Enfield in 30-06

[swamp]

I came across a Enfield in No. 5 configeration chambered in 30-06. It was in the local Gander Mountain.
It just seems to me that the 06 round might be pushing the limit on the pressure for that action.
Would like other thoughts on this. I am going on what the tag on the gun said.

swamp

[Ben]

Ummmm ? ?

Something isn't right here. No decent gunsmith would chamber a British Enfield for the 30-06 ? I don't even think a loaded 06' round would even fit in the magazine of an Enfield rifle.

I've also found that people at Gander Mt. will sometimes know less about firearms than my dog ? ?

On more than one occasion I've found firearms with wrong information written on the tags.

It might be the 308 Win. version of the Enfield, the Ishapore Enfield .308 ?

[swamp]

That was my thinking also. I have seen some in 308. I am thinking that it was tagged with the wrong caliber. Salesmen were busy (all 2 of them) and I didn't have time to sit and wait to ask about it. I am going to call and see if I can do any good to try to get someone to check it out. Caliber just has to be a mistake.
swamp

[Artful]

Was it like this?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/M1917_Enfield_-_USA_-_30-06_-_Arm%C3%A9museum.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1917_Enfield

[swamp]

Artful,
It was a British Enfield in No. 5 config. as I said in my OP. Not the American 1917. I got ahold of one of the clerks at the store and told them of the tag info. He said that he would pull it off the rack and have it checked for caliber.

Hopefully it is a case of mismarked tag.
swamp

[bob208]

navy arms{ gibbs rifle co.} made no.5 type carbines out of the indian .308 enfields when they first came in.

[Artful]

navy arms{ gibbs rifle co.} made no.5 type carbines out of the indian .308 enfields when they first came in.

Cool, I never was aware of that.

[Multigunner]

The .308 carbines were not No.5 carbines though there are similarities. The Indian 2A type rifles with SMLE type action were used for these, partially based on experimental Austalian Lithgow .303 carbines.
The SMLE action was also used for a few .22 training rifles with cosmetic alterations to pass for the No.5.

While the No.5 shares many parts with the No.4 the No.5 action body is unique in configuration, with very different sidewalls and lightening cuts.

Some No.5 carbines were sucessfully converted to 7.62 NATO on a commercial basis and handle the more moderate .308 loads very well. They may not be sturdy enough to handle continued use with the hottest of modern long range or heavy game loads which exceed the average working pressure of the earlier .308/7.62x51 loadings.

PS
Experimental jungle carbine styled rifles based on the P-14 rifle were made in test quanties. Several thousand shortened M1917 rifles along the same lines were built by armorers at the Chinese Infantry school in the India/China/ Burma theatre for issue to the smallest of Chinese volunteers who could not handle the full size M1917.
A .30-06 Carbine based on the 1903 Springfield and called the "Bushmaster" was developed pre WW2. After field tests these were ordered dumped in the ocean though a few apparently survived.
These were on Low Number receivers so salvaging the receivers by rebarreling was against policy at the time.

[KCSO]

I would guess it is actually and Indian 308 as there is NO way a #5 carbine could be chambered or made to feed a 30-06 round.

[Artful]

Hopefully swamp will followup and solve our mystery!

[swamp]

I don't get to Gander Mtn. very often. I did get ahold of the gun dept. and let them know about it.
swamp