mawkie
C&R Whisperer
-I'm used to long searches for the magic combination of example/price and this latest one was no exception. Everyone who's hung out on this forum for any period of time knows I'm a training rifle whore. And in that universe is a special place for British .22 trainers. The Royal Navy No9 had eluded me for decades, with me being out-bid numerous times, left to soldier on with the hope that I could pull off a score before retiring from collecting (close!).
-This week a very nice collection of rare Enfield rifles came to auction with everything from early Long Lees to carbines. Within this catalog were not one but TWO No9 rifles. The first listed was a gem with a correct Navy SN and in near unissued condition. So the strategy was to bid aggressively on this first No9 with the second lot as a backup if out bid.
-As it turned out when the dust settled I was the high bidder on my fav. lot and managed to get it for well under market price (No9s generally sell in the low to mid teens, $1100-1500 on avg). In fact, reviewing all of the Enfields sold that day this was by far the best bargain IMHO. The second No9, in lesser condition, sold for the same money as mine.
-It'll be a couple of weeks before the BBT delivers it but the auction photos are spectacular and will do for now. The only thing missing is a photo of the muzzle where text "Parkerifled A.G.P." should reside. I was thrilled to see that it has a very rare Parker front sight cover, something as a longtime Enfield collector that I've never been able to find.
-The No9 was a .22 conversion of the No4 performed for the British Royal Navy. Very similar to the Canadian No7, it's a conversion of a .303 No4 to .22. According to Skennerton all different MKs were employed but most appearing to be the later MK2. So this example might have the later MK2 receiver mounted trigger. As the original markings were scrubbed from the butt socket it's not possible to tell from the auction photos. Approx. 3,000 were converted between '56 and '60. The SN on this example falls well within that range. Parker sleeved the barrels, added a .22 bolt head w. appropriate extractor and floating firing pin. As with most British Enfield trainers the magazine is an empty shell with ".22" stamped as it's a single load design. The rear sight is the std Singer type with "25 yds" marked on the side. I squirreled away a fully adjustable Parker 4C target sight w. 6 position adjustable iris that will find a home on this one.
-This week a very nice collection of rare Enfield rifles came to auction with everything from early Long Lees to carbines. Within this catalog were not one but TWO No9 rifles. The first listed was a gem with a correct Navy SN and in near unissued condition. So the strategy was to bid aggressively on this first No9 with the second lot as a backup if out bid.
-As it turned out when the dust settled I was the high bidder on my fav. lot and managed to get it for well under market price (No9s generally sell in the low to mid teens, $1100-1500 on avg). In fact, reviewing all of the Enfields sold that day this was by far the best bargain IMHO. The second No9, in lesser condition, sold for the same money as mine.
-It'll be a couple of weeks before the BBT delivers it but the auction photos are spectacular and will do for now. The only thing missing is a photo of the muzzle where text "Parkerifled A.G.P." should reside. I was thrilled to see that it has a very rare Parker front sight cover, something as a longtime Enfield collector that I've never been able to find.
-The No9 was a .22 conversion of the No4 performed for the British Royal Navy. Very similar to the Canadian No7, it's a conversion of a .303 No4 to .22. According to Skennerton all different MKs were employed but most appearing to be the later MK2. So this example might have the later MK2 receiver mounted trigger. As the original markings were scrubbed from the butt socket it's not possible to tell from the auction photos. Approx. 3,000 were converted between '56 and '60. The SN on this example falls well within that range. Parker sleeved the barrels, added a .22 bolt head w. appropriate extractor and floating firing pin. As with most British Enfield trainers the magazine is an empty shell with ".22" stamped as it's a single load design. The rear sight is the std Singer type with "25 yds" marked on the side. I squirreled away a fully adjustable Parker 4C target sight w. 6 position adjustable iris that will find a home on this one.
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