Sentimental purchase

[Nestor]

I've seen probably close to a hundred of firearms coming and going thru my safe over the last decade. Some of them are still here, some are gone. However, never before did I have a firearm that could literally seen its last action being taken against Nazi Germany. Same regime that is responsible for killing 6 million of my countrymen and turned my home city into the sea of ashes during WW2.

Till yesterday.

Who knows, maybe it was even carried by the Polish fellow who fought as a part of the Canadian Corps in Italy or Normandy? Maybe this rifle defended Tobruk against the elite Africa Corps? Maybe it was carried to the top of the mountain during the struggle for Monte Cassino?

Right after WW2 in 1950 or 1951 Italy as a new NATO member received a huge number of Canadian and British Lee Enfield rifles as a strategic reserve in case of WW3.

They were stored, refurbished and taken care of by the Italians and never really used ever since.

About 10 years ago a company called Euroarms started releasing these rifles to the public in Europe after the Italians decided to sell part of the stored rifles (large number was destroyed unfortunately).

You can read about it here:

http://www.euroarms.net/efd/introduction.htm

Somehow, some of these gems made their way up here, to Canada, over the last, few years.

Over 70 years in the military storage.

No service since then.

I've got myself one.

I've never thought that things may have such a power over the people.

This is the single, most valuable rifle in my collection. Period.

Not the prettiest, nor most expensive.

Probably not the most accurate, nor collectible (many parts are not even numbered, even though the receiver and bolt are matching).

But it's sure very special.

My heart beats faster every time I touch it.

Maybe it's me being just over emotional, maybe I'm thinking way too much....but jeeez.

It's caked in the cosmoline.

Hard cosmoline it is.

70 years old after all.

I took a week off, just to start working on it.

Looks like a job for a month or two really.

I may need a heat gun.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is 1928 Ishapore Lee Enfield No1 Mk3 rifle in 303 British that most likely served with the Canadian Forces in WW2.

Stock was replaced sometimes down the road and so were the rear sight protectors along with the other parts, but the barrel on this thing...just take a look yourself. This was only cleaned slightly for the purpose of grading the condition by the store staff. Crown looks like new.

Thanks for your time. Posted this on another forum, but it fits here as well just fine.

[janice6]

Some things have intrinsic value that far exceeds it's market value.  Those items are special to some, for the very reasons you presented.  I'm happy that you got a piece of real history that you can relate to.  It's rare to find a treasure.  God Bless.

[Nestor]

Monte Cassino, Tobruk, Arnhem.

[janice6]

Yes.  Many lives were taken, and also saved, by this mechanical device.

[Historian]

Some say objects can have their own life when ours are poured into theirs. 

This is why I love guns. When you hold that rifle you have a connection to history.

[janice6]

I get odd looks when I tell people that tube electronics had the feeling of life.  They offered, heat from the filaments, underlying sound from the power transformer hum, lights from the dial pilot and power lights, and a ready willingness to bite you, if you didn't treat them right.

 

I remember late nights with my feet up on a power supply feeling the hum, the warmth of the receivers and transmitters, and the background chatter in the speaker.  It was like having a companion.  I imagine others find the same affinity to other things that are important to them.

[Historian]

12 minutes ago, janice6 said:

I get odd looks when I tell people that tube electronics had the feeling of life.  They offered, heat from the filaments, underlying sound from the power transformer hum, lights from the dial pilot and power lights, and a ready willingness to bite you, if you didn't treat them right.

 

I remember late nights with my feet up on a power supply feeling the hum, the warmth of the receivers and transmitters, and the background chatter in the speaker.  It was like having a companion.  I imagine others find the same affinity to other things that are important to them.

I still run a Drake shortwave to hear the tubes and feel the warmth. 300'watts.and a wire!

[Nestor]

Maybe I'm a bit crazy like that. Nonetheless it feels good ?

[Nestor]

I've decided to share with you (sorry - that's going to be quite boring and long post) a process of cleaning up the rifle and restoring her to the old glory. While there is very little historical value behind it (made in 1928 in Ishapore, went thru FTR process twice - in 1940 and 1945), there is still a pretty good chance that the rifle did see the war (FTRs would suggest it). It's been sitting in the Italian warehouse for the last 70 years after it was given to the Italians by Canadians in the 50's as to support the new NATO ally. Anyway. It's covered in a caked, hard cosmoline and some parts are frozen shut due to the dry preservative's presence everywhere.
Some of you may think that I'm crazy, but this old girl will receive some special treatment before being called back to the service. I hope you'll enjoy this as much as I do. Stay tuned.

[Nestor]

Initial pictures. Cosmoline is present everywhere and it formed a thick layer on wood. It smells like a long term storage Unfortunately there are some rusty spots here and there.

[Nestor]

Safety, magazine cut off and rear sights are not moving at all. They must be full of dried cosmoline. Luckily no mayor issues with the wood. Hair line crack in the rear handguard only. Small arsenal repair of the butt stock. Other than that and some small handling marks it's pretty nice. Flaking black paint covers some metal parts too. Most are mismatched, but the barrel, receiver and bolt do match. Stock looks like a post war replacement. Partially beech, partially darker walnut.

...and the bore

Edited December 16, 2018 by Nestor

[Nestor]

I would like to maintain the battle worn look, but the small flaws like cosmoline in the wood, hairline cracks and rust must be addressed before anything else. For that reason, some of my cleaning routines may seem rough or excessive to the collectors. I'm not one of them and this rifle has no significant historical value. However it sure has a lot of sentimental value to me and for that reason I want it to last for another 90 years at least. Let's start with the steel hardware. Enamel type of paint is flaking and I've decided to keep as much of it as possible without refinishing the metal parts. I may change my mind in the future, but keeping it oiled should prevent rust (after removing the existing one) from re-appearing. Surface rust and some small, isolated pitting was discovered after disassembly and de-greasing.

Magazine

Rear sight protector

Nose cap

rear band

trigger guard assembly

[Nestor]

24 hrs later. Rust remover bath - each part for couple of hours. This will be followed by using the rust check rust inhibitor spray oil on these. Soaking for another 24 hrs and then wiped off the excess. Later on, hopefully, the regular maintenance routine should be enough to keep it clean.

 

Magazine

Rear sight protector

Nose cap

Rear band

Trigger guard (lost a lot of that enamel paint...but some rust located underneath it too).

[Nestor]

I like the brass butt plate a lot. I may even start looking for the brass barrel band that was made for some limited time only. It adds much character and this Old World charm to this rifle. It was banged up a bit, so I've decided to create some patina on it.

 

too plain

 

too shiny and too pretty

 

brown vinegar mixed with the salt, but the brass is resting on the flat river rock inside when the vapors are doing the charm

[Nestor]

Looks good to my eye.

 

 

Now it's time to use a clear rust paint to preserve the patina (three light coats)

 

 

final effect

 

[Nestor]

I can tell you that Cosmoline can get hard as a rock. I was able to make the safety move just with WD40 and some patience. Same with the magazine cut off. Both parts were taken apart and dropped into the jar full of mineral spirits. I'm going to let these sit there for day or two. Every small space inside the receiver is full of Cosmoline. Now, nothing helped with the rear sight assembly. After removing it from the barrel I dropped the assembly into the mineral spirits. I sprayed this thing with WD40. Nothing. It wouldn't even move a millimeter. The spring wouldn't depress at all. Whatever was inside was just hard as rock. As the last resort (of sort) I grabbed $9 hair dryer from Walmart and started applying the heat. It got damn hot pretty quickly...so hot in fact that I had a hard time holding it with the bare fingers. Good thing is that some dark goo started leaking from inside of the assembly and finally it moved. Jeeezz...so far the most difficult part of the process. I removed as much of the grease and dirt from inside as I could and that thing joined other, small parts in the mineral spirits bath. I'll leave it there for a while. Receiver will require quite a lot of attention. Need to find a way to submerge it somehow in the mineral spirits as well. I'll tell you about the wood next time. Thanks for your time Guys!

[Borg warner]

2 hours ago, Nestor said:

I can tell you that Cosmoline can get hard as a rock. I was able to make the safety move just with WD40 and some patience. Same with the magazine cut off. Both parts were taken apart and dropped into the jar full of mineral spirits. I'm going to let these sit there for day or two. Every small space inside the receiver is full of Cosmoline. Now, nothing helped with the rear sight assembly. After removing it from the barrel I dropped the assembly into the mineral spirits. I sprayed this thing with WD40. Nothing. It wouldn't even move a millimeter. The spring wouldn't depress at all. Whatever was inside was just hard as rock. As the last resort (of sort) I grabbed $9 hair dryer from Walmart and started applying the heat. It got damn hot pretty quickly...so hot in fact that I had a hard time holding it with the bare fingers. Good thing is that some dark goo started leaking from inside of the assembly and finally it moved. Jeeezz...so far the most difficult part of the process. I removed as much of the grease and dirt from inside as I could and that thing joined other, small parts in the mineral spirits bath. I'll leave it there for a while. Receiver will require quite a lot of attention. Need to find a way to submerge it somehow in the mineral spirits as well. I'll tell you about the wood next time. Thanks for your time Guys!

Great rifle with an incredible history, You may be interested to know that the original Black paint is still available today from England but it can't be imported into the US but may be available in Canada. It is Suncorite 259.  but most people who try to restore these rifles just use High temp automotive paint. You might try the high temp paint followed by removing some of it with steel wool to preserve the worn, aged look of your metal parts followed by a clear coat since your goal is not to make the rifle look like new.

 

Edited December 17, 2018 by Borg warner

[janice6]

With respect to rusting.  If I have something that must be protected from rust, I will use High Voltage Ignition Silicon Grease.  Wipe the part with the grease, and then wipe it off.  It will leave a film of Silicon grease on the part and for practical purposes, it will not be removable over time.  The Silicon grease film will creep, so if the part is scratched or abraded, the film will creep over the exposed metal and recoat it.  It's excellent for sealing the finish from moisture and Oxygen.

 

Silicon films are so difficult to remove that most will tell you that you cannot refinish the metal with any process since the film microscopically penetrates the surface.  If you do this, remember you cannot refinish the metal anymore, but it won't rust either. 

Silicon Grease is not a lubricant, so you will have to use another grease over the part if it is to be moving against another piece.

[Nestor]

I may need to order that bolt take down tool from Brownells or buy something similar. After inspecting the wood I've came across the expected dilemma. Areas around the receiver ring (where the butt stock and forend are attached) were soaked in Cosmoline. I was hoping (despite the layer on the outside) that this, nasty staff didn't sink in, but that wasn't the case. It's somehow essential for the Lee Enfield to have these areas in good shape as the wood works the hardest there. Process of removing the Cosmoline from wood isn't exactly quick nor difficult, but in the works much of the finish was gone, so I had to stripped all of it. It's going to be difficult to re-create that burnt red tint on the dark background, but I'll try. In the meantime small cracks were glued and the glue reinforced some small areas that were compromised by time. Largest one was running on the inside of the rear handguard and it was even visible from outside. I've only did one, small repair on the butt stock as the small part of the wood that was initially touching the butt plate was gone. Otherwise, after removing the Cosmoline and drying the wood, it was ready to be refinished within 48 hours. I've also touched up the bedding areas with the anti-mold solution as there was some strange discoloration present in two or three spots. I left all the markings and scars intact. Challenge with refinishing is strictly related to different shades of wood (as you can see on the pictures) and that dark red tint of the old rifles. Challenge accepted!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 17, 2018 by Nestor

[Nestor]

Excellent feedback Guys. Much appreciated. Thanks!

[Nestor]

Light surface rust on the small parts as You can see. Short, rust removal bath and a lot of oil will take care of that. I've brushed all the small screws and parts and you can see how much crap was caked there. That's just from the one, small screw. Cosmoline is still leaking from the rear sight assembly despite an ongoing treatment (that part is visible in the upper, right corner of the first picture). I'm not sure how much of this stuff sits still inside. I'm not taking the elevation slide apart. Just too small of a part, so it will sit and soak for a while instead. It's however a small piece of art. Whole rear sight really is. Old World craftsmanship at its best.

Receiver is taking a mineral spirit bath during the day and WD40 treatment in the night. Probably for 2-3 days, just to make sure that all the Cosmoline is gone. Boiling water treatment will follow (along with the barrel), just to not take any chances. Wood is looking....well, not bad, but there were only two coats of the pure tung oil applied over the last week (first diluted 50/50 with the mineral spirits). I know that the Brits never used the tung oil. I just like it better than the BLO, because it's drying slower, penetrating the wood better while providing marginally better protection. I'm not going to show you any pictures...yet. I'll be back in a week or so, with some updates. Thanks for your time!

 

 

 

Edited December 18, 2018 by Nestor

[Borg warner]

2 hours ago, Nestor said:

I may need to order that bolt take down tool from Brownells or buy something similar. After inspecting the wood I've came across the expected dilemma. Areas around the receiver ring (where the butt stock and forend are attached) were soaked in Cosmoline. I was hoping (despite the layer on the outside) that this, nasty staff didn't sink in, but that wasn't the case. It's somehow essential for the Lee Enfield to have these areas in good shape as the wood works the hardest there. Process of removing the Cosmoline from wood isn't exactly quick nor difficult, but in the works much of the finish was gone, so I had to stripped all of it. It's going to be difficult to re-create that burnt red tint on the dark background, but I'll try. In the meantime small cracks were glued and the glue reinforced some small areas that were compromised by time. Largest one was running on the inside of the rear handguard and it was even visible from outside. I've only did one, small repair on the butt stock as the small part of the wood that was initially touching the butt plate was gone. Otherwise, after removing the Cosmoline and drying the wood, it was ready to be refinished within 48 hours. I've also touched up the bedding areas with the anti-mold solution as there was some strange discoloration present in two or three spots. I left all the markings and scars intact. Challenge with refinishing is strictly related to different shades of wood (as you can see on the pictures) and that dark red tint of the old rifles. Challenge accepted!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You're going to have to do a lot of staining of that wood to give it the look of over 100 years of use. Your best bet would be to make it as dark as you can, maybe even using a diluted Ebony stain with some dark walnut and some red tint to it and then finish it off with several coats of satin Tung oil which will seal it and preserve it

[Nestor]

1 hour ago, Borg warner said:

You're going to have to do a lot of staining of that wood to give it the look of over 100 years of use. Your best bet would be to make it as dark as you can, maybe even using a diluted Ebony stain with some dark walnut and some red tint to it and then finish it off with several coats of satin Tung oil which will seal it and preserve it

I'll try my best Sir! (spoiler alert - just two coats and still curing)...I'm actually using two different color mixes here (on different wood)....hoping that in the end, they will come up pretty similar.

Edited December 18, 2018 by Nestor

[Borg warner]

That looks REALLY good! finish it off with Tung oil. If you've never worked with tung oil you'll be surprised how great it is to work with. You brush on a thing coating. let it dry 8 hours, hit it with 0000 sreel qwoll and apply another coat. Tung oil comes in satin and gloss and the satin finish matches the original finish on a lot of oldr guns. I've use it oan a Winchester 1897, a Winchester 94, an da Belgian Browning SA-22 with very good results.

[Nestor]

I developed a slightly different technique in fact. I'm staining the wood first, but I'm also adding the stain to the tung oil, mixing it up with a bit of odorless mineral spirits. Now while applying the oil, I'm doing it while sanding with the very fine sandpaper (like 1000). This way the oil turns muddy and fills the grain quicker and also it looks better as the stain got pushed into the grain. I would let it dry for about 30 minutes and gently wipe off the excess and then let it dry for 3-5 days. I'm usually going for 8-9 coats, but the last one or two may have some poly added for additional protection against the elements (usually matte poly). I would top that with wax in the end.

Edited December 18, 2018 by Nestor