Bren Transit case

[CINDERS]

I have a friend that has a bren transit case that he is willing to either give to me or sell have not gone that far yet but he has offered it to me.
Is it at all possible that it could also be made up to a Sniper T transit chest without to much hassle modifying the internal layout.
As I have been trying for the last 10-12 years to find one here and they just don't turn up or those that sell them want a small fortune for them.
TIA

Information

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[Lance]

Converted Bren chests are rare, at least to me. I purchased the only one I have ever seen, ex-Greek. I do not know if they did it or if it was done in the UK. It has been repainted on the outside without any other markings.

If anyone can translate the paper inside I would really appreciate it as I have never researched it.

[Surpmil]

Converted Bren chests are rare, at least to me. I purchased the only one I have ever seen, ex-Greek. I do not know if they did it or if it was done in the UK. It has been repainted on the outside without any other markings.

If anyone can translate the paper inside I would really appreciate it as I have never researched it.

Might help a bit.

Buccaneer, your 11th and 12th photos seem to show quite a bit of internal shuffling of fittings over the years. Did I misunderstand that you believe this chest was never set up for the Bren?

[Buccaneer]

Buccaneer, your 11th and 12th photos seem to show quite a bit of internal shuffling of fittings over the years. Did I misunderstand that you believe this chest was never set up for the Bren?

The chest was obviously made to take a Bren gun but the lack of any sort of wear marks makes me think it was never actually used for that purpose before being converted to its present configuration.

[CINDERS]

Thanks for the reply Lance so I gather from your post that it is at least feasible to convert the internals of a bren chest to suit a No.4 T, hopefully PL or BD may help as well to the enquiry.
The only thing is he said he'd have to dig it out so its condition may not be all that flash but anything is better than nothing but I've come unstuck with that philosophy before...!

[Flying10uk]

You've already have the drawings here on this forum which should give enough information to make or get made the transit chest from scratch. DS Solutions militaria in the UK sell repro hinges and catches.
https://www.milsurps.com/content.php...S.A.-No.15-Mk1
Reproduction, Metal Hardware Set for Chest No15 Mk1 (No4(T) Sniper Rifle)

I would have thought that you would want the Bren transit chest as is, as a militaria collectable, if it is in reasonable condition and the price is ok.

[CINDERS]

Thx F10 I'll download that pdf as the other I loaded from here years ago the plans are virtually unreadable so we will see how this goes.
Getting things from the UK or the USA postage costs are through the roof and our $ is very weak against the GBP & USD I think our $ is only worth 55 pence so what ever the item costs pretty much double it plus then add the postage cost onto that to get the item here.
Then there is the time frame, one book I procured from the UK took 6 months to get here.

I was hoping that some of the guys that have had these chests and converted them would have been able to at least advise me if it is feasible.
We can never own a Bren here and even a deactivated one if we could own one in our state would cost in the region of $15,000/Aud.
If you think that's expensive a chap was selling over east a fully functioning and licensed MG42 for the cheap price of $40,000/Aud so yeah things here are exponentially more expensive than anywhere else in the planet.

[Son]

Hi mate. I have several Bren chests of a couple of different types. There are differences in the internals (those that have bits left) and mainly only the bump boards on the outside in different set ups. But there is another chest almost the same, but a bit wider.
I have found these can have been repurposed a couple of times, evidenced by the marks on the inside where previous fittings have been removed.
I think your best bet would be to look at the overall dimensions of the No4T chest in comparison with the particular one you have your eye on, and then, if there is more than a little difference… See if the baffles from the T chest diagram can be adapted to the size of your chest.

[newcastle]

The Bren chest I have is also Greek in origin. Am I right in thinking that the No.1 HT snipers actually used converted Bren chests for their transit chests, as opposed to the No.4 'T's which had special cases made?

[RobD]

Cinders, best take along a No 4 rifle to test the fit?
The interweb tells me a No 4 is 44.5 inches long, whereas a Bren Mk1 & Mk2 is slightly longer at 45.5 inches but a Bren Mk3 & Mk4 only 42.9 inches.