Working with the SMLE No1 Mk3
Posted: Sat Dec 06, 2014 4:43 pm
First job today was fit a new barrel to a No1 Mk3 BSA SMLE from 1913, this is a particularly nice looking rifle and is all original including the Volley sights, it also has rear windage adjustment that has not been pinned so everything is there as it should be. Including the original and very well used barrel...
Time for a new barrel however on this occasion when I say new I mean new original issue still in it's protective layer looking as it would have the day it came out of the factory so all I had to do was drop the old barrel off, fit the new and job done. Oh if life was so easy.
The SMLE (Short, Magazine, Lee Enfield) is a fully stocked rifle so first job is remove the woodwork, carefully. There are a couple of potentially vulnerable areas with the narrow sections of wood surrounding the rear sight so a little bit of care is needed in removal and storage. The rest of the rifle is very simple to strip and the one possible sticking point is the lower wood however it came off remarkably easily with just a very gentle knock down at the back to free it, I use strips of Beech to protect woodwork when working on rifles, they are actually paint stirrers from a DiY shop we used to call into in Denmark, they were free of charge by the check out and I always used to pocket a couple and they are still being used to this day, far too nice to use for stirring paint!
Once the wood is off I always spend a few minutes taking a closer look at the action itself, a wipe over with some acetone removes the worst of the grime and assuming there is nothing horrendous I can carry on and the first step is a good spray of Plus-Gas to try and free the barrel thread followed by a cup of coffee. By the time the coffee is drunk the Plus-Gas should have done it's job, well that is the theory, time to test it.
I wrap the barrel section to be clamped with some double sided web emery cloth, the sort of thing pipe fitters and plumbers use and it works very well 95% of the time, today was that 5% moment, the barrel was starting to twist in the vice, I knew the barrel was tight and my new action wrench/spanner can exert a lot of leverage. It is at times like this where a decision needs to be made, is it a sudden hard wrap on the handle of the wrench or slow firm steady pressure. Typically neither were getting me very far and I really did not want to undercut the barrel where it comes up against the receiver so knowing the barrel was going to be scrapped I resorted to plan B, drop the clamp sections off the action wrench and place them in a workshop vice holding the receiver with the barrel facing upwards, a set of Stilsons and a bar on the barrel followed by a hefty push and a loud crack, the barrel to receiver joint was broken.
My back is still aching some four hours later...
Once the barrel is off it is time for a deep clean and further check along with removing the protective covering from the barrel which is also cleaned and then screw the two together. I always apply a small dab of anti-size compound even though I very much doubt this barrel will be coming off any time soon.
When fitting the barrel to an SMLE there are two things to take into account, one is the extractor cut out and the other is head space and this one turned out very nicely on both accounts, after that it was just a matter of putting everything back together.
The rear sight elevation leaf spring is always interesting, the springs are either incredibly tight or knock out very easily, this one fell into the later category however one of my small home made punches did the job and the rear sight was soon back in place but looking a bit odd, bugger - I had just put it in upside down so push the pin out and faff around for another 5 minutes trying to get everything aligned and the pin back in. The No1 Mk3 rear sight job is one of those 3 handed things...
So here it is all back together and ready to go, it just needs a final clean and it is ready for proof and another 100 years of shooting, it is a good feeling to know something has been returned to service and I cannot wait to hear how it shoots.
Time for a new barrel however on this occasion when I say new I mean new original issue still in it's protective layer looking as it would have the day it came out of the factory so all I had to do was drop the old barrel off, fit the new and job done. Oh if life was so easy.
The SMLE (Short, Magazine, Lee Enfield) is a fully stocked rifle so first job is remove the woodwork, carefully. There are a couple of potentially vulnerable areas with the narrow sections of wood surrounding the rear sight so a little bit of care is needed in removal and storage. The rest of the rifle is very simple to strip and the one possible sticking point is the lower wood however it came off remarkably easily with just a very gentle knock down at the back to free it, I use strips of Beech to protect woodwork when working on rifles, they are actually paint stirrers from a DiY shop we used to call into in Denmark, they were free of charge by the check out and I always used to pocket a couple and they are still being used to this day, far too nice to use for stirring paint!
Once the wood is off I always spend a few minutes taking a closer look at the action itself, a wipe over with some acetone removes the worst of the grime and assuming there is nothing horrendous I can carry on and the first step is a good spray of Plus-Gas to try and free the barrel thread followed by a cup of coffee. By the time the coffee is drunk the Plus-Gas should have done it's job, well that is the theory, time to test it.
I wrap the barrel section to be clamped with some double sided web emery cloth, the sort of thing pipe fitters and plumbers use and it works very well 95% of the time, today was that 5% moment, the barrel was starting to twist in the vice, I knew the barrel was tight and my new action wrench/spanner can exert a lot of leverage. It is at times like this where a decision needs to be made, is it a sudden hard wrap on the handle of the wrench or slow firm steady pressure. Typically neither were getting me very far and I really did not want to undercut the barrel where it comes up against the receiver so knowing the barrel was going to be scrapped I resorted to plan B, drop the clamp sections off the action wrench and place them in a workshop vice holding the receiver with the barrel facing upwards, a set of Stilsons and a bar on the barrel followed by a hefty push and a loud crack, the barrel to receiver joint was broken.
My back is still aching some four hours later...
Once the barrel is off it is time for a deep clean and further check along with removing the protective covering from the barrel which is also cleaned and then screw the two together. I always apply a small dab of anti-size compound even though I very much doubt this barrel will be coming off any time soon.
When fitting the barrel to an SMLE there are two things to take into account, one is the extractor cut out and the other is head space and this one turned out very nicely on both accounts, after that it was just a matter of putting everything back together.
The rear sight elevation leaf spring is always interesting, the springs are either incredibly tight or knock out very easily, this one fell into the later category however one of my small home made punches did the job and the rear sight was soon back in place but looking a bit odd, bugger - I had just put it in upside down so push the pin out and faff around for another 5 minutes trying to get everything aligned and the pin back in. The No1 Mk3 rear sight job is one of those 3 handed things...
So here it is all back together and ready to go, it just needs a final clean and it is ready for proof and another 100 years of shooting, it is a good feeling to know something has been returned to service and I cannot wait to hear how it shoots.
