L.S.A Lee Enfield, Possible Service history...?

[Guest]

Hi all,

New to the forum and was hoping some of you guys would help me out. I have recently acquired a 1916 LSA Co Lee Enfield or I think it's 1916 with Mag Cut off but no plate, but looking at that picture it looks like 1918... It might be! But anyway I was just looking around it and found some interesting things on the gun. Firstly the Butt Stock disc removed and plugged and it looks like a pretty good job except the chunk taking out of the middle of it. Also noticed that it had a Lithgow? Rear sight with a Lithgow/Australian stamp on the sight spring. I'm guessing it's been in Australian hands and/or sent to Lithgow at some point as I think it may have been re-barralled there also with '45 stamped. I may be wrong but also stamped Two D's with 53 underneath them both. The receiver, bolt, nose cap, rear site (Force Matched) and forestock (Just behind the Nose Cap) all seem to match with the same SN being N51406 or just 51406 in the rear sights case. I was wondering if anyone could add to it, correct me or give me some more information on the gun as it would be interesting to know it's service history (If any) and where it has and hasn't been!

Thanks in advance!

 

 

 

[MikeyH]

Welcome to the Forum.

In one of your photobucket shots, can see that the rifle has been stamped 'regulated by Fulton'. So at some point, it has been through the workshops of Fultons of Bisley.

Mike.

[4thGordons]

It does look like a 1918 to me, having said that an N prefixed serial would be consistent with 1916 LSA production, observed data suggests O and P were in use by 1918

it appears LSA continued to produce MkIII rifles longer than the other major manufacturers.

The rifle was inspected and possibly FTR'd in 1932 (this is the '32 stamp close to the safety), so it would appear to have been in British service at that point

The style of repair to the heel of the butt and the filled stock disc hole are very common on Indian used rifles/furniture, but of course were also used elsewhere.

It looks to me as though the rear sight spring is indeed Australian marked but I absent other signs of Australian use (Australian used rifles are usually well stamped) , and given the other markings on the barrel I am not sure how much can be read into that.

The rifle has also been re barreled as you say, but I suspect this (and the replacement spring) may have been done after the rifle had been sold out of service.

The markings on the barrel appear to show a 1945 date and ENFIELD inspection marks (I think this is what you are reading as D, but appears to me to be an E inside a D- one of the Enfield marks, and the "Regulated by Fulton" is the mark of a gunsmith (Fultons of Bisley). This, coupled with the civilian proof marks (.303" .222 etc) suggest to me that the sight spring may have simply been replaced when the rifle was rebarreled.

Others (Thunderbox?) will know better what "Regulated by Fulton" might have entailed. It might mean that the rifle was set up for target shooting by Fulton's or it may be a catch all stamp simply indicating it has passed through their hands (perhaps for the re barreling).

Looks like a very nice example. LSA Co produced about 430,000 rifles between 1907 and 1918.

Chris

[Guest]

Thank you both for the replies. It certainly is a mystery of a gun in my opinion with a mixture of part(s) as well as some ''Original'' parts which weren't changed. I did read somewhere that it may suggest it could of been a competition rifle. As regards to the Australian markings it did seem strange to me if it were in Australian hands that it would of been stamped at Lithgow or something but that's what I love about I suppose, the mystery. Thank you both again, much appreciated!