No4 Mk 1

Thanks guys. My suspicion was Maltby due to the 'M'. Just was not plain to find out in my old Skennerton book.  My buddy said the NRA site shows No4's with the BU prefix were largely airdropped to french resistance before D Day. That may explain it's fantastic condition. Overall I think he got a bargain for the complete match , superb original finish on metal and bore. His wood looked as though it may have been rubbed down with some solvent to remove factory grease - which grease is evident on some metal parts still. But no sanding  Seeing the prices some tropes were asking at the show for mismatch beaters to bitsers even he did very well indeed. 

In this part of the States, North Carolina, a rifle like that is about $1000.00

Shamu wrote: Its probably one of the Cache of resistance rifles recently imported. There are a couple of owners on here, one in France who got his locally! RE the wood & metal. Not sanded is good, don't sand it! You can easily clean any grease with a little denatured alcohol on old T-shirt patches. Once done, if you go that route, re-oil the metal with any good gun lube of your choice & the wood gets hand rubbed with a few coats of RAW Linseed oil. Everything will be bone dry, but at least not gummed up with old grease. NOT THE HOME DESPOT rubbish, go to Hobby Lobby & get an 8oz bottle of the Real McCoy from the art & painting dept. There are several threads on here detailing restoring & rejuvenating old dry wood.

I go to one or two shows a month here in Central Florida. When I do see a nice, all matching No.4 it generally in the $900 range. So, I'd say your young friend did well. Heck, I regularly see vendors pushing mismatched bubba "cut-downs" for $700, and holding firm thinking they are the only girl residing in the lumber camp.

Not being a collector, I have never had an issue with stripping the ancient goo (who knows who, what and when it was applied?) and starting a new cycle of linseed oil. I will say I've also never sanded a LE stock, but have buffed with xxx steel wool before and in between linseed applications.