So I have these DGR projects involving 1917 rifles and would like to know if anyone might suggest appropriate safeties. I don't want the two stage or any sort of flag. I think I would prefer the side safety much like on the Whitworth express rifles.
Does anyone know if any tang safeties are available or worth looking into.
Thank you,
Frank

Frank,

The Whitworth and Interarms slide safeties are merely trigger block mechanisms. They do not block the firing pin. So with the safety on, the rifle could get dropped and still fire.

However, the original Enfield safety, as well as a Model 70 3 pos conversion, the safety blocks the firing pin so that it cannot strike the primer.

Personally I would avoid a slide safety for that reason.

Frank,

It's going to be hard to beat the original 1917 safety.

Frank,
you've got the best safety there is for them. Well, nearly... have all the internal bits polished to just enough to remove the rough and burrs..

i've got one of the 3 pos enfield safeties on my 500 jeffe... works great, but sadly, i don't think it's a wit better than the one that came with the rifle in 30-06...

jeffe

The original safety as mentioned is about as good as you can get, and I personally love the way it works, very convenient for my thumb to manipulate.

That said though, if you are going real far down the custom path with it, (grinding the action, custom bases, new bolt handle etc) then it is cosmetically something that you could consider changing. I have a 1917 project on hold that I am going to have the safety changed on although I love it, because why go that far and leave it like that? There are a couple of optionso n 3 pos safeties for them I think.

Of course the action will have to be cleaned up where the original was and if you are stocking it yourself or having somebody use a semi-inlet you will need to take into account that the semi-inlet will probably be cut for the original safety and either get the person cutting it to leave that out or go with a custom pattern.

quote:

D Humbarger: Frank, It's going to be hard to beat the original 1917 safety.

Ditto. I intend to leave the original safety on my 1917 big-bore project.

It it's not broke don't fix it.

ZM

Frank-

Ed LaPour makes a Model 70 three position safety for the 1917.

In addition, Tom Burgess makes the most beautiful conversions of 1917's and he has his own Model 70 type 3 position safety which looks a lot like a Mauser safety with the flange.

Good luck.

Very good advice and I thank you. I guess this comes from my asking my gunsmith if he would alter the look of the safety and for his "safety" sake he said he would not alter any safety for liability reasons and to try and find one I might like. I have several different Interarms rifles and knew about the lack of a pin block but hoped someone might have a lead on another. I may have to do the filing on the knob myself and stay with it.
I just wanted a little smaller profile.
Frank

Frank,

Here's one more leave well enough alone. I have the original safety on my 30S, and would not have any other pattern, it works just fine.

Hog Killer

Have two 1917's and have left the original safety on both. I left the bolt handles alone also...I like the design. Call me crazy, but why mess with something that works.

In the old books on gunsmithing,they suggest changing the shape of the knob,there is an awful lot of metal there.

I am convinced. I went in to the gunsmith to take another look and fiddle with the safeties and agree. They are best left alone. They are large enough to catch everytime no matter how quickly I tried to flip the critters and I guess the original has been good enough for nearly 100 years and I will leave 'em be.
Thanks for the help in deciding.


And while I am here let me ask this. What would someone be willing to pay for an original in the box with documentation and the 1940 cosmoline intact Winchester 1917.

While I was there today a friend asked if I would be interested in an action from Rockport or Rock Island(?) armory, a 30-06 action. I didn't think anything of it thinking a springfield but found the armory also distributed the 1917 as well.
I don't think I gave him my best poker face but he is going to call me tonight to give me a price.
Any suggestions.

Frank

I don't care for 1917 Winchesters for custom projects because they have a large machined oval under the bridge which must be filled. Some Eddystones also have it, none of the Remingtons. If the Winchester is all mint and original, I would leave it that way regardless.

Frank,
the in the box is probably worth 600-800, seriously. But only to a collector!!!

jeffe

Thank you. I knew about the oval but don't think much about it since my gunsmith is really very knowledable and has been converting them for African calibers for many years.
Yes it is all original and never out of cosmoline. Very pretty.
I won't pay anywhere near that but it is good to know when he calls what the top end should be.
I suspect I will find a happy medium and maybe make another '06. for a piece of claro I have.
Frank

quote:

Originally posted by Frank Martinez:
While I was there today a friend asked if I would be interested in an action from Rockport or Rock Island(?) armory, a 30-06 action. I didn't think anything of it thinking a springfield but found the armory also distributed the 1917 as well.
I don't think I gave him my best poker face but he is going to call me tonight to give me a price.
Any suggestions.

Frank

Frank,

After WW1, the US government had all their 1917 US Enfields inspected/reworked by several arsenals...among them, Rock Island.

Rock Island Arsenal never “made†any 1917 US Enfields...they only inspected/reworked some made my Winchester, Eddystone, and Remington. You will find their stamp (R.I.A.) on the left side of the stock.

Yes Rick. This one was packaged and shipped from Rock Island. It is the action only.
Thanks for the pm Fla'06, I will continue my talks with my gunsmith on Monday.
Frank