1939 Enfield Bren - a spot of help please

[Peter Laidler]

The mark to the left of the DA14 is an Enfield stage inspectors mark. The mark to the right looks like a crown over 55? Another stage inspectors mark. All these high level inspectors, all ex apprentices had their own marks and if the work wasn't up to scratch, they didn't pass it. The cocking handle slide cover is the DE of Enfield. The FB77 is Firth Brown and the steel batch number. What is the actual body number

[lugerfan]

Thanks Peter,
The serial number on the upper, lower and barrel nut is A7534 in what i am pretty sure is the original font (early to mid January 39 production?).. The barrel bears the same number along with a struck out b?537 (looking through a magnifying glass I think one of the mentioned rewelded deact and holes goes through this as the b is partly formed and the number is its a bit feint) there's also a '39 date on the barrel, which makes me think it's a b block originally

There are a lot more markings on this one than on my 43 dated mk1, All these marks really do tell a story don't they.....

[Brit plumber]

Yes, A7534 would most likely be January 39. A7258 is the earliest 39 I have on record.

---------- Post added at 08:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:55 PM ----------

Isn't the "D" in a circle an early Daimler marking?

I brace myself to be corrected on this, but I think it's worth remembering that during WW2 Southern Ireland was a self governing member of the British Commonwealth. It didn't fully separate/leave the British Commonwealth until after WW2; the late 1940s I believe. During this time Southern Ireland had a similar right as any other part of the British Commonwealth to ask for help/assistance with procuring weapons for it's armed forces.

I believe it ceased to be a Dominion in 1937 and effectively became a republic then but it wasn't officially a republic until 194x (can't remember the date).

[Flying10uk]

I don't believe that Southern Ireland severed all official links to the British Commonwealth until after the end of WW2 but had, of course, been self governing since partitioning.

[Peter Laidler]

Back to Bren guns...... Those Mk1 barrels with stepped muzzles were another great innovative idea from the UK re-designers whereby, in theory, it would strangle or choke the burning powder residue. They hadn't digested and taken on board Professor Venturi's idea fully and decided that they knew best.

The trials teams at Hythe discovered that rings of diamond hard carbon were forming inside the stepped taper at regular spaced intervals along its internal diameter and length. Not only that, but the more rounds they fired, the larger the carbon deposits and therefore.........

Is anyone really interested in this saga................. If you want me to continue with the history and physics lesson just say!

[browningautorifle]

the more rounds they fired, the larger the carbon deposits and therefore.........

I've seen the tail end of this saga personally, when the carbon gets thick enough and the bullet touches in passing. It upsets the ballistics causing a radical flight and knocks off the carbon so you can't find what caused the upset...

[Peter Laidler]

Almost BAR....... That could happen in the most extreme circumstance. These carbon rings caused the blast as it exited from the muzzle to deform and as it did, the gas would upset the balance of the bullet. So the bullets would be going everywhere! To cure this, the designers built into the combination tool the special scraper tool. But during war regular cleaning isn't the top priority so the problem remained.

But the best idea was to simply make the flash eliminator as it was designed - which they eventually did in mid 1940.

[lugerfan]

Thanks for the history lessons Peter, it's always interesting to know the back story to the designs. I'm guessing your Bren book will be well worth the wait if your sten one is anything to go by..

Any thoughts on what blue would be suitable for touching in the barrel - have heard good and bad reviews about Birchwood Casey super blue - any thoughts or suggestions ?

Thanks

[Peter Laidler]

Just paint the thing as we used to do day in and day out. You could strip it totally and have it done as a REME Armourers Base workshops did it but to achieve what? And if you blue it, it ain't real blue. Just prepare it, degrease it and paint it with a heat resisting paint then put it in a large oven to cure. It ain't going into action any time soon. It's just got to look the part. Just my humble opinion of course.

[browningautorifle]

Just paint the thing It ain't going into action any time soon. It's just got to look the part. Just my humble opinion of course.

Agreed...see post two...