Thoughts on reproduction slings (and other accessories)

[Peter Laidler]

What do you need to do with your L4A3 Bren Longshoar? If it's just to show it, then what's the matter with machining down a bog standard ten-a-penny Mk2 barrel, fitting a fluted flash eliminator. Have it b;lasted, phosphated and painted and there it is. Same as skimming the front off a bog standard .303" breech block.

If it's to fire blank at a show, just insert a 7.62mm chamber into a Mk2 barrel and then proceed as above. We used .303" barrels with new chambers inserted while I was in Australia. I saw hundreds of them!

[ActionYobbo]

We're still looking for an IWS mount for an L1A1. And speaking of the IWS, minimum estimated price to get one here is a little over $2000 - not counting the cost of the UK export license. We've been completely unable to find an Observers Thermal Imaging Sight (OTIS), nor the parts we need to finish our L4A3 Bren gun (a barrel and breech block - both of which are illegal to import).

perhaps I can help you there
DSA has the L4 bren barrels in stock. the 7.62 bolts are around I sold 6 (ZA) last month. sorry I only had 6

[Slater]

On the topic of slings, was this item actually used on Enfields or some other rifle?:

https://www.libertytreecollectors.co...&idcategory=64

[Beerhunter]

They aren't necessarily marked to deceive. Re-enactors and living historians like to have stuff that is made and marked like the originals for theyre impression.

If maximum authenticity is what they are trying to achieve, the slings should be "blanco'd" - in which case the marks would be obscured by the blanco.

[Peter Laidler]

Funny you should say that Beery, but according to the equipment regulations of the era, webbing was only to be scrubbed clean and the brass was to be left to tarnish of its own accord, Blanco was permitted in order to re-colour the webbing where it had stained in use. I don't know the wording but an old post war/Korea vintage CSM told me that several years ago, And when I had a chance to look in an old Equipment Regulations a few years, there it was!

While we were Boy Soldiers/Apprentices at Carlisle we were knee deep in all this 1937 pattern webbing shxxe that had to be scrubbed and blancoed with polished brassware including our everyday belts and anklets. Hopefully Frostie will come on board and remind us! Did you find it character building Fostie?

This webbing was still doing the rounds into the mid 60's until we got the 'just-scrub-and-forget' '44 pattern in Australia to go to Malaya and back in the UK well into the 70's where we still had the 37 pattern web belts

But back to the subject......... Are these ten a penny webbing slings so scarce that people are making repops? Surely not..........

[Longshaor]

In our WWII group that's what we do, however there is academic debate about which colour is correct and whether or not the brass bits were allowed to dull naturally or were painted. There are documented orders for the Guards Armoured Division and the 2nd Division to use KG3 blanco on all webbing, however it's now believed that 1st Airborne used #97 "Pea Green" instead, while on the fittings end, there is documented proof of, at least, the divisional recce of 15 (Scottish) Division painting their metal fittings either SCC2 or SCC15.

Peter, with the amount of money it's going to cost to reweld the Bren, and my inability to find an L4 Bland firing adaptor, I kind of can't justify it being a 'blanks only' gun.

[gsimmons]

Some people do blanco their webbing, but only on one side. So it doesn't come off on your uniform. I would rather blanco repro webbing. Most repro British webbing seems not to be marked. Slings of course seem to be the exception.

[Peter Laidler]

Got that Longhshoar but until you find a barrel and breech bolt, converting a bog standard barrel is a CHEAP option. You don't need a blank firing adaptor, just put a 1/4" shanked bolt horizontally through the adapted barrel, ahead of the gas port and it'll function as good as anything. That's what we did. There are EMER's and drawings to show how it was done.

Then when you find a real barrel and breech block, you're already ahead of the game!

As for painting brass......... that's what I'd call an exercise in futility!

[Frederick303]

I forget exactly when or where I was told the following, but I would guess it was at the Forks of the Delaware collector group and back around the time the 1913 and 1944 reproductions slings showed up. In any case a fellow that knew something about mills gear told me that the reproduction slings were made in India off of the same tooling used to make Indian army gear. I seem to recall, that the quality of these slings was not up to military standard, though I cannot say that it was WWII standard or last procured Indian army standard.

He showed me the difference in the rivets and the metal end tab between a British and Indian subcontinent made example. It is not only the poorly shaped metal tab, which are not fully closed, but the rivet type will also indicate a Indian made example. I also seem to recall that there was something different about the weave of the fabric, but do not recall what it was.

Now he told me that the repros being marked as they were was not so bad as those that knew mills gear could instantly pick them out as Indian subcontinent manufacture because of these details, and the markings indicated as British manufacture. That marked them as repros, not actual military made Indian mills gear, no one who had a basic knowledeg of slings woudl fail to pick them out as fakes.

Not having a lot of experience with mills gear, I have noted unmarked slings that have these same general features of the poorly made metal end caps with the Indian pattern rivets. These slings look like new. I have wondered if they are currently made for Indian police use and some are sold over here or are they simply made for the commercial US market? Does anyone know the story on these unmarked slings that are virtually identical to the fake marked ones?.

Thanks in advance.

[browningautorifle]

But back to the subject......... Are these ten a penny webbing slings so scarce that people are making repops? Surely not.........

Apparently this IS the case Peter.

On the topic of slings, was this item actually used on Enfields or some other rifle?:

I've never seen anything like that in my life...and yes, I used those slings in my youth.