1917 enfield 30-06. advice on purchase

[realmswalker]

I was hunting around my local gun shop today and I ran into this very nice looking rifle. When it comes to bolt action rifles im pretty ignorant. But I like that way this rifle looked and wanted to get some opinions on it.

Its the american made enfield 1917 sporter with a brand new stock on it and original mlitary sites in 30-06.

they were selling it for 350. And like i said I am no rifle expert but the gun seemed to be in good condition. The gentlemen said this gun can also be machined to fire a .300 round.

So for 350, what do you guys think as My first bolt action rifle?

I tried a search but really never got the exact answer I wanted.

thank you

 

[Art Eatman]

My first-ever centerfire was an old 1917 Enfield, back in 1950. Been shooting .30-'06, ever since.

From what I've seen at a couple of gun shows, the price is not out of line.

The only caveat is your comment about the brand new stock. Is it an original military stock? If so, the price is okay.

Check the bore against pits or signs of rust. Check the crown of the muzzle for any dings near the rifling; these can degrade accuracy. (Muzzle dings can be re-crowned at fairly low cost.)

Art

 

[El Tejon]

It's heavy, it's unwieldy, it far too long.

You've have a great time with it! When I bought mine, years and years ago, I used to shoot a lot of that plastic training ammo throught it. Great therapy!

 

[jjmorgan64]

My cousin just bought a sporterized version, ugly stock, old scope, but it was only 200 bucks,
Boy will that rifle shoot, Today was his 2nd time out with it, he doesn't shoot it real well yet, and took 6 shots at 200 yards today with pmp ammo, It shot a 4" group, with 3 shots inside of an inch.

If the bore is nice, i'd jump on it.

 

[cracked butt]

$350 doesn't sound too overpriced especially if its in good condition. I've heard that CMP is selling them for over $400 now or will be soon.

 

[cracked butt]

OOPs! I missed the Sporter portion of that. I wouldn't pay that much for any sporterized milsurp since you can darn near buy a new rifle for that much.

 

[El Rojo]

The CMP is not selling the 1917s. They are selling 1903s. I would love to get a 1917 myself. I can't help you on your price question though, and that figures since that was your original question! :banghead:

 

[cracked butt]

You can get a 1917 from CMP now.

http://www.odcmp.com/Services/Rifles/index.htm#m1917

 

[El Rojo]

Damn! Why didn't I hear about this sooner? I am as broke as a joke! Bastard house I had to buy. What do you guys think of that deal? Hmmm, I just don't have the money! Why oh why oh why??? :banghead:

 

[swingset]

The CMP guns are parts guns, non matching with so-so bores. You can get a really nice '17 for that kind of coin. I think their price on these are waaaay too high for what the rifle is.

I just picked up a very nice Eddystone, all matching '17 for under $450, I can't imagine paying that for a beater....but to each his own.

 

[Khornet]

The 1917

was actually the most commonly issued WWI US service rifle, although the 1903 got all the glory...kinda like the Spitfire in the Battle of Britain, where the workhorse was the Hurricane.

1917 is reputed to be the better rifle, stronger and with nicer action tho not as cool looking with those big 'ears' at the rear of the reciever.

 

[Blackcloud6]

What do you mean by 'sporter?" Is the stock a military stock, has it been tapped and drilled for a scope, has the barrel been shortened?

$350 sounds too high for sportrized M1917.

Yes, CMP is selling M1917s for $425 plus shipping. But I think that is a tad high too.

 

[BHP9]

A 1917 in excellent condition is a very rare bird indeed. In my section of the country even the beat up dogs are scarce as hens teeth and often sell in full military configuration for around $450.00. I often feel like jumping out the nearest 10th story window when I remember some of the brand new 1917's that I could have purchased at gun shows about 20 years ago for only about $125 dollars.

I would be very interested in seeing what the Cmp guns look like but I personally would not hold my breath. MOst of the people I know who ordered the 1903 springfields got some real dogs. At one time purchasers got smart and were throwing away the dog stocks and then ordering the drill rifles that had been demilled into non shooters. They stripped off the nice stocks for use on their recently purchaes dog 1903 rifles. Then the cpm got wind of it and upped the price of the drill rifles.

One of the reasons the 1917's are so scare are that even though they were made in much greater numbers than the Springfields most of the 1917's were actually given away to foreign countries like China during WWII.

It would be wise for those who purchase any Eddystone 1917's to take a good look at the reciever. Many were rebarreled and when this was done the actions often cracked. I have seen these cracks after taking an eye dropper full of a rapidly evaporating liquid like brake cleaner or even gasoline and then putting it a drop at a time on the reciever. Just don't do this indoors or around any sparks or flame. Eddystones were noted for brittle receivers while the Remingtons were noted for soft receivers. Winchester also made 1917's and they bring a premium price because of their much better quality.

All in all it is felt by most of the military experts that the 1917 was by far the better battlle rifle as compared to the Springfield. Sgt. York used one in WWI, not the 1903 springfield as was depicted in the Gary Cooper movie.

The only thing bad about the 1917's is that they sure were homely with their ugly rear sight ears and dog legs bolts as compared to the more dashing looking 1903 rifle.

I wish I had a mint 1917 today but I probably have a better chance of winning the State Lottery than finding a new condition one today at any price.