Saturday, January 7, 2012

Enfield No. 4 MK I


This famous British rifle was one of the best of WWII. This variant was produced in Canada - it was and still is a very sturdy, reliable and accurate gun. Per Wiki -

By the late 1930s the need for new rifles grew, and the Rifle, No. 4 Mk I was first issued in 1939 but not officially adopted until 1941.[30] The No. 4 action was similar to the Mk VI,[31] but lighter, stronger, and most importantly, easier to mass produce.[31] Unlike the SMLE, the No 4 Lee-Enfield barrel protruded from the end of the forestock. The No. 4 rifle was considerably heavier than the No. 1 Mk. III, largely due to its heavier barrel,[31] and a new bayonet was designed to go with the rifle: a spike bayonet,[31] which was essentially a steel rod with a sharp point, and was nicknamed "pigsticker" by soldiers. Towards the end of the Second World War, a bladed bayonet was developed, originally intended for use with the Sten gun—but sharing the same mount as the No. 4's spike bayonet—and subsequently the No. 7 and No. 9 blade bayonets were issued for use with the No. 4 rifle as well.[32]Using my own reloads in .303 British, results are pretty good at 100yds, from a rest - my gun has the issue aperture sights - that really help - and are finitely adjustable for elevation only.

I generally can keep 10 shots in the black 7 inch circle at 100 yds...and focusing on that front sight seems to be getting harder.

My reloads use 180 grain round nose softpoints, 40 grains of IMR 4064 - not much kick since the gun is so solid....and accuracy is consistently good. 80% of my shots are in the 9 and 10 ring.

No comments: