I'm just curious - I have no knowledge of P-14 and 1917 rifles. Why would you choose one for a custom rifle? Especially a magnum, such as .458 Win Mag or Lott? Are they strong actions? Smooth? Are they CRF like a mauser?



Thanks for any help,

Scott

Yes for starters they are controlled round feed actions. At least the P-17 rifles are extremely strong and can handle anything you can feed thru them....I don't include the Eddystones in this statement however.

Mine, a .375 H&H is converted to cock on opening, three position safety, four round magazine, Fiddleback stock and some fine checkering....

There's a lot of work to convert one to a fine DG sporter.....it's doubtful if it's worth the effort.

I'll try to post some photos.

P14 was for .303 Brit has wider bolt face than P17 which was for '06 is therefor sometimes preferred for belted mags. However vast amt of gunsmithing required and availability of good factory mag rifles has undermined need for 17 and 14 conversions. Heyday was 1950s when they were $7.50 from DCM and every gunsmith knew how to work on them, those old timers are few and far between now. Agree that Eddystones are to be avoided, heat treatment was erratic.

Other than the labor involved they are a great gun, able to take pretty huge cartridges and also strong enough to hold everything together.

Having said that, as was said they had their heyday in times past when they were dirt cheap and when skilled labor was also cheap. The P-14 had a bolt for the 303, which is the same rim size as the 375 H&H, so nothing needs to be done there. The bolt originally cocks on close, which some people hate (usually those who've never actually shot them much) but is easy to convert. Nowadays unless you are set on the action for some reason or other it is far cheaper to go with a different action that doesn't require so much work. On the other hand if you want to built a 577 TRex or something classic there is nothing wrong with them, just be aware some time is going to be involved.

GaShooter,
Some time ago I saw a p17 barreled action that Tom Burgess, aka stystem 98, had exchanged with a friend of mine for some custom stock work. You had to look very close to see what it was in it's past life. It was one of those actions that deserved to have you study it for an hour or more. Some of the refinements appeared hidden but when they surfaced they took your breath away. It was chambered in .458 Win Mag if memory serves me correctly and my friend was makeing a spec rifle out of it. Just the names of the parties involved made it a fast seller, but the work from both of them made it an incredible piece. The P17's are very strong actions, they take a lot of work to acheive the level of refinement that this one displayed.

Thanks for all the info, guys. How are they just as shooters in original form (not changing them)? I found a 1917 in decent shape in a shop, but it was an Eddystone and they wanted $795! I think I've read that the Eddystones had heat treat problems?



Thanks again,

Scott

The 1965 gunsmithing book by MacFarland has a chapter on how to sporterize a model 1917 or pattern '14 Enfield.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...8909397-4147802



That book says the Enfield has the most work required for sprorterization of any surplus rifle.

But they are great for big cartridges and long ones.Especially my wildcat testing.ed

The 1917's in original shape have started to increase in price because so many have been at least partially sporterized that original examples are getting more rare. I don't know how they shoot like that, I personally don't like original rifles (mausers, springfields or enfields) and therefore don't own any.

I would agree that the 1917 has got to be the most expensive military bolt action to sporterize. There is really no cheap way to get into a full blown custom one unless you 1. stumble across a great deal, 2. do a lot of work yourself. But semi-customs aren't too bad IF you start with something partially sporterized already.

I have on in the safe in 35 whelen improved, Remington 1917 (if you are going to use a 1917 you want the Remington, it is the best of the bunch), and one at the gunsmiths. I love them though, the way the safety works, the bulk of it, the sheer tenacity it seems to have. But in truth there are so many other options out there that barring those lucky occurances some people have from time to time, you are better off starting with something else.

If you do anything with one, find a gunsmith that knows what he is doing with an enfield! There are things that somebody that knows them inside out will check for you that a smith that hasn't seen a lot of them will miss. Look at the post here in the gunsmithing section on the Ultimate Enfield, the metalwork done by the afore mentioned metal magician Tom Burgess, who also posts explaining all the work he did on the action. Among the things, one important to note is that he installed a guide rib on the bolt, some 1917's tend to have the bolt bind when you are cycling the action, the one that is being worked on right now (my winchester in 458) has that specific problem.

Careful not to look at them too close, you'll love them and have to have them and spend too much money on them. :-)

Red