Another one finished. Built on a 1908 Enfield No1 mk3*.
This one got a lovely oiled short (12.5") walnut stock I have been saving and a few brass accents. Metalwork finished in midnight blue Ceracoat.
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Another one finished. Built on a 1908 Enfield No1 mk3*.
This one got a lovely oiled short (12.5") walnut stock I have been saving and a few brass accents. Metalwork finished in midnight blue Ceracoat.
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Last edited by Wingman; 09-04-2022 at 10:35 PM.
Just another sporterised lee enfield... (-:
An itch ... is ... a desire to scratch
Do you still do De Lisles? I'm interested in getting one myself someday
Nice work! Are you doing the original barrel length or the full-length ported style? There is a lot of work in them isn't there! I have a few on the go at the moment.
Thank you sir.. I have yet to see one of yours but have only heard good things.
Yes lots of work involved but fun builds.
I am doing the short ported barrels the same as the Stirling production rifles but found the muzzle cone and extractor cut out of the Ford Dagenham delisles work a little better so have gone that direction. The suppressors are duralium like the stirlings but 3mm thick so I dont run the brass blast chamber sleeve. The thicker tube wall is a bit quieter and means I can screw the replica Lanchaster rear sight block to it instead of having to use solid flush rivets. Another small improvement I made was directing the rotary ports 30 degrees rearward into the defuser.
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Last edited by Wingman; 09-04-2022 at 11:16 PM.
Lovely work, well done. It was on my list of to dos.
Wingman - great looking work
I used to have a DeLisle replica and loved the way it would fire without triggering my electronic earmuffs
I've seen some less faithful reproductions that were breakdown versions which i would imagine are pretty popular
In the end I sold mine for 1300 about 5 years back and have gone on to larger calibres for silent rifles but everybody should shoot and own one of these in their lives
Good fun
Very nice! Do you make them to order?
I know a lot but it seems less every day...
Stunning
I'd love one
As discussed @wekaman
Accuracy of the 416 stainless steel Vulcan 1-16" barrels have been great! They constanly punch ragged hole groups at 50 yard with factory PPU 230gr FMJs off bags on the bench and I have been working up an even quieter hand load that is shooting inside an inch at 100y. My open sight game is not the strongest so these results are very pleasing.
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beautiful work,that stock sure isnt your average SMLE.... now far be it for me to tell grandma how to suck eggs,but your comment re open sights brings up question..... would it be worth moving sight back the last 3"? available to give slightly longer sight radius,on your next one??? and would it be sacrilege to build one on the model of SMLE that had apertures??? that would nearly double sight radius and SHOULD improve accuracy without slowing down sight acquisition
Thanks MD.
I stumbled upon a BSA made SMLE sporter in Gun City last year while chasing furniture and other parts that had this butt stock on it.. the rifle was super tidy, it had an FTR in 1953 and looks like it has been in storage since. The walnut figure was peeking out from a dull factory linseed oil finish that I saw potentual in.. I know this was the way it was supposed to be back then and some will call it sacralage but I couldnt help but sympathetically refinish it to uncover its natural beauty. I cleaned it well with acetone, steamed out the few storage dings it had and sanded it very lightly to make the grain pop without removing all the old battle scars. I paid way too much for the guncity donor but the finished result makes me feel a little better about the purchase. While I try to stick to the original side of replication I did throw a little artistic licence into this one.
The originals were painted with the same black baked coating as the later No4s and No5 rifles with the exception of a few of the earlier ones which remained blued with a blueish looking anodizing on the alloy suppressor.. with wood work like this one I oppted for a slightly more ornate midnight blue ceracoat that was matted down a little from it's normal semi gloss mix ratio. I think it looks a little better than the Black ceracoat I usually finish them in.
I also happened across a brass rear rear sling swivel from what I believe was used for a short time on some Lithgow made SMLEs.. I figured "why not? While I was at it I fitted the earlier brass butt plate, stock disk and an inlaid brass bush for the front wood screw. None of those things were used on the originals as they were very weight conscious nearing the end of the war productions.
If Grandma was done sucking eggs and wanted to chase accuracy of pistol rounds she'd probably just mount a rail and scope.. for that matter it could be built on just about anything that would be better and easier than a worn out old Enfield .303Brit.
The sight radius on the 1940s Stirling made Delisles was 12.25 inches which is what mine are built to replicate.
I strive to make my replicas as close to the originals as possible for collectors value and to attempt to appease my OCD.
Fun fact the sight blades on some were painted with some nasty radioactive paint to glow in the dark and assist taking out centuries during night opps..
Last edited by Wingman; 10-04-2022 at 12:27 PM.
That looks awesome! The baffles have brass spacers?
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