These are reproduction SMLE MkIII Front Volley Sight Pointer Sets.

These are made for us and are copied from original items. The set consists of the front volley sight pointer, the spring tensioning washer and the retaining screw. All of these will fit straight onto the front volley sight range plate (providing that the central boss has not been removed from the plate). Although these are specifically made for the MkIII SMLE volley sights, they will fit other Lee Enfield volley sight plates (provided that you are not going to rely on them to fire at 2,000+ yards as the range may prove to be somewhat out for other marks of sight!). They are, and will appear to be, short for the P'14 Rifle, but will look the part for others in the series*.

The long range volley sights were original equipment on all Lee Enfield Rifles up to the SMLE MkIII. They were designed so that a squad, section or Platoon of men could put down a volley of aimed shots at extreme ranges - up to 2,600 yards, on targets such as a cross roads, a body of marching troop or a squadron of cavalry. With the advent of trench warfare on the Western Front during WW1, when average combat ranges were 100 to 200 yards, and no-one in their right mind would form up in the open to fire carefully aimed volley's, the sights soon became obsolete. When the SMLE MkIII* was introduced into service, made specifically to cut production costs and machining time, the long range volley sights were one of the first items to be discarded from the design. Subsequently, as they were seen as an irrelevance, damaged volley sights on MkIII Rifles were not repaired, and if the rifles went through a factory overhaul the sights were removed as part of the overhaul - although usually the range scale plates were left in the side of the fore-ends to fill the hole which would have been left by removing them (albeit with the 'boss' on which the pointer would have pivotted cut off and filed flush).

As the pointers were easily damaged by catching on clothing etc, many MkIII Rifles which were sold off after WW1 and which retained the volley sights, can still be found but without the front pointer, tensioning spring and screw. This kit will fit directly on to these rifles.

Unit of Sale; 1 set consisting of a pointer, a spring washer and a screw.

OriginalBritish Army Part Nos; N/K.

Stock No; EFDSMLESP104

* Front volley sight pointer sets for the P'14 Rifle are also produced for us, and (subject to availabiltity) can be found in the P'14 section of 'Enfield Rifles' on this website. Stock No; EFDOTHERSP24.