Longbranch Sniper

[garmack]

I picked one up today and would like to know if somebody could give me some background on it and save me some time, Claven may have had a look at it today, Rifle is in excellent shape and here are some of the details:
1. No4 Mk I *T
Longbranch 1945
2. S with a maltese cross looking thing on rear site.
3. B over a I on the safety
4. 35C on top of buttstock right behind receiver
5. B over 32 on rear stock w/broadhead arrow
6. N on top of buttstock
7. No number on the mag.
8. 8 over 32 with cross on forestock
9. Scope (Doesnt match rifle) case has OS.906A, Case. STG. Tel No8
B&C co
10. Scope is for rifle S39508
11. Telescope number 22751
12. TEL. STG. No 32 mk III, OS 2039A, AK&S No22751, 1945 w/barrow
13. Has red W on side with one red painted screw on bottom.
14. Transit case is worn with age leather is all in good shape.
15. Scope can is like new,
16. Scope in excellent shape as well.
17. Serial number is 90L8**7

I know some of you guys can spit all these answers off the top of your head so any info is appreciated.

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.

[stencollector]

Your rifle, serial number 90L8XX7, was part of the final run of approx 350 LB rifles to catch up to wartime contracts. They are likely thought to be post war.
The origional scope for this rifle should have been a REL no32mk3 scope serial number 35C. The rear sight is a Savage, which was common for this batch of rifles, and the maltese cross was a marking for non-standard parts. The cross is also usually on the forestock, and occasionally on the front scope pad.
The butt is normal length, and the B over 32 is a common type mark on of LB wood.

The scope is British made, and was matched up to rifle S39508 during it's service life. The red W means it passed waterproofing tests, and the red screw is what you would remove if you are going to purge the scope with nitrogen, to prevent fogging and internal fungus growth.

Badger has a photo shoot of Angel's Cdn 4t in the appropriate section for you to compare your rifles markings with.

Now that you have a Cdn sniper, you need to get the book "Without Warning" by Clive Law. It covers the Canadian sniper equipment from WW1 to present day, is the most definitive book on Cdn snipers to date. Occasionally (rarely) you may see a REL no32 telescope come up on ebay, last one I saw went for around $3000. Seems like a lot, but even a Brit one broken down to it's components (can/scope/bracket) will fetch over $2000 easily these days.

[Badger]

As stencollector said, here's a good place to start to compare marking by marking:

Canada - Milsurp Knowledge Library (click here)

1945 Enfield No.4 Mk1*(T) Long Branch Sniper Rifle (click here)

Regards,
Badger

[Claven2]

I've seen the gun. The rear cheekrest looked to be a replacement as it wasn't fitted properly (big gaps around the base where it met the stock comb) and had screws with too small a head IMHO (possibly a British replacement?), the rest looked legit, including C broadarrowed mounting pads. Mount and scope are Brit 4T with matching can, but mismatched to the rifle. Had a correct transit chest but was also m/m to the rifle. Looks to me like someone put together a representative set.

Still, it was a fair price. I even considered buying it myself, but was a bit tapped after buying an MG34 this month.

[Badger]

I've seen the gun. Had a correct transit chest but was also m/m to the rifle.

Correct transit chest?

So, was it the Canadian version, like the one on display in the MKL?

Regards,
Badger

[Claven2]

Uhh.... ok, now I'd have to go back and check again. I didn't look too closely at it except to confirm it was a real No.15Mk1 chest with the leather handles, but I sure thought it was a Canadian chest. For whatever reasons though, many of the markings had been painted out with khaki paint, though the SA No.15Mk1 markings were intact, as well as the shellaced label inside the lid.

[Badger]

Uhh.... ok, now I'd have to go back and check again. I didn't look too closely at it except to confirm it was a real No.15Mk1 chest with the leather handles, but I sure thought it was a Canadian chest. For whatever reasons though, many of the markings had been painted out with khaki paint, though the SA No.15Mk1 markings were intact, as well as the shellaced label inside the lid.

The secret is in the handles and hinges ...

The comparison in the MKL betweek a British No.15 chest and a Canadian Long Branch chest are good.

Regards,
Badger

[Claven2]

Can't remember the hinges, but it did have leather handles, not the typical british webbing handles.