Well given the guns were made 80 years ago, a dwindling supply of parts is probably expected by now. The fact that anyone outside a custom shop still makes and stocks parts at all is a testament to the volume and longevity of the rifles.Wow those are pricey.. I wonder if it would be cheaper to sell the old Enfield and buy another rifle.. Boy The day of cheap spare parts really is dead..
Well given the guns were made 80 years ago, a dwindling supply of parts is probably expected by now. The fact that anyone outside a custom shop still makes and stocks parts at all is a testament to the volume and longevity of the rifles.
Is it compatible with a No. 4 at all?NOS wood for the No. 4 can still be found, although it's increasingly pricey.
Buttstocks are more common than forends. That's because they were originally made in 4 different lengths to allow fitting for the individual soldiers. So an excess of buttstocks were made.
Regarding the No. 1 Mk. III, the best place to look for wood for that would be Australia, because the Australians (Lithgow) continued to make it in WW2, after the UK and Canada had switched over to the No. 4. But Australian "coach wood" is pretty poor as a stock wood. It splits easily, which is why the Australians reinforced the "draws" area of their forends with brass strips.
No. 1 wood on a No. 4? It won't work, except possibly the buttstock. But finding No. 4 buttstocks is not the problem.Is it compatible with a No. 4 at all?
That's what I found. They do turn up on ebay occasionally, but you're going to pay north of $250 for one. Search worldwide, not just in the U.S.The forend wood was much harder to find than you might imagine.
The stock is usually the first thing that Bubba ruins. But it wasn't just Bubba.I've found that it is cheaper and easier to find parts like stocks on poorly maintained or Bubba;d rifles rather than trying to buy the individual parts.
When I get a Springfield I should get a little brass tag and hammer it into the stock, make it read "Made with US quality" or somethingThe stock is usually the first thing that Bubba ruins. But it wasn't just Bubba.
What you find a lot on British guns are arsenal repairs to the stocks. Some look like a crazy-quilt of dovetailed patches. The armorers never threw anything away even though, postwar, they had an ample supply of NOS wood.
The American armorers would never do this. Their motto was, "when in doubt, throw it out."