There are lugs on the exposed end of the barrel for attaching a bayonet. 2 is reloaded through the use of five-round stripper clips of the rimmed. I rifles used Roman numerals, but they switched to Arabic numerals in 1944 for the Mk. And, no, the previous sentence isn’t in error. 2 rifles featured beechwood stocks with a slight redesign of the fore-stock, brass buttplates instead of zinc and a trigger mounted to the receiver instead of the trigger guard. 2 went into production circa 1949 and is virtually identical to the Mk. I was the rifle fielded by Great Britain during World War II, and it’s considered by many to be the best bolt-action battle rifle fielded during that war. And a date of manufacture: 1955.įor $175? Sold! My regret is that I didn’t buy two.< The Lee-Enfield’s cock-on-close bolt is smooth and easy to work, one of the reasons why it is considered the superior bolt-action battle rifle from World War II. Thousands of them.” Closer examination of a rifle showed matching serial numbers on the receiver, magazine, and bolt handle etched by electro-pencil. “They found them in a warehouse in Ireland. Each of the Cosmoline-coated rifles was priced at an impressively affordable $175. One crate had been readied for immediate sale, and the rifles in the other crate were still wrapped in wax paper and thickly coated with Cosmoline. From a distance I spied wood stocks and walked over, thinking they were yet more of the Chinese bang sticks.īut there, in the crates before me, were Lee-Enfield No. Sometime between 19, I walked into a gun show and on one of the dealers’ tables were two wooden crates of rifles. After everyone and their brother had bought two, you could find them for as low as $99 in my neighborhood. Every dealer at every gun show had at least 20 of them, and if I remember correctly, they were originally priced at about $150. The American market was being flooded with Chinese SKS rifles-new, unfired SKS rifles-by the tens of thousands. How did that happen? Ever hear of the “Irish Contract” Lee-Enfields? Let me tell you a story. Thousands of Americans just like me bought them new in the box. And yet I am the proud owner of a Lee-Enfield No.

When it comes to used guns, I have a poor track record in separating trash from treasures.

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