No4 Mk2(f) restoration

[gerard488]

I am thinking of restoring a No4 Mk2(f) that was made in 1952 and have some questions.
What are my best options for wood? Is light colored wood an option? Was the original wood serial number stamped? I would need the front and middle band, what markings should they have?
Thanks in advance, Gerard

Information

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[Peter Laidler]

If you are asking a real world Armourer, the answer is simple. The wood should be of the correct type for the rifle and as closely matching as is realistically possible. No, the wood wasn't originally serially numbered. But the fore-end was numbered at the top underside either at the factory or in the Armourers shop AFTER IT WAS CORRECTLY FITTED. Front and rear bands should be the next ones on the shelf.

You could scour the world for all 'original', 'factory' this that and the other parts and pieces to make your rifle 'original' or 'factory fresh' but it ain't and you'd only be fooling yourself because it ain't. You just tried to make it LOOK original.

To see exactly what I mean, take yourself off to a Jaguar concourse show and see how many are truly original. If you want a concourse 'show' type rifle, then someone else should come on board

[ssj]

Any wood that looks good and is matched.

Yes it was stamped.

The bands would have something like F52 stamped on them

What I did with one gun was just get good/new bits as they turned up and swapped them out for the "proper" bits as they came up eventually.

[Seaspriter]

What are my best options for wood? Is light colored wood an option?

All the Mk2s I've seen from that period were Beech wood (not maple, walnut, or birch, but others may have found some exceptions, mind you, and if they have they will chime in soon). My 1953 Mk2 is beech and my 1956 Mk1/3 Savage/Stevens has a beech stock (upgraded from the original birch).

From another thread, here are the serial numbers from the '51 - '52 period (your serial number will more than likely be in this range):
In 1951/52 they started producing the 'contact rifles' - there is a huge list of rifles by country but here are the first few (including the infamous 'Irish Contract')

PF 250948 PF 301547 British Army 50,600
PF 301548 PF 304047 Anglo-Egyptian Sudanese Order 2499
PF 304048 PF 309347 Not Known 5300
PF 309348 PF 359347 Irish Republic 49,999?
PF 359348 PF 359747 Not Known 400
PF 359748 PF 359817 Zambia 469
PF 359818 PF 359852 Singapore 34
PF 359953 PF 360052 Kingston Jamaica 99
PF 360053 PF 360202 Trinidad 149
PF 360203 PF 360238 St Vincent 35
PF 360239 PF 360258 St Kitts 19
PF 360259 PF 360459 War Office? 200
PF 360460 PF 360479 (21 missing numbers?)
PF 360480-PF 381159 Uganda 679


The color of the wood is typically "Blond" with high contrast black Suncorite -- they are very distinctive.