Photos of my Lithgow No.1 MkIII*

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ptrthgr8	Photos of my Lithgow No.1 MkIII*	Lead	[-]
Posts: 3920 (09/09/07 10:55 PM) Host Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Tags : None Hi, all. Here are the promised photos of the Lithgow I picked up a few weeks ago. The recoil plates haven't arrived yet, but I'll be sure to get then installed before actually taking this gem out to the range. It's definitely one of the better looking rifles in my collection. I'd like it better if the recoil plates had been installed, but I suppose it's a small price to pay for having such a sweet rifle added to the collection. And I do love the brass barrel band. Cheers, ~ Greg ~ "War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse." -- John Stuart Mill Check out my photos! public.fotki.com/ptrthgr8/ Click here to adopt a US sniper today!
A square 10	Re: Photos of my Lithgow No.1 MkIII*	#1	[-]
Posts: 790 (09/10/07 08:37 AM) Veteran member Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	i agree , thats a good looking rifle , not yet had the opportunity to find a really nice lithgow myself - you have done very well with this one , im liking the looks of the brass swivels and band
97th signalman	Re: Photos of my Lithgow No.1 MkIII*	#2	[-]
Posts: 22 (09/10/07 10:07 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	I am kind of new to Enfields. Hence my question: What are recoil plates? I shoot every gun that I have.
Renfield54	Re: Photos of my Lithgow No.1 MkIII*	#3	[-]
Posts: 485 (09/10/07 10:10 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	That's a GREAT lookin' Lithgow!! I've got a '42 myself, with the brass band, but, overall shape is NOTHING like yours!! Mine went thru India on it's way to me, it's got the Ishapore screw, and an Indian buttstock installed, but still a sweet shooter. And yes, the recoil plates ARE installed .....I made sure of that before takin' the ol' Sgt.-Major out for the first time!! Makes mine look downright poorly, compared to yours....lucky man, you.......ENJOY!! Steve "Dusty old helmet.....Rusty old gun......They sit in the corner and wait" ~Audie Murphy--1925-1971~
in itinere	Re: Photos of my Lithgow No.1 MkIII*	#4	[-]
Posts: 31 (09/10/07 03:49 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	I second 97th's post... I unsure what a recoil plate is as well... anyone got a photo adn explanation for us newbs?
jrmc75	Re: Photos of my Lithgow No.1 MkIII*	#5	[-]
Posts: 575 (09/10/07 04:52 PM) Veteran member Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Recoil blocks... That Lithy turned out very nicely indeed.
ptrthgr8	Re: Photos of my Lithgow No.1 MkIII*	#6	[-]
Posts: 3920 (09/10/07 09:08 PM) Host Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Is there anything special about the sling? This is the first Enfield I've received that had a sling with it and the date on the stamp (1943) sounds right. Is this a correct sling and if so anything to write home about? Cheers, ~ Greg ~ "War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse." -- John Stuart Mill Check out my photos! public.fotki.com/ptrthgr8/ Click here to adopt a US sniper today!
97th signalman	Recoil plates or blocks	#7	[-]
Posts: 22 (09/10/07 10:48 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Thanks jrmc75 for the photos of recoil blocks. What are they made of...Metal, wood? Are they neccessary for the No4 MkI as well? Are they standard on issue Enfields? What happens if you don't have them?
ptrthgr8	Re: Recoil plates or blocks	#8	[-]
Posts: 3920 (09/10/07 11:10 PM) Host Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Check out the thread I started when I first got this rifle -- JJCO import is in the title (in this forum). Lots of good info there about this issue. Cheers, ~ Greg ~ "War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse." -- John Stuart Mill Check out my photos! public.fotki.com/ptrthgr8/ Click here to adopt a US sniper today!
97th signalman	Re: Recoil plates or blocks	#9	[-]
Posts: 22 (09/11/07 03:09 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	I read the suggested post with all sorts of comments on the neccessity for recoil blocks in rifles with "coachwood" forearms. I am not familiar with coachwood. My 1943 Maltby NO4 MKI has a mix of wood in its stock furniture. I will attach some photos. Can anyone tell me if the forearm looks like coachwood? [/img] I shoot every gun that I have.
Renfield54	Re: Recoil plates or blocks	#10	[-]
Posts: 485 (09/11/07 03:30 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	97th.... Coachwood is particular to Austrailian-made rifles, like the Lithgows. Yours is a #4 Mk 1.......not a #1 Mk111 (*) It's fine, as is. FWIW........Steve "Dusty old helmet.....Rusty old gun......They sit in the corner and wait" ~Audie Murphy--1925-1971~
DibsInNH		#11	[-]
Posts: 1 (10/17/07 08:25 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	ptrthgr8, That is one beautiful looking rifle. I just picked up the identical rifle but mine is not nearly in as good a shape as yours. Yours is a keeper! I don't mean to hijack the thread but I wanted to see if anyone can explain the markings on the rear buttstock. As I just mentioned, I have the same rifle. It's a '42 dated Lithgow SMLE but the rear buttstock is stamped with the '43 date? Does that mean it was FTR'd?
DibsInNH		#12	[-]
Posts: 2 (10/18/07 09:32 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	ptrthgr8, I just checked the barrel band on my rifle and, underneath a heavy coat of black paint, I found a nice, solid piece of brass...just like yours. Very nice!
Gearhead222	I have a Lithgow SMLE #1 Mk3 incoming...	#13	[-]
Posts: 189 (10/21/07 12:22 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Should I expect it to have the protective coachwood blocks?If not there,where do I buy and install these?What happens if these are not installed?Does the wood crush?-Gearhead
Ed Novak		#14	[-]
Posts: 1496 (10/21/07 01:20 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Gearhead: Go back to the start of this string and read all the postings, please - the Coachwood/brass recoil blocks are covered in excellent detail therein, I think. Remove the fore end and look for the brass blocks - always remove the fore end before the buttstock on any SMLE/No.1 new to you. If you will review the immediate string and work back through previous strings, you will find a lot of very good information, including photos. Posting about this issue, dtd 9/20/07 has nice photo(s) of a Coachwood fore end without the blocks. HTH. You will enjoy your Lithgow - very fine rifles, all of them. Last Edited By: Ed Novak 10/21/07 01:35 PM. Edited 1 times.
Gearhead222	Hey Ed!	#15	[-]
Posts: 191 (10/21/07 01:56 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Saw the picks and had read the thread previously-just don't know if I want to mess with Coachwood.I shoot all of my rifles and do not want to chance a broken stock.I read another thread where the owner wrote how his Lithgow SMLE has a Queensland maple stock.How can you tell if you have a Coachwood stock?This trade is not finalized and I can trade for a less expensive British SMLE-Gearhead
Ed Novak		#16	[-]
Posts: 1498 (10/21/07 03:54 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	I'd start by checking your rifle for the recoil blocks. If they are present, the problem is solved. If they are not present and you don't know what the wood is, can you post photos? There are some very good and experienced eyes here which likely can identify the wood for you and advise. I've never seen Queensland Maple in person or in a photo; your Lithgow will most likely have Coachwood. If it were me - "if wishes were fishes..." - and the rifle is really nice, I'd try to photograph and identify the rifle as best you can and offer it to another Lithgow addict if you don't want it and you can afford the trouble and time. Some folks, like me, live somewhat remotely and for me, I usually need to make a 200 - 400 mile round trip to even look at a Lithgow. Gives you an option if you don't want the rifle. Frankly, a decent Lithgow doesn't sit long waiting for a buyer.
jollygreenslugg		#17	[-]
Posts: 3 (10/22/07 04:33 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Greg, Lovely rifle, very nice example of a mid-WW2 Lithgow. DibsinNH, Most WW2-dated Lithgow rifles have a later date on the buttstock from the one on the receiver. The receiver date is when the receiver was finished, not when the rifle was assembled. It would seem that there was a backlog of receivers and as they were assembled into rifles, this happened later on, hence the later date. I have 1940, 1941 and 1943 Lithgows, and they all have a later date on the buttstock. The HV pertains to High Velocity ammo - MkVII rather than the earlier MkVI. I'm not sure why they marked this on WW2 rifles, as the changeover from MkVI to MkVII took place decades earlier. The other markings are self-explanatory. Guys, Coachwood is an Australian timber and is found on Australian made or non-Australian made but Australian FTRed No1s only. It has a mid brown colour, lighter than walnut but darker than beech or maple. The easiest way to tell coachwood stocks is that they usually have Aussie brass reinforcing screw threads near the top on the rear of the stocks, behind the charger bridge. This can be seen on the last of Greg's shots on the first page. Queensland Maple is more of a honey-blonde in colour, and is quite an attractive wood. I'll try and find a pic to demonstrate it. Coachwood was used during WW2 and afterwards, as well as earlier-dated rifles which were FTRed in Australia. To tell whether a rifle has gone through the Aussie FTR process, look on the left hand side of the buttsocket, below the safety spring. There is usually a two-letter and two-digit code, such as MA55. This refers to Lithgow (MA) and the year of the FTR. An Aussie FTRed rifle is usually a nice find, assuming that it hasn't been 'ridden hard and put away wet'. Hope this helps. Cheers, Matt
Gearhead222	Thanx Jolly Green!	#18	[-]
Posts: 197 (10/23/07 04:55 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	So if there are NO brass reinforcing pins in the lower handguard behind the charger bridge and there are NO brass reinforcing plates,then it is relatively safe to say that the stock is not Coachwood?In other words, the non Coachwood stocks were hard enough that they did not need pins nor recoil plates?This particular Lithgow has two crosswise pins through the upper rear handguard to hold a plate that holds the handguard to the receiver but no lower handguard brass pins.Thanx again-Gearhead
DibsInNH		#19	[-]
Posts: 3 (10/23/07 07:32 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Jolly Green, Thanks, too! I really enjoy finding out about the history of the different rifles that I own. I appreciate the willingness of everyone to share their knowledge. This is a great place to hang out.