Anyone know Lee Enfields?

[SDHNTR]

What can you tell me about this old thing? I don’t know much about these guns but to identify one and know it’s a No 4 MK1 as indicated. Vintage? Original intended use? Any idea how it might have wound up in Canada? Anything else worthy of note?

 

[DenimChicken]

I'm no expert, but I have a hand me down Enfield that has been sporterized. I think they chopped the stocks and barrels on a bunch of them after WWII and sold them in the US. According to my dad, they sold them at Sears.

 

[FLATHEAD]

I have 2, that were my Father's and Grandfather's.
I dont use them, just keepsakes. But I know my
Grandfather killed whitetail with his.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Weren’t those Canadian patrol rangers using 303 enfields up until just a few years ago? I thought that tikka arctic rifle was meant to be the replacement for their enfields. It also wouldn’t surprise me if those were a normal part of their military issue at some point in history.

 

[DenimChicken]

Weren’t those Canadian patrol rangers using 303 enfields up until just a few years ago? I thought that tikka arctic rifle was meant to be the replacement for their enfields. It also wouldn’t surprise me if those were a normal part of their military issue at some point in history.

You got me curious. A did a little Googleing and you are correct that they were issued to the RCMP, and I also found some info that says "Lee Enfield factory converted to Sporter and exported out of England circa 1960's. These military rifles were sporterized and shipped to Canada to be sold as sporting rifles. Pieces such as this were sold by Simpsons, Eatons and other retailers."

Sporter Enfield

 

[SDHNTR]

You got me curious. A did a little Googleing and you are correct that they were issued to the RCMP, and I also found some info that says "Lee Enfield factory converted to Sporter and exported out of England circa 1960's. These military rifles were sporterized and shipped to Canada to be sold as sporting rifles. Pieces such as this were sold by Simpsons, Eatons and other retailers."

Sporter Enfield

Interesting. Even the ones stamped “US Property”?

 

[AppalachianHollers]

Interesting. Even the ones stamped “US Property”?

Under Lend-Lease, perhaps.

 

[DenimChicken]

I don’t have it in front of me, but I believe mine is stamped US Property. Not sure on the Canadian ones.

 

[jayhawk]

Check out this link: https://www.leeenfieldresource.com/

Yours looks like a sporterized version of the rifle. It was cut down and restocked for civilian hunting use. There are actually many of those old rifles in Canada and, yes, arctic units in the army were issued Enfields up until they were recently replaced.

The "US Property" stamp most likely means it was a lend-lease gun. Made in the US for the commonwealth before we officially entered the war.

Shoot that gun and enjoy it! Learn what you can about it and share the history with anyone who's willing to listen.

 

[Antares]

Short Magazine Lee Enfield (SMLE). Most of them have very little value. They made literally millions of them. They were the standard infantry rifle for most commonwealth countries for a long, long time. My first deer rifle was a surplus SMLE that I sporterized.