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In Reply to: RE: "Vintage" Type People posted by geezerrocket on September 25, 2016 at 11:38:29
High scope-mounts with a peep-sight under, old sight-protective leaves gone.
Very smooth, fast, and accurate. Cock on closing, like Lee actions, but with Mauser 98 rib and front lugs.
Great big solid receiver. Unburstable. But, too long for trenches.
The one gun I really, really, really regret selling.
From 130 grains up to 220s.
Every other Mauser action rifle I had went tight quickly on feral pigs in mobs.
The only other gun I retain affection for was a very light-weight Parker-Hale Mauser '98 action in .243 Win which I took a few deer with - including Sambar - down in SE coastal / Great Dividing Range cold rain-forest.
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
Follow Ups:
Long history on that action. More of those were used by the US forces in WWI than the Springfield. Mainly because they were already tooled up for the 1914 Enfield in 303 for the British Army, so it took very little to convert to 30-06.
Back in the 60's I sporterized a couple of 1903-A3 Springfields. The first, made by a typewriter company, was beautiful, as I spent a lot of time and money on cosmetics; but needed 3-4 shots to settle into a tight pattern. It also had a notchy action. Not good for hunting. The second was made by Remington, had really rough external finish; but shot 1" groups at 100 yds all day long. The first had a full floating barrel, the second was stocked in more classic fashion with 3.5 lbs. of upward pressure on the front end of the stock. It also had a much smoother action. Both were scope sighted, bolt handle turned down, Timney trigger fitted, an aftermarket trigger guard with a hinged floor plate, barrel cut off behind the front sight to 22" and then crowned, and a recoil pad.
Jerry
Hi Jerry,Mine was 'just heavy enough for you' as the stock maker said.
Mind you this was in my twenties when I was a small-arms instructor, marksman and marksmanship coach, and could throw an L1A1 SLR (FAL?) around like it was a long toy.
The Sporter M1917 was most versatile rifle I ever owned. You can even load 110-gr bullets, though the smallest I used were 130 hollow-points.The main thing for me about the Mauser Enfield is the action's smoothness and ease, unlike all other front locking Mausers, which cock on opening and can get quite notchy and stiff when hot. Makes a much better sniper rifle as a P14 or M1917, as a result.
One other advantage is that it can be re-barrelled and chambered for longer and belted magnums as the bolt's throw is long and the whole thing over-built. The original British Army cartridge was a HV 7mm magnum.
IMO the influence of target shooters and wrong lessons learned from 7MM Mausers in the 2nd Boer War was an 'interesting rat-hole' for the British Army, fortuitously fixed by July-August 1914's events.
As we did quite a bit of pig shooting on mobs in scrub and timbered country, emptying and refilling the mag was common. I used 150 or 170 gr soft nose / HN bullets for pigs. Ball (FMJ) was pretty damned good though, and free.
I found that a 5-round clip / not putting a sixth in was best, and a lot quicker when reloading!! I'd picked up a few clips in my service, the Army wanted the brass but couldn't care about the clips. ? The case and rim diam. of .30-06 and 7.62/.308Win are the same.
My favourite military bolt-action rifle remains the SMLE III* and III*T (heavy barrel and WWI era/design scope) made here at Lithgow NSW from before WWI until ~ 1950. Very fast, lowish recoil and more than accurate enough, even in standard form. So long as you load the rimmed .303 cases into the clips carefully they load and feed smoothly.
I do not regard the LE Rifle No4, with its pig-sticker spike-bayonet as an improvement as a weapon. Ease of mfr? who cares? Australia kept the III until the late 50s. it's snipe version was no better than the Aussie sniper III*T.
We were still using the III*T to train snipers when I did the marksmanship and coaching course in 1976!
I'd never really liked the SLR/L1A1 until that course. When I was given the right length stock / butt, there were three lengths!!!! Bruised my cheek at all range-days until then. Took one back with me! Had to PAY for it, but.
I am edging closer to getting Phase 1 of the 'QUAD 63 plus swarm subs' system running. Wiring runs and polarity switching at spkr level, need to be finalised. ? Tidy / short runs help with vacuuming!
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
Edits: 09/28/16
Tim,
The SMLE Mk III and the SMLE "Jungle Carbine" were in large supply here in the 60's and several of my friends sporterized them for hunting. There was a long term myth here about the strength of the action due to different rating methods, and by the difference between tons and tonnes. Following that clarification, the Canadians rebarreled their SMLE's into the 7.62 mm NATO round. Basically, just a shortened 30-06. My favorite load for the '06 was a full case of DuPont powder (60 or 61 grains, but can't remember the IMR #) with a 165 grain boat tailed pointed hollow point. Kicked like mule and gave almost 3000 FPS.
OK, tell me about the 7 mm Mauser and the Boer War you alluded to the British taking the wrong lesson from. You have me very curious. I always though a properly loaded 7 x 57 was a great cartridge.
By the way, I was on a varsity rifle team in college. 50' gallery shooting with .22 L rifle. Private clubs before and after college; but I gave it up in the late 60's, only to briefly take up amateur gunsmithing and shooting again in 2013 & 2014; but nothing in the last year and a half.
Jerry
During the Boer War the Bristish Army were equipped with long magazine Lee Metford or Magazine Lee Enfield rifles firing a a heavier round nosed FMJ bullet. Cordite propellant. ~2K fps?Better reach but not as flat nor quite as accurate as the predominant 'issue' arm to the Boers, being German made 7mm Mausers or Spanish 7MM Mausers. Some had Spitzer bullets and some had round nosed long bullets, lighter in both cases than then current .303 projectiles.
British tactics were also in transition and still quite linear. Intended to hold the enemy with fire!!? And advance in rushes. Volley fire as if we were still at Waterloo, even? yep! Tradition!! ? Film called 'Zulu' with Michael Caine.
The Boers were used to joining their local 'commando' for wars with the tribes. IE 'Mounted infantry'. They would dig-in into individual holes and mark out the ground in front of their positions, painting their side of carefully placed rocks. They were experienced marksmen and good at range estimation anyway. They didn't hunt for pleasure but to control predation, and to eat.
[But they were not cavalry - they hated and feared British Cavalry's swords and lances. Nor were they 'mounted rifles' which do everything cavalry do, except charge with a sword or lance. ? Screening,
listening-posts, recces, advance-guard, flank and rear-guard tasks, fighting dismounted, and staged withdrawals with retreats through the fresh rear-guard.]Britain suffered very heavy losses due to their linear tactics. Esp. during Black Week. And the Boers were clearly superior at long-range shooting. Noting that British Infantry were not well trained in this at all.
So the target-shooting fraternity, which was large, well-off and very vocal decided that it was the British rifle and its ammunition that were at fault. Not the tactics nor the lack of longer-range musketry training.
It turns out that with the SMLE which began being issued in 1901 as the war was ending, and the later MKVII cartridge with a spitzer bullet, the technical quality was sufficient. Along with far better training and trained trainers. Like my course.
But, once you have a ball rolling, you ride it! And so a very strong Mauser 98 type action, front lugs and a rib, but with cock-on-closing, was developed at Enfield Lock and a 7mm / .28" cartridge developed. The trials weapons 1911-1913? metal-fouled and wore very quickly, had sharp recoil and unpleasant muzzle blast. Heavy and not easy to chuck about like the SMLE, VERY important in a very drilly Army.... Rejected.
Then, along came WWI. Now, the p13/14 had also been designed for ease of MFR, and because the SMLE wasn't, contracts were let to Winchester and Remington (& Eddystone) to make the P14 (.303 version.) Because UK capacity was flat out making SMLEs. Very few P14s were made in the UK.
Most of them were used for training, and rear echelon issue OR for sniping, marksmanship work in WWI, because the Tommies, Canucks, Diggers, and Kiwis, didn't want them. Which is a neat reflection of its target-shooting design 'target', if you will. They were very reliable, just like the SMLE.
The SMLE III and III* were much better suited to real-world battle.
LBNL I would have hated to have go into battle with any cock-on-opening Mauser type rifle, even a Springfield. Yes, a Ross would have been worse, but there you go!
Clear as mud?
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
Edits: 09/28/16 09/28/16 09/28/16
Tim,
Excellent! I assume that rejected British 7 mm was the belted case you referred to earlier?
It's interesting the difference in viewpoint on cock-on-opening vs cock-on-closing. Here, with the Springfield, and popularity of Mauser actions, many articles saw the 1917's cock-on-closing as a detriment as it requires extra force to close. Most US and European rifles are cock-on-opening, and the vast majority have front locking lugs. However, except for the Springfield, they are all sporting rifles, not military arms.
I suppose I could look it up; but did the very smooth Mannlicher action cock on opening or closing?
Jerry
enjoy!
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
In fact both types of Enfield rifle's bolts can be operated by the finger and thumb.
And, cock on opening does move the weapon, it rotates it, especially when it's hot and tight. which in battle it will be.
The 7mm /.280 wasn't belted, but it was a 'magnum' round.
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
more?
click below.
the best BA battle rifle was the Lee-Enfield.
Have you ever fired a Lee-Enfield?
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
Below: My son with his "birth-day" present.
Timbo;
You have superb taste in hunting rifles.
My second favorite rifle (only slightly behind the 1885/B-78) is the 1917 Lee Enfield chambered in .303 British. It was my Grandfather's rifle that he paid $7 for at a surplus sale after the war. It's non-sporterized and in tip top shape. I shoot 180 grain Winchester Super X ammo with it and routinely get sub 1 moa results with the original peep sights.
As I get older and I find that when I am on hunts where a lot of walking is involved, I will take my son's Browning A-bolt micro-hunter in chambered in 308. I'm not too proud to carry a youth/woman's rifle. It does however kick lick a mule because of its sub 6 lb weight, but you never remember the rifle recoil when your taking game instead of punching holes in paper.
I bought the rifle for my son the day he was born, and hide it in my safe for ten year until I gave it to him for his 10th birthday a couple years ago.
Meat; It's the right thing to do. Romans 14:2
:-)
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
LEAK Stereo 20s discussed in Reviews here at AA. Click below.
They will soon be home again to be strapped to mono in pentode mode and used to drive serviced QUAD 63s, high-pass filtered, passive line-level, at 150Hz.
40 watts RMS off a '2 ohm' (4/2) tap.
Should be enough.
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
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