First gun I ever shot. My grandpa bought it in the 50’s and he gave it to my dad. I’ll get it when my dad passes. 103 years old and shoots like new. Very accurate and surprisingly light recoil due to the weight.
hehe..NICE!! I spent three years in Fallon, Nevaaada in the Navy and fell in love with Fallon, the state and the attitude of Nevadans in the Northern part of the state...
Found this while searching this rifle. Awsome you got one! Hope to get one someday. I just scored a 1903a3 to add to my collection recently and really excited! US bolt action service rifles wonderful history!
I have one and there is a flaw in using the safety if you don't already know about it. With the action open, don't put the safety down. When you open it again you are fine unless you take the safety off before opening it; the gun will automatically fire with the release of the safety. The safety should only be engaged after the action is closed. If you accidently engage the safety before closing with a round in action, you must open the bolt without touching the safety or it will fire. My dad is long gone now, but once after returning to camp he took the safety off to unload the weapon. The gun was pointed in a safe direction but it left a two foot crater just short of the truck camper and the debris landed on everyone sitting around a campfire on the other side of the truck. He never trusted that gun again. I inherited it, played with it empty and was able to duplicate what happened. The gun is fine other than this quirk which requires proper steps to be followed. If in doubt, look at the back of the action where the firing pin housing extends. If it is so far back that you see disengagement from the rest of the housing, you have a potential accident about to happen. Simply open the bolt completely and then disengage the safety, problem solved. It's a great gun and knowing about this is empowerment for safety. You can experiment with the gun empty and you'll discover this as well.
About 45 years ago I picked up one of these rifles, a Remington Model of the 1917 Winchester, that had been sporterized. It's because of this rifle that I so love the .30 -- 06 round. Without stopping to check, I believe that this year, 2020, my rifle will be 102 years old. That or 103. Of all the rifles in my collection this one is my go to. Even with a Timny trigger on my much lighter and prettier .270 BDL I prefer the 1917. Don't pass up the opportunity if you get a chance to pick up one of these rifles. As rifles go they are not expensive. When I first bought it the rifle barrel had been bedded. I recently had it floated, making it just a little bit better. It really is a nice piece.
Just got one today. Such a beautiful gun! Reminded me of my grandpa's old 30-06 he named his Lucifer I think I'll name mine the same! He said it killed everything he shot.
Great video as always. These are great military ex surplus (or were) years ago. Many were sporterised as this rifle has been. Some of the M 17's were rebarreled to 35 Whelan and the P 14 has been rebarreled to up to .458 Win Mag with some modifications. Thanks for sharing!
Very enjoyable watching you have fun out there in open land. Nice old gun. Love the "patina" on something that has been cared for over nearly 100 years. I like that "time reverse" feature you have there. Maybe I can borrow it and roll back California to about 1955... :-)
Thanks for posting this vid. My brother has what was (until right now) a mystery rifle that has the Winchester stamp, a fixed blade ejector and controlled round feeding, and a distinctive safety that rocks fore and aft. It also has a sporter style stock. You just solved that mystery with this one video, as his is now revealed to be an Enfield 1917.
Amazing rifle, I have two Remingtons in original military format and a few Eddystones, one is a nice sporter and the others have been made into target rifles. Winchesters have eluded me. I did pick up a sporterised Winchester, but when I took it home I realised it was a really rare sniper rifle with the scope bases. I passed it onto a friend who restored it and even found an original scope for it (at huge expense mind you). The only other Winchester I saw was one that had been converted to a target rifle and left in a damp shed when the owner died. It was bright orange with rust unfortunately. The rifles marked Remington were from the factory at Ilion and the factory at Eddystone was also owned by Remington.
The Baldwin Locomotive Company in 1915 built and then leased the factory to Remington. In 1917 the plant became the Eddystone Rifle Plant (Midvale Steel and Ordnance Company) and at full capacity produced 6,000 M1917s per day.
my grandfather gave me a winchester p17 a couple months back. he had it sporterized and the sights switched to target sights, stock replaced for a nice walnut and the entire rifle reblued back in the 50's but it sure is a fine shooting rifle for its age!
Wow !!! THE REAL WORLD WAR I ENFIELD RIFLE !!!!!!!! Enfield !!! It has been my DREAM gear since who knows when. I didn't know Mixup98 filmed this vid. Really Really Really enjoyed the vid.
Well, thank you PrimroseÑight. I really enjoyed making this video and I hope someday to find a nice, original Enfield and do another review. Thanks for the great comment and I also hope someday you find and buy a nice Enfield rifle.
I was going back through your videos (I’ve been a subscriber for about 4 years, comment on quite a few) and saw this one. At first I thought was your rifle. Anyway, I have one of these, September of 1918 dated barrel, so in the last couple of months of production Eddystone was parkerising their guns. Mine is parkerized, although some parts are still blued. The original stock had a crack, so I found another that was one that was apparently made but never attached to a rifle...marked E for Eddystone. Found a period correct sling and bayonet as well, and cleaning kit. It’s the most accurate milsurp I own. I can hammer 1/2 pound tannerite at 100 with no problem. They are still fairly cheap relative to the other American milsurp rifles. You can sometimes get a very nice one for around $800. Just depends on how many see it on Gunbroker lol. But the Winchester’s are now pretty steep.
I have my Great grandfathers M1917 he carried in WW1, along with is uniform and gear and p-17 bayonet. They are truly fine rifles. Now I've shot this rifle a lot and it is very accurate. I heard the '03 was more accurate but after shooting both I could not tell any difference at all. The cock on closing was a British design and after the US entered the war we re-chambered from from 303 British to the 30-06 to aid in production .
I have the predecessor to the Model 1917 Enfield. It's the Model 1914 Enfield chambered in .303 British. Except for the chamber, barrel bore and bolt face, they are basically the same rifle. The .303 British and the .30-06 are similar in ballistics as well. With factory original sights, I've taken several moose with my "P14". As a Canuck, I have a special fondness for the .303 British. Both my granddads carried one in The Great War (the Lee-Enfield No. 1 Mk. 3) and my dad carried one in WWII (the Lee-Enfield No. 4 Mk 1).
Dang watching this video kills me I missed out on a chance to buy one if those babies a few months back . And I'm regretting it it was at a good price Too (around 500)
Very, Very Nice there Mixup98. I own two 1917 Enfields. One is now a 257 Weatherby that was customized by someone else years ago. He had rebarrelled it to a 25 Krag (a custom round) and I had it opened up to a 257 Weatherby Mag. I've taken countless deer with it here in Idaho until I just got tired of using the same weapon. I also have a one that I sporterized. It's an Eddystone and I left it in 30-06. I ground off the ears and scoped it. I bought a stock and finished it myself years ago. Bought the stock from Davey Crockett's Gun Shop in Pocatello Idaho 30 to 35 years go. It's a heavy beast because of the deep belly. The 257 has a blind box so it is very light. Here's a quick vid we made of me and my buddy shooting our venerable ol' '06's! By the way, the 06 is still a 1 1/4 moa at 100. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-v_tsj9FMT6Q.html
Great video... I think it's not only awesome but very humbling and sacred to have a firearm like that passed down. Just picked one up in excellent condition made Nov 1918 (traded one of my Garands for it)... Thanks again
I have a Winchester US Model of 1917 made in May of 1918. It was sporterized at some point but still is open sights and thank goodness for that because I’m going to take this historical rifle out come deer season and see if I can get a doe with it.
Hello Shawn. I hunt mule deer here in Nevada and I hope you harvest a nice doe with your Winchester. Have fun, stay safe and thanks for watching my video.
I have one of these that I bought 30 years ago, it's a Winchester but it's been sportorized. I would prefer to have one that is in original condition but the one I do have is a great shooter and I love the action on the gun.
I have one sported out as well I was in the real live Army in a real live war I don’t need my weapons to remind me of anything except I’m out here to kill deer....
Great video! I have an Eddystone which was a subsidiary of Remington! Strongest action ever made ! Mine is a 300 win mag which will take + P loads ! Like the way you shoot and handle your 1917.Shooting rocks the way we used to,such fun Very Best !
England gave Remington the order who then subcontracted this order to Baldwin Locomotive who built the largest rifle factory in the world in Eddystone, Pennsylvania. The Japanese Arisaka has the strongest action. www.worldwar1centennial.org/images/Pennsylvania/EDDYSTONE_M1917_WOODWORKING_BLDG_illustrated2.pdf
+mixup98 First off, thanks for posting. I have a O3 Springfield, and now I must have a pristine M1917 rifle. Both are historic weapons and when you see one of these century old rifles that has had good treatment over the years you are immediately impressed by the quality of construction. The wood to metal fit is better than most modern weapons. It ts pretty common to see these weapons turning in 1.5 MOA groups. When I was shooting Division matches when I was in the USMC there were still a good number WW-2 shooting these matches with O3A3 Springfields. And these Old timers also fired the 1000yard any rifle any sight matches with these rifles (yes they had been accurized a bit but cosmetically they looked like issue weapons. I have senn those guys tear the center out of Baker targets.
1138thz Its true. Unfortunately our standards for quality have slipped pretty severely since that era. Everything these days is made to be modular cause its made to break. Made to have to be replaced so you spend more money. Its sad
You are correct on the accuracy of these rifles. I have a September 1918 dated barrel Eddystone. Original 5 groove barrel, my current stock is a correct E marked stock but I replaced the one on the gun since it was incorrect anyway and was cracked. Out of all my milsurp rifles, the M1917 is my favorite and shoots the best. Some guns shoot a little left or right with the sights centered, some shoot way high or whatever...not this one. Pick it up and leave the sights alone, at 100 yards it’s dead center every time. Easiest gun to grab and hammer targets with. Or even a deer if so inclined. No guess work, no “let me see where she hits” prior to firing. Just pick up, load, and roll.
nice video man! the one thing I noticed about mil surps is the U.S made one's just have that used but not abused look that somthing like a mosin or an ak doesn't have. I don't own any of those but have looked at a lot of them and our u.s made stuff just plain looks worn good.
I'm glad I watched this. I have a winchester thats been sporterized and want to unsporterize it without the top handguards which you have there. I have never seen one not sporterized without the top handguards and have been wondering if it would look good and now I know it will. Thank you
Just purchased a sporterized Eddy Stone 06 Whoever did it done a nice job. Haven't shot it yet. Want to do a once over with a thorough cleaning and a new scope, as the scope didn't come with it but the rings are there.
It is a great video. I always like shooting the 1917 because the stock fits much better than the 1903 Springfield. It is a military rifle so keep it to the shoulder when working the bolt.
Sergeant York carried the Enfield 1917 when he fought in France. This is the rifle he killed so many German soldiers with - not the 03 Springfield as shown in the movie Sergeant York.
Sgt. York was indeed a master with the Enfield. Anybody who doesn't know the story of Sgt. York really should study the man. Alvin York was a true American hero and deserved the Medal of Honor that was awarded to him.
mixup98 Sgt.York trained with the 03 Springfield in the states but didn't have a weapon when he went to France. He was issued the 1917 Enfield for combat. I owned a 1917 Enfield as it was as issued with a full stock, it was very heavy.
I have an Eddystone full military with a Johnson barrel 1917 Remington bayonet oiler etc. A shame your's has been cut back but still a good shooter, I enjoy mine.
Yeah, the collector value went way down when somebody, many years ago, cut the forearm off and removed the bayonet lug. I also have a Eddystone that was sporterized many years ago with a scope and new stock. The rear sight was also milled off. I guess a 100% original M1917 is hard to come by.
I just got one yesterday and I've been researching it all day just realized that my rifle is an Enfield because I was looking at 1917's and they always had the peep sight while my sights are v sights and I absolutely hate it but other than that I have the exact same weapon right down to the wood and I love the bolt action its so smooth. But damn I wanna go shoot it now and see what it can really do.
I'm lookin at buying a Winchester 1917 right now. Comes with the bayonet and is all original. A little worried that i can't test fire it. But it looks good.
A shame you are not familiar with running a '17 Enfield. That cock-on-close feature is to help bring the barrel down when you rack for a second shot. I have never shot a bolt rifle that would rack on the shoulder like a '17. Grandfather commented it was like I was shooting an automatic. I had two of them... one in original 30-06 and one that had been modified to .308 Norma Magnum. The Norma was a popular belted magnum back in the '60s. Sadly I moved to a place that makes it very difficult to own guns and impossible for someone that is not a long time resident. That required I sell almost my whole gun collection. In a better place now and bought 6 guns this year to restart my working collection. At the moment a borrowed '98 Mauser is the only center fire rifle in the house.
Great rifle, wish I had one. Its a shame it was sporterized but it looks like it could be restored back to original condition. What part of Nevada is that ...its beautiful
I restored an Eddystone P14 (Same rifle, but in 303) that I restored from a sporter. All it had was a Bishop custom stock on it. I found all original matching E stamped parts and even managed to find the Eddystone pattern stock that didn't have the finger groove cuts for a great price. I even found the correct volley sight rear and front arms.
I have the same model made by Eddystone. It is configured as original. Was redone by the Army ordnance department during WWII so the barrel has not seen much use.
I also have the same rifle (Winchester). However, mine is not sporterized as this one is. Shoots great, although the bore is getting close to dont shoot it limit.
I recently bought the exact same Model 1917 sporterized at a gun show here in Canada. Winchester Model 1917. paid $140.00 for it. Later decided to buy all the full wood for it and turn it to military configuration. Spent $220.00 for all the wood. Now I have been offered $700.00 for it. Because of its history and excellent accuracy I will never sell it.. Excellent rifle getting scarce, so keep yours, don't sell...
Thanks for the update Sue...The rifle,,Winchester Model 1917,, is in perfect condition , and yes I have done more research on pricing and your correct they are now selling for $900.00 to $1,200.00 CND funds. This rifle is my baby and I will never sell. Will pass it down to my son when I'm gone..Cheers...Canada
Ross Salupo Here in Nevada we have millions of acres of public land and sometimes we have whole mountains ranges to ourselves. When it comes to shooting I wouldn't want to live any where else. Thanks for the great comment and thanks for watching.
***** the rifle has been slightly sporterized. Years ago somebody cut down the front end of the stock, removed the upper hand guard and the bayonet lug. These changes have effected the collectability of this rifle.
mixup98 :/ That does affect the collectability of the rifle. To me, it's such a shame to modify the wood furniture of a historic rifle. At least you have one and are happy shooting it. Great video.
Hi, I have one of the Winchesters but it has been re-barreled in 308 (7.62). Still shoots great. Mine says 'US Model of 1917' on the breech and has a 276### serial number. I notice your Dad's has been sporterized with the front woodwork removed and the military front sight/bayonet lug removed. Shame really as they deserve to be kept as original as possible. Still a great video. Wish we had the opportunity to shoot over open ground over here in the UK but it is all range work.
The p14 (303.) An the m17 was maybe the best ww1 service rifles, and still good in ww2 (limited service) Still used as homeguard rifles in the UK, and used early in the war as a dmr/sniperrifle before the no4 variants replaced it. I would love to own one, expecially the us m1917. The 30-06 is plenty potent, and you get 6 instead of 5 of 303. 30-06 is easier to find/cheaper too.
Hello Timothy and thanks for the question. I will try to help identify your rifle but you will need to tell me exactly what markings are on your barrel, bolt and receiver. Does the rifle use a detachable magazine or an internal magazine?
Can someone tell me about the physical weight of these Model 1917 arn't they heavier than the Springfield 1903, also, wasn't the Remington Model 25 designed from these?
My 1917 shoots spot on at 100 yards with ammo that duplicates the service round at the time. At 200 yards, I have to set the ramp to 250, and at 300 yards I set the ramp to 425 yards. My question is: is this universal, or is it confined to Winchester 1917's, or just to my particular 1917
