, Andrew.
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