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Shooting & Reloading - Mausers, Big Bores and others >> Lee Speed Forum & Archive
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Canyon
.224 member


Reged: 10/05/09
Posts: 4
Loc: Blue Ridge Mountains, VA
Help with a BSA Lee sporter
      #135077 - 11/05/09 10:37 AM

I am new to this forum but I hope someone here can help me with a new rifle I have inherited. It is a BSA and from other gun forums I have learned it is a Lee sporter. It was my grandfathers rifle and it has made it's way to me from my uncle as I am the family gun nut. Can anyone help me determine the age. What info is needed to tell the age of a Lee Sporter. Thanks for any help you can give.

--------------------
Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to eat for lunch, Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote"

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tinker
.416 member


Reged: 12/03/05
Posts: 4835
Loc: Nevada
Re: Help with a BSA Lee sporter [Re: Canyon]
      #135080 - 11/05/09 11:09 AM

Hello and welcome to the site!


First off, sorry for the loss of your grandfather.
I hope the rifle somehow keeps him alive with you on your future hunts.

Second, get some images of it up here for us to see and we'll go from there on age/identification/etc

Do you have any of the reloading equipment or ammunition he used with it?
There was more than one cartridge chambering offered for these rifles.




Cheers
Tinker

--------------------
--Self-Appointed Colonel, DRSS--



"It IS a dangerous game, and so named for a reason, and you can't play from the keyboard. " --Some Old Texan...

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Canyon
.224 member


Reged: 10/05/09
Posts: 4
Loc: Blue Ridge Mountains, VA
Re: Help with a BSA Lee sporter [Re: tinker]
      #135107 - 11/05/09 08:59 PM

I was planning on adding pictures but I don't have them on a website. I am new to this forum and based on my understanding, in order to post pics they must be on a website. I have tons of pics of the rifle, and on other forums I was able to upload them with my post. Is there an easier way to post them here and I don't know it? Thanks for the regards about my granddad, he was a colonel in the army. He started out in the original horse cavalry-7th Cavalry Division, and I followed in the modern cavalry, Air Cavalry with the First Cavalry Division. I will try to find out more on how to post pictures to the site.

--------------------
Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to eat for lunch, Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote"

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jc5
.300 member


Reged: 10/10/07
Posts: 162
Loc: West Coast, USA
Re: Help with a BSA Lee sporter [Re: Canyon]
      #135129 - 12/05/09 01:30 AM

Canyon,
If you email me your photos, I will post them for you.

I've been researching these particular rifles and can most likely give you an accurate date estimate if you can provide some details on markings, etc.

Please send me a private message by clicking on my name (on the lft), and we'll get to it!

In the meantime, maybe you could send us links to the other forums where you posted pics of this rifle?

Whatever we learn, we can share it with the class here.

Best regards,
JC5

--------------------
Researching Lee Speeds and all commercial Lee Enfields. If you have data to share or questions, please send me a PM.

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jc5
.300 member


Reged: 10/10/07
Posts: 162
Loc: West Coast, USA
Re: Help with a BSA Lee sporter [Re: jc5]
      #135256 - 13/05/09 12:16 PM

Posting photos for Canyon.

As I posted on the other thread: This is a 1920s version of what was known as a "Lee Speed" in the pre-WWI era. As others have said, it's a commercial sporter made by BSA---it is not a conversion of a milsurp. It should clean up into a handsome, well balanced sporter, capable of better accuracy than your average milsurp. Its collector value is also higher than a milsurp.

I know with mags, it may seem that "more's the merrier" but I think you'll appreciate not only the looks but also the balance you'll get by switching to a 5-round mag.











--------------------
Researching Lee Speeds and all commercial Lee Enfields. If you have data to share or questions, please send me a PM.

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Sarg
.400 member


Reged: 20/01/07
Posts: 1365
Loc: Nil
Re: Help with a BSA Lee sporter [Re: jc5]
      #135268 - 13/05/09 03:15 PM

Thank you for posting ! what caliber is it ? That does not look like a 303 Mag !

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Paul
.400 member


Reged: 28/08/07
Posts: 1031
Loc: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Re: Help with a BSA Lee sporter [Re: Sarg]
      #135296 - 13/05/09 10:52 PM

I know it's heresy but I'm usually not fussed about the looks of Lee Enfields, great army rifles that they were. This one, however, is a fine-looking piece! I don't suppose you've got a pic of the magazine from underneath?

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shinz
.300 member


Reged: 11/05/08
Posts: 135
Loc: New Zealand
Re: Help with a BSA Lee sporter [Re: Sarg]
      #135298 - 13/05/09 10:58 PM

I've seen pics of aftermarket LE 303 mags that looked like this so I'm guessing its one of these. Not the best looking & certainly spoil the lines of an elegant firearm. I'm with the call for Canyon to find a nice 5 shot mag for it in time, but this one will do in the short term though.
Steve

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jc5
.300 member


Reged: 10/10/07
Posts: 162
Loc: West Coast, USA
magazines [Re: shinz]
      #135316 - 14/05/09 01:33 AM

Canyon's mag looks like one of the recent manufacture .303 10-rd mags. Nothing wrong with that, other than looks, assuming it functions OK. However, such a beast is more suited to a plastic stocked hunting conversion, and his classic rifle deserves better.

Where to find 5-rd mags? An original Lee Speed 5-rd magazine will be practically impossible to find. A cavalry carbine magazine fits aesthetically but you'd have to lop off the mag loop and this would destroy a scarce item---I cannot recommend that. Besides, those are practically impossible to find too, and they deserve to be with a proper cav carb, not bubba'd.

Here are some options you might consider:

1) Get a milsurp 10-rd magazine. As seen in the attached photo of a similar sporter, it looks pretty cool. Customers could choose either a 5 or 10 round mag, so it is correct in appearance.

2) A few decades ago, an American company called Santa Fe imported surplus Lee Enfields (milsurp, not commercial sporters) and did a decent job of converting them to sporters. They had special 5-rd mags made in Japan. Below is a pic of these Santa Fe mags. These can be found if you look around. Be careful to get the ones made for the SMLE MkIII, not the No.4 rifle. They are not compatible.

3) I have seen some new-made mags that look like the one you bought, but in 5-rd size. These would not look out of place. In fact they look similar to the 5-rd mags found on some LSA Lee Speeds (see last pic below).

Good luck and congrats to your late grandfather for picking up this classic rifle. Kudos to you for choosing to preserve it.
...
First is a Lee Speed sporter original 5-rd magazine. These varied slightly in shape, but this one is typical. These would be very hard to find, but included here for reference.



Next is a 1920s BSA Lee Speed sporter with original 10-round magazine (identical to milsurp 10-round b/w a better finish):



Santa Fe magazines:




A 1920s LSA Lee Speed sporter with original 5-round magazine (note contour, not fish belly):


A newly made 5-round magzine I saw on GB for $25. I don't own one, so cannot vouch for its reliablity, etc. But it looks a bit similar to the one just above.



--------------------
Researching Lee Speeds and all commercial Lee Enfields. If you have data to share or questions, please send me a PM.

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Canyon
.224 member


Reged: 10/05/09
Posts: 4
Loc: Blue Ridge Mountains, VA
Re: magazines [Re: jc5]
      #135349 - 14/05/09 10:56 AM

I got the ten round magazine from Midway. It really does look out of place but I was just wanting to get a magazine to use when I take it to the range. I took the rifle to my gunsmith today and he was very excited to see it. He said he has only had one other come in to his shop. I alerted him about the issue with removing the handguard before tightening up the butt stock or else the handguard could crack. He said he did not think that was a problem but he would take the handguard off first. He is just going to clean up the surface rust, inspect the rifle to ensure it's safe to fire and give the bore a good cleaning and inspection. It should be back in a week and I'll post some good pics once it's all cleaned up. I am searching for a better looking 5 round mag that will better fit the rifle and if anyone has a lead I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks to all who helped me learn a little about Lee Speeds. I have to admit they are now my favorite rifle, I still have my love affair with AR15's but the Lee rifles have much more class and beauty.

--------------------
Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to eat for lunch, Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote"

Edited by Canyon (14/05/09 10:57 AM)

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jc5
.300 member


Reged: 10/10/07
Posts: 162
Loc: West Coast, USA
Back from the Cleaners [Re: Canyon]
      #136324 - 29/05/09 12:26 AM

I am posting Canyon's pics now that he has the rifle back from the gunsmith. (I saw no reason to open a new thread, so am keeping it with the original thread).

Tink suggested altering the aftermarket mag---I agree completely!

As has also been suggested, Canyon should replace the DP bolthead.

Congrats to Canyon on his classic Lee Speed! Looks great!



--------------------
Researching Lee Speeds and all commercial Lee Enfields. If you have data to share or questions, please send me a PM.

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