From: "Alex Hamilton", [EMAIL PROTECTED] Steve and List, Thank you of advice on Drill Purpose firearms, which I have sent to my friend in the States. I enclose below a message on the same subject from David Penn, the curator of the Imperial War Museum, which also advises caution and gives specific reasons why. Thanks again, Alex ___________________________________________________ Dear Alex, Your instincts were absolutely right! There are two ways in which a firearm became 'drill purpose'. One was by downgrading an entire arm because of wear or unacceptable tolerances to the point where it was 'beyond local repair'. The other was to build such an arm from substandard parts that had been rejected and relegated to 'drill purpose' status. Your American acquaintance should therefore have the arm thoroughly inspected by a competent gunsmith, that inspection to include firing with a proof load and subsequent checking for cracks, before using it again. Some specific points for the P.14: Significant numbers of receivers were rejected at inspection, and the problems relating to heat treatment among American manufacturers at this period are well known. While the headspace tolerances were the same for a Lee Enfield and a P.14, the bolt faces differ, and the use of gauges made for the SMLE can give a false reading with a P.14. My Curator of Firearms, Paul Cornish, has commented on the high proportion of P. 14s that he has seen that were marked 'DP'. This may be an accident of survival, or may indicate a high failure rate. Cordite erosion in any .303 barrel is a potential hazard with lead bullet loads, since it increases resistance and results in abnormal pressure peaking. With best wishes. Yours sincerely, David Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A http://www.topica.com/t/17 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics
