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Thread: Aussie club-pattern MLEs - a sad story and a tribute. Also a 1908-dated MLE

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    Aussie club-pattern MLEs - a sad story and a tribute. Also a 1908-dated MLE

    G'day folks,

    I've posted this elsewhere, but I'd be interested in the thoughts of Milsurp.com members. For any Aussie Lee-Enfield collector, the club-pattern shortened MLEs are a part of our history. I've been on the lookout for one for a while. Until yesterday I didn't have one of these rifles. I have a commercial BSA MLE receiver which I've been gathering parts to make a carbine replica, and I also have an 1896 BSA MLE which has a 32" Motty barrel, but I haven't added a club-pattern rifle to the collection until I added two yesterday.

    The first rifle is fascinating, being 1908-dated. I've included a pic of the buttsocket markings for thoughts and comments. Enfield-made, it postdates every MLE I've ever seen. I'd be very interested in your thoughts as to how it'd be that Enfield would make such a rifle (or maybe just a receiver) so late. Replacement contract for a second-line military unit perhaps?

    The second rifle has a sad story. It was owned by the 16yo son of a lady who is a very close friend of my wife. It had been given to him by his dad, whose own father had owned it as his target rifle in the 50s. This man was in the Volunteer Defence Corps (the Aussie Home Guard) during WW2, and he told his son that the rifle was his rifle while in the VDC. Whether he just meant it was the same type or he somehow was able to keep the rifle, I don't know. It may have been his own pre-war target rifle.

    Anyway, the original owner gave the rifle to his son, who. About 20 years ago, it was rusty and unused, so he sandblasted it with the intention of chroming it and hanging it on the wall. He never did that, and he ended up giving it to Jacko, his own son. Jacko and I were talking guns a year or so, and he told me about his "old .303" that he wanted to restore. I told him I was happy to look at it sometime to see what could be done. Good thing too, as his dad told me that he was going to toss it into the river.

    At the end of last year, Jacko helped his stepdad with the harvest, being in southern New South Wales, good wheat country. On January 2, he had spent the day driving the chaser bin, following the header around the paddocks. They finished in the evening and relaxed. Another bloke helping suggested they get the old dune-buggy out and take it for a spin. Jacko fired it up and drove the other bloke for a few laps around the course they'd set up years earlier. The other bloke wanted a drive so they swapped seats and started again. The other bloke took off, lost control and rolled the buggy. Relaxed farm attitudes meant that seat belts weren't used. Jacko was thrown out, struck a rock and was tragically killed instantly. His mum ran over and carried out CPR for half an hour until the ambulance arrived, but there was nothing that could be done.

    My wife and I spent a great deal of time with Jacko's parents and sister. I conducted his funeral a little over a week ago and we've been visiting both parents, step-parents and his sister every few days since. I was talking with his dad and he told me that Jacko mentioned that I collect .303s and he told his dad that he was giving me the rifle. I picked it up yesterday, and want to do it up as a tribute to a young man taken way too soon.

    The rifle has clearly been sandblasted. I took the handguard off and there's plenty of sand caught there. That makes the collector value of the rifle zero, but it also means that if I reblue it, I'm not harming it. I'm thinking of engraving Jacko's full name on the dust cover, in the style of some Aussie target shooter's rifles I've seen. The rifle has a H barrel fitted, with 9 55 and a 4 56 dates stamped across the knox above the H, as well as a 2 49 date in the usual spot. Is the 'PATT LEE' stamp common?

    It's also fitted with a windage-adjustable Lithgowicon rear site numbered 84957. Interesting in that I didn't realise the windage-adjustable sights lasted that long. Could be a replacement winder. It has a Light Horse-marked butt. Interesting.

    Is bluing a rifle a complicated process?

    So here are some pics of the two rifles. Thoughts, suggestions and comments are welcome.

    Cheers,
    Matt
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    I'd say you have a real interesting restoration there and is almost a mirror of one I have here and am considering the same, so I'll be watching this thread with much interest. Locally(Auckland) I was quoted between 100-200 to reblue everything on an enfield no1 mk3, and for a good quality job from a gent with a good reputation for restoring firearms. I thought that was a good price, but as its my first time ever asking I have no comparison to go by. Several of my enfields have different color bluing, one a deep deep rich navy/royal blue (no1mk6) and others (fulton BSA) appear to be a simple rich and deep black color. I'd bet you're about to receive lots of suggestions about refinishing it in something authentic other than bluing, and there lies several choices I'd bet.
    I'd like mine to look like a civilian target rifle when new, not a military finish, so I'm thinking bluing will be my choice. Any info that members can post about how to best prepare a guns surface to produce the best, cleanest, richest, smoothest etc result will be much appreciated.
    thanks for the post, and the tribute,

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