[Hazwaste]

I'm torn between two options and I'd like to get the opinions of you folks in order to push myself one way or the other.

I bought an SMLE No.1 MkIII from a friend for $50 a couple months ago. It was manufactured in England in 1939, so I'm assuming the old girl might have seen action in WWII. The wood is in as good of condition as one would expect for a 60+ year old rifle, with dings but no cracks. All numbers match, and the mechanicals have been trouble-free.

There is a big part of me, emotion, which tells me that putting this baby on a new sporter stock would be akin to putting a mustache on the Mona Lisa. There is another big part of me, logic, which tells me that I haven't got money to purchase a rifle for 100+ yard hunting, and that a sporter stock would lighten it enough to use the Enfield for this purpose. Also, even if I did install a new stock, I could keep the old stock so that I can put her back together when I can finally afford that Remington.

So what do you think...leave her as is or "bubba"ize her?

[RTFM]

Leave it alone man. That'd be like those 20" Chrome rims on SUV, just wrong!

RTFM

[Bill Hook]

Even crummy Enfields are worth at least double what you paid.

Check the auction sites, as there are plenty of sporters, some which even look well-done selling for very little, or not at all (HINT. HINT.).

A mauser action would be a better hunting rifle and you could sell the Enfield at auction to subsidize the purchase of a sporterized milsurp, all without adding to the numbers of these abominations.

[No4Mk1]

Bill Hook had it right. There are enough "sporters" out there that there is no need to create another one.... If you do feel compelled, then what you are suggesting is the best answer, make the changes reversible and be sure you hold onto the original parts.

[Tag]

lol:D @

abominations

[Gewehr98]

And they're getting more expensive. Conservation and restoration give our grandkids a piece of history to hold. ;)

[vmi93]

If you hunt with iron sights, maybe you should save the money you would spend on the stock and buy a Mosin-Nagant carbine (M38 or M44, aailable for $70-$100). If you keep it intact, you could have a deer rifle that probably weighs the same as the SMLE with the sporter stock.

I voted to preserve the SMLE as is. If you want a sporting rifle, save up and get one that was originally intended for the purpose. You'll be happier in the long run and you'll have two guns with good resale/heirloom value instead of one gun whose value has been substantially reduced by the sporterizing process.

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

What's the big deal here? He can put the old stock back on whenever he wants.

I think he should do it without regret. As long as he saves the old parts and doesn't do aynthing irreversible...

[LynnMassGuy]

Leave it alone. At least don't do anything irreversable.

[Bill Hook]

I think a #1mkIII isn't bad as it is.

He can put the old stock back on whenever he wants.

True, but he did say "bubbaize," which implies other mods, like drill and tap, sight removal, etc.

I think he could still buy a sporter off gunbroker, auction arms, gunsamerica for $200 or less.

[yesterdaysyouth]

i say when in doubt....

go get a 91/30 and start hackin'....

new stock, drill and tap, cut bolt, drill and tap some more, cut and recrown, and refinish, bed it in the stock with some rtv and shoot the hell out of it....

i managed to get 2moa with 203gr. barnaul sp...

not bad for a 60yr old rifle and a hack job....

[P95Carry]

I vote for ''No!'' ..... a careful restoration is preferable so as to keep some good originals out there.

I admit tho ... 3 years ago did fall for - and buy ...... an already sporterized MkIV .. and I'll be honest ... it is hard to choose between this and my Rem 760 for deer rifle use. It is a sweet shooter ... handles well and IMO has not really been ''spoiled'' .... more ''transformed''.

But .... we do need some genuine articles kept for posterity.


http://www.bedford.net/design/cb_gun2/no1_mkiv_s.jpg

[Ian]

Why not use it as-is for hunting? Carrying it around would be good exercise...

(Disclaimer: as a 20-year-old male, my opinion on the relevance of carrying a couple extra pounds is different than many peoples'...)

[Soap]

I'm with Ian. It isn't that heavy so just take it out to the woods. Unless you have a permanent injury or disability, the Enfield should be entirely manageable.

[Kalos]

That 91/30 is enough to make a Mosin lover cringe... :/

[Bill Hook]

http://images.gunsamerica.com/guns/976398704.htm

Above is a bubba'd #4 (better since the barrel is heavier) for $110.

Plenty of bubba guns out there needing a good home.

[cool45auto]

NOOOO!!! Don't Bubba-ize anything!:eek:

[jame]

I say it depends.......

If she's COMPLETELY stock, with all of the scars of battle, leave it alone.

If she's been refinished in any way (stock refinished, numbers not legibible due to an overzealous amorer, reblued, etc...) have at it.

Try this place, as most are pretty knowledgeable about such matters.

Curio and relics (http://ezboard.com/)

Just enter "curio and relics" at the search prompt.

Good luck.

[DMK]

It was manufactured in England in 1939, so I'm assuming the old girl might have seen action in WWII. The wood is in as good of condition as one would expect for a 60+ year old rifle, with dings but no cracks. All numbers match, and the mechanicals have been trouble-free. Arrrggg! Leave it alone! If it's in original condition, I'll give you double what you paid for it plus shipping.


Hey, how about letting us see some pics of the old gal? :)

[Bill Hook]

Give him $110, then he can buy the #4 bubba special I posted.

[Beetle Bailey]

If all you are going to do is change the stock, go ahead since you will be saving the stock and therefore can always reverse the procedure for the sake of history.

BTW, I saw a No. 4 MKII unissued Fazakerly for sale at my local gunshop but the idiot previous owner of it changed the stock to a plastic one and threw away the original because he didn't like it! :banghead: How hard is it to keep the original stock somewhere? I would have looked closer at it and possibilly bought it if he had keep the original stock.

i managed to get 2moa with 203gr. barnaul sp...

How did it shoot before you made your alterations? Don't underestimate the potential accuracy of these old rifles. Here's what I've been able to do:

Mosin Nagant M39: 2MOA any day with Wolf 148gr.

Swedish Mauser M38: 2MOA with PMC FMJ (forgot the details) but I'll work on it this weekend (I am confident I can tighten that up with practice).

No. 4 MkII (I eventually found one still in the cosmoline): 2MOA with PMP SP. I'll keep working on this also.

They aren't great groups, but they aren't bad and I did it with the iron sights shooting off a bench.

[Coronach]

I voted 'yes', but only because he is proposing to merely remove the stock and save it, and put the rifle in a sporter stock. This can be undone at any time, and can easily save the historic wood stock wear and tear.

Do it, without regret.

Now, if we're talking chopping the barrel and slapping on a scope....mmmmm.....no.

Mike

[BamBam-31]

I'm with Beetle and Coronach. So long as the alterations are reversible, it's okay in my book. But you MUST save the old parts. It's your rifle, do as you please. Just keep in mind you're not the rifle's first owner, and you shouldn't be the last.

[Hazwaste]

Call it a "limited bubbaization". I was not planning to do anything to it that would permanently alter it. No drilling/tapping/whatever. Just a sporter stock.

However, as I said, there is a big part of me that has a problem with doing anything to it, even if it was to be temporary. I'm a nut for history, especially military history. It may sound stupid, but when I hold this thing, it is as if I'm transported back to a time in which I would have been more at home.

After reading all of your posts, I've decided to keep her as is. I'll have to post some pictures later, as my wife took the camera.

I'm taking her (Enfield, not wife) to the range this morning to give her a good workout.

Thanks again!

[pwrtool45]

It's your rifle, so I think you have the group's permission to do what you want to it. :D

I just got back from a gunshop and had an interesting 'historical firearms' experience that I think you might appreciate. They had a Colt Police Positive Special in .32-20 in the case; wonderful condition for its age. It looked like a decently well taken care of 10 year old blued revolver. I get finished looking at it and hand it back to the guy working the counter. He makes a comment about Colt revolvers in general. His comment, of course, begs the "they don't make em like that anymore" maxim. After a little more conversation, he's absolutely flabbergated to learn that revolver is around 50 years old. I wonder if I should have told him that the Army Special they had may have been used by Prohibition-era John Laws to fight gangsters. He'll never look at his Glock the same as it is, so I guess I spared him. :D

People take these things forgranted. Hug your enfield. ;)

[yesterdaysyouth]

How did it shoot before you made your alterations? Don't underestimate the potential accuracy of these old rifles.

well before i did anything besides clean it up i was getting 2 out of 10 into a gallon jug at 100yds, and a sore shoulder....

the rifle was in really bad condition, the stock was cracked from the bolt to the buttplate in 2 places, the top handguard was gone, the bore was rusted up pretty good, and there was virtually no finish...

lapping the bore made a good improvement, although it's still pitted very deep...

next i added the stock and scope mount, this of course made the biggest difference...

next i cut the barrel cause the last 4 inches or so were shot out... and i didn't like the look of the front sight up there... i could take a .311 bullet and drop it down inside the tube that far without pushing it at all...

the stock had a warp in it alongside the left side of the barrel so i cleaned that out and bedded the barreled action using silicone, it's all i had, and i was bored :uhoh:

don't think i would do this to a rifle in excelent condition....


:p

[NapAttack]

Give the old warhorse a new lease on life instead of putting her out to pasture.

Sporterizing her just adds to her history and gives her a few more years of useful life. History is to be studied and learned from, not put on a pedestal and worshipped.

If that old rifle had a soul, don't you think it would be saying "I once protected the soldiers who carried me and helped them fulfill their mission of protecting their way of life, now clean me up and make me pretty and let me continue my work by putting food on your table or ridding your propery of pests or protecting you and yours. I have a long distinguished history, I can't compete with those new rifles in the military anymore but I can still do a good job for you."

Let the museums and collections open to the public handle preserving history. They've got fine examples of weapons that everyone is allowed to see and appreciate.

I've sporterized or "bubbaized" if you will several old military weapons. Were they collector grade? I don't know and don't really care. I bought them, they were mine and I modified them to suit me. Not only do I use them now, they were invaluable in helping me learn how to work on guns.

[Beetle Bailey]

don't think i would do this to a rifle in excelent condition....

sorry if I sounded like I was lecturing you, and anyways, sounds like you gave the old gal a new lease on life :) .

[444]

You are doing the right thing.

Just a note on Bubba. We have a guy here locally that fancies himself a gunsmith. He has a C&R FFL and has spent considerable time ruining good mil-surp rifles. I went over to his house to see if I could find a Turk Mauser bolt that would pass headspace in my rifle; he offered to trade me straight up since he was rebarreling anyway.
He proudly showed me a few of his creations that he had for sale. They were 98 Mausers that he had completely sporterized in the style of the 1970s (loud thumbhole stocks etc.). I noticed that all had complete Nazi markings and no import marks.
Great
The rifle that he cut up would have been worth more in original condition than what he thinks he can get someone to pay for it after he "worked" on it.
And, I can buy a new Remington 700 ADL for less than he wants for his creations.

[Bill Hook]

In related news, the price of 98Ks just jumped $50 on the finding of increased scarcity. :D

[Gewehr98]

See here:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=16526&perpage=25&pagenumber=1


I got something of a giggle out of this response:

I'd probably sporterize a rifle just to annoy collectors. It's my firearm, pistol or rifle, I paid my own hard earned dollars for it and I'll do just exactly what I please with it. If I "bubbaize" it then it's still mine. You may not like it but you don't own the firearm so your opinion does not matter.

Definitely an insight into a person's character. ;)

[Bill Hook]

Also his wallet and the money he loses would be his. If you're stupid enough to cut off your nose to spite your face, then have at it.

[Hazwaste]

Somebody asked for a picture of the old girl. Here you go...

[Gewehr98]

That SMLE is in way too good a shape to bastardize. I've restored milsurps that were considerably worse off than that one. If you're dead set on sporterizing it, let me know, I'll buy that one off you and find you one that's already been "converted". :what:

Case in point, a former Bubba-job I lovingly brought back to 1917 issue standards (Note the pedestal that this piece of museum history sits on - it's actually a bench rest, and it gets admired, 180 grains at a time):

1917 Enfield NoIMkIII* restoration (http://mauser98.com/1917lebench.jpg)

[Daniel T]

I have a No1MkIII* that has been thoroughly and viciously "Bubba-ized". The fore stock has been cut off at the barrel band, and all of the top hand guard has been removed, along with the metal pieces that protect the sides of the rear and front sights. Also, the butt was trimmed down, and a recoil pad glued on.

My grandfather gave it to me about 10 years ago, and if I remember rightly, he said that he had committed these crimes. However, when I was talking to him the other day about my growing C&R collection, and I remarked that it was a shame that my Enfield had been sporterized, he told me he had gotten it that way. :scrutiny: Uh, sure thing Granddad. :)

[Gewehr98]

It was assebled from parts farmed out to smaller industries, commonly called the "Peddled Scheme", during the early days of WWII. BSA, Fazakerly, and Enfield Lock were under threat of German air attack during the Blitz, and had already converted from the NoIMkIII* to manufacturing the No4Mk1 rifle in the late 1930's. The idea of the Peddled Scheme was to decentralize manufacture of arms such that air strikes wouldn't cripple production of war materiel. Your 1939 NoIMkIII* was one of those farmed out proof-of-concept rifles. As such I'd be even more loathe to change anything on it. And I'd be even more willing to take it away from you were you still inclined to modify it. ;)

[Sunray]

If your Mk III was made in 1939, it was one of the last made. The No. 4 starting being issued in 1939. I'd be inclined to put that one away and find another rifle to butcher, mean hunt with. Especially given the condition it appears to be in.
Please reduce the size of your pictures. Pictures that big can take all day to load for somebody on a dial up and it requires a lot of scrolling etc.
"...they don't make em like that anymore..." And thank god for that. You ever work on a Colt revolve. Bunch of wee tiny parts with odd springs and levers. Friggin' nightmare.
"...A mauser action would be a better hunting rifle..." Nonsense.

[Bill Hook]

Nonsense.

Pray tell us how the selection of rimmed cartridges matches rimless then, since the bolt necessitates use of rimmed calibers? Or why these are unsafe to upgrade to .308 (Ishapores have different metallurgy)?

The fact is, that they're really only good for .303, which is okay, but not ideal.

[Andrew Wyatt]

.303 =.308 ballistics.

if .308 isn't an ideal whitetail round, i don't know what is.

[Bill Hook]

Hazwaste,

As others have said, you could sell that gun for an easy $150 and probably more like $250.

If you do take the wood off, the foresock MUST come off before the buttstock; the latter is best removed with a large square shank regular screwdriver and vise-grips.

Don't lose the rear nosecap screw, as GPC doesn't have any last I checked. A rubber mallet and light tapping straight down will help unseat the forestock after triggerguard removal.

[Bill Hook]

if .308 isn't an ideal whitetail round, i don't know what is.

Availability and feeding are my concerns. .303 is available, but not like .308 (of course you can reload, but then .311 bullets cost more) and rimlock is another potential deficiency.

[Hazwaste]

Worry not (see earlier post), I've decided to leave it as is. No intention of selling it either, as I have no intention of selling ANY of my small but soon to be growing collection (C&R on the way!!!! :D )

Smaller picture attached for you dial-in folks.

[Hazwaste]

FYI, it has a "BSA" stamp on the receiver.

[P95Carry]

it has a "BSA" stamp on the receiver Ahhh ..... ''Birmingham Small Arms'' ..... lot of SMLE stuff came outa there IIRC .... and of well reasonable quality too.

[Gewehr98]

I'm just glad Sunray said "please". I guess he caught me in a good mood, with broadband I could really care less how much time it takes for others to load images. Been there, done that, starting at 300 baud with my Commodore 64. It's a fact of Internet life, if you're worried about it, just turn off graphics on your web browser. I do that while using dial-up with my laptop when overseas. I still have to scroll through forums, though. :scrutiny:

BSA? Cool! Peddled Scheme rifles still used big-name major assemblies, so you might see a variety of receiver stamps. Often, the bigger factories had to finish final assembly because the smaller businesses had trouble keeping up with their war materiel production quotas. So you'll see a WWII-vintage NoIMkIII*, with different manufacturer marks on receiver, barrel, buttplate, and furniture. The receiver is the key here. The UK had moved ahead with production of the No4Mk1 rifle as WWII ramped up, the earlier NoIMkIII*was being phased out in favor of the newer rifle. Events at Dunkirk, as well as other shortfalls, drove home the need to boost weapons production. a 1939 NoIMkIII* with a Birmingham Small Arms stamp means that it started life as a peddled scheme rifle, regardless of what other parts ended up on it. These WWII British NoIMkIII* rifles tend to get collectors excited, Australia and India were the only other manufacturers of the NoIMkIII* rifle during WWII. ;)

[NapAttack]

Definitely an insight into a person's character.

Yep, don't much cotton to folks tryin' to tell me what I can do with my property.

Course I get a big kick out of collectors that pay good money for a gun then turn it into a wall hanger or safe queen. You say you shoot your collectors guns? Well then, aren't you ruining the value of your collector's piece by shooting it? No way you can shoot one regularly without adding more wear and tear, a few more nicks and dings to it.

Have to admit I get a good belly laugh out of watching collectors argue over whether some obscure marking is original or repro.

Sporterizing an old military clunker really is turning a sow's ear into a silk purse.

[jrhead75]

Sporterizing an old military clunker really is turning a sow's ear into a silk purse. Or a $500 Tobruk/Stalingrad/Normandy veteran into a $150-$200 silk purse.

Whatever...if the extra half pound of wood kicks your butt on a hike, or you can't hit the heart/lung area of a deer over open sights at 150 or 200 yds...knock yourself out...it is your gun after all.

Just makes those competition/range rat/deer hunting original condition old war horses of mine that much more valuable.

[Bill Hook]

Sporterizing an old military clunker really is turning a sow's ear into a silk purse.


:rolleyes:

Criminee, you could sell them and buy some plastic stocked POS with a Tasco scope using the money you got.

Do you move the trailer back to tighten the clothesline too?

[Gewehr98]

and rimlock is another potential deficiency.

That doesn't seem to have hindered all the soldiers of the British Empire who used the SMLE over it's long service life. In fact, I have a hard time loading my SMLE's in such a fashion as to create rimlock in the box magazine.:confused:

[No4Mk1]

Seems no matter where you go this debate gets heated in no time at all....

Seems to me that perhaps both sides are right if they would cool off and step back a little. I sure hate to see a very nice example of our collective history get butchered, but frankly not every C&R firearm out there fits into that category (heck, for that matter, most of them don't).

I personally like the analogy of old cars. If I have a beat up '69 VW bug and convert it into a dune buggy, have I spoiled a piece of history? NO! I have given an old car new life! On the other hand, if I take a pristine 69 Corvette Stingray and chop it then I may be terminally stupid, but hey, it is my property.... (And by the way, I just made the market for your 69 Corvette Stingray just a teensy bit better....)

This topic sure seems to ruffle feathers and breed animosity among our beleagured fraternity. I sure wish it didn't.

Do you move the trailer back to tighten the clothesline too?
:rolleyes: Now that's taking the "high road"....

[Prof]

The SMLE's are amazing rifles. I received a 1913 No. 1 Mk III in trade and, while it looks pretty old, it shoots very well. The action is smooth as glass. I would love to know if it was carried in the "Great War" and/or World War II. I also bought one of the Fazakerly "unissued" No. 4"s from the 1950's and it is beautiful! I've only shot it a few times but I get lots of "oohs and aahs" when I take it to the range.:) I didn't realize that these old babes were increasing in price. I shoot mine so seldom I may sell them to raise funds (building a new house)!

[Bill Hook]

That doesn't seem to have hindered all the soldiers of the British Empire who used the SMLE over it's long service life. In fact, I have a hard time loading my SMLE's in such a fashion as to create rimlock in the box magazine.

If you load from strippers (3 down, 2 up pattern) and/or don't seat the last round in correctly, I find that I can get rimlock. It certainly requires extra care to be certain they feed properly

Now that's taking the "high road"....

Maybe not, but the decision to name this forum as it is wasn't mine and all I expect is not to use direct ad hominems.

BTW, neither is moralizing. :rolleyes:

[Gewehr98]

Our new owner of that 1939 BSA NoIMkIII* simply asked a question, posted a poll, and watched as the responses came in. If he didn't want opinions, he didn't have to post requesting them. He specifically asked the forum whether modifying the gun would be akin to putting a moustache on the Mona Lisa. So even he had some doubts about changing it. And it's no sin if folks like myself are actually willing to pay him for that unmolested SMLE, or trade him a purpose-built hunting rifle, or previously sporterized milsurp, just to keep that rifle in it's current configuration.

It's a free country (sort of, don't joke about weapons in an airport). If you want to convert a '63 split-window Corvette into a manure spreader for the back 40, knock yourself out. Use a Stradivarius to start a campfire, have at it. Rip into a WW1 or WW2 infantry rifle to make it a deer gun, go for it. Hazwaste found that SMLE for $50.00. I'd like to say he "lucked" into it for $50.00. He's certainly entitled to reconfigure it any way he sees fit. But for those of us who have either witnessed such conversions or even done them in an earlier day (myself included) it sure looks like getting short-term economy at the expense of long-term value.

I'm just as guilty as any other Bubba, I have a safe drawer full of 98 Mauser actions. Most were horse trades, a couple had rusted barrels and broken stocks. The relics were stripped down to bolt and receiver, bead-blasted, and carefully oiled and bagged. Two actions became the foundation for my custom 1000-yard rifles. However, if those old girls had been more complete, or even restorable, I would have a 1916 Haenel Gew98, or 1917 Amberg Gew98, completely restored to issue condition, sitting in my safes and showing up for the local fun matches. Because, as a member of that same free country, I have the right to restore or preserve old warhorses (like I do with my 1903A1 at the local John C. Garand matches), just as much as I have the right to destroy them. The beauty of the system is that one person's cheap deer rifle or home gunsmithing lesson is another person's investment in the future or placeholder in a military history display. My opinions have definitely changed, my current rainy-day hobby is finding Bubba guns and restoring them back to the day they left the arsenal for the first time.

I've watched previously undesirable guns, or guns that would never be considered worthy of collecting, ramp up in their value as time marches on. At one time, nobody gave a second thought to turning a 98 Mauser into a lightweight and cheap hunting rifle. The SMLE often got the same treatment. But times have definitely changed. Try and find a gunsmith who'll weld or forge a Mauser bolt handle, and drill and tap that receiver for cheap. Add that to the cost of the donor rifle, scope, mounts, and a sporter stock, all of a sudden your cheap deer rifle isn't necessarily so. Meanwhile, as Savage comes out with the 340 and later 110 family, Remington did the same with the 700 and cheaper 710. It's cheaper to find a new or used commercial sporter in this day and age, unless you snag a No5Mk1 Jungle Carbine or Spanish FR8 Mauser for a song. While the population of unmolested original military firearms dries up, their value climbs. That $165.00 M1 Garand I bought from the DCM in 1991 is now up there closer to $500, more if sold outside the now-CMP channels.

Factor in the 50th anniversary of D-Day, the whole Saving Private Ryan thing, and the relative ease of C&R FFL paperwork, and you can see why the old warhorses become items of conservation. Another analogy - I go to Oshkosh every year, and the sound of a Merlin-engined P-51 is like music to my ears. They didn't get converted to crop dusters, and they sure's heck don't sit on a pedestal. But somebody took the time, effort, and money to keep it alive and flying in the same configuration as the day it left the factory. Why is that so wrong?

And no, I don't consider using the description "moving the trailer to tighten the clothesline" as taking the Low Road. It's nowhere near as ad hominem as being singled out and sarcastically derided online for shooting collectible firearms, thereby destroying their value with each shot. Obviously the poster has never attended a High Power service rifle match with M1 Garands up and down the line... :scrutiny:

[Bill Hook]

At one time, nobody gave a second thought to turning a 98 Mauser into a lightweight and cheap hunting rifle.

I think you hit a major reason why milsurps are going up in value - attrition. Nostalgia/appreciation for a bygone era, both in their use as weapons and the quality of manufacture is surely the other. I can't think of any others.

[Gewehr98]

$35.00 C&R licenses play a part. The movie industry may have driven the nostalgia a little bit harder, too. Nobody woule either recognize or care what a 1903A4 is unless they watched Saving Private Ryan. For a while there, they were one very hot commodity in guntrading circles. Glad to see the Bubba 1903 threads elsewhere on the forum, I'm donating a bunch of as-issued 1903A3 parts to one new owner for his restoration project. This one was a cut-barrel deer rifle until I found it and spent a couple years bringing it back to 100%. (BTW, #2 son, below, can't wait until dear old dad bequeaths this particular 1903A4 to him...)

http://mauser98.com/shooter.jpg

[Bill Hook]

Nice looking gun.

You seem to have a lot of nice stuff, but I assume you've been acquiring for a while and got in on the "ground floor" with many of your pieces, or do you mainly buy Bubba guns cheap and resurrect them?

[Gewehr98]

He retired from an army ammunition plant, and kept beautifully reworked Buehler-equipped 98 Brno Mausers, 1903A3 Springfields that look like they came from Sedgely, and a gorgeous, polish-blued 6.5 Arisaka rebuilt with a Bishop maple Mannlicher stock. (Mom's deer rifle) But he also kept SMLE's, M1 Carbines, 1903's, WWII 98 Mausers, and a Garand or two in issue condition, complete with slings, bayonets, and field manuals. He worked in a local sporting goods store part-time, and acquired a few commemorative Winchester 94's, and a high-grade BAR. Those have never been fired, they were purely investments. I've yet to do that, if I don't shoot them, they don't stay in my home.

I think the intrigue of finding an old derelict rifle, pistol, or shotgun in sad shape, and the odd parts needed to restore one, is what drove me to start righting the wrongs of Bubba, as it were. It's fun, too. There's not a lot of challenge or skill in taking a hacksaw to a Mauser. The challenge is obtaining a Z-series 1903A4 receiver with stub barrel, and spending a few years sourcing all the parts, then researching the documentation, to make as close to an original as you can affordably do. Even then, there are no cartouches on that 1903A4, and I put a note under the buttplate stating that I restored the gun in 2000 for my own collection.

My great-uncle made bentwood rockers as a hobby. My dad restores Atwater-Kents, Victrolas, and other vacuum tube electronics. I restore old rifles, or build varmint and 1000 yard target rifles. Pride of ownership and a sense of accomplishment is a strong motivator, I guess.

[444]

Got an E-Mail today from the API List entitled: Essential Gun Show Glossary.

"Custom" - translation: "I took a perfectly good rifle that a collector
would give his left cajone for, threw away the stock with the great
cartouches on it, tore off the sights with vice grips, replaced them with a
scope I got at Kmart, sanded off bluing that had lasted twice as long as I
will and slapped on some cold blue that looks like toilet bowl water. All
this cost me three times what a comparable new rifle would but I've got the
satisfaction of knowing that I 'made something'".

"One of a kind" - translation: "I bubba'd this".

"All original" - original if the Japanese during WWII mounted weaver scopes
and left the mounting holes, that is.

"Must be seen to be believed" -This rifle makes a bubba job look good

:D :D

[makdoddle]

I have seen some very nice "Bubba"ized Enfields.

[Bill Hook]

Not as nice as a halfway decent specimen in original condition, I'll bet.

[makdoddle]

There always beat up and ugly. But great guns.

[Bill Hook]

Most are, but there are quite a few that aren't. A steam iron and boiled linseed oil can do wonders, too.