Where to buy a Lee Enfield?

[EdInk]

I was wondering where is a good place to find a Lee Enfield. I don't usually like surplus bolt actions (shoot lefty) but have always liked the (ugly?) looks of these and think it would be a fun rifle. Also, what about ammo? (Reloading isn't an option right now.) Can I use off the shelf .303 British (like at Bass Pro) or are they like Garandes that need weaker stuff than regular .30-06 at the store? Thanks guys.

[EdInk]

Found some MK3 and MK4 at SOG. Anyone buy one from them.

[armoredman]

Yes, any Enfield in decent shape should be able to handle any factory loaded ammo. I tried to sell my No4Mk1*, couldn't find any takers, decided I'll just keep it, but I have hand loaded for it for some time, easiest and cheapest way to keep shooting, as factory ammo isn't the cheapest.

[CjAl]

look at classic arms i think i saw some there and they really impressed me when I ordered my K31

[dreamweaver]

there's usual a couple on gunbroker at any given time. if you're wanting a shooter, a sporterized gun will be cheaper than an original. i have a no4mk1*. very accurate and fast for a bolt action.
used to be cheap to shoot with a lot of .303 milsurp around, but that's about dried up now.
prvi makes new commercial ammo with similar ballistics and it's not corrosive like the milsurp was.
lee makes (made) reloading dies for .303. i reload the milsurp cases and privy cases for a lot less than what new factory ammo costs.

[EdInk]

Yeah but there's something "just not right" with sporterized military rifles to me. I will checkout the other place as well. After rechecking ammo
prices it may not be happening after all. $1 or better per round. Still undecided.

Can the old Springfield bolt actions handle modern .30-06 or is it the whole Garande thing all over again? If so, where can I pick up a nice shooter for a fair price? CMP? Gunbroker? Anywhere else?

[Win_94]

Yeah but there's something "just not right" with sporterized military rifles to me.

This sporterized military rifle is what I call "just [] right."

Can the old Springfield bolt actions handle modern .30-06 or is it the whole Garande thing all over again?

That Springfield above shoots regular 30-06.

[p99guy]

A M1 rifle doesnt shoot "watered down" 30-06, its just that as it comes in stock form- its gas port is a fixed size. It was regulated for service ammo that used powder of a specific burn rate/pressure curve. The usual damage from the wrong ammo was a bent op-rod.

The is an adjustable gas plug on the market that allows you to use just about any 30-06 in your M1.
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct...tnumber=777146

Gun Broker, is a great place to find a Enfield.

[jsmaye]

Yeah but there's something "just not right" with sporterized military rifles to me.

I agree - I don't care how accurate they (allegedly) are.

If I wanted an accurate rifle just for the sake of an accurate rifle I'd buy a new one, not one with a ton of history behind it.

[CjAl]

classic has the #4 mk 1 rifles for $239 and they have the ammo for 288rounds $139

I will usually buy the best condition I can find to collect and find a hack job to sporterize. But I have no problems with sporterizing a rifle to make it usefull to me, or refinishing a mil surp. I made the mistake of selling off my guns once these days i'm not planing to ever sell again so the only value is their value to me. But once again I will usually try to keep one in battle condition and one refinished to what it should have looked like new or close to it

[EdInk]

I have no personal "problem" with sporterized guns. I just hate when a NICE piece of history is ruined to make a deer rifle. Now, if it's a junker by all means hack it up or do a complete refinsh on it.

[kraigwy]

Can the old Springfield bolt actions handle modern .30-06 or is it the whole Garand thing all over again? If so, where can I pick up a nice shooter for a fair price? CMP? Gunbroker? Anywhere else?

Yes the late model '03A3s can handle modern '06. It doesn't have the gas system the Garand has. Ser. #s below 800,000 are considered LOW number unsafe to shoot. I know some people say they shoot them without problems. Maybe so, but not on a range I'm running. Having said that I don't see the reasoning. CMP sells surplus ammo at pretty good prices, and if you reload, I've found Springfield's are plenty accurate enough with mild loads, in GSM (Vintage Rifle Matches) you never shoot over 200 yards, and its easier to get back on target during rapid fire with the milder loads, PLUS, that steel butt plate will get to you if you shoot very much. But like I said, the gun will take it, its the shooter that's the limiting factor.

I don't know about GunBroker, but CMP presently doesn't have Springfield's now but are suppose to get more sometime in 2011. (I too screwed up and didn't get one when they had them).

When you find some good, orginal Enfields, let me know, I wouldn't mind having one my self.

[madcratebuilder]

Gunbroker is going to be the best selection of Enfields. Both No1's, No4's and No5's and the dozen or more variations of them.

A new Enfield owner should read up on them so you know what you are buying.

[CjAl]

gunbroker is not an option for me. they won't let me join because I don't own a credit card. Even if I owned one I wouldn't give it to them for a site that is free

[ejhc11]

I got my Enfield no.4 MK1 at classic arms - most reasonably priced for a shooter not collector. I think if you go with more historical pieces than you have to go on gunbroker but beware of some sellers.

Here is a place thats seems interesting for historical pieces.
http://www.enfield-stuff.com/for_sale/index.htm

[madcratebuilder]

gunbroker is not an option for me. they won't let me join because I don't own a credit card. Even if I owned one I wouldn't give it to them for a site that is free

No CC is needed to buy from GB, only in some circumstances as listed below.

"We charge no recurring membership fees of any kind. Users of free email services like Hotmail or Yahoo or persons whose registration information is flagged as suspicious by our fraud prevention systems may be required to place a credit card on file to pay for identity verification. To prevent fraud and abuse, new users with no feedback must place a credit card on file to use the BuyNow! immediate purchase option."

[CjAl]

I have a Gmail email address. Since it's a free email service they require a credit card. Only internet I have is verizon wireless so I don't have an email addy through them. I've emailed them and offered any proof of ID they require but all they can say is a credit card is mandatory because of my email and all I have is a debit card which they won't take. I don't believe in credit cards so I run into this occasionally

[Chris95]

j&g has some no4 enfields that should make good shooters and you can get some old 174 grain military ball ammo 50's production and corrosive but that shouldn't be a problem if you clean your gun after shooting, but it would be a good idea to check out gunbroker.

[stickhauler]

I was wondering about that because I have never given a credit card number to Gunbroker nor have I used one in any transaction I've done from there. Why they would require it for a "buy it now" sale with no buyer history makes no sense, the sale is arranged between the seller and buyer using whatever payment type is agreed upon between them on any transaction. All but one of my deals that went through that site were paid by postal money order, the only exception was an agreed upon personal check when my local post office's money order sales system was down when I went to buy one for the purchase.

[hagar]

The ones being offered commercially lately have been pretty ratty. Best bet is the forums or GB. I have picked up a couple of really nice ones over the last 10 years, and the most I ever paid was $350 for a brand new UF55 No4Mk2.

[Volucris]

C&R FFL, Gunbroker, For Sale listings on forums like SurplusRifle, here, etc.

[SigP6Carry]

I've heard of no military arms that can't handle modern factory loads for real, just rumors about Arisakas. The later Arisakas are still shootable, they're just not pretty. People mistake them for the slew of "pressure test" models that should never be shot.

Simpson LTD's got some nice Enfields, actually, and I greatly enjoy doing business with them.
http://www.simpsonltd.com/product_in...032e2387914471
http://www.simpsonltd.com/product_in...032e2387914471

Those two have caught my eye from them.

SOG's got a few, cheaper, as well, I believe.

I wanna say J&G's got them, too, but I'm not sure.

They're easily available. Cheaper than a Springfield, more expensive than an Arisaka and you can get about 4 Mosins for the price of an Enfield.... but, you gotta work out the ammo cost, too. Plus how much you like the gun itself.

[Ignition Override]

With new Prvi Partizan ammo, the price is about the same as for corrosive surplus which re-entered the market again, a few months ago.

You probably realize that gun prices people paid 'over the last ten years' often are meaningless compared to prices today.

[Annihilator]

I ordered two Enfields from Classic Arms and was rather disappointed in their condition. They were advertised as good to very good but I would rate them fair at best. Both barrels swallowed a bullet and had pitting inside the barrel and out. I would keep checking the forums.

[DrLaw]

There was a glitch when the low-numbered models were made and the receivers were not properly hardened. They can burst. It's about that simple, without technical jargon, which you used to be able to find pretty easy on the CMP site or surplusrifleforum.com.

The Doc is out now.