1918 Mark 1 III* Peddle-Scheme Enfield

[flyfishooltewah]

I picked this up last week and it just looks great. All matching numbers from barrel down to the stock. This Enfield has been rearsenaled at some point. The wood is original and has a faint serial cartouche on the front lower handguard, not sure about the finish. I have never seen an Enfield with such nice wood. Usually they are beat up pretty bad. I am looking forward to shooting this and getting more history on it.

[Garufa]

Very nice!

[Bigiron]

Very nice. Stock looks like teak wood.

[Guest VolDaddy]

Looks great.

[Guest Drewsett]

Nice looking Enfield...I don't know about teak wood though, it looks more like walnut to me. Teak is a little more grey.

[TNRobocop]

I have one exactly like that my father gave me.

It was rebuilt in 1953 IIRC.

Have to get some pics up to compare.

[enfield]

Beautiful rifle! I wouldn't have passed it up.

[Mike.357]

great looking piece. One of the these days I might have to venture into some other allied rifles aside from Russian and American. Adding calibers is what holds me back.

Love me some milsurps

[Guest gcrookston]

That's a beauty. The stock is walnut. From the latter half of the 18th century through WWII enormous tracks of land were cultivated in England for the express purpose of suppling the military industry's need for wood.

If the gun had remained in the British arsenal system after WW2, the metal parts would have been covered with a black paint during rearsenal. I'm guessing by the photos it may have been a private purchase or exported elsewhere within the common wealth some time prior to WW2. If there are no import marks, then it made it's way here some time prior to 1968 (these were the SKS's of the 1950's and 60's). If there is an import mark that could be a clue as to the time it entered and where it orginated.

[flyfishooltewah]

It appears to be mostly still black. I have not found any import marks on it anywhere. It is interesting that although it has all matching serial numbers, the one on the front sight is scratched out and renumbered. I was told that was common with the Peddle-Scheme rifles. Also, the rearsenal may be where the wood repair was done and the original SSA was re-stamped with JT...any ideas?

[Mike.357]

what does Peddle Scheme refer to?

[flyfishooltewah]

what does Peddle Scheme refer to?

From Wikepedia notation... "SSA" and "NRF" markings are sometimes encountered on First World War-dated SMLE Mk III* rifles. These stand for "Standard Small Arms" and "National Rifle Factory", respectively. Rifles so marked were assembled using parts from various other manufacturers, as part of a scheme during the First World War to boost rifle production in the UK. Only SMLE Mk III* rifles are known to have been assembled under this program.

[Mike.357]

^^thank you for the 'splanation

[Guest gcrookston]

It appears to be mostly still black. I have not found any import marks on it anywhere. It is interesting that although it has all matching serial numbers, the one on the front sight is scratched out and renumbered. I was told that was common with the Peddle-Scheme rifles. Also, the rearsenal may be where the wood repair was done and the original SSA was re-stamped with JT...any ideas?

The stock repairs could have been done at any time during the rifle's life, but the style is typical Brit Arsenal with the wood pins. The rear leaf sight is often broken or otherwise damaged and just as often replaced with a spare, either at the armory level or in the field. I had not heard of the practice of crossing out numbers on SSA Peddle rifles, and I suspect it to be a renumbered replacement (nothing wrong with that, it's still correct for this rare rifle mfg). The JT has me stumped. It's obviously the overhaul stamp, but I've never run across that one (JU was an arsenal in India, for example).

[redneck]