On the trip to Sydney to pick up a cowboy shottie.......

[Four Fingers of Death]

I picked up a Remington M17 with a Parker aperture sight. This is a sweet sight and it uses the original front sight. The bore is mint and it has what I think are British Home Guard markings. Red paint around the forewood, with 30-06 marked on the right hand side and the letter 'C' stamped into the butt, rhs with an arrow head inside the C. Apart from a few dings, it is perfect. I will take some photos during the week when I have a bit more time.

It also has a garand 308 adapter in the chamber. I guess I'll try both 308 and 30-06 and see what it likes best.

This will go well with my stock Remington M17 which I shoot in standard rifle. I will shoot the new one in accurised/modified.

The guy that owned it is an army officer in the infantry. The guys at the gun shop where we exchanged permits ( I have known these guys for over 20years), etc told me that the rifle is really accurate and the ex owner is the club champion, using this rifle. He is left handed and is going to shoot highpower. He is sick of wrestling with righthanded rifles.

I'm looking forward to using it.

[versifier]

Mick, If it's not too much trouble, I'd be interested to see a shot of that adapter, too. I have read about them, but never seen one. Just out of (possibly morbid) curiosity, how much paperwork do you have to go through to buy a long gun down under? :holysheep

[Frank46]

Mick, the adaptor sounds kinda interesting. Wonder how they set it up to stay in the chamber. Have heard stories of some of them coming out. One version used locktite to keep the insert in and another was an oversized insert was driven in and the chamber recut with the insert in place. Interesting. Frank

[Four Fingers of Death]

Mick, the adaptor sounds kinda interesting. Wonder how they set it up to stay in the chamber. Have heard stories of some of them coming out. One version used locktite to keep the insert in and another was an oversized insert was driven in and the chamber recut with the insert in place. Interesting. Frank


I've never used one, but a few friends back in the dark ages when we were allowed to own semi auto rifles, had these fitted to Garands which they used to remove with a split case extractor tool.

My now departed friend Joe Spadaro (ex Col US Army, retired to Australia when his daughter married as Aussie) showed me it one day, put the tool in and it popped out without any fuss. He replaced it by chambering a round with the adaptor over it. Easy peasy.

Technically the chamber would be too tight, I would think, but they must work. When I get hold of a case extractor, I'll pull it out and photo it for you. I feel that it should be removed, because solvent could get under it and cause corrosion, but then again, if it was made properly, maybe not.

Mick.

[Bad Ass Wallace]

Just out of (possibly morbid) curiosity, how much paperwork do you have to go through to buy a long gun down under? :holysheep

Assuming you have a gun licence, safe storage facilities, a genuine reason and a genuine need to posess a new rifle;

Select rifle (no semiauto's) at gunshop (obtain details cal, Ser No Make Model etc);
Go to police for an application for "Permit to Aquire" (pay $20.70);
Send details and application to Police Weapons Licencing
In 28 days or longer PTA is granted
Return to gunshop and collect rifle.

There are 15,000 shooters in the State of Queensland with a licence renewable every 5 years; There are 110 staff at Weapons licencing to administer licences at a cost of $11,400,000 per year

There are 62,670 registered firearms in the State which now cost taxpayers $181/gun/year. I don't recall one instance where a licenced shooter or registered rifle was used in a crime in the last 10 years. Very sad indeed :( :( :(

[BruceB]

Mick et al;

That "arrow" mark is known as the "Broad Arrow" in Commonwealth military circles, indicating British service if "naked", and if it has the "C" around it, it is a Canadian-issue mark, usually termed "C-Broad-Arrow".

When things were tight during the early days of WW II, the USA gave/loaned a couple hundred thousand M1917 .30-06 rifles to the British/Canadian forces. Because of their obvious similarity to the P14 .303 rifles, they were PLAINLY marked just as you describe, with red paint and .30-06 caliber markings, so that (hopefully) nobody would end up with a rifle of the wrong caliber for the ammunition in his pouches. I'm not aware of any of these rifles seeing service in battle in British or Canadian hands, but they surely must have been a great boon for training when the factories were struggling to replace the .303 Lee Enfield rifles lost at Dunkirk, Hong Kong, Singapore and other disasters, and to equip the vast expansion in Commonwealth armies from 1939 onwards.

Although the Home Guard in Britain seems to receive little respect in histories of WW II, and fortunately was not required to engage the Germans in battle, I'm quite certain that a motivated, mean old SOB with a good rifle can make some VERY bad days for anyone attempting to invade his country. Rifles such as the M1917 could STILL give such invaders serious grief, if handled well by committed individuals. "Mean old SOBs" may not be all that mobile, but they can most certainly sell their lives very expensively for the privilege of resisting the interlopers.

You have a very interesting piece of our mutual history in that rifle.

[versifier]

What constitutes "a genuine reason" and "a genuine need"? What if you want a handgun?

[Four Fingers of Death]

The genuine reason is somethinglike being a member (financial and active) of a registered target/hunting/collecting club or having a landholder's permission to shoot on his property. IN my state, NSW they genuine need is not an issue, I can send in as many applications for permits to purchase as I can afford and if I meet the criteria, and my cheque or credit card holds up, I get the permits. Some guys who are well heeled, always have a few permits pre approved up their sleeve and can buy a gun whenever they see it. In some states I am under the impression that you have to convince the powers to be that you need it. For example, have a bolt 308 hunting rifle, why do you need another 308 hunting rifle, even if it is a lever? Don't quote me on ths final part, I'm not 100% sure as it is not applicable in my state. The M17 rifle I picked up above was going to be bought by a Queenslander, but he alreadu had a 3006 and couldn't show good reason why he needed it apparently.
Its a bum deal, thats why I have been buying anything that takes my fancy for the past few years. I figure if I got it, I got it, if I haven't, one day I might have trouble getting permission to buy it. Life is too short.

[Four Fingers of Death]

If you want a handgun, the only way you can have one is to belong to an approved pistol club. Self defence is not regarded as a genuine reason. If you are a member of a club in my state, you have to shoot 6 (approved) matches each year. Each category of firearms must be shot in matches at least four time a year. For example, I have a 22, 4x centerfire guns below 38 cal and four high calibre handguns (above 38cal), for which I need a special permit. These high calibre firearms can only be used in Silouette and cowbow action, sorry, no 45 cal 1911s any more, bugger! As I own firearms in three categories, I must attend and shoot 6 matches a year and four for each category. I can shoot multiple matches on the same day, but not two of the same sort. I can attend six times, and submit four scores for each of the three classes, or if I attend and only shoot one match each time, I must do it 12 times. I fancy getting an air pistol, but that would add another four shoots that I would have to submit. With me so far? The other states are similar and probably equally ridiculous.

We are not allowed to use the handgun (or load it), except on an approved range, shooting an approved match or practice. We can only carry the handgun (in a secure manner, trigger locks, locked gun cases, ancored to the vehicle, etc) when we are travelling to and from a pistol club, handgun dealer or to the police station.

I think all but the really committed have wandered away, its all too hard.

[Bad Ass Wallace]

The Attendance Maths;
4+6=12 (no)
4+4+4=10 (no)
2+6-4=8 (no)
6+8-4=10 (yes, yes, yes!)
Baaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :redneck: :holysheep

[versifier]

Mick & Bad Ass,
Thank you both for telling us what it's like for you down under. :holysheep I think we all need to be reminded regularly of how lucky we are here in the US. Not that there aren't places in this country where you can't pee without a pecker permit, but by and large we can buy, keep, and bear whatever we want. It's a sad commentary on our times, too, that the places with the most restrictions are often the ones where you most need to be armed in the first place. :sad: Think it's time I started a new thread to fing out what it's like in the rest of the world.