My First .303,
the beginning of my obsession.
I came into possession of my first .303 the same way most young Canadian men do, it was given to me when I was 12. Now to be clear this was by no means my first rifle, an American my father worked for gave him a Winchester centennial .30-30 that he was to give to me when I was older. The .30-30 is probably the nicest looking rifle I own. I also had my grandfathers old .22 Cooey with a slightly bent barrel and my trusty old .177 pellet rifle.
Now most .303's that are passed on are usually the Lee-Enfield No1 MkIII or the No.4. I however lucked out and received a Winchester made Enfield P-14. As what usually happened with most surplus .303's it was sporterized, however unlike most sporterized rifles this one was done quite well. The rifle also has all its matching serial numbers and with the exception of the rear volley sight every piece has been stamped with a "W" for Winchester, the volley site is an Eddystone.
As some people may know the P14 never saw true mass war time production or service, but lets save the history of the P14 for another page.
Once I inherited my P14 I didn't really start hunting, I mainly used it for target practice and shooting varmints / rodents around the farm. It proved extremely effective against a water born rodent that used to flood the creek onto our hay fields. While my father preferred his .30-30 he found that once his bullet hit the water it didn't have the power to penetrate, so he had to wait until the rodent surfaced. However we found that the .303 could get a "kill" below the water, making it a great swamp gun. Since that time I have not missed any game I have shot at, which is why I still use that rife for hunting. Even with the stock iron sites and my failing eyes I can still manage a 2.5" group at 100 meters, on a good day.
Now most .303's that are passed on are usually the Lee-Enfield No1 MkIII or the No.4. I however lucked out and received a Winchester made Enfield P-14. As what usually happened with most surplus .303's it was sporterized, however unlike most sporterized rifles this one was done quite well. The rifle also has all its matching serial numbers and with the exception of the rear volley sight every piece has been stamped with a "W" for Winchester, the volley site is an Eddystone.
As some people may know the P14 never saw true mass war time production or service, but lets save the history of the P14 for another page.
Once I inherited my P14 I didn't really start hunting, I mainly used it for target practice and shooting varmints / rodents around the farm. It proved extremely effective against a water born rodent that used to flood the creek onto our hay fields. While my father preferred his .30-30 he found that once his bullet hit the water it didn't have the power to penetrate, so he had to wait until the rodent surfaced. However we found that the .303 could get a "kill" below the water, making it a great swamp gun. Since that time I have not missed any game I have shot at, which is why I still use that rife for hunting. Even with the stock iron sites and my failing eyes I can still manage a 2.5" group at 100 meters, on a good day.
Below are a few pictures that demonstrate the size of the P14 and of how the rifle fits in the rack on my 1980 Argo. As you can see it just fits between the tub walls.