NEAT!
What's your overall impression of the life they've been leading? Have these things actually been in more or less constant use for 70+ years? In and out of caches? What's the typical indigenous maintenance regimen?
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NEAT!
What's your overall impression of the life they've been leading? Have these things actually been in more or less constant use for 70+ years? In and out of caches? What's the typical indigenous maintenance regimen?
Hard to fathom that the best stashes of early SMLEs left in the world might be in the hills of Afghanistan. Probably a better climate to preserve them in than the Belgian lowlands.
Looks like you've got a mix of what I gather to be unaltered guns with unit discs and stacking swivels remaining, and what I gather to be late- or post-WWI arsenal/armorer reworks with those features removed. Is any of the early stuff still sporting the volley sights?
The variation has me pondering by what and how many channels they all got there.
"No.4 Mk1* Longbranch 1944 (muzzle cut back due damage)"
Years ago I ran across an article with photos of some African game wardens carrying No.4 rifles with the muzzles cut back in a similar manner.
Story was the local government at that time shortened No.4 rifles sold for civilian use so these could not be fitted with the grenade launchers, because the Energia anti tank grenade was still available to insurgents down there and very effective against all but the most modern armored vehicles.
In Australia and nearby British possessions LE rifles sold off for civilian or constabularly use were often shortened to prevent mounting a bayonet.
CD, there has gotto be a way to get those home. Ship to an FFL with a C&R? I am grasping at straws here!:-|
Built a rifle rack for the British/Afghan connection in the shop.
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CD
Disassemble, and ship as parts?
Can't ship gun parts or ammo components :(
CD
ship them to Canada as military aid.:bigsmyl2:
Strap them to a camel and teach it to swim.
I certainly enjoyed my stints in the Ghan and saw plenty of old & unusual guns. Pulled a lot of 'cached' guns, a much more preferred action than dealing with IED's!
The best part of such activities was getting to fire these relics. Smallest resurrected & shot was a Browning 25ACP, largest was a 12.7mm Dshka. The Dooshka was a hoot to fire. Had a higher RoF than Ma Duece & one hell of a muzzle flash with the muzzle brake these guns were fitted with.
Had ammo come in for identification when I was the Lev1 Wpn Tech Int EOD No1. Took me a few hours but managed to track it down to a product of Yugoslavia, the M76.
Thanks for sharing. As a civilian it’s something that I wouldn’t realize still happens today. Cool collection..,you can’t keep but get to play with. I’m jealous.
I need a wood stock set for a 1907 lee enfield Shtle MK*** to bad you can’t bring stuff back. You’d have a heck of a business.
Went to the bazaar and bought this 17" bayonet. Its a British Pattern 1913 for the Pattern 1914 rifle. Both the rifle and bayonet were made by Remington Arms. All these bayonets were made by Remington. This on in Sep 16' to go along with the 1917 produced rifle. The US also used this bayonet with the following arms. M1917 rifle, M1897, M12 and M1200 shotguns (7 total trench guns). At least I can take the bayonet home :)
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CD
Hmmm. . .it's an American rifle and an American bayonet made by company well known as being American.
Any chance you could say that you originally deployed with the thing? (You HAVE been over there for a while. . .)
OR, you could add a no-drill scope mount and a five dollar air rifle scope, wrap it in some Ghille cloth, put it in a Pelican case and say it's your issued M24 or M40 - which are ALSO stamped that they were made by Remington, just sayin'. . .
Heck, James Paris Lee WAS an American! (while we're at it, so was Maxim. . .) All those Lee Enfields just want to go back to their ancestral homeland!
Good chance the millennial in charge of inspecting your duffel bag would buy any of these stories ;)
Awesome! I need a bayonet for my M1917 I’m restoring. I just stained the front unissued hand guard to match the rest of the gun. I have to resort to eBay for my parts.lol
Here’s mine...
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...nfield-project
Looks like the bluing is completely worn off on that Remington.