1970 RFI No1 MK111*

[S12A]

G'day all!

i picked up my first SMLE a few weeks ago for a really good deal and though i would share it.
It's a 1970 marked RFI No1 Mk111* , has matching numbers except the woodwork and nosecap.
the wood work is SLAZ 52 on the Butt and 43 elsewhere and it has a brass buttplate rather than the indian (zinc?) grey butt plate.
the Slazenger forend wood had been stained to match the indian butt that came on the rifle and the metal was covered in the usual paint but it was very patchy

these are the purchase pics:




I wanted the rifle to shoot my clubs 300 yard days which are mostly dedicated to 303's in a full-bore shoot, so from this rifle i want as much accuracy as i can get.

so without changing anything i fired the rifle in a comp and shot 23 out of 50 . not great but not bad.

so here begins the project:
I cleaned the wood using 0000 steel wool and methylated spirits which removed heaps of grime and the stain from the coachwood forend.
after that i cleaned off the remnants of the paint which revealed a very nice and even parkerised finish.

from there i decided the butt did not match so i needed to replace that which thanks to the generosity of a nice bloke i have done with the appropriate butt. this was also important as the indian butt was a loose fit but this new butt is a nice tap in fit which should hep with accuracy
i gave all wood a couple of coats of BLO hand rubber and with 0000 steel wool before applying a finishing wax with 0000 steel wool (oil wont leech out on hot days).

the bore on this rifle is bright like a mirror with very deep rifling and the bolt face shows very minimal signs of firing. the crown however was pretty average so i did polish that up:


i found a Central No4 Sight plate at a gun show along with a piling swivel and fitted those up.
i recieved a central sight from another legend of a bloke and fitted that up as well. i sighted in with that setup and i can already tell a big increase in my accuracy potential.
i adjusted the fitting between the two pieces of top wood which were contacting beside the rear sight.
Thanks to a mate i fitted up a target swivel for the main screw and a sling.

this is where i am at now:




Further adjustments to come:
the trigger needs work. while its not bad it does not have a full first stage due to the poor adjustment of the bush around the main action screw.
i also need to find a correct long trigger guard screw for the central sight as i am using a makeshift screw with nut setup.
i may need to adjust the fit of the forend as it is not hard against the receiver ring , there is a fair gap but it is at least an even gap on both sides.

I really am enjoying owning this rifle, it is my first rifle like this and i am having heaps of fun already with it, twice a year my club runs a shoot using a trench at 300 yards involving rapid, snap and deliberate serials and i am really looking forward to having a solid crack at that.

thanks for reading and please add any thoughts or suggestions to what i am planning to do.

Information

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[lawrence_n]

Lovely job mate! Kudos to you!

[S12A]

thanks lawrence ,
I love this rifle (weird) . having heaps of fun shooting it and cleaning it up!
makes me wish i paid attention to them earlier as i can remember a few nice deals i didnt look twice at but would snap up now.

[Colonel Enfield]

Interesting looking rifle! Keep in mind if you modify it too much (or even at all, really), you won't be able to use it for standard Service Rifle competitions. Most clubs I know are pretty relaxed about it at club level - the idea is to enjoy yourself, after all - but adding peep sights and "working" the trigger would make it an accurised rifle. Nothing at all wrong with that, of course, but possibly something to keep in mind if you discover you've got a talent for shooting old rifles in competitions

[S12A]

Thanks for the reply Col Enfield.
Hopefully the trigger adjustment will bring it back to the correct spec. Currently it os a rough single stage which is probably because of the spacer around my front trigger guard screw being way to tall. It looks a bit crappy too so i reckon someone has added it in there at some stage to try to change it to a single stage for some reason.

At the moment most of my shooting will be fullbore/ target rifle type stuff until i am accurate

[Colonel Enfield]

In that case, go right ahead and restore the trigger! I can't imagine why anyone would want a single-stage trigger (unless it's a set trigger type arrangement) but I've seen a lot of inexplicable things done to Lee-Enfields - including double facepalm recipients such as a sporterised No 5 Mk I Jungle Carbine and a 1912 RSAF Enfield Mk III with a monopod foregrip and laser sight on it.

If you enjoy the challenge of shooting at 300m, why not see if your club has an SSAA Combined Services shoot? The three positional core event involves shooting in the standing, kneeling, and prone positions and 100, 200 and 300m.

Shooting well at 300m with iron sights is often quite challenging, regardless of the rifle!

[S12A]

Yeah i dont get it either! I really like double stage triggers. prefer them really. i have a good one on my AI AX.
definitely see some frankenstein sporters out there, usedguns can be good for that sort of thing. ok if you can grab one cheap and restore it though !

At little river they have a Military rifle club that does the shoot you describe , i will become a member there eventually i reckon. we host a shoot with them in october that i am looking forward to as well as an ANZAC day shoot with a trench that involves rapid, snap and deliberate serials at 300Y.

the trouble i had yesterday was zeroing with the central sight it had the front sight blade blocked slightly by the rear sights , so i may need to stuff around with the front sight position.

[Colonel Enfield]

As an alternative, have you considered shooting it without the peep sight?

[Peter Laidler]

Or what about just removing the backsight cap and cursor slide assembly while shooting with the aperture backsight fitted. A simple matter to quickly unscrew and remove/replace cap and cursor as necessary. But always replace the screw in the threaded hole or as sure as eggs is eggs, you'll lose it!

[S12A]

my first shoot was without the central , there's not really much chance of me being competitive with it unfortunately. not that we shoot for sheep stations or anything

Thanks for weighing in Peter, I will definitely keep that option in mind. it was something i was thinking about. i will go to another range this week and see if i can find a sweet spot to allow me to zero the standard sights and still be able to utilize the central at 100 . failing that the backsight cap will be coming off!

i think the biggest issue i have is a lack of time behind the rifle and sights (both kinds)