Reviving an old Warhorse (Enfield No 5 Jungle Carbine rebarrel)

[wellfedirishman]

A few months back I posted about an Enfield No 5 Jungle Carbine I had picked up with a shot out bore. It is a No 5 Mk 1, ROF (F) 9/45, with ladder sight:
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?162778-Enfield-Carbine-with-very-worn-bore

A member here (3006guns) was kind enough to provide me with a really nice condition Enfield No 5 barrel that needed a home.

A gunsmith I know locally (Mr. Priest) has done some excellent work restoring 1903a3 Drill rifles for me, and I asked him to take a look at rebarreling this one.

The end result:
http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16110222-1_zps137acc32.jpg

http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16110216-1_zps28eb1059.jpg

http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16110310-1_zps8bb7654f.jpg

http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16110303-1_zpsd1782a36.jpg

http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16110256-1_zpsadf6e409.jpg

http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16110245-1_zps12534f6c.jpg

http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16110235-1_zpsc6f7995a.jpg

(continued in next post due to picture limit per post...)

[wellfedirishman]

The bore of the new barrel is clean and shiny with excellent rifling. It looks like it was never shot.

I used the following load (cast pointy bullets):
http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16111559-1_zpsf5d64bb8.jpg

http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm138/wellfedirishman/CurioRelic/Enfield%20Jungle%20Carbine/2013-02-16111605-1_zps9e12988a.jpg

I was able to consistently hit the 100 yard gong (6 inches approx) shooting offhand with this load. Previously the gun would tumble anything that went through it, so this is a great improvement. I did not bench it and shoot for groups.

Thanks 3006guns for the barrel and thanks to my gunsmith Mr. Priest for the restoration :)

[Andrew Mason]

that looks like a wonderful gun
now go kill something with it

[swheeler]

Looks like a little honey, we want to see some tartgets!

[3006guns]

that looks like a wonderful gun
now go kill something with it

??? Is THAT what they're for??? I thought they were designed to punch tiny, tiny groups on paper targets so the owner could get bragging rights on the forum!

Good job on that carbine! I can't tell you how pleased I am that it went to such good use.

[longbow]

Very Nice!

I have two of those now and looking for more. Mine have pretty decent bores in them and shoot well.

Something I have been thinking about doing if I find a No. 5 or maybe even a No. 4 with a bad barrel is to get it rebored to .35 cal or possibly rebarreled to .444 Marlin. The .35 cal can be done with stock barrel rebored. That would be fun if the gun was left looking stock.

If you don't plan on using it there may be a market for that old barrel.

What is the groove diameter of the new barrel? Mine all run around 0.314" with 0.315" throats so need fat boolits. Oops! Looking back I see "Beagled to 0.319". I guess that says it all! I am normally shooting the NOE 314299 sized to 0.315" but I can chamber rounds loaded with boolits to at least 0.318" and accuracy is still good. Also, I neck size only as my chambers are typical oversize. I am using the Lee Collet die with a home made 0.313" mandrel to minimize working of the neck. Apparently you can use them without a mandrel and set to the size you want for inside neck dimension.

I find about 18 to 22 grs. of IMR4227 works well for me.

These are nice old guns and it is good to see another one back in action!

Longbow

[Char-Gar]

The stock on the rifle needs TLC! Strip off the old crud, steam out the dents, fix the mixing chip and refinish with BLO. The shooting gods want it so! No sanding of course, that really irritates the gods.

[Bulldogger]

Super! Glad to see an old warhorse put back into service.
BDGR

[PS Paul]

It's just as ugly as it is beautiful! I love it!

Good work gettin' 'er back into service. I like the "cast pointy boolits" you used. I'm gonna look for that pointy-boolit mold on flea bay now......

[WILCO]

Great post! Thanks for sharing. Kudos to 3006guns and Mr. Priest.

[wellfedirishman]

Thanks folks for the kind comments.

Some more info:
The "cast pointy boolits" are a NOE 316xxx group buy mold, beagled to .319. I don't recall what the last 3 digits are for the mold. It drops a pointed bullet at around 200 grains. I love NOE molds, I have one in every military caliber I shoot cast in.

Regarding cosmetic restoration, I will leave the rifle as is, apart for a wipe of BLO or similar restorative oil. This gun came well used and heavily shot, and judging by the Chinese-type character on the receiver it was probably somewhere in the Far East (Singapore, Burma, Malaysia, Hong Kong) wherever the British had an interest? Who knows what the history behind it is.

This is a pretty light rifle, I would not want to be firing full-power 303 surplus through it. For cast loads it is ideal.

I don't hunt with it, but will be happy to ring gongs all day long.


It's just as ugly as it is beautiful! I love it!

Good work gettin' 'er back into service. I like the "cast pointy boolits" you used. I'm gonna look for that pointy-boolit mold on flea bay now......

[Andrew Mason]

??? Is THAT what they're for??? I thought they were designed to punch tiny, tiny groups on paper targets so the owner could get bragging rights on the forum!



i love these old military rifles, i have the oppinion that they deserve to go out into the field and be carried hunting, and be given opportunity to take game and put food on the table.

it is quite often that my back up gun is one of my old mausers or enfileds.

[dualsport]

Very nice. Congratulations to all involved. I have one (a #5) with a very low serial number that bubba got a hold of. Unbelieveable that someone would cut down a #5 but they did. The barrel is now 16.25". forend is cut back, Williams sights installed and D&T'd for a side mount scope base. Still, it's a shooter and I won a little $$ with it in a CBA match. I can't ignore the similarities to a modern M4 type as far as handiness and firepower goes. Nothing much new under the sun?

[3006guns]

[QUOTE=dualsport; Unbelieveable that someone would cut down a #5 but they did.

I have early sixties copies of the American Rifleman with ads selling #5 jungle carbines for $29.95 plus $3.95 shipping. Yes, those days DID exist! :)

[gwpercle]

Nice Job ! Good to see one brought back to life. I always wanted a Jungle Carbine, they look so cool, but did manage a trade for a no. 4 mark I...looking for a mould right now. Don't talk about the 60's and those ads ...I didn't think those surplus arms would ever end.
Gary

[BruceB]

For those of us who were in the workforce in those days of "cheap" surplus rifles, they were NOT "cheap".

In '62, when Oswald bought his Carcano from Klein's in Chicago, the same outfit was selling Garands for $79.95. That represented FORTY HOURS of work at my 1962 rate. Forty hours at the 2013 rate for a similar job at our gold mine would be well over $1000. A 40-dollar Mauser took 20 hours' work.... see what I mean?

[Hardcast416taylor]

I came into a reciever with a barrel on it that once was a #5. The previous owner thought to take it apart right down to just the barreled action. Well he has died and his brother gave this to me to see what I can do with it. Nobody seems to know what the deceased did with all the parts, including the bolt. At least I have the stock pieces along with the recoil pad. I`ve found a few pieces here and there, but looks like awhile before this old girl will sing again. What arsenal is the ROF (F), mine is a 1944 issue?Robert

[dualsport]

I believe it's Fazakerly.