There are 2 examples of Bubba's handiwork on Enfields at my local shop. Neither look great, but neither look terrible. Still have stock barrels cut down, scope rails mounted, wood butchered, etc. They are asking around 250 a piece for them. I am looking for one thats a mess, so I don't have to have the guilt associated with butchering one from original, and the staff smith does great work and is easy to work with. What is a good price for one, especially considering I will be asking the smith to rebarrel in .308? Losing proposition? Should I just give up the idea and look for an ishapore? I like military actions, always seems more appealing than just buying a modern action to me, but is the Enfield action strong enough to play with?
Bubba Enfield Value
- Thread starter D Boone
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Mr_Pale_Horse
Member
~$100
Yes
Yes
Not Really
Yes
Yes
Not Really
Yeah, $250 for a Bubba'd Enfield is way too high. I wouldn't pay more than half that.
As for rebarrelling, my understanding is that Enfields are a bit tricky to convert to .308, since they are designed for a rimmed cartridge. If you want a milsurp .308, you might look for an FR-8 or Israeli Mauser 98. Probably wouldn't cost much (if any) more than buying something else and paying a smith to convert it for you.
As for rebarrelling, my understanding is that Enfields are a bit tricky to convert to .308, since they are designed for a rimmed cartridge. If you want a milsurp .308, you might look for an FR-8 or Israeli Mauser 98. Probably wouldn't cost much (if any) more than buying something else and paying a smith to convert it for you.
W.E.G.
Member
Value?
$100 max
Probably less.
What will some unwary buyer (dupe) actually pay?
Evidently the shop has some experience in these matters.
$100 max
Probably less.
What will some unwary buyer (dupe) actually pay?
Evidently the shop has some experience in these matters.
eatont9999
Member
What is so bad about .303 brit?
I don't buy bubbas, but $100 is about as much as I would spend on one if I wanted just a functional shooter.
I don't buy bubbas, but $100 is about as much as I would spend on one if I wanted just a functional shooter.
Nothing wrong with .303, just always wanted an Enfield action but not sure about adding another cartridge to the lineup. As far as expense, they do tend to mark high, but typically decent deals can be had after some discussion. Sub 100.... Maybe not in this case, but thats why I have you guys to advise me! I already have and FR-8 that I promise to leave all alone, but I have been thinking that a Mauser 98 conversion to 30-06 would be cool.
DougW
Member
I paid $100 OTD for an all matching no import marked 1943 Savage. Forearm was cut down, upper and lower handguard and band were missing. Everything else was there , #3 Savage bolt head, excellant head space. I replaced the wood, Now it is a restored Savage #4mk1* to mil guise. I would usually pay only around $50 for on that has had metal chopped anywhere.
Ishapore 2A are around $180 online. The Bubba job would be $250 plus a hefty chunk for rebarrelling. The only real advantage is that you could sleep easy knowing that you saved the Enfield from further anguish at the hands of another Bubba.
jonnyc
Member
Get the 2A1.
paintballdude902
Member
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i dont know about rebarreling to .308 because of the pressure thats why the 2a and 2a1 had the recievers redesigned and made of better steel
.303 brit max pressure = 49,000 psi
.308 win max pressure = 62,000 psi
7.62 nato max pressure = 60,000 psi
not 100% on the pressure but should be close i used google
.303 brit max pressure = 49,000 psi
.308 win max pressure = 62,000 psi
7.62 nato max pressure = 60,000 psi
not 100% on the pressure but should be close i used google
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I've got a 2A1 and it's really a pretty nice rifle once you strip it down and refinish it. The metal was rough but undamaged. The screws were buggered up, but still functional, the shellac looked like it had been applied with a stick, and the stock had several arsenal repairs that had been neatly made with non-matching wood. The rifling in the barrel however looked like brand new. I doubt it had been fired more than 10 times. It looked that pristine. It's also an accurate rifle. Not as accurate as a K31 or M39, but better than a K98 or M91/30.
I stripped the paint off the metal and refinished it with duracoat and it turned out looking quite nice. The forearm and handguard also turned out very nice, (I think they're teak). The repairs actually make it look nicer since they almost appear to be decorative. The buttstock however doesn't match the forearm and the repairs on that just look like repairs made with mismatch wood.
All in all a nice rifle for the $185 I paid for it.
I stripped the paint off the metal and refinished it with duracoat and it turned out looking quite nice. The forearm and handguard also turned out very nice, (I think they're teak). The repairs actually make it look nicer since they almost appear to be decorative. The buttstock however doesn't match the forearm and the repairs on that just look like repairs made with mismatch wood.
All in all a nice rifle for the $185 I paid for it.
Titan6
member
I harken back to the days when you could go to the gun show and there would be a couple of guys with a dozen crates of near mint condition Enfields going for $90 each, $80 if you bought five or more. Why did I not buy five? The decision haunts me to this day....
But Bubba saw the old gun and had visions of Bucks and Turkeys, not being harvested with the old timer but carved into the stock as reminder for all time that he had owned a piece of history that despite his abuse would outlive him. Attaching scopes is a simple matter of drilling enough holes that line up, no matter how many attempts it takes.
Now Bubba is gone and thanks to him his old gun is still worth $90 or $80 for five while the vintage .303 run around $225-275. I can't go back and buy the guns I should have and you can't unfix the gun he did buy so I say it is best to move along and get a better one.
But Bubba saw the old gun and had visions of Bucks and Turkeys, not being harvested with the old timer but carved into the stock as reminder for all time that he had owned a piece of history that despite his abuse would outlive him. Attaching scopes is a simple matter of drilling enough holes that line up, no matter how many attempts it takes.
Now Bubba is gone and thanks to him his old gun is still worth $90 or $80 for five while the vintage .303 run around $225-275. I can't go back and buy the guns I should have and you can't unfix the gun he did buy so I say it is best to move along and get a better one.
JeepGeeek
member
I'm sorry, I just don't get the bit about being against "bubba'd" milsurps.
There's millions of these rifles out there.
Someone wants to get one, cheap, and do what he needs to do to it to make it suit his purpose, to put food on his family's table, I'm all for it.
You want a "piece of history", well-- it's an antique- find it, and pay for it.
I bought a sporterized (ok, not exactly "bubba'd") Brit 303. All matching numbers, new wood, and a NICE scope- $220.
Damn thing shoots better than I do. If I see any deer this year, they're going in my freezer. While I'm not exactly poor, I'm sure as hell not wealthy, so any way I can supplement my family's diet on the cheap with high qualiy protein is a plus for me. I very much share Uncle Ted's feelings on the matter. Yes, I am new to the hunting thing, but that's only because I've been wanting to go since I was 10, and dad was never much of a hunter (nothing against him- he was out there "killin' it and grillin' it" in a more modern fashion, to keep us clothed, fed, and comfortable). It suddenly occurred to me, some 27 years later, that I'm a big boy now and can take my damn self- so I hit tha pawn shops for something that'll put Mr. Buck down, cheap. Between this, the Mossberg 500 I got for a song, and the 30-30 I recently bought, I've got a good hunting aresenal.
It coud be MUCH worse, folks. The Brits could have done what they did to the Lend-Lease guns and the civilian weapons that we shipped over in WW2: given them a deepwater salt bath. Be thankful they're still around, and use em as you see fit.
For my next trick, I'm gonna pick up an old Mosin and make it into a scout rifle.
There's millions of these rifles out there.
Someone wants to get one, cheap, and do what he needs to do to it to make it suit his purpose, to put food on his family's table, I'm all for it.
You want a "piece of history", well-- it's an antique- find it, and pay for it.
I bought a sporterized (ok, not exactly "bubba'd") Brit 303. All matching numbers, new wood, and a NICE scope- $220.
Damn thing shoots better than I do. If I see any deer this year, they're going in my freezer. While I'm not exactly poor, I'm sure as hell not wealthy, so any way I can supplement my family's diet on the cheap with high qualiy protein is a plus for me. I very much share Uncle Ted's feelings on the matter. Yes, I am new to the hunting thing, but that's only because I've been wanting to go since I was 10, and dad was never much of a hunter (nothing against him- he was out there "killin' it and grillin' it" in a more modern fashion, to keep us clothed, fed, and comfortable). It suddenly occurred to me, some 27 years later, that I'm a big boy now and can take my damn self- so I hit tha pawn shops for something that'll put Mr. Buck down, cheap. Between this, the Mossberg 500 I got for a song, and the 30-30 I recently bought, I've got a good hunting aresenal.
It coud be MUCH worse, folks. The Brits could have done what they did to the Lend-Lease guns and the civilian weapons that we shipped over in WW2: given them a deepwater salt bath. Be thankful they're still around, and use em as you see fit.
For my next trick, I'm gonna pick up an old Mosin and make it into a scout rifle.
DaveInFloweryBranchGA
Member
Having built several custom guns using various Mauser actions where the rest of the rifle was completely shot, my advice to you is to buy a modern bolt action. BTW, my partner and I run Aces & Eights Custom Guns. We do rifles, but excel in customizing modern pistols.
By the time you spend the money to have it barrelled, the action tuned to work decently, have the old action cleaned up, find a stock, etc. etc. and have it looking decent (not fancy, just decent), you'll be out enough money to have bought a darn nice modern rifle that will out shoot it.
If you want a custom rifle, you'd be better to buy one of those $299.00 FN actions from CDNN Investments, have a smith barrel it for you and put it in an stock with aluminum bedding blocks. You'll be out less money and basically have a Winchester Model 70 made on CNC machinery. A much better choice for a custom rifle than any surplus military action.
To sum it up, sporterizing surplus military actions is a heckuva lot of work, a lot of expense (About a thousand dollars to do an "ok" job.) and chances are the rifle will NOT shoot as well as a modern hunting rifle. I would think long and hard if I wanted to invest that much money into such a rifle. Especially so if I didn't own one of the original rifles I was considering to sporterize and was familiar with the handling characteristics.
Seriously,
Dave
By the time you spend the money to have it barrelled, the action tuned to work decently, have the old action cleaned up, find a stock, etc. etc. and have it looking decent (not fancy, just decent), you'll be out enough money to have bought a darn nice modern rifle that will out shoot it.
If you want a custom rifle, you'd be better to buy one of those $299.00 FN actions from CDNN Investments, have a smith barrel it for you and put it in an stock with aluminum bedding blocks. You'll be out less money and basically have a Winchester Model 70 made on CNC machinery. A much better choice for a custom rifle than any surplus military action.
To sum it up, sporterizing surplus military actions is a heckuva lot of work, a lot of expense (About a thousand dollars to do an "ok" job.) and chances are the rifle will NOT shoot as well as a modern hunting rifle. I would think long and hard if I wanted to invest that much money into such a rifle. Especially so if I didn't own one of the original rifles I was considering to sporterize and was familiar with the handling characteristics.
Seriously,
Dave
Gordon
Member
You mean butchered like these? Steer way clear of .308 in a SMLE!
Clipper
Member
I've always wanted to rebarrel one to .444 Marlin. The bolt face wouldn't even need any altering, and I believe the magazine will feed them as-is...
theotherwaldo
Member
I don't know if you'd call 'em Bubba-fied or not, but I picked up two heavily modified Lee-Enfields that were probably camp guns at the King Ranch. Mauser-type safeties, 5-round magazines, professionally shortened barrels, really confusing proof marks, few of the usual military markings (what does L.E.5 mean, anyway?), cleanly modified forestock, but poorly side-mounted old Bushnell Banner variable scopes.
Picked up both for $180 plus tax.
Both are good shooters, though the scope mounts still need work.
If this is Bubba-fied, I like it.
Picked up both for $180 plus tax.
Both are good shooters, though the scope mounts still need work.
If this is Bubba-fied, I like it.
Freightman
Member
Picked up #4 Mk1 no markings except M 47C way beyond help as far a it bieng put back origional for $50 spent a $160 and made it a fake JC.
before and after, so I have $210 in my fake JC, but it is a tack driver.
before and after, so I have $210 in my fake JC, but it is a tack driver.
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paintballdude902
Member
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that was a quick google search thanks for the correction
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