Finnish B Barrels How Many Could Be Fake?

[capt14k]

With the recent run up in Finnish Rifles I have been wondering how many B Barrels that people pay a premium for are fake. The main Mosin Forums don't dare discuss fakes so I am hoping some of the knowledgeable folks here will.

There were supposedly 13,000 B Barrels of which 5,000 were made into M/91 and the rest into M/39. When I first started collecting a B Barrel was pretty easy to pick out. It had a plum color to the barrel. Now I see B Barrels constantly for sale and very rarely is there a plum color. Which I understand some did not have the plum color.

There are also many that don't have the Liege Proof Mark but some do. This has been explained with zero proof that the ones Rifled in Belgium received the Liege Proof and the ones that were bored at VKT did not. This explanation does not sit well with me without proof.

My main question is would Belgium even allow barrel blanks to be exported without a Liege Proof Mark? The Liege Proof Mark is on Shotgun Barrels is it not?

Secondly would the barrels be sold unfinished and was it due to rushed finishing by the Finns that some are Plum in color? That theory does not make sense to me since very rarely are barrels other than B Barrels Plum in Color. Which would lead me to believe it was either the Belgian Finishing or Belgian Metal Content that caused the Plum Color. If it is the metal then what are the odds that so many wouldn't be Plum in color?

People saying such and such rifle has been in my collection for 25 years so it has to be real, really doesn't mean much, because I believe there was at least one individual who was faking Finns at least 25 years ago to make the extra $50-100 they would bring. I am hoping to find some real proof regarding Finnish B Barrels and I think that proof starts with the Belgian Manufacturing or Contract.

My theory is there are many more B Barrels than 13,000 and they came to Finland Pre 1940 and Post 1940 which would I suppose explain Liege Mark being on some and not others and the color of the barrel. I suppose without original contracts it is also possible the B has nothing to do with Belgium and the truly rare ones are those marked with a Liege Mark.

[capt14k]

I have changed my mind after more research into Plum barrels rarely being found on other Finn Rifles. I have a Tikka 91/30 that looks purple. So after more research I believe the plum finish had to do with the bluing process. Any German, Finnish, Belgian, or Russian made barrel can have a purple hue.

Is it possible that B Barrels are really just left over M/91 barrels that were made to B Spec or .3091 bore diameter? That the Belgian Barrels with Liege Mark were also made to the .3091 specs? That the B really stands for .3091 bore diameter and not Belgian.

I have read it written a few times that M/39 have .310 barrels but M/39 B Barrels are .3095. Is that number just an average? Are real M/39 B barrels .3091? And faked M/39 B Barrels .310?

Lastly are they all dated 1942 and have a higher prevalence of plum hue because they were made in say 1946 after signing a treaty with Russia? That they were rushed and the date stamped to cover up the fact that they were making new rifles in violation of their treaty?

[Lee Enfield]

Bluing turning purple is usually a sign either of high silicone or nickel content in the metal alloy.



"hot" blueing can usually be chemically adjusted to compensate for it.