Enfield 303 longbranch 1942 no4 MK1 options

[OLDNEWBIE]

 90% rifle with corroded inner barrel, 1942 Canadian made Enfield,  Would you?

(A) rebarrel? if so jungle carbine it up, modify etc. into what interesting project? Don't have the nerve to sock alot of money and time into it.

(B) rebarrel as original as possible? being rebarreled reduces value alot I would think. No Idea the process and expense but would be neat to have a fresh 303 Enfield

(C) keep it stock for historical reasons to look at and fondle lol....Would look nice in a WWII Museum

(D) Part it out? not sure that's a thing and time consuming.

Option C is not for me that's why I have it in the classifieds but am starting to consider A, B and D

 

[Garufa]

How does it shoot?  If it shoots alright I’d leave it be.

 

[Choatecav]

I agree with Garufa but if that is not a viable option I would do B or C.  Definitely not A.  Don't put a new barrel on this.  It's a historical piece and they aren't making them anymore.  

In case you can't tell from the above, I also don't agree with the development of historical land and old battlefields.  And I damn sure don't agree with taking down our monuments......... But that is for another discussion.  

[OLDNEWBIE]

1 hour ago, Garufa said:

How does it shoot?  If it shoots alright I’d leave it be.

 

It's pretty bad. I inherited it and even after much cleaning the bore looks like a cruddy sewer pipe. Not up on headspace either so never shot it.

Action is real good so I don't want to make things worse. 

Cleaning did reveal partial remnants that it was a two groove 

[Garufa]

19 minutes ago, OLDNEWBIE said:

It's pretty bad. I inherited it and even after much cleaning the bore looks like a cruddy sewer pipe. Not up on headspace either so never shot it.

You’ve had the headspace checked and it’s a no-go?  If so, Enfield headspace is adjusted using a series of different sized bolt heads.  Those may or may not be available…I’m not up on the used Enfield parts market.

[1gewehr]

There are replacement barrels that can be had.  Even original Long Branch barrels have show up.  If you go that route, I would send it to a professional with experience with re-barreling SMLEs.  Not a job for Bubba unless you want to risk a twisted receiver.

You might look for some 8mm bore brushes.  The SMLE has a .311 bore, not .308.  So, normal .30 brushes sometimes don't do a good job of cleaning out gunk in SMLE and 98K bores.  You might also try some bore paste.  I've seen barrels I thought were hopeless turn out OK after an extremely thorough cleaning.