I put this on layaway at the LGS a month or so ago (I didn't have enough cash on me that day).



The red stripe around the front means it was loaned out to the British under the lend lease act in the early days of WWII.

You can see where they marked it ".30-06"



This C with an arrow stamp means that it also spent time with the Canadians:



The blueing on the receiver is long gone...



It does have its original barrel, and the rifling doesn't look too bad.



Unfortunately, the stock is cracked pretty bad at the tang area, and on the left side of the wrist.  The repair looks doable, just going to be a lot of work.





I have my work cut out for me, but I figure this old war horse has earned it.

Very nice.  My January 1919 Eddystone is a Canadian-used M1917 as well.  It has remnants of a painted red band on the front of the stock/handguards, though it's not as obvious as yours.


Mine saw use with the Canadian Officer Training Corps (same concept as our own ROTC).


Here's a shot of some COTC cadets at McGill University in 1941 marching with M1917 rifles.

I've got a US issue one.  Unreal accuracy.

Does the barrel have British proof marks? If not it isnt a British lend lease but a Canadian

I've got one just like yours, but it's marked RCAF and what appears to be a bomber squadron number.  Red band is still there, original 9/18 bbl, all E parts.  Probably my best C&R shooter.

True-  the Brits would mark every major assembly with a little crown with a B N P.   I have a 1943 1911 with Canadian and British markings- been told it's very rare to have both.

Nice!  Too bad about the stock, hopefully you can repair it fairly easily.

I really love shooting mine.

I thought they never got imported back.  Cool find.

Hmmm...  No BNP.

Did the USA lend-lease M1917's to Canada during WWII as well?

The stock repair is doable.  I am going to try to do a "blind repair" from the inside so there will be no brass pins showing.

Matt

So jealous. That's my next bolt gun.

Yes as I said earlier if no BMP its not a British lend lease

Contrary to popular belief the Brits didn't get a lot of Lend-Lease M1917s. Sure, they had some, but the numbers were pretty small and most of them stayed in their crates. The large majority of the Lend-Lease M1917s wound up in Canada (and will exhibit arrow-in-C marks and possibly RCAF markings on the stock).

"Dad's Army" was mostly equipped with .303 Pattern '14 rifles.