Strange SMLE

[Uncle Grinch]

Take a look at this SMLE on Auction Arms. It must be very rare or somebody made it up from parts. I'm no expert on Enfields, but I have never heard of or seen one like this.

http://www.auctionarms.com/search/displayitem.cfm?itemnum=7412881&aa=%20Enfield%20%20Very%20unusual%20No%201%20%20ch ambered%20in7mm%20Mauser

[mooman76]

Looks like some sort of Spanish Mauser to me! I have one similar!

[Shepherd2]

The May flyer from SOG has these rifles listed at $195.00. The information is kind of vague. "These are a rare variation of Enfields that have been arsenal reconditioned, at the source, over seas. They were used by the British forces in India, prior to WWII." SOG doesn't give any model numbers. It would be interesting to learn how they came to be. What was the early British bolt action, the Lee Metford? It kind of looks like a cross between tha the the SMLE.

[Four Fingers of Death]

The trigger guard looks too big, or the Mag looks too small. Maybe I'm just imagining it. The sights and fore metal are all wrong.

Are you sure it is a 7mm? IN Australia you weren't allowed to own 303sunles you were a farmer or Target club member for awhile there when I was a lad. THey used to set the barrel abck and load a 303 with a shortened neck. I think it was called the 7.7x54 or something like that. You had to pull the bullets and trim the neck. I had a P14 which had been restocked and tidied up, it was very nice. I couldn't lad 303s and took it back to the store, they swapped the cotton bank bag of 303s that I got with the rifle for a bank bag of those. I shot them off and traded the rifle in as I had no brains at that tender age.

[StarMetal]

SMLE's history is pretty well documented and nothing like that is mentioned. I don't believe what SOG said. I think someone somewhere re-arsenaled these to be what they are and just to sell them.

Joe

[Shepherd2]

SOG says the ones they have (fewer than 100) are .303 cal. The one for sale on Auction Arms says 7mm. The pictures look identical.

I agree with Starmetal. I think someone put these together for fun and profit. I buy from SOG but I know to take what they say with a grain of salt. Especially if it is something out of the ordinary.

[StarMetal]

Yeah looking at the picture of it the barrel and esp the front sight look just like a Mauser. Also notice the bayonet attachment...that's Mauser too. The top hand guard looks cut down and the barrel bands aren't high or big enough to have been off a SMLE because they have just about the whole barrel covered with wood top and bottom. Kinda reminds me of bands off an 1895 Chilean as they had a pretty must exposed barrel. Like I said, the history of SMLE's is pretty well documented and I haven't seen any variations like this mentioned. Makes me wonder as to why a 7mm would have been chosen to use in India in SOG's little story too.

Joe

[StarMetal]

Here are some pictures of rifle variations:

http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~stratton/enphotos.htm

this here is a sporter variation made this way from the beginning, not from a sporterized military model:

http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~stratton/figures.htm#top

Read this about fake variations:
http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~stratton/en-page/fakes.htm

Here are some Sante Fe rifles:
http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~stratton/SantaFeRifles.htm

Here are some links for parts:
http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~stratton/parts.htm

Joe

[Uncle Grinch]

Very interesting webpage on the various fake SMLE's Joe. With the proliferation of known models and considering the size of the British Empire, it's no surprise that people or businesses put the effort to market these surplus firearms.

I have no doubt that this happens with many other models also, especially the sniper or carbine versions.

There is a big difference in this and just simply trying to put together a shootable relic that has been bubbarized. I have a chopped up 91 Argentine that now has Argentine, Spanish and Chilean parts. It's a short rifle now, but I could never mis-represent it if I ever sold it.

Good research, Joe.