No 4 T real deal or copy?

[brnom2]

Are those that know able to please comment on the below rifle for sale - real or fake?


OZ GUNSALES British 303 sniper rifle No4T Mk1

Information

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[Roger Payne]

The guts of the rifle are genuine, but why it has had an extra 'T' stamped on the body side wall I am not sure. The woodwork is almost certainly a replacement as by 1943 BSA's seem to have been stocked up in kiln dried American Black Walnut, not beech like earlier (& later, post WW2) rifles. The photo's are truly abysmal, but from what I can see I think the bracket is probably a repro - one of mine in fact.

Hope this helps - but please bear in mind it's only my two-penn'orth!

ATB

[Peter Laidler]

Its brother, telescope 8821 went through my hands many many years ago. That lives in Oz too!

[Beerhunter]

A a quick comment , why did the vendor bother to post photos that are unreadable? I would not bid for anything based on them.

[Gil Boyd]

IMHO having zoomed in as much as I can on the detail of the struck letters the T does not look authentic, due to the flash residue from the camera.
I think I can make out 47C so one has to assume there's an M in front of it but not evident, being a Shirley production
The bracket has no numbers on it whatsoever, so probably a lookalike
As already stated the flash from the camera kills any help forthcoming and the poster knows why he posted them in that poor state...not going to help his cause at all in selling it

[brnom2]

I would guess the very poor photo images are probably an attempt to obscure the markings in an attempt to pass it off as an unmolested original. Not overly surprised, as it seems that the very few “T”s that do occasionally surface on the for sale scene in Oz (especially the on-line sale sites) over last few years have been “not dinky die” to use an Oz colloquialism, in some shape or form, made up from some or none orig items.

[Roger Payne]

It's an AS prefix 1943 BSA Shirley. The right lower T (with serif) is likely correct) but the left upper T (without serif) is superfluous. I will not say it is 'faked' because I have no idea who stamped it there or when! But it certainly does not 'need' to be there. There is plenty 'wrong' with this rifle but nonetheless I think the receiver is authentic.

ATB

[Gil Boyd]

Ha Ha Roger thats the word that elluded me....... SERIF yes agreed unusual and an unecessary mark IMHO.
Best thing appears to be the allocated Australian scope.

But heyho, this is an everyday thing now, I wish people would be more open about where these weapons came from originally by putting them on a recognised site such as the Milsurps board like ours, and when certainly computers came on board it would have prevented so much more misery and fakery, with a reliable record of when people made changes and why.
IMO it is ignorance and they think there are people out there who don't know the answers now??