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


Reged: 17/03/10
Posts: 184
Loc: Lincolnshire, England
Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee
      #156795 - 18/03/10 01:10 AM

Hi All,

Have only just got registered on the site but as some will no doubt reconise the name from other boards, and yep it's the same old me , well they know I happen to have a soft spot for British sporting rifles although sadly I don't own a double rifle . Now I do have few BSA commercial sporting rifles but as this particular forum is about the Lee Speed types I will keep to that subject.

Quite a few years ago on a visit to my local, then anyway, gunshop in East Grinstead in Sussex on the rack I spied a Lee sporting rifle which was a rarity then as you just didn't see them. This was before the blossoming of interest in shooting classics here in the UK and seeing as how I have a soft spot for the .303 I asked to see it and of course was hooked. Now I already had a Parker-Hale Supreme No1 sporting rifle built on a BSA No1 Mk11 action dated 1916 with Australian service marks under the high gloss blacking that P-H appled after the conversion and this commercial BSA would make a wonderful companion to it. Sadly durign a period of unemplyment the Supremem was sold to pay the rent.

After some haggling a price was agreed and it was put upstairs to wait for me to get a variation on my FAC and so raise the money as the price agreed upon was £350. A fairly high price but then again you just didn't see them. It took me weeks to find and buy mt P-H Supreme which cost £125 and I had to drive 150 miles to get it.

The rifle is a BSA No2 (I think ?) pattern sporting rifle built on a Metford carbine action with it's flattened and swept forwards bolt handle and dust cover, no charger bridge. Fitted with BSAs patent thumb safety on the wrist. Sights are stand with two leaves and ladder from 400-1000 yards and a bead foresight proteceted by wings set into a full cape rib. Engraved five shot magazine horn tip and cap retailed by Wm Powell & Son of Birmingham.

Now the sad bit the barrel had just been replaced with a 39 dated surplus one and in removing the rib they had damaged the very tail of it at the breech end then tranposing the rib to the new barrel a infill was made but of course it does not match as it should. Of course this does mean that I have a new barrel to play with.




Winged foresight on rib


Ladder raised.








Engraved Butt plate


Damaged rib


Shotgun type sliding thumb safety of BSAs patent.

Well I hope you like it and I will make a post to cover the BSA Model E which of course is a re-built and sporterised P-14 which BSA did between 1949-1953 before their own design of sportign rifle came into production in 1953.

--------------------
Don't let the bastards grind you down!

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darwinmauser
.300 member


Reged: 07/05/07
Posts: 217
Loc: Darwin NT
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: Brithunter]
      #156839 - 18/03/10 10:10 AM



Welcome to the forum mate ,I have seen those photo's before ,maybe on Gunboards ? A very nice rifle ,I wish my Lee Speed looked half as good.

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mehulkamdar
.416 member


Reged: 09/01/04
Posts: 3688
Loc: State of Ill-Annoy USA.
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: Brithunter]
      #156884 - 19/03/10 02:58 AM

Brithunter,

Welcome and thanks for a magnificent first post! You have a treasure there - congratulations and thanks for sharing her pics! If you hunt with her please do share hunting pics as well. As far as fine guns are concerned, we are all Anglophiles here and here's wishing you have many more beauties in your gunsafe!

--------------------
The Ark was made by amateurs. Experts built the Titanic.

Mehul Kamdar

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Brithunter
.300 member


Reged: 17/03/10
Posts: 184
Loc: Lincolnshire, England
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: mehulkamdar]
      #156933 - 19/03/10 08:34 PM

Sadly due to the stupidity of my local licensing officer I am only allowed to shoot certain rifles in my collection and this is not one of them. Despite this restriction having no basis in law and actually contridicting Home Office Guidence the Firearms Licensing Department here just make the rules up as they go along and will not change. I have had meetings with representatives from one of the senior shooting and collecting organisations here with the Licensing officer and her deputy and even after being shown that they are wrong their response was to just get up and leave.

I will be trying to swop some rifles around and one that I am wanting to have on the "to shoot list" is a BSA Model E in 303 that I recently fitted with a new Redfield 70 RWH reciever sight and a "Watson" foresight by Parker-Hale the intention is to take it stalking for Roe providing I can get the accuracy required from the rifle and myself!

--------------------
Don't let the bastards grind you down!

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4seventy
Sponsor


Reged: 07/05/03
Posts: 2210
Loc: Queensland Australia
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: Brithunter]
      #156936 - 19/03/10 09:23 PM

Hi Brithunter and welcome!
You have some sweet rifles there.
Thanks for showing them.
Would love to hear more about your BSA commercial rifles as well.
I've owned a few BSA's myself and still own a couple.
Had a Parker Hale sporting .303 too for a few years back in the late 70's early 80's. I think it was a No1 Custom from memory, have to look it up.

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Brithunter
.300 member


Reged: 17/03/10
Posts: 184
Loc: Lincolnshire, England
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: 4seventy]
      #156942 - 20/03/10 12:20 AM

Thank you,

Never had nor seen any of the P-H Customs although i recently acquired a mount for the No1 Custom. Here is my P-H No4 Supreme:-




OH that poor recoil pad has been replaced with a ribbed rubber BSA butt plate. I actually prefer the No1's but had to sell my P-H No1 Supreme quite a few years back whilst unemployed. Here it is with it's companions I had at the time:-


The one on the left was a Deluxe that I swopped the butt on with a fellow in the club who had an envoy/T4 type rifle and wanted a std military butt. The one on the right was also a P-H conversion but the barrel was badly worn. I still have the stock as the was broken up the make room on my licence.

Now the list for the BSA's so far is:-

Regent .222 Rem
Majestic Feather weight Deluxe .270
Majestic Featherweight with BESA .243
Monarch 1st Pattern .270
BSA Model E

As you can see I am missing a few like a Hunter, Viscount, Royal and a Monarch 2nd pattern but the one I really would like to find is Model 1929 Hi Velocity sporting rifle. I saw one but didn't know what it was quite a few years back so went away to do a little research on it and found out what it was but when I got back to the shop it had closed up !!!!!!!! so I never got it nor could I find out what happened to it. It was a .330 BSA Hi Velocity rifle.

I am thinking of making up one along similar lines out of the Century P-14 Sporter. Have already had it altered to .303 IMP and I have a nice Redfield Reciever sight so will need to source a suitable fore sight. The Model 1929 had a pop up peep sight from what I can make out so that would be the ideal but it will require a little thought. The hole in the top of the rear bridge on the Century rifle is uneven so it will have to be clean up. I was going to bore it out round and insert a plug like BSA did on the Model E but having a rear sight in the rear bridge would be neat. Just needs some thought and working out exactly how to make it work.

--------------------
Don't let the bastards grind you down!

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4seventy
Sponsor


Reged: 07/05/03
Posts: 2210
Loc: Queensland Australia
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: Brithunter]
      #156985 - 20/03/10 04:05 PM

Interesting photos and description, thanks.
Many years ago I had 2 BSA CF2's, .243 and .270.
Since the early 80's I've owned a few of the CRF feitherweight BSA's from the 1950's.
1 .222 Rem
2 .243's
3 .308's
1 .300 Savage
1 30-06.
Thesedays I still have the .300 Savage and the 30-06.
The 30-06 has been my main bolt action rifle for quite some years and has had a lot of shooting.

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Brithunter
.300 member


Reged: 17/03/10
Posts: 184
Loc: Lincolnshire, England
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: 4seventy]
      #156994 - 20/03/10 09:56 PM

Ahhh well I was not including the CF2's. I have a normal half stocked CF2 in 7x57. One of only 389 chambered for that cartridge accordign the John Knibbs book and my fisrt ever full bore rifle which is a CF2 Stutzen in .270 Winchester:-




I recently removed the Pecar Berlin 3-7x35 scope from it and sold it and now with Vari Focal glasses I find that the eye box is too small and what with the small distance viewaing area of the Vari Foclas it was a right PITA to use. For now it has a Weaver steel tubed K3W on it until I can get a more suitable modern scope to go on it. Somethign about 6x mag will do. This is the 7x57:-


That was the first time I had seen it again at a Bisley arms fair and it was new just missing the box and hang tags.




It has a Pecar Berlin "Champion" 4x35 on it which is much better eye position wise than the earlier classic scope so I will be keeping this one.

--------------------
Don't let the bastards grind you down!

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375BSA
.224 member


Reged: 08/02/10
Posts: 17
Loc: California, USA
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: Brithunter]
      #159321 - 22/04/10 01:31 PM

Is it at all worth having your MP give them a chat? I know it depends on the MP, but it seems to be worth a shot if they're "breaking the rules". There has to be somebody answerable if you go high enough up the food chain!

Jc5 and I would love to see some detail pics of the rifle.

--------------------
Working with jc5 on the Lee Speed research project. Very interested in contacting former BSA gunsmiths and other employees.
"Recoil is irrelevant when there's a tiger in your howdah!"

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MarinePMI
.275 member


Reged: 21/04/08
Posts: 92
Loc: San Diego, CA USA
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: 375BSA]
      #160828 - 22/05/10 02:28 AM

Brithunter,

Nice rifles! I see that you are from Lincolnshire, and wondering if you and I have a common acquaintance. A gentleman, A. Chamberlain. As I know the shooting community is fairly small in the UK, I was wondering if you two knew each other?

At any rate, again, very nice rifles!

--------------------
MarinePMI

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Brithunter
.300 member


Reged: 17/03/10
Posts: 184
Loc: Lincolnshire, England
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: MarinePMI]
      #161135 - 28/05/10 05:14 PM

Ahhh Gentlemen the MP here "Mark Simmonds" is a pretty wet week I did write to him on another matter but he got it all confused and it was basically a waste of time. I might try again as renewal is looming in 2011.

As for a Mr A. Chamberlain the name does not ring any bells but then I am terrible at names and I might know him to speak to. Depends as I only really use Reepham Moor range near Lincoln and that's an 80 mile round trip. Now if Mr Chamberlain shares the same sort of interest perhaps we should at least write or speak to one another at some point. There are few enough of us with the interest as it is here.

This weekend it's the Pheonix meeting at Bisley and due to the Plods not getting my variation done in a timely maner I shall not be attending as I have a rifle to pick up from F.A. Anderson of East Grinstead, another BSA Majestic Featherweight, so will go down when I have my FAC back as it's a 400 mile round trip and what with the fuel cost simply cannot afford to go down twice so close together. Meanwhile today we are off into Yorkshire to collect the BSA Model C wearing it's new BSA made barrel that has just been fitted. Now we just wait fot the other chap to find the Model D stock so i can purchase it and fit it to replace the poor example it came in. The rifle was brought originaly for the P-H 6E (£25) rearsight but it was the thought that restoration would be a good idea.

Seems I never learn!

--------------------
Don't let the bastards grind you down!

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Phillip
.300 member


Reged: 31/05/10
Posts: 174
Loc: North Carolina
Re: Hello, new here but some will reconise the name. BSA Lee [Re: Brithunter]
      #161229 - 31/05/10 08:04 PM

Hello,new member here as well. I have enjoyed the interesting rifles showing up and wish to learn more and exchange ideas and maybe a tall tale or two.I am a keeper of long stocks,a Lee Speed and a few Winchesters,adding in a couple of single shots.


--------------------
My rule of life prescribed as an absolutely sacred rite smoking cigars and also the drinking of alcohol before, after and if need be during all meals and in the intervals between them.
-Winston Churchill


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