New Project Enfield Mk4#1

[W.R.Buchanan]

Got the Front Sight Shroud, Screw, and Rear Ladder Sight, from Liberty Tree.

List complete.

Still would like a Parker Hale 8/53 rear sight attachment, like on Outposts gun. Found some but still waiting for a reply from Enfield Trader.

I should be barraged with parts next week so I will have to get on it.

Still looking at the Cerakote process for this gun. Problem I have is making an oven to cook the barrel/action assembly first. Exploring other heating options like using my Powder Coating outfits oven.

I have found another local Enfield buddy today (the guy I bought the CZ's from) and he turned me onto Liberty Tree which has some nice stuff.

Boy, I'll tell you, this internet thing that Al Gore invented sure is sumpin'

More to come.

Dry heat? Ha, it's so fricking humid here right now I need a shower. Going to Vegas in two weeks (Bruce B?) now that's dry heat!

Randy

[BruceB]

Going to Vegas in two weeks (Bruce B?) now that's dry heat! Randy

Las Vegas? Not me, bro! It's taken long enough to get accustomed to NORTHERN Nevada weather after 3.5 decades in the Arctic.

In fact, I'm headed in the opposite direction at the end of October. Going to visit my brother in northern Alberta for a couple weeks, to maybe bump off a white-tail or elk. Even though I'm immobile, he has a benchrest on his front deck and a thousand yards of open field to shoot over. Plenty of elk, deer, bears, etc move around in that field.

The last time we were there in early November, we had some thirty-below-zero weather.... much more to my taste than Vegas.

Refinishing that Enfield.... remember that a lot of them were essentially finished in black paint. Don't laugh, but I've found that black high-temperature spray paint for barbecues actually works fairly well.... it's a bit fragile, but easily renewed. Engine enamel might also work.

I'm enjoying watching you fellers work to get those rifles on-line again.

[303Guy]

So when do we get to see some pictures?

Bore is 305/320, so I'm not gonna use cast in it

Why not? That's a perfect size for cast - no neck sizing required. Nicely done shortening of that rifle.

There must be a raft of suitable paints for a rifle. Epoxy paint come to mind among others. Problem with epoxy paint is it's not so easy to touch up and worse to remove. Engine enamel should be good.

[zuke]

I used Tremclad on that rifle

[W.R.Buchanan]

303 guy the current top of the heap as far as paint suitable for firearms is Cerakote. It is a two part paint IE paint and Catalyst, and must be force cured (cooked at 250 F for 2 hours.) Not hard to do at all but does require a good grit blasting before application.

Goto CZ Project in the Wheelguns forum and see what I did with a CZ82 I cooked it in a Toaster Oven. The Enfield won't fit so I have It come up with another way to cook it for 2 hours.

I detailed the receiver last night. IE deburred everything and slopped some cold blue on it for now. Basically doing All the hand finish work that the original makers didn't have time to do in 1943. They did file break a lot of the edges but it was done hastily. I just went back and completed their work plus some.

I did end up with some shiny places that I will remove today. I want a flat finish on this gun. Also today I will be gluing the fore end back together where it is cracked at the back.

If I have time I will start on a recoil pad that fits in place of the buttplate. I have a chunk of super high density foam that has been in my scrap bin for ages and it will be just the ticket. The main difficulty will be making it fit the stock like the buttplate does. You pretty much have to grind everything with that material so we'll see if I still have the magic touch.

Nothing to show yet as all I have is a bunch of parts on the bench, and a bunch more coming. Many pics soon.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

Here's some pics of the detailed receiver and piece parts.

When I say "Detailed," what I mean is the gun is stripped to the last part and every part gets whatever attention is warranted in the way of deburring, breaking of sharp edges, and making the overall piece more "Tactile Friendly."

As a machinist I absolutely hate sharp edges. Unless it is a working edge meaning it needs to be sharp, every edge get broke either by filing a chamfer on it or running it across a Felt Wheel. I prefer the felt wheel as it tends to leave a nice radius on the edge and is easy to blend edges with curves in them. All holes must edge broke with a countersink.

I broke nearly every edge in the receiver and most of them with the felt wheel. I also did this to almost every piece part. The one that got the most attention was the Safety as it was sharp enough to cut you. I won't now.

After all the deburring is complete all the parts get cleaned to sterile condition, and in this case I used Birchwood Casey Super Blue to re color the parts. This covered up all the bare metal left behind after the deburring process.

I basically just reblued everything trying to get the finish as even as possible. It looks pretty good.

After the Bluing everything gets the Frog Lube Treatment. This insures that nothing will rust. These guns are not made from very hard steel and as such they will rust easily if not coated with oil, grease, or something else. Frog Lube has proven to be very good for this task.

This whole process is kind of making a "Silk Purse out of a Sows Ear." and I have to be careful not to go too far into the gun or the resulting finish, which wouldn't be good enough to be classed as a "Proper Sporting Rifle," and would be too good for a Military Sporter,,, which is what I'm going for. It would take me a week or so to polish out the receiver and remove all the tool marks to bring the gun up to the higher level and it will never be worth the money you'd need to get to justify such an expenditure of time.

This is a place where good enough is going to be good enough. This gun is never going to be more than a shooter. However it still can be a decent looking shooter.

I decided not to do the Cerakote at this time, mainly because I don't have an oven long enough to cook a barreled action in. Maybe I will revisit this gun at a later date. Right now the blued steel looks pretty good.

Only metal left to do is the few parts I have ordered, and the bolt which I can do as soon as my takedown tool arrives.

Here's pics of the barreled action minus bolt and rear sight.

Randy

[Artful]

Cerakote. It is a two part paint IE paint and Catalyst, and must be force cured (cooked at 250 F for 2 hours.) Not hard to do at all but does require a good grit blasting before application.

Goto CZ Project in the Wheelguns forum and see what I did with a CZ82 I cooked it in a Toaster Oven. The Enfield won't fit so I have It come up with another way to cook it for 2 hours.

Randy

Not hard to make a hot box using heat lamps and rigid foam insulation boards.



or instead of heat lamps pick up a second hand space heater


http://www.smooth-on.com/faq_display.php?faq_id=66

http://www.talkcomposites.com/2494/B...for-Composites



and if you don't want to make a box - look for an old chest freezer to modify...
put a fan and hot plate in and of course hangers for your painted parts.

Don't forget to pick up several probe cooking thermometers so you have a good idea of temps all over the interior.

[Artful]

just ramp this up...

part 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMKDtgKxSSU

[Von Gruff]

When I say "Detailed," what I mean is the gun is stripped to the last part and every part gets whatever attention is warranted in the way of deburring, breaking of sharp edges, and making the overall piece more "Tactile Friendly."

This is a place where good enough is going to be good enough. This gun is never going to be more than a shooter. However it still can be a decent looking shooter.

Randy

Understanding where to stop is where pride in the rifle is not overshadowed by the investment in time or finance.

[daengmei]

Take a look here http://ssporters.com/parts/enfield-4.html. I have purchased here many times. They may seem slow but you will get your items, or if I remember you may not get the instant e-mail responses that many sites use. I don't think I waited more than 2 weeks for anything and I have used the phone with them. Took several calls to get on but they are good parts.
It has been a couple years since I needed something from him, for what it's worth.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I tried Springfield Sporters and they didn't have much of anything I needed. Tried to call them last Monday and they were closed until Sept 2.

I believe I have got everything I need for this project coming.

The only thing outstanding is the Parker Hale 8/53 rear sight conversion.

Started on the wood last night. got the Fore End reglued, and the buttstock sanded. Still waiting for the hand guard to come in so I can go about attempting to match the wood colors as much as possible. Going to sand some more today and start filling grain.

Read a bunch about the Canadian Rangers today. Their ongoing quest to replace this gun is interesting. A few years ago I heard about the procurement request and immediately called my buddy at Ruger and told him of it. The Ruger Gunsite Scout is the perfect replacement and the only change they wanted was a synthetic stock. The gun is already to their spec otherwise.

But the whole buy is being held up by one little political issue. They want the gun manufactured in Canada.

Colt is the only US outfit to have a manufacturing facility in Canada, but they don't have a bolt action rifle.

So the whole buy is on hold.

My thought on the subject is that if they aren't going to buy the Ruger, which would be a big mistake if they don't, then they should contract with different machine shops in Canada to make all the replacement piece parts and barrels and wood to refurbish the #4's that they now have, and maybe convert them to .308 cal. They already know how to do this, it is just a matter of putting the vendors together. The new stocks would be plastic or fiberglass and they also want a rail to mount optics on. These are all simple mods to existing receivers.

One thing I have learned while working on this gun is that the design is dirt simple, and as far as functionality is concerned I can not see a situation that this gun wouldn't go bang everytime the trigger is pulled.

Looking forward to shooting mine soon.

Randy

[Love Life]

Colt now sells bolt action rifles built on Cooper actions.

[Artful]

$2,795 MSRP


OH, WAIT - there's another version

Brand: Colt M2012SA308
Item: 7-GM2012SA308

When it comes to long range shooting, there are three vital weapons components: the action, stock, and barrel. As long as these three parts are up to snuff, changes are good that the rifle will shoot exceptionally well. The Colt M2012 has a tried and true Cooper action, ridged modular stock, and a custom fluted stainless match grade barrel. The only thing you need to add out of the box is a quality long range optic.

With a solid forged aluminum chassis at its core, this rifle is capable of extreme accuracy at extreme distances. Match this rifle up with a capable scope on the full length picatinny rail and you will be surprised at how good this rifle shoots at longer ranges. You will also be amazed at how this rifle feels in your hands, and for good reason. The M2012 is the only precision bolt action rifle on the market with the well known ergonomics of a Modern Sporting Rifle. The Colt M2012 is sure to be a favorite rifle for many years to come.

Specifications and Features:
.308 Winchester caliber (accepts 7.62x51 NATO)
5 Round removable box magazine
Overall length: 44"
Barrel length: 22"
Barrel muzzle threads: 5/8"-24 TPI
Weight without magazine: 13.1 lbs
Barrel: 6-groove, button rifled
Twist: 1:10"
Timney single stage adjustable trigger
Magpul pistol grip
20 MOA top rail
Forged aluminum modular chassis
Custom colt muzzle brake

Our Low Price: $3,310.42
http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/product/7-GM2012SA308

[nekshot]

homely looking guns for sure but they really grow on you in a funny kind of way!

[303Guy]

I'm finding the SMLE more and more attractive. I only have 'sporterized' ones, one rather nicely done.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Got a few things in yesterday. Got some brass which will get me started. Got some stuff from Sarco also.

Firing pin Removal tool, OD Green Sling, book on the gun, and a HEAVY Canvas gun case meant for a #1 but fits a #4 just fine. This stuff was all cheap $6 to $9 per item and well worth the price.

As a result of reading the booklet I found out my gun was made in 1943 by BSA in England, I also found it has a few non standard piece parts like a #5 bolt body. I guess when these guns were Arsenal Refurbished the actual origin of the specific parts was not a huge concern. If it worked it was good to go.

I have three more shipments of parts coming. The one from Numrich has a milled trigger guard, a rear Handguard, and the rear retainer for the hand guard, and from Liberty Tree, a Front Sight Guard and screw and a ladder style rear sight. Then from BRP I have a barrel band and screws and swivels. Hopefully the swivels are the right ones for a #4 and not the offset ones from earlier guns.

All of this stuff should be here today or tomorrow.

The Firing Pin Spanner allowed me to disassemble the bolt, which I did and I detailed, blued, and Frog Lubed everything.

I grit blasted the bolt handle itself along with the top surface of the big locking lug, and then blued the whole thing. It came out good!

Here's pics.

[Love Life]

Looking good!!

[W.R.Buchanan]

I also got to Cast some Boolits yesterday. MY two main concerns were 314299 form a Lyman mould. and some 311299 form a NOE mould.

I have previously not gotten very many good boolits from the NOE mould. However today I mixed in 1 lb of Tin to 20 lbs of lead in the pot and got about 100 nearly perfect boolits that are .311 on the bands and .2995 on the nose section from that mould. They are a perfect fit in the bore of my 03A3. I had about a 10% reject rate until I got to way down in the pot and then there was a problem with garbage in the lead that wouldn't flux out. I quit there.

The 314299 boolits from the Lyman mould dropped perfect boolits from about the third fill on. And at .302-.303 on the nose section, they fit in my bore is nearly perfect. The bands are at .313 which I will probably leave alone, and simply gas check and lube and load.

I also cast some Makarov Boolits. They came out good.

I am really enjoying this project. It is coming together nicely and none of what I have done is beyond the capabilities of most people here at the site, so maybe it will inspire others to play with Enfields too.

I see this gun performing very well. In fact I also found some 215 gr Woodleigh round nose softpoint bullets I might get for hunting. Otherwise Hornady 175 gr round noses are available.

It kind of goes along with the Discovery Channel show called "Ice Lake Rebels" which is about houseboat people living on the Great Slave Lake. I think of how life must have been for BruceB in his younger days, and definitely envy his experience growing up there.

Randy

[BruceB]

"Ice Lake Rebels"[/I] which is about houseboat people living on the Great Slave Lake. I think of how life must have been for BruceB in his younger days, and definitely envy his experience growing up there.

Randy

Actually, I arrived in Yellowknife (on Great Slave Lake) a week after I turned 21.... but I grew up in other mining towns much like it except for location, so same-same.

When we built that house which appeared in the photo on the canoe thread, some of those houseboats were in sight from our living-room windows.

Even larger co-incidence.... the houseboats are mostly clustered around "Joliffe Island", which was named for Dr, Fred Joliffe,a famous geologist who was highly instrumental in the original gold discoveries in the area.

I KNEW DR JOLIFFE. He was consulting geologist for the northern-Ontario iron mine where I DID grow up, and was a good friend of my Dad... who happened to be manager of operations at that mine.

I recall one springtime afternoon, just after ice-out on the lake where we had our cabin. Dr Fred was visiting us for a day or two at the lake, and had a couple beers too many. He managed to tumble off our dock into the icy water. Very sobering, that... and hilarious to see.

And then, many years later, "his" island formed much of the view from my home!

Mining is really a pretty small world in spite of the vast areas it spans, and we forever were bumping into people whom we either knew, or with whom we had acquaintances in common.

It surely led me to many remote places and unusual experiences, and I've never regretted being in that vocation.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Now is that not a Pretty Boolit,,, or What?

Got the new trigger guard, hand guard and retainer yesterday.

Randy