Lee Enfield Nº4 Mk1*

[JUAN PRIEN]

Hi friends: i can buy a lee enfield nº4 MK1* in very good condition, 0.303, it have stamped the model, but another inscription said: "us property". I belive that the MK1* was the rifles made in CANADA or USA. Can you comfirm this?
i´m a canadian equipment collector, i have a doubt if this rifle can be used for the canadians, or "us property" identify it as american used gun.
Best regards.JUAN

[rob love]

The "US PROPERTY" marking, located on the left upper flat of the receiver, was used on the Savage made no4mk1 and no4mk1* rifles supplied to the Commonwealth under the lend lease program. When American production ceased around 44, the remaining inventory of parts were transferred to SAL (Long Branch) Canadian production.

I have seen several C/l\ marked Savage rifles, so some did make it in to Canadian service. However, they were generally in British service.

To confirm that your rifle is a US made Savage/Stevens, look for indicators like a squarish S on the various parts, and a C in the serial number of the rifle (such as 23C4567). The C stood for Chicopee falls, which was where the rifles were made.

[JUAN PRIEN]

Hello Rob: thak you for your help. i find Checoppe falls in Massachusets, usa, so if the rifle have a c in the serial number, it undoubtedly becomes in it usa. Since I can check if it was made whit usa parts in canada?.
I deal for your response that has or not the C arrow can have be used by the Canadian army, already it is made entrely in USA before 44´ or assembled in canada?. it is correct?. Thankyou very much. Only with his your help I can recreate correctly the Canadian equipment of 1944/45.
My best wishes.Juan

[rob love]

No matter what year the rifle was made, it could still have been used in Canadian service. So could a British made rifle. The majority in Cdn service were the made in Canada Long Branch rifles however. These would normally have a L mixed into the serial number.

The C with a little arrow in it denoted that the rifle was Canadian property. The British used just a straight arrow.

The US made rifles are not commonly found with the Canadian property marks on them. However, they can be found that way. And with the parts having come to Canada after the US production ceased, there are some real oddities to be found, including receivers with both the Long Branch and Savage markings. Also, there are Savage receivers with Long Branch serial numbers.

To sum up, it would not be incorrect to use the Savage as representative of Canadian equipment. However, it would be much more correct to have a Long Branch rifle for the job.

[charlie fitton]

I've seen a few of these with two groove barrels. Odd to look through, but they seemed to shoot well.