Lee Enfield

[doubleg]

So I was at dunhams today and I saw a enfeild in the back that chaught my eye. Latley I have been having a urge to buy a old ww2 battle rifle. Just the because of the history and how fun some of them are to shoot. Well anyways the guy handed me the best looking enfield in the case and I inspected it. Cicled the action and the bolt flew back by its self. Never handled a rifle that did that before. Overal it was IMO poor condition. The sights were beat up the finish was pretty much gone and the wood was a little loose. Then i looked at the price tag and nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to see. 250$ Is this a normal price? I would love to own one but that was rediculous.

 

[Ditchtiger]

Enfields cock when closing the bolt, you opened one that was still cocked so the bolt was pushed back. Yes the price may be a little high, depends on the model

 

[doubleg]

Also I have been thinking about joining the CMP. Should I wait it out until I get through all the red tape. Or should I just get the enfield?

 

[cracked butt]

Price is about twice that of what it should be, unless its a savage, then its only about 50% overpriced.

Dunhams seems to carry the lowest bottom of the barrel grades of guns from the major importers. I'v probably bought at least 10 rifles from Dunhams over the last 5 or 6 years, but I've probably made 10 trips for each rifle I've bought there. My advice- don't buy anything there unless the condition feels or looks good enough and its sale priced (which is usually still higher than importer dealer price). I've scored a few really good rifles from Dunham's, but only after picking through hundreds of rifles over the years.

If you want a WWII rifle, the best deals out there right now are probably mosin nagants. There have been a lot of them in stores over the last several months in nearly new condition for around $100- and ammo is very cheap for them as well, especially if you buy from a source other than Dunham's.

 

[Sunray]

Before you buy any Lee-Enfield, from anywhere, at any price, get written proof of good headspace. It'd be even better to have the retailer prove it with a No-Go guage. A Field will do. If the bolt closes on a No-Go, try the Field. If it closes on the Field, the headspace is bad.
Fixing bad headspace is an expensive nuisance. Bolt heads run $11.30 each from Gunparts for a No. 4. No. 4 bolt heads are numbered but going up by one number is no guarantee that that will fix bad headspace. Guages only. (If it's a No. 4, the rear sight will be on the receiver. What model matters. They're not the same.) There are 4 numbers on a No. 4 bolt head. 0 to 3. Gunparts has 0's and 1's. Finding a 2 or 3 isn't easy.
If it's a No. 1 and the headspace is bad, it's a very expensive nuisance. The bolt heads are not numbered and the only way to fix it is with guages and a handful of bolt heads at $11.30 each from Gunparts. You try the bolts heads with the guages until you find one that doesn't allow the bolt to close on the guage.
Prices for all milurps have gone through the roof in the last 20 years or so. Still, if you get a good Lee-Enfield, No 1 or No 4, you have a great rifle. That springing action of the bolt is normal. The Lee-Enfield is the fastest bolt action there is. German troopies thought they were facing massed MG's during W. W. I when tangling with Brit and Canadian troops armed with a No. 1. Firing that fast takes some practice though.

 

[Vairochana]

If you get a nice Enfield you will never regret it.
Even dodgy ones can shoot well tho.

 

[Sunray]

"...Even dodgy ones can shoot well tho..." You betcha, but thousands of 'em have been assembled out of parts bins with zero QC. Especially by Century. You should always check the headspace.
Ammo is another thing. The absolute best .303 ammo I've ever used was CF issue Mk VII of 1944 manufacture, while in the Queen's Service in the early 80's. Commanded a CF Army Cadet Corps. Dominion Arsenals. Fabulous stuff and long since destroyed. Much better than the 1985 IVI crap we got later.

 

[Vairochana]

in terms of the milsurp ammo- I am surprised at the quality of a box of Pakistani ammo I have (1957 on the headstamp IIRC). I usually avoid the Paki stuff but this batch is accurate and not as dirty as I have come to expect.
And I agree about the safety issues raised above-even some Enfields with matching nos can be a bit suspect from that angle.
I was refering to bores which appear to be shot but still manage to be accurate

 

[jrfoxx]

Seems REALLY overpriced to me.I just got a REALLY nice, all matching (including the spike bayo and sheath) Savage No 4 Mk 1 for $179 from SOG.Havent shot it yet though (darn Oregon, non-stop rain). Also, I was AMAZED at how smooth the bolt is on these, even when NOT cocked, my almost deos 'fly open' when touched its so smooth.

 

[Dave Markowitz]

The only way a No.4 would be worth $250 would be if it was one of the unissued No.4 Mk.2s that came on the market in the late 80s/early 90s, in which case $250 would be a very good price.

(Obviously, a No.4 Mk.I(T) would be quite a bit more than $250.)

 

[dfaugh]

Dunhams seems to carry the lowest bottom of the barrel grades of guns from the major importers.

Not always. Often the guns they have displayed are whatever they happened to take out of the box. Also, wait for sales, which they have regularly on milsurps before buying. I bought a pristine M-44 for $79.99 and an un-issued (as far as I can tell) Yugo SKS for $129 from them. My buddy bought a really nice Persian Mauser pretty cheap as well. Just ask to see what's "out back", not just the guns on display.

For example, when I bought the SKS, they had a coupla really beat ones in the rack. They kid behind the counter offered to bring out a couple more from "the back". Both were near perfect, except the upper handguard didn't match very well on one. I bought the other one, but to this day, I kick myself that I didn't buy both. AND, no cosmoline to clean off, they were already clean.

 

[cracked butt]

Often the guns they have displayed are whatever they happened to take out of the box

Most of the rifles I've seen have century hang tags that are coded for 'good' or 'very good' on the item number. Sometimes I might find a 'diamond in the rough' among the 'VG' rifles, but for the most part Century 'VG' rifles are not in good enough condition for me to consider buying.
The two stores near me are managed by the same person(s) and they likely have a policy where they do not allow customers to pick through their inventory. True story- about 6 years ago I was looking at a Czech 98/22 and I asked if they had anymore in storage that I could look through, I was told a flat "No" by the manager. The one on display was good enough to buy, so I decided to buy it. 1/2 way through the paperwork , the manager called another employee to the gun counter to complete the transaction because the manager was leaving- the manager had taken the rifle in back to box it up... the employee came back with another 98/22 in much better condition which I ended up buying instead.

I kind of have a love-hate relationship with Dunham's: their service sucks, their prices suck worse unless they are running a special sale, but I'll be the first guy in the door in the morning when they have K-31s on sale for $79 and buy them 2 or 3 at a time. Over 6 years of looking, I have yet to find a mosin nagant or sold by them where its condition and price were right by me, but I've bought a few from a local chain store called "Fleet Farm" that not only stocks "ex condition" Mosins, but prices them about the same as Dunhams prices their junk guns + they also let me pick through their inventory.

I've bought a few gems from Dunhams stores: the 98/22 mentioned above and a wire-wrap No1 Enfield.

 

[MJ]

Shop around.

You should be able to find some nice ones for $250~$300.

 

[Mumbles_45]

No. 4s are $150 at G.I. Joes here, and less than that at the last gun show I was at.

More importantly, MJ has more guns than the Arms Room two floors below me, and its not fair.

 

[MJ]

Give me a break Mumbles.

 

[Snappy_13]

I got my Enfield for 120$