A few words about the No4 303 from a Korean vet......

[303carbine]

My uncle served in Korea, his rifle was a No4Mk1 303. He said the 303 served him well in the heat and cold of Korea.
During training the military higher ups took his No4 and replaced it with a Sten, he said he hated that *** and demanded his No4 back.
I noticed a scar on his left arm that ran from his wrist to his elbow, he told me it was from when they were issued a 303 they would clean the outside and shoot it until all of the cosmoline boiled out from the heat of the rifle being fired so many times, the scar was from hot cosmo running down his arm.
He was a man of few words, when I asked him what bullet he recommended for the 303, he said, the 180 grain of course.
I asked him why, he replied with a very short answer, "more thump".

[AggiePharmD]

I'd say the few words he did use were worth listening to.

[Maximumbob54]

I bet there are a lot of Afghans that agree with him. Not being snide, it's more of a testement that the Enfields are still out there in use both for good and bad. A good tool is a good tool.

[13Echo]

It was and is a "Rifle to fight with." Probably the best bolt action Battle rifle ever.

Jerry Liles

[gwpercle]

Always thought the N0.4 Enfield to be the top battle rifle, 15 round capacity , could be loaded with stripper clips or extra magazines. Handsome and all business looking.
I got lucky and picked up, years ago, a 1942 BSA manufactured No.4 MKI that appears to have not seen combat. It has a spotless bore that measures .312 and a walnut stock with the micrometer type sights. I was going to sporterize it, but , procrastinated long enough for that to go out of favor (that worked out well). Brought it out of the closet, got a mould , looking for 13 grains of Red Dot and we going to let the old war horse do her thing at the target range.

I did sporterize two others for friends, not as nice as mine, but very glad I never had the urge/extra time/money to bubba this one. She looks much better in full dress form I believe !

Gary

[303carbine]

Always thought the N0.4 Enfield to be the top battle rifle, 15 round capacity , could be loaded with stripper clips or extra magazines. Handsome and all business looking.
I got lucky and picked up, years ago, a 1942 BSA manufactured No.4 MKI that appears to have not seen combat. It has a spotless bore that measures .312 and a walnut stock with the micrometer type sights. I was going to sporterize it, but , procrastinated long enough for that to go out of favor (that worked out well). Brought it out of the closet, got a mould , looking for 13 grains of Red Dot and we going to let the old war horse do her thing at the target range.

I did sporterize two others for friends, not as nice as mine, but very glad I never had the urge/extra time/money to bubba this one. She looks much better in full dress form I believe !

Gary


I believe you meant to say 10 round capacity, 11 if you have one in the pipe. I'm glad you resisted the urge to sporter your 303.

[303Guy]

The No4 is indeed a handsome rifle. They are also capable of fine accuracy. I can see it as being a reliable and robust weapon. I also agree with the 180gr bullet choice.

[dromia]

The .303" service cartridge, helping the British express themselves since 1889.

[leebuilder]

Yes, and to mention the slickest fastest bolt action out there ever!!!. Lots of fire power in the right hands.
be safe

[gew98]

The .303" service cartridge, helping the British express themselves since 1889.

Reminds me of that line in 'Breaker Morant"....... "Rule .303".

[Ballistics in Scotland]

The No4 is indeed a handsome rifle. They are also capable of fine accuracy. I can see it as being a reliable and robust weapon. I also agree with the 180gr bullet choice.

Handsomeness is in the eye of the beholder, and I have always thought the earlier Lee-Enfields are better finished, and less prone to the oversize groove and chamber dimensions found in the No4. Some of its advantages as a battle rifle for adverse conditions aren't nearly so important to the civilian enthusiast who doesn't need to keep shooting in mud or sand, until the woodwork chars. But it has a certain something, and although plenty of them are roughly finished, the quality held up pretty well for a nation in wartime emergency conditions.

My favourite Lee-Enfield is the Long Lee Enfield of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Recent threads on converting them to sporting rifles of the same period, often under the name Lee-Speed, are worth looking for.

[TXGunNut]

My dad had a 303, sporterized by my uncle who was a mechanic. Bore is junk, glad he didn't modify a good gun, lol. Actually pretty decent work, just not a shooter. Taught me to appreciate a good battle rifle, it's been passed on to the next generation as part of my executor duties. Time will tell if it will see new life with a new barrel.

[Ballistics in Scotland]

If the rifle has sentimental value, you can get a barrel liner with .312 groove diameter and 10in. rifling, made for the .30 Luger, from www.trackofthewolf.com (http://www.trackofthewolf.com) .

[W.R.Buchanan]

My dad had a 303, sporterized by my uncle who was a mechanic. Bore is junk, glad he didn't modify a good gun, lol. Actually pretty decent work, just not a shooter. Taught me to appreciate a good battle rifle, it's been passed on to the next generation as part of my executor duties. Time will tell if it will see new life with a new barrel.

Send it to JES Reboring and have it bored out to .35-303

That's what I did. (project on Hold waiting for oven to bake Cera Kote with.)

Randy

[Adam Helmer]

As a serious Military Arms Collector, I am pleased to say I have 20 or 30 SMLE arms and the No.4, Mk1 was "Ok", but my Favorite is the MkIII (Pre-1916) when the rifle hit on point of aim at 100 yards and had a Windage adjustable rear sight.

All my No.4s hit a foot high at 100 yards with the Battle Sight. If the "Ladder Sight" is raised, then one can hit closer to point of aim with the lowest setting. The Aussies got it right when then did not adopt the No.4 and retained the MkIII in WWII. Eh, wot?

As for the Post about, "shooting until cosmoline was boiled out" indicates to me that there needed to be stricter supervision by Senior NCOs. In the War Years, there could have been detail rifle stripping to remove cosmoline and Reserve critical ammo for the combat troops. Just saying... My WWII uncles NEVER told such an ammunition wastage story.

Adam

[Bigslug]

During training the military higher ups took his No4 and replaced it with a Sten. . .

I would almost consider that criminal during the Korean conflict. I've had opportunity to run a full-auto Sten gun on a couple of occasions and found it to be the most easily controlled machine gun I have fired to date. Yeah, it's got it's place, but to give up a SMLE for a 50-yard squirt gun in a theater of open-ground fighting? Ummmm. . .no.

[dromia]

All my No.4s hit a foot high at 100 yards with the Battle Sight.

The battle sight is zero'd for 300 yrds. Anything closer and you aimed lower.

[Multigunner]

The battle sight is zero'd for 300 yrds. Anything closer and you aimed lower.
Also the L sight 300 yard apeture was zero'ed for 300 with bayonet mounted, instructions of the time being to always fix the bayonet when within 300 yards of the enemy. Supposedly a 300 yard setting with bayonet fixed gave an aprox 400 yard zero when the bayonet was no in place. That would probably vary a bit from one rifle to another according to bedding and barrel vibrations.

[JeffG]

I remember that line, pretty cool.


Reminds me of that line in 'Breaker Morant"....... "Rule .303".

[Multigunner]

If I can find it again theres a free download of a very old gun magazine with a story about the Lee Enfields written by a U S Navy officer who recounted how he had once had to carry an Enfield when guarding stranded supply barges after a mass landing in Korea.
I don't remember which battle this was but apparently there were battle field pick ups of all sorts from several UN member nations available. He chose a Lee Enfield from the pile because he knew it would operate well in the bitter cold and sleet near the sea shore.

The Garand had some difficulties in operating in sub zero weather till troops found that Vitalis hair dressing worked as a light oil that didn't gum up the works in extreme cold like most gun oils did.
Most bolt actions will operate without lubricants so they can handle temperature extremes without special oils.
Arctic explorers often carried Remington Rolling Block rifles because these required no oil to operate.

In early cold weather testing the Canadians had some problems with the Lee Enfield due to resin and pine needles getting into the bolt track and sticking fast. The action covers took care of this as well as rain and mud contamination.