Does anyone make new Lee Enfield stocks?
- Thread starter The Exile
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I'd seen a few places on the web that have some of those parts when I was looking for replacement top wood for the one my dad used as his hunting rifle (he discarded it to reduce weight evidently right after he purchased it years before I was born).
https://www.brpguns.com/no-1-mk-3-stock-magazine-parts/
https://gun-parts.com/militarystocks/
https://www.cottagecraftworks.com/hunting-outdoors/replacement-gun-stocks/colt-enfield-franchi
https://www.prestigiouswoodstocks.com
There was a company in Australia IIRC with both vintage stock parts plus new parts, made from a different type of wood but I'm having trouble finding the website.
https://www.brpguns.com/no-1-mk-3-stock-magazine-parts/
https://gun-parts.com/militarystocks/
https://www.cottagecraftworks.com/hunting-outdoors/replacement-gun-stocks/colt-enfield-franchi
https://www.prestigiouswoodstocks.com
There was a company in Australia IIRC with both vintage stock parts plus new parts, made from a different type of wood but I'm having trouble finding the website.
indy1919a4
Member
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.. 
illinoisburt
Member
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..
indy1919a4
Member
AlexanderA
Member
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 That's because they were originally made in 4 different lengths to allow fitting for the individual soldiers.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.
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 That's because they were originally made in 4 different lengths to allow fitting for the individual soldiers.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.
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Is it compatible with a No. 4 at all?
Dave DeLaurant
Member
Good luck with your search!
Last year I spent a lot of time looking into doing a remil on a No4 I bought cheap with a plastic stock.
The forend wood was much harder to find than you might imagine. Many places had them listed in their catalog, but had none in stock. I regularly stalked eBay and GunBroker as well as Liberty Tree and Sarco for a couple months before I finally gave up trying for the authentic No4 look and settled for a faux No5. The forend is a reworked 'sporter' cut-down (from GPC) and bit shorter than an authentic No5, but I'm not trying to fool anyone -- the receiver is clearly marked No4.
An added problem was that my rifle's barrel had been shortened to remove the bayonet lugs -- fixing that would require either a rebarrel or threading the muzzle and cutting/threading the muzzle end of a junked barrel to replace the lugs. The faux No5 muzzle device took care of that.
Last year I spent a lot of time looking into doing a remil on a No4 I bought cheap with a plastic stock.
The forend wood was much harder to find than you might imagine. Many places had them listed in their catalog, but had none in stock. I regularly stalked eBay and GunBroker as well as Liberty Tree and Sarco for a couple months before I finally gave up trying for the authentic No4 look and settled for a faux No5. The forend is a reworked 'sporter' cut-down (from GPC) and bit shorter than an authentic No5, but I'm not trying to fool anyone -- the receiver is clearly marked No4.
An added problem was that my rifle's barrel had been shortened to remove the bayonet lugs -- fixing that would require either a rebarrel or threading the muzzle and cutting/threading the muzzle end of a junked barrel to replace the lugs. The faux No5 muzzle device took care of that.
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AlexanderA
Member
No. 1 wood on a No. 4? It won't work, except possibly the buttstock. But finding No. 4 buttstocks is not the problem.
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.
Enfield forends are not a drop-in fit. If you find an NOS one, probably a fair amount of wood will have to be removed in the "draws" area, since these were made generous to allow for fitting. Conversely, a used forend may need some bedding compound. It's essential that the "draws" area be a tight fit. The barrel itself is free floating, except at the very tip of the forend.
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Robbins290
Member
Boyds has them listed for the enfield mark III.
theotherwaldo
Member
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.
AlexanderA
Member
The 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."
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 something
indy1919a4
Member
The NRA is Responsible for lots of Krags getting cut down into the carbines back in the 20s and 30s...
Maybe these guys have something your looking for.
https://www.libertytreecollectors.com/productcart/pc/viewcategories.asp?idCategory=63
https://www.libertytreecollectors.com/productcart/pc/viewcategories.asp?idCategory=63
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