A few questions about my recently purchased Lee Enfield

[Zigge]

Hello.

I have recently purchased a Lee-Enfield No.4 Mk I rifle. Please, bear with me. It is my first rifle and I might ask questions which may be common knowledge among rifle entusiasts.
Anyway, I have a few questions about my Lee Enfield. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

The first question: Serial Numbers and markings.
I believe I read somewhere that you can figure out where your rifle is from, when it was made and so on, with the help of its serial numbers.

My serial number starts with W 2XXXXX AO and a mark on the reciever which says 6KB. What does it mean?

The Second question: The Barrel
When the bolt is not connected to the barrel in the reciever, then it seems that I can turn/twist the entire barrel a few turns.
Is it suppose to do that or is it a free floating barrel?

When the bolt is connected to the barrel, I can still twist it a little bit to the right. Should I twist it all the way to the left?

The Third question: The Book for Lee Enfield
I have been recommended to buy "The Lee-Enfield by Ian Skennerton", but is it the best book to buy?

Best regards - Zigge

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[Steve H. in N.Y.]

The barrel should not be able to turn at all and it will require a gunsmith to repair this. Can you get your money back?

[Daan Kemp]

Photos please. Showing what you are saying.

[CINDERS]

Welcome to the forum

Some titles from my collection ~ Skennertons latest and last one in Pic # 1 and Strattons Pic # 2 on the No.4/ No.5 is all you will need on the 303 Lee Enfields unless you want to get others on the subject these two titles are it although E B Reynolds book is great but a very expensive one to acquire good luck and no you should not be able to turn the barrel at all do not shoot it before you take it to a gunsmith and one who is familiar with the type of rifle not a custom gun shop either as they probably would not know what they were looking at!

[nijalninja]

Skennerton's books is the go-to place for all the information any starting collector could ever want.

Also yeah your barrel should not budge an inch with your bare hands, and for future reference for you: Free Floating is when the barrel (Screwed properly up to the reciever) does not touch any part of the stock all the way from the reciever to the muzzle. Most Lee-Enfields were BEDDED, which is the opposite of free-floating: The barrel rested snuggly in the stock and was held in place at the muzzle, and, for the No1 MIII, also a little steel band around the barrel. Testing free-floating, bedding, and all that you can find a fair bit of in here, or you could start another thread specifically about your rifle.

Best of luck with it.

[philb]

the LEE ENFIELD story book is really good, managed to get a copy the other day for £50

and your Enfield sounds knackered

[30Three]

Hello Zigge and welcome to the forum.
As you state this is your first rifle; not just your first Enfield. I am wondering if you've got mixed up with translating the parts. (I assume that english is not your first language!)
I ask this because it's almost unheard of for a barrel to come loose if it's been properly fitted, and the bolt being fitted would not have any effect on the tightness of the barrel as far as I can see.
Definitely get the rifle checked properly by someone qualified. failing that; post photos of the problems you think you have, or a short video would help a lot.

[Zigge]

Thank you all for welcoming me to the forum, for all of your replies and your book recommendations, I appreciate it!

The barrel should not be able to turn at all and it will require a gunsmith to repair this. Can you get your money back?

That's a shame to hear. Unfortunately no, I can't get my money back.
I bought it on a gun auction, there are no refunds.

and no you should not be able to turn the barrel at all do not shoot it before you take it to a gunsmith and one who is familiar with the type of rifle not a custom gun shop either as they probably would not know what they were looking at!

As you state this is your first rifle; not just your first Enfield. I am wondering if you've got mixed up with translating the parts. (I assume that english is not your first language!)
I ask this because it's almost unheard of for a barrel to come loose if it's been properly fitted, and the bolt being fitted would not have any effect on the tightness of the barrel as far as I can see.
Definitely get the rifle checked properly by someone qualified. failing that; post photos of the problems you think you have, or a short video would help a lot.

Yeah, you assumed right. English is not my native language, but I will do, to the best of my ability, try to explain my problem and the parts of the rifle.

Here are some pictures of the weapon and the problem.

The bolt assembly is in the reciever, I can twist the barrel a little bit.


The bolt assembly is no longer in the reciever, I can twist the barrel entirely.

and your Enfield sounds knackered

Yeah, I think so, too.

Can anyone recommend a good lee enfield gunsmith within Europe which I can send my rifle to? I have a strong feeling that there are no Lee Enfield gunsmiths in the scandinavian countries.

[Zigge]

Thank you all for welcoming me to the forum, for all of your replies and the book recommendations, I appreciate it!

The barrel should not be able to turn at all and it will require a gunsmith to repair this. Can you get your money back?

That's a shame to hear. Unfortunately no, I can't my money back.
I bought the rifle on a gun auction, there are no refunds.

and no you should not be able to turn the barrel at all do not shoot it before you take it to a gunsmith and one who is familiar with the type of rifle not a custom gun shop either as they probably would not know what they were looking at!

Hello Zigge and welcome to the forum.
As you state this is your first rifle; not just your first Enfield. I am wondering if you've got mixed up with translating the parts. (I assume that english is not your first language!)
I ask this because it's almost unheard of for a barrel to come loose if it's been properly fitted, and the bolt being fitted would not have any effect on the tightness of the barrel as far as I can see.
Definitely get the rifle checked properly by someone qualified. failing that; post photos of the problems you think you have, or a short video would help a lot.

Yeah, you assumed right. English is not my native langauge, but I will do, to the best of my ability, to try to explain the parts of the rifle and the problem for you.

Here are a few pictures of the rifle and my problem.

The bolt assembly is in the recieve, I can twist the barrel a little.


The bolt assembly is no longer in the recieve, I can twist the barrel entirely.

and your Enfield sounds knackered

Yeah, I think so too....

Can anyone recommend me a good Lee Enfield gunsmith within Europe which I can send my rifle to?
I have a strong feeling that there are no Lee Enfield gunsmiths in the Scandinavian countries. Thank you!

[Zigge]

Thank you all for welcoming me to the forum, for all of your replies and the book recommendations, I appreciate it!

The barrel should not be able to turn at all and it will require a gunsmith to repair this. Can you get your money back?

That's a shame to hear. Unfortunately no, I can't get my money back.
I bought the rifle on a gun auction, there are no refunds.

and no you should not be able to turn the barrel at all do not shoot it before you take it to a gunsmith and one who is familiar with the type of rifle not a custom gun shop either as they probably would not know what they were looking at!

Hello Zigge and welcome to the forum.
As you state this is your first rifle; not just your first Enfield. I am wondering if you've got mixed up with translating the parts. (I assume that english is not your first language!)
I ask this because it's almost unheard of for a barrel to come loose if it's been properly fitted, and the bolt being fitted would not have any effect on the tightness of the barrel as far as I can see.
Definitely get the rifle checked properly by someone qualified. failing that; post photos of the problems you think you have, or a short video would help a lot.

Yeah, you assumed right. English is not my native langauge, but I will do, to the best of my ability, to try to explain the parts of the rifle and the problem for you.

Here are a few pictures of the rifle and my problem.

The bolt assembly is in the recieve, I can twist the barrel a little.


The bolt assembly is no longer in the recieve, I can twist the barrel entirely.

and your Enfield sounds knackered

Yeah, I think so too.... It seems that the barrel requires tightening and head spacing. If I can tighten the barrel by hand so that it is in the 12 o’clock position, then I need a new barrel washer.
There is a special washer between the barrel and the receiver. This washer allows me to correctly torque the barrel and at the same time achieve the correct headspace.

The question is: What is the name of the washer and where can I find it?