Enfield-Rifles.com Homepage
Forum Home Forum Home > Enfields > Enfield Rifles
  New Posts New Posts RSS Feed - Wood Clean Up of My French Resistance No.4
  FAQ FAQ  Forum Search   Events   Register Register  Login Login

Wood Clean Up of My French Resistance No.4

 Post Reply Post Reply Page  <12
Author
Message
britrifles View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: February 03 2018
Location: Atlanta, GA
Status: Offline
Points: 6539
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote britrifles Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 21 2023 at 2:15pm
Yup, Shamu is right.  I’ve never really understood that part of the “collector” mentality.  Why leave all that dirt and grime on the rifle?  Do they prefer having the barrel bore fouled and rusted too?  

When I got the early 1941 Long Branch Mk 1/2 from A square 10, I was faced with the dilemma of what to do with the metal finish. A Long Branch Mk 1/2 is quite rare.  The suncorite enamel had been sanded off by a previous owner, down to bare metal thru the phosphate in places with what looked to be done with 80 grit sandpaper. What to do? With the original finish destroyed, I decided to take everything down to bare metal and apply Birchwood Casey Perma Blue.  It came out looking very good, but, certainly not original. But I liked it.  








Back to Top
Fullsize 4-speed View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie


Joined: December 06 2022
Location: WV, USA
Status: Offline
Points: 18
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Fullsize 4-speed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 22 2023 at 6:52am
Originally posted by britrifles britrifles wrote:

Yup, Shamu is right.  I’ve never really understood that part of the “collector” mentality.  Why leave all that dirt and grime on the rifle?  Do they prefer having the barrel bore fouled and rusted too?

I fully agree.
Back to Top
Zed View Drop Down
Special Member
Special Member
Avatar
Donating Member

Joined: May 01 2012
Location: France
Status: Offline
Points: 5585
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Zed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 22 2023 at 1:32pm
The engraved number under the No4Mk1 stamp is interesting. It looks recently engraved.
Is that engraving made for US Import?
My Resistance Maltby rifle does not have any additional markings to the standard factory marks of 1944.
As can be seen in the photo below. (Note that the rear sight is not original to the rifle, as I use it for competitions). This rifle was dropped to the Resistance and was not captured or handed in after the war.

It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice!
Back to Top
Goosic View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: September 12 2017
Location: Phoenix Arizona
Status: Offline
Points: 8792
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Goosic Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 22 2023 at 1:47pm
Might be because his is a M47/C made rifle?
Mine just has the addition of the PP stamp.
Zed. Is the magazine original to your rifle and if so, is there any markings to tell who made it? None of these Resistance No4's have the original magazine. They came with these messed up reproduction mags that are utterly useless. I have a Singer made magazine that is currently in the rifle and since pretty much alot of the metal bits were produced by Singer,it is fair to wager the original magazine came by way of Clydebank...
Back to Top
Zed View Drop Down
Special Member
Special Member
Avatar
Donating Member

Joined: May 01 2012
Location: France
Status: Offline
Points: 5585
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Zed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 22 2023 at 1:54pm
Goosic, the magazine is not numbered to the rifle; but it is original to the rifle. I also have the bayonet and scabbard that were dropped with it and a bandolier of ammo. (still seeds of graing in the bandolier from the storage hide).
I will have a look at the magazine to see if there's a maker's mark.
It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice!
Back to Top
Fullsize 4-speed View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie


Joined: December 06 2022
Location: WV, USA
Status: Offline
Points: 18
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote Fullsize 4-speed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 22 2023 at 4:54pm
Originally posted by Zed Zed wrote:

The engraved number under the No4Mk1 stamp is interesting. It looks recently engraved.
Is that engraving made for US Import?
I'm glad that you noticed this, because I think that it points to and interesting quirk in the markings on the BSA Shirley rifles.
The 'No.4 MK I' marking is electro penciled and the serial number marking is more carefully engraved on my BSA Shirley rifle. Both markings seem to have been grease penciled, which is why they appear to be more recent. 
If you look at the serial number stamping on the socket of the rifle, it is missing the alpha prefix that was part of the British serial numbering system (P in this case). That prefix is present in the engraved serial number on the upper part or the receiver.
I believe that the serial number with the alpha prefix was added to the upper part of the receiver by BSA because they discovered that they had neglected to stamp the alpha prefix (P) on the socket. The engraved serial number was BSAs correction of the original socket stamping error. This seems to have been a manufacturing error at BSA Shirley alone.  
The Forgotten Weapons video at the link below shows both a Maltby and a Shirley rifle together for comparison. The receiver markings of both rifles can be seen side-by-side at about 8 minutes into the video. 
As you can see in the video, the Maltby rifle does not have the engraved serial number and the Shirley rifle does. The Shirley rifle in the video is also missing the alpha prefix in the serial number on the socket. The Maltby rifle has its Alpha prefix stamped on the socket. As a side note, the Maltby rifle has No.4 MKI stamped in the receiver and the Shirley rifle has it electro penciled. The electro penciling of the model designation seems to have been SOP for the Shirley plant. This video seems to confirm that this is a consistent difference between rifles made at these two plants.
Both rifles in the video were imported by Navy Arms at the same time, so the electro penciled serial number is not an import mark of any kind, or it would be on both rifles. 
I think that this is just another example of differences in the way that the two plants did things and apparently, a manufacturing error with the stamping of the serial number on the socket of the BSA Shirley rifles.








Back to Top
Shamu View Drop Down
Admin Group
Admin Group
Avatar
Logo Designer / Donating Member

Joined: April 25 2007
Location: MD, USA.
Status: Offline
Points: 17603
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Shamu Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 22 2023 at 6:35pm
"Do they prefer having the barrel bore fouled and rusted too?"
Yes. I've actually turned down buying a couple of nice looking (for a collectable) rifles because the bore was an absolute sewer pipe.
I guess "rust in bore or chamber" is OK as long as its original rust.
Don't shoot till you see the whites of their thighs. (Unofficial motto of the Royal Air Force)
Back to Top
Honkytonk View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: December 30 2017
Location: Brandon Mb
Status: Offline
Points: 4770
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Honkytonk Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 23 2023 at 6:12am
If I had a French resistance rifle, I would name it "Le Enfield"!
Back to Top
britrifles View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: February 03 2018
Location: Atlanta, GA
Status: Offline
Points: 6539
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote britrifles Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 23 2023 at 6:46am
Originally posted by Shamu Shamu wrote:

"Do they prefer having the barrel bore fouled and rusted too?"
Yes. I've actually turned down buying a couple of nice looking (for a collectable) rifles because the bore was an absolute sewer pipe.
I guess "rust in bore or chamber" is OK as long as its original rust.

LOL
Back to Top
Cog View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie
Avatar

Joined: January 23 2023
Location: Mo
Status: Offline
Points: 5
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Cog Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 23 2023 at 9:21am
I would like to just clean up the wood stocks on the same enfield I have. How do you get the pin, (no screw head) that holds the middle lower stock in place. It is just below the safety on the left side.
Back to Top
Zed View Drop Down
Special Member
Special Member
Avatar
Donating Member

Joined: May 01 2012
Location: France
Status: Offline
Points: 5585
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Zed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 23 2023 at 12:30pm
Thanks for the reply regarding the engraving on your BSA rifle. 
Interesting to see these variations.
It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice!
Back to Top
Shamu View Drop Down
Admin Group
Admin Group
Avatar
Logo Designer / Donating Member

Joined: April 25 2007
Location: MD, USA.
Status: Offline
Points: 17603
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Shamu Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 23 2023 at 12:38pm
Originally posted by Honkytonk Honkytonk wrote:

If I had a French resistance rifle, I would name it "Le Enfield"!

"Le champ de poulet" its a play on words.Tongue

Don't shoot till you see the whites of their thighs. (Unofficial motto of the Royal Air Force)
Back to Top
Shamu View Drop Down
Admin Group
Admin Group
Avatar
Logo Designer / Donating Member

Joined: April 25 2007
Location: MD, USA.
Status: Offline
Points: 17603
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Shamu Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 23 2023 at 12:45pm
Originally posted by Cog Cog wrote:

I would like to just clean up the wood stocks on the same enfield I have. How do you get the pin, (no screw head) that holds the middle lower stock in place. It is just below the safety on the left side.

Here's the good news You Don't! Its just a rivet holding a reinforcing cross strap in place on the wood.
If you aren't familiar I have the full (& I mean FULL every nut bolt washer & pin) disassembly manual as a .PDF file.
Its very heavily illustrated step-by-step & I'll gladly E-Mail it to you because its too big for the site here to upload. Just include your user name & "enfield manual" so I'll be reminded of this when checking my PMs
.
Its a good idea to have it because there are some mistakes that will cause damage you can inadvertently make if you don't know the idiosyncrasies of the Lee-Enfiled 2-piece stock setup'
Just PM me with the link to a site than can handle 2447Kb in a single file.

Don't shoot till you see the whites of their thighs. (Unofficial motto of the Royal Air Force)
Back to Top
Cog View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie
Avatar

Joined: January 23 2023
Location: Mo
Status: Offline
Points: 5
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Cog Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 23 2023 at 1:47pm
Great! michaelkohm@att.net. “ cog/ enfield manual”

Thanks!
Back to Top
 Post Reply Post Reply Page  <12
  Share Topic   

Forum Jump Forum Permissions View Drop Down

Forum Software by Web Wiz Forums® version 12.04
Copyright ©2001-2021 Web Wiz Ltd.