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Greetings, Liberty Lovers…
This weeks’ firearm is the SMLE. Hey, Big Mullet, What is an SMLE? SMLE stands for Short Magazine Lee Enfield. It is more commonly called the Lee Enfield or Smelly. Look at the pictures of my SMLE below. Notice how the stock goes almost to the very end of the rifle. This design is what gives the Lee Enfield its distinctive look.
This weeks’ firearm is the SMLE. Hey, Big Mullet, What is an SMLE? SMLE stands for Short Magazine Lee Enfield. It is more commonly called the Lee Enfield or Smelly. Look at the pictures of my SMLE below. Notice how the stock goes almost to the very end of the rifle. This design is what gives the Lee Enfield its distinctive look.
The Lee – Enfield gets its name from James Paris Lee, who designed the bolt system in the 1880’s. Enfield comes from the city the rifle was made.
The Enfield shoots a .303 caliber Mk VII SSA Ball, often referred to as .303 British or just “Three O three”. This round is readily available and if you are a reloader, like the Mullet, dies are easily to come by.
The roots of this rifle go back to the late 20th century. Some form of this rifle has been in use for over a hundred years, from the Boer War to when the British were in Afghanistan, not this time.
What made this rifle unique in its time, the magazine held 10 rounds of the powerful “three O three”.
Most rifles of the time, especially bolt action rifles, were 5 or 6 rounds. In the hands of an experienced British soldier, he could put 20 to 30 rounds per minute down range double that of other military rifles.
The Enfield shoots a .303 caliber Mk VII SSA Ball, often referred to as .303 British or just “Three O three”. This round is readily available and if you are a reloader, like the Mullet, dies are easily to come by.
The roots of this rifle go back to the late 20th century. Some form of this rifle has been in use for over a hundred years, from the Boer War to when the British were in Afghanistan, not this time.
What made this rifle unique in its time, the magazine held 10 rounds of the powerful “three O three”.
Most rifles of the time, especially bolt action rifles, were 5 or 6 rounds. In the hands of an experienced British soldier, he could put 20 to 30 rounds per minute down range double that of other military rifles.
There are several variants of the SMLE. Mine is a SMLE No. 4 MK 2 which was manufactured in 1954.
The second picture of my Enfield is out of focus. Not only can’t Big Mullet hear, he can’t see either. Anway, if you look carefully on the receiver, you will see model number No. 4 Mk2 (F). Below the model number is the date of manufacture, 1/54 or January 1954. Next to the date is PF and serial number.
PF stands for Fazakerley. Which was the Royal Ordnance Factory for my rifle. Fazakerley is near Liverpool.
Both BillyBob and me have shot this rifle. The bolt action is awesome. The 303 shoots like the .308 or 7.5 Swiss. You know you are shooting a battlefield weapon.
I mentioned in an earlier post about historic gun day at the range. We drag out all our WW I and WW II weapons and see what we can do with them.
(Added by BillyBob - Here a picture of the SMLE in action from Historic Gun Day)
For me the best part of collecting is not just shooting them. I love the history behind these weapons. I want the appropriate sling and bayonet that came with the firearm; I run down the serial number and try to find its provenance. Most of all, I like taking them apart, see how they work and cleaning them up.
Other than cleaning the stock with Murphy’s wood soap, I don’t EVER refinish the stock. I love the character each stock has with all its dents, dings and rubs.
Other than cleaning the stock with Murphy’s wood soap, I don’t EVER refinish the stock. I love the character each stock has with all its dents, dings and rubs.
If you are a WW I or WW II weapons collector the SMLE should be part of your collection.
Blessings, Big Mullet
Blessings, Big Mullet