| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 27/12/21 10:16 AM |
Lee Speed project
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I have a soft spot for Lee Metford and Lee Enfield rifles. I've been restoring lee Enfield's for a few years now. mostly I work on restoring the pre SMLE rifles. I like the Lee's that have a 30" or a 21" barrel. I have always like building sporters with the ones that cant be restored. I also like rebarreling them to other calibers using barrel nuts like the cooey carcano uses to install their barrels. I've build Lee Enfield/Metford receivers into at least 9 different calibers ranging from a 25-20 to a 43 mauser and 45/70
I've always wanted to build a really nice sporting rifle on a lee action. but every one I build always falls short of what I'm looking for. I have had a few lee speed over the years and they give me a feeling that the sporters I build done. so I then knew I needed to rid my self of the milsurplus parts and build a real sporter.
I started with a LEC receiver I got on trade that had all the marks scrubbed already. so it was prefect, the cleanest of all lee enfield/metford receivers and not able to be restored. (I have a real soft spot for LEC/LMC rifles, I even reproduce LEC/LMC and MLM/MLE nose caps for them made in 1018 steel on CNC machine, some of you may have seen them)
after I got the receiver cleaned up I send it to a friend for CCH then went to work on the other parts.
Ill be installing a tang safety, so I went ahead and found a early Lee Metford cocking piece that doesn't have the safety cutout in it. the receiver is clearly Enfield but its scrubbed and I'm using a BSA engraved dust cover. its chambered in 6.5x53R.
this rifle is a lot more done then this post shows but its a start, ill update tonight or tomorrow.
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 27/12/21 10:18 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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this is how the barrel is installed using a barrel nut/adapter
so you can see in the pics the areas that torque up to each other.
green on the nut tightens into the green area on the receiver first, then the red area on the barrel is threaded to meet the red area on the receiver
| degoins |
| (.333 member) |
| 28/12/21 12:50 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Looking good!!
| Hoot |
| (.275 member) |
| 28/12/21 02:28 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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WOW! Neat project! Please keep us informed.
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 28/12/21 06:00 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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I did a little work on the bolt. I flattened the bolt handle and swept it ahead a bit and tipped it back a some, made sure there was clearance from the receiver.
I also worked the bolt head as well to make it look smaller profile and clean the look up a bit.
the BSA dust cover has been polished and was sent for CCH, ill get more pics soon. the ones of it finished CCH look terrible as they are some funky setting on my camera, definitely the wrong one. the trigger guard is also CCH
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 28/12/21 06:09 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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I bought this wood for it but it wasn't quite what I wanted. in the first pic its the 3rd from the top. I cut it in the a rough shape and drilled the butt stock, also shaped it to fit the butt stock socket then decided I wanted it to be nicer. this wouldn't do!
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 28/12/21 06:14 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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I bought a new set of dies for it and 100 of each type of bullet 129gr SST, 140gr SBT, 160gr RN
here are a few pics of the new Blank that I will be using for this build as well.
| 93x64mm |
| (.416 member) |
| 28/12/21 07:39 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Very nice indeed!
Great work to say the least.
I noticed that you've somewhat slimmed down the extractor/bolt head - or is that how they were made for the 'sporters'?
As far as heat treating the old action, what is the process for doing CCH; how do you know if you've got the temper back in the action / now too brittle to use?
Sorry mate, too many questions!
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 28/12/21 12:41 PM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Quote:
Very nice indeed!
Great work to say the least.
I noticed that you've somewhat slimmed down the extractor/bolt head - or is that how they were made for the 'sporters'?
As far as heat treating the old action, what is the process for doing CCH; how do you know if you've got the temper back in the action / now too brittle to use?
Sorry mate, too many questions!
Thanks! the bolt head I believe was my idea. I haven't seen it done on any other lee speeds I have owed, but I don't want to say for sure. It very well could have been done before. It just cleans the look up, but makes it lots harder to remove the bolt as you have nothing to leaver on them lifting the bolt head.
well when its CCH by the end of it, its red hot and quenched so it makes it very hard and brittle, due to the quenching and the addition of carbon in the CCH process makes for an extremely hard receiver. it is then tempered back to about 38 on the RC scale for hardness, so not overly hard at all, but defiantly toughened up.
the person who did the CCH harder is quite well known around north America if not farther, his name is Oskar Kob. he had done CCH on some of the finest rifles I have 100% confidence in his work
ask as many question as you have. I posted the rifle because I want to talk about it
| DarylS |
| (.700 member) |
| 28/12/21 01:18 PM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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I-too wondered about the colour casehardening and tempering the action. I know Turnbull does it, as do the Dorleac bros.
Thank you for the explanation. I also know that tempering, also increases the colours.
| Bluenoser |
| (.224 member) |
| 27/02/22 08:50 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Well Evan, you are certainly doing Oskar's color case hardening justice and Wayne appears to be chomping at the bit to get at the stock. You are doing an outstanding job and I look forward to seeing the finished rifle.
By the way, your magazine is finished.
Cheers
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 18/04/22 03:42 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Thanks bluenoser!!
So there has been work done on my stock for this rifle, there was some major delays on my end of things getting him the parts he needs to make the stock. the stock makers is doing great work and I'm very happy with the communication. the pics were texted to me so they are low quality but the butt stock is roughed out on the copier and the forend in the pic is what he's going to use as a template. so it will be cut over size from that but should finish to near that nice short slender forend. the barrel is tiny so that forend should fit it very well. I'm also going to get a small piece of the same walnut that made the stock to have a knife handle with with it
i also got the butt plate I'm going to use for it and the barrel rib. the mag is finished and on its way to me (well it still needs its engraving done) with the barrel rib i have to shorten it about 2" so i will do that where the rear sight mounts, i plan to run a NCG 3 leaf express sight without the base mounted in the rib. i also have a 4 leaf Winchester sight that im thinking about. i wish the has a ladder sight on it as well though, but the barrel is very short and thin so it may look odd to have a 5" long rear sight, that may be better suited for a rifle with a 28" barrel.
the NCG 3 leaf is 2.25" long and the Winchester is 3" long
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 18/04/22 03:43 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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so the fishbelly mag showed up today, (its a converted smle mag) I'm very excited to have it for this rifle and very pleased with the work. B_noser you did an awesome job!! JimHarrison thanks for sending him the original mag to make all of this possible.
this mag functions with 129, 140 and 160gr 6.5mm bullets. the 129's need to be loaded a bit long to make them hold in the mag properly. but they all work if loaded to 3" long and skip the crimp grove just set the OAL to 3".
now this mag is ready to go to engraving and then blueing once the stocks finished and I get the rest of the rifle back, so I can send all the parts to engraving at once then all to blueing at once.
in the pics I have it pictured with a factory LEC mag (what i was going to use in the rifle before i came across the ability to use a fishbelly mag) it would have looked ok but quite millspec for this rifle I think
| kuduae |
| (.400 member) |
| 19/04/22 06:39 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Quote:
i also got the butt plate I'm going to use for it and the barrel rib.
How do you intend to use that barrel rib? On those old Suhl made half – octagonal barrels the rib is not soldered on, but an integral part of the barrel proper, machined from the same piece of steel. The only way for transferring it to another barrel I can imagine: Mill all the barrel off the old rib! Only then it may be soldered on another barrel.
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 09/06/22 02:38 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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yes the barrel is part is apart of the barrel, when I had bought it the seller told me it was soldered on and sent pics of what looked like solder marks on the knox,
so now ill be milling the barrel off the rib then using a ball nose to concave it a bit to fit my barrel to be soldered on. more work then I had hopped but I cant find any solid barrel ribs to buy so this may be the simplest option still
| 93x64mm |
| (.416 member) |
| 09/06/22 06:57 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Beautiful work mate!
Coming along nicely, keep us informed of your progress.
| DarylS |
| (.700 member) |
| 09/06/22 01:19 PM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Well done so far, Evan.
The Left and bottom express sight is the one I bought from Brownells back in '86 & had Taylor put on my .69's barrel. It's a nice sight.
The one I bought didn't have the centres marked, so I did that and filled them with silver solder.
NitroX
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| (.700 member) |
| 09/06/22 03:11 PM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Try to keep displayed images to no bigger than 1024 pixels wide. 2048 pixels is two times too big. Makes the forums hard to read. There are free sites and free software which allows easy resizing. Thanks.
My digital SLR is set to take dual images, about 4000 pixels widecand probably raw files at over 24000 pixels wide. So resizing iscalways necessary.
Most cameras including smart phones can also be preset to take certain size images. Useful to consider what is ideal for the intended use of the image. These larger images are mostly for publishing, or large blown out photograph printing. Not needed for internet sharing.
Thanks.
PPPS Some forums automatically shrink any displayed images to a specified maximumm size. I wish this one did.
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NitroX
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| (.700 member) |
| 09/06/22 03:15 PM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Project looks like it is coming along nicely.
| lancaster |
| (.470 member) |
| 10/06/22 03:49 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Quote:
yes the barrel is part is apart of the barrel, when I had bought it the seller told me it was soldered on and sent pics of what looked like solder marks on the knox,
so now ill be milling the barrel off the rib then using a ball nose to concave it a bit to fit my barrel to be soldered on. more work then I had hopped but I cant find any solid barrel ribs to buy so this may be the simplest option still
heaven help!with the same amount of work you can make a rib from solid steel. this suhl barrel are the best of all, nobody else made such a profil.
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 10/06/22 05:22 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Sorry about the inage size..ill watch that when i get the share links from flickr. I can set the size.
And i could make a barrel rib but i dont know how to do the nice pattern on the top so for me this will be easier as i wont have to send it to be engraved
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 20/05/24 04:27 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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i just wanted to update on this project, I have got lots done on it since last post.
I finished the rear sight, finished making the rib and installing it, the stock is now finished, I bought an original fish belly mag for it, I soldered the barrel nut and barrel to make it one piece
the rifle is shaping up nicely, i still need to in stall the rear sight into the rib and install the safety switch and cut the stop bar to length and then grind the sear angle on it.
after that its just finish work. ill get some parts engraved and then high gloss blue the rest. i may send the butt plate, grip cap and tang for CCH
first set of pics is a couple of the stock getting made
the next set is the rib being removed from a overbored mouser barrel and being installed on my barrel
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 20/05/24 04:31 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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these next pics are of the rear sight setup.
and the last one are as the rifle sits right now waiting for more work to be done.
| fjrdoc |
| (.300 member) |
| 20/05/24 06:16 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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beautiful!
| 93x64mm |
| (.416 member) |
| 20/05/24 06:22 AM |
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Nearly there mate!
Nothing should be safe within 1000yards with those sights!
That timber is magnificent by the way, better than when you first wet it down to show the grain!
| degoins |
| (.333 member) |
| 22/05/24 04:11 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Man that thing looks great!!!!
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 22/05/24 06:06 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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Thanks guys, I'm very excited how this is turning out. today i plan to install the rear sight into the rib
| Rule303 |
| (.416 member) |
| 22/05/24 07:58 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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That is one great looking rifle. Very good workmanship. I really do like the timber in the stock.
| Evan |
| (.224 member) |
| 24/05/24 09:58 AM |
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Re: Lee Speed project
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I got some more work done on the rifle.
the rear sight it now installed into the rib, i dove tailed the sight base in place then a soldered it in place. the leaf and ladder sights are still adjustable.
i polished the sear tip then installed a screw to make the rifle have adjustable sear engagement so i don't have to file it, i put some blue thread locker on it so i can be very finely adjusted.
I got the safety installed and working now. its just made of mild steel and its to soft but ill use that slide rod as a template and make one out of 4140 then harden it, with about 20 pounds of trigger force i can bend the safety rod and set the rifle off. i have no business working on that butt stock, i went so slow and it took so long lol luckily i didn't mark the finish, it went well.
did some fitting of small parts, got the bolt head back together using NOS screw, spring and extractor. The mag just slides in and out now and clips in place without any force now.
i think the only things that are left now are cleaning the solder off the barrel and then finish work, engraving, bluing and cch
i need to buy and install the ejector screw on the side of the receiver too.
every time i try and delete some pics and get the numbers down i just find each pic shows something the others don't so i keep too many.
| DarylS |
| (.700 member) |
| 24/05/24 11:07 AM |
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Looking pretty sweet, Evan. You have a LOT of talent and skill.
| 93x64mm |
| (.416 member) |
| 25/05/24 05:24 AM |
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You really are doing a magnificent job there mate!
I wouldn't worry too much about the photos - it really shows the little jobs that truly make a bespoke rifle!
Looking forward to more & the range report when you're done.