Not-the-Enfield-FAQ

No. 1 MkIII

compiled by <ben.sansing@chaos.lrk.ar.us> with lotsa help

This FAQ, in its entirety, is available from xxxxxxxxxx

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[HST 28.8 or V32bis 14.4] and downloading ENFAQ-A2.LZH

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Part Two: History and Chronology (ENFAQ-02.MSG)

Most of this section was written by <ron.melson@chaos.lrk.ar.us>

Thanks, Ron!

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Contents, Table of, MkI

- The British .303 and Variations

* The Lee Metford Rifles and Carbines

* Lee Enfield Rifles and Carbines

* Variations On A Theme (P14, sniper rifles, etc)

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ł THE BRITISH .303 AND VARIATIONS ł

ł by Ron Melson ł

ł <ron.melson@chaos.lrk.ar.us> ł

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THE LEE METFORD RIFLES AND CARBINES

Rifle, Magazine, Lee Metford Mark I.

Adopted in December 1888, it was the first British production Lee. Chambered for the original black-powder loaded .303 cartridge, it could hold eight rounds in the magazine and had a full length cleaning rod.

Rifle, Magazine, Lee Metford Mark I*.

Adopted in January of 1892, this rifle was a conversion of the orginial Mark I. The sights were changed from the "Lewes" and "Welsh" pattern to the barlycorn front and v-notched rear sight.

Rifle, Magazine, Lee Metford Mark II.

Adopted in April 1892, it was the first to be fitted with the ten round magazine. The bolt was modified and the outside contour of the barrel was changed. A half length cleaning rod was fitted and the brass marking disk on the buttstock was omitted.

Carbine, Magazine, Lee Meford Mark I.

Adopted in 1894.

Rifle, Magazine, Lee Metford Mark II*.

Adopted in 1895, these rifles had the safety catch added to the bolt. The Mark I Lee Metford had safety catch mounted at left side of reciever. The Mark I* and Mark II Lee Metfords had no safety.

Historical Perspective.

Much like the Snider and Martini-Henry rifles that were in British service, the Lee rfle had its design antecedents in the United States.

James Paris Lee was a naturalized American citizen whose parents came from Scotland and settled in Canada in 1835 when Lee was four years old. He followed his father's occupation of watchmaking while maintaining an interest in firearms. Eventually, Lee moved to Wisconsin and took up gun design on a full time basis. Lee did not orginally conceive the concept of the box magazine, however, he did improve up on it. A bolt action repeater of his own design was tested by both the Army and Navy. The "Remington-Lee" was to soon catch the attention of the British and in 1880, the Lee rifle was soon to enter into the British service trials. The first of these rifles were chambered for drawn brass .577-450 "Gatling" versions of the British service round and fitted with Martini-Henry barrels. The combination proved successful. Originally, the British were considering adopting .402 as their service caliber, but, the efficiency of the .303-caliber cartridged as designed by Swiss Col. Eduard Rubin caused the eventual scrapping of the .402 and experiments with the .303 instead. Finally, in 1888, prototype Lees with barrels featuring seven grove rifling by William Metford, were tested (in .303 caliber). In December of the same year, the first Lee magazine rifle was accepted as the British main service rifle.

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LEE ENFIELD RIFLES AND CARBINES

Rifle, Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark I.

Adopted in November 1895, this rifle was the first to introduce the deep Enfield rifling rather than the shallower Metford rifling. This rifle also had modified sights.

Rifle, Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark I*.

Adopted in 1899, this Enfield lacked the cleaning rod found in stocks of earlier Lee's.

Carbine, Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark I.

Adopted in 1896, it was the same as the Lee Metford carbine except for the deeper rifling.

Carbine, Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark I*.

Same as the Mark I carbine but without the cleaning rod or the sling bar on the left side of the buttstock.

Carbine, Magazine, Lee Enfield, RIC Model.

Adopted in 1905, when 10,000 Lee Enfield carbines were modified. The carbine nose cap was removed and the stock cut back and slimmed down to take an upper band with bayonet stud to fit the Pattern 88 knife bayonet. These carbines were made up for the Royal Irish Constabulary-RIC, which was disbanded in 1922.

Rifle No. 1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark I.

Adopted in December of 1902, this was the first of the short rifles(SMLE). This rifle was stocked to the muzzle and first to allow charger loading. The right side charger guide is on the bolt head, and the left charger guide is on the receiver. It has a v-notch rear sight with adjustable windage and a barlycorn front sight. This was the first of what is commonly referred to as the No. 1 rifle, nicknamed "Smellie".

Rifle No. 1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark II ( COND ).

Essentially the same as the SMLE No. 1 Mark I, but was converted from the earlier Mark II and Mark II* Lee Metfords and Long Lee Enfields.

Rifle No. 1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark I*.

A minor variant of the SMLE No.1 Mark I.

Rifle No.1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark II*.

A minor variant of the No. 1 Mark II SMLE.

Rifle No.1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark III.

Adopted in January 1907, this was the main battle rifle of the British forces in World War I, and used extensively in World War II. Versions of this rifle have been found in use as recently as the Afghanastan War when Afghan rebels fought against the Russians ( the Afghan rebels also created crude copies of this rifle).

Rifle No. 1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark IV ( COND ).

Adopted in 1907, it was basically the same as the No. 1 Mark III but created from Long Lee's and Long Lee-Metford rifles.

Rifle, Charger Loading, Long Lee Metford Mark II.

This rifle is a converted Lee Metford Mark II that allowed use of a charger. The initial conversion was made in 1907 for the Territorial Army and were converted again in 1909 to a Lee Enfield Mark I*. Few of these rifles were made.

Rifle, Charger Loading, Long Lee Enfield Mark I.

Another 1907 conversion that involved early marks of the Long Lee Enfield to charger loading. The Mark I* version is the most common and a large number of them were used by the British in the opening days of World War I.

Rifle No. 1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark III*.

Adopted in World War I, these rifles were made in large quantities and are still in use around the world today. This version lacked the long range sights of early Mark III's and does not have a magazine cut off.

The Royal Ordance Small Arms Factory at Enfield Lock made over 2 million of this model and the No. 1 Mark III during World War I. At the same time, B.S.A. made 1.6 million and L.S.A. made several hundred thousand. The rifle was last manufactered in Britain in 1943 by B.S.A. while the Australian arsenal at Lithgow and Indian plant at Ishapore manufactured the Mark III* after the adoption of the No. 4 by the Brits. Lithgow went on to produce 415,800 Mark III* rifles from 1939 to 1955 when production was switched to the FN.

Rifle No. 1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark V.

This rifle appeared somewhere around 1922. The rear sight is mounted on the reciever bridge and an additional stock band is mounted to the rear of the nose cap.

Rifle No. 1, Short Magazine, Lee Enfield Mark VI.

This rifle was developed between 1924-1930 and was the forerunner of the No. 4 rifles. It possessed the sight on the reciever bridge, had a lighter nose cap, heavier barrel, and smaller bolt head than the earlier marks. It had the cut-off and the left reciever wall was cut low as on the Mark III.

Rifle No. 4 Mark 1I.

This rifle originally appeared in 1931. Of excellant quality for a service arm, it was generally similiar to the No. 1 Mark VI except it had a heavier receiver. In 1939, the No. 4 Mark 1 was redesigned to allow for mass production and became, with the No. 4 Mark 1*, the British workhorse of World War II. Stamped bands were used and various manufacturing shortcuts were taken to increase production (hence, rifles after 1939 lack the quality of the earlier No. 4 Mark 1's). Three different sights were used on these rifles, ranging from a finely machined adjustable leaf type to a simple L-shaped peep sight. Many of these rifles can be found still in service in the British Commonwealth and in former British Territories.

Rifle No. 4 Mark 1*.

This was the North American production version of the No. 4 Mark 1 rifle. The principle difference was that the bolthead catch, which was situated behind the receiver bridge on the No. 4 Mark 1 (and earlier marks) was eliminated on the No. 4 Mark 1*, and a cutout on the bolt head track was used for bolt removal. Over 5 million No. 4 rifles were made during World War II in the UK, Canada (Long Branch Arsenal) and the United States (Savage/Stevens). Australia did not adopt the No. 4 and continued with the production of the No. 1 Mark III* at Lithgow.

Rifle No. 4 Mark I* (light weight).

Produced at the Long Branch arsenal in Canada in prototype form, this weapon had a one piece stock and the trigger pinned to the receiver. It weighed in at 6 3/4 pounds. The barrel was 23 inches in length with an overall length of 42 1/2 inches. The receiver wall was cut down and the stock inletted to reduce weight. The buttplate was a sporting type unit made of rubber. Micrometer sights with a peep battle sight was adjustable in clicks (100 yard steps) from 100-1300 yards. It could also be used for grenade launching. One other feature of the rifle was the Mauser type trigger.

Rifle No. 4 Mark 2.

This rifle was developed at the end of World War II and differed from early marks by having the trigger pinned to the receiver rather than the trigger guard.

Rifle No. 4 Mark 1(T) adn No. 4 Mark 1*(T).

These are the sniper versions of the No. 4 rifle. They are fitted with scope mounts on the left side of the receiver and have a wooden cheek rest screwed to the butt. The No. 32 telescope is used on these weapons. There are also sniper versions of the No. 1 and No. 3 rifles (Pattern 14). The Canadians also used the No. 4 Mark 1*(T) with the Telescope C No. 67 Mark 1.

Rifle No. 4 Mark 1/2 and Rifle No. 4 Mark 1/3.

These are conversions of the No. 4 Mark 1 and No. 4 Mark 1* that have been modified to the pattern of the No. 4 Mark 2. These rifles are still in use and are possibly being held as reserve weapons in the UK.

Rifle No. 5 Mark 1.

The famous "jungle carbine", this rifle appeared at the end of World War II. It possessed a lightened and shortened barrel that has been fitted with a flash hider. The fore-end has been cut back and rounded, making the jungle carbine look more like a sporting rifle. A rubber pad was fitted to the buttstock to reduce recoil. Only 250,000 were made.

[BEN: At one time, plans were to convert all No.4s in British inventory to No.5 pattern and make the No.5 the standard British infantry rifle. But, continued "zeroing" problems with the No.5 (it would not stay "sighted in"), coupled with protests from the ranks that this light rifle's recoil was objectionable, caused this project to be scrapped.]

Rifle No. 6 (Australia).

It appeared only as a prototype, an 18 inch barreled version of the No. 1. It was developed at Lithgow.

Historical Perspective.

The original Lee Metford was a fine service arm until the introduction of Cordite Powders. It was found out quickly that Cordite burned much hotter and faster than black powder and that the new corrosive powders were eating away the bores of the rifles. The experts put their heads together to try and come up with a solution to the problem. It was resolved by experts at the Royal Ordnance Factory at Enfield Lock (hence the name Lee Enfield). Their solution was to create a barrel with a deeper, five grove rifling that was more resistent to the corrosive effects of Cordite.

On November 11, 1895, the legend was approved and a year later, rifles produced at Enfield, Sparkbrook, L.S.A., and B.S.A., went into service. Externally, the Lee Enfield was identical to the Lee Metford. It was this gun and its modified version, the Mark I*, that the British used against Mausers for the first time during the Boer War. During this war, several shortcomings were found with the new Lee Enfield rifle. Problem with the sights and the lack of quick charging came to the front and once more the experts got together to find a solution.

The charging problem was quickly resolved as was the sighting problem. In the process, a shorter length was added to the equation so the rifle would be easier to handle by both infantry and calvary. The result was introduced in 1902 as the Mark I SMLE. More improvements were made and in January of 1907, the Mark III was introduced, a rifle that was to become a legend. As with any war, World War I brought manufacturing short cuts to the Mark III. These included the elimination of the cutoff, dial sights, rear sight wind guage, and identification discs. This rifle was known as the Mark III*.

In 1926, the nomenclature of service rifles was changed. The Mark III became known as the No. 1 Mark III and the experimental Mark VI became known as the No.1 Mark VI. After several modifications, the No.1 Mark VI emerged in 1931 as the No.4 Mark 1. With impending hostilities mounting in Europe, the development program on the No. 4 Mark 1 was stepped up and in 1939, the rifle was accepted as the standard service arm.

The No. 4 was 44 1/2 inches overall with a 25 inch barrel. The action was beefier than the Mark III and the screw aperature adjustable rear sights (if installed) were graduated from 200 - 1300 yards. The barrel extends past the forestock a good three inches, allowing for the easy fitting of both a bayonet or grenade launcher. A variant, the No. 4 Mark 1* was built in Canada at the Long Branch facility and in the United States by Savage (at the former Savage Arms plant in Chicopee Falls). The No. 4 Mark 1* is easily recognized by its simpler bolt head release. There was a cut-out in the reciever which allowed the bolt to be pulled back and the bolt head rotated in order to achieve extraction of the bolt. Both Marks were later fitted with an L-shaped flip up aperature that had two ranges, 300 and 600 yards. Last, but not least, of the original .303 Lee Enfields was the famous No. 5 Mark 1 "Jungle Carbine". This rifle had a barrel of 20 1/2 inches and featured a cone-shaped flash hider. The fore end and hand guard were cut down to expose more of the barrel and the base of the foresight assembly contained a lug that mounted a unique Bowie-bladed knife bayonet. Weight was reduced by 2 pounds which increased recoil, a big problem with this little gun. The right side of the butt was equipped with a sling loop, much like the old Lee Metford carbine. Although introduced too late in the war to see any real service, the jungle carbine did well enough, save for the wandering zero problem that never has been resolved.

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VARIATIONS ON A THEME

Pattern 13 (P-13).

Tested in 1913, the P-13 was nothing more than a modified Mauser action (cocking on the forward stroke of the bolt), and was chambered for the large .276 caliber cartridge. The cartridge itself was remarkably similiar to the Canadian .280 caliber Ross cartridge. The rifle was made in very small numbers for field trials in .303 caliber.

Pattern 14 (P-14).

The P-14 was the production model of the P-13. Initially it was built in .303 caliber here in the United States for Great Britain during World War I. Save for its use as a sniping weapon, the P-14 was classed as a limited standard rifle and few were used. However, when the United States entered World War I, the P-14 was changed from .303 caliber to U.S. Cal. .30 (.30-06) and was designated the M1917, though it was known as the Enfield. Between World Wars, the British changed the nomenclature to Rifle No. 3 Mark I.

Pattern 14 Sniper Rifles.

During World War I, the P-14 was used extensively as a sniper rifle. There were two basic patterns, the P-14 (T) and the P-14 (T) A. The former has a Pattern 1918 telescope adjustable scope and the latter had an Aldis telescope. In 1926, when the British went to number designations, these weapons were renamed the Rifle No. 3 Mark I* (T) and the Rifle No. 3 Mark I* (T) A.

[BEN: I need to add specs and commentary for the WW2 DeLisle carbine, a No.1 MkIII* rebarrelled to .45 ACP with an integral suppressor, used by Commando units.]

Sniper Rifle L4A1.

Developed from the commercial version of the No. 4 Mark 1 rifle, the Enfield Envoy, which was originally cut down and modified for target use. The rifle featured a cut down stock and rebarrelled to fire the .308 NATO cartridge. A further number were converted in similar fashion by the Royal Arms Factory (Enfield) and fitted with sights which are a modified version of the original No. 32 telescopic sight. Though superseded by the Accuracy International L96A1, some of the .308 Enfields (L4A1) still remain in the British Army's inventory.

[BEN: I have seen and handled one of these .308 conversions, but did not have the opportunity to fire it. Some have cast doubt on the ability of the old rear-locking Lee-Enfield action to safely handle the .308 ctge., but the rifle I handled, at least, had seen thousands of rounds without problem, and was in fact being used successfully in High Power target competition, so I guess the conversion works!]

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