Update 21st August, 2010—  

• New 'Collector' issue No.28 and '5th Australian Light Horse' (all nominal rolls with many new photos, authored by Leo Walsh and published by the Victoria Barracks Historical Society, Brisbane) are available. New Handbooks are Schmidt Rubin and Ruger Mini-14. 'Collector' to Australasia and Europe are posted; American arrival dates are only a few weeks away.

• The news media certainly does not let the truth get in the way of a good story. We went into the Redshirts barricades in Bangkok and saw the truth first hand. Funded by ousted prime minister Taksin Shinawatra hiding overseas, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars funnelled through at least 84 identified Red shirt leaders and family bank accounts. Many were drawing over $10,000 from ATMs each day, even paying homeless men to burn and rampage through the city. Many police and army members are from the country so they shirked duties. Some were paid to look the other way or incite unrest. Like Muslim insurgents, temples and places of worship were used to store weapons and avoid incoming, even though shots were being fired from their refuge. Redshirt leaders urged them to burn the city. They raided hospitals, looted shops, banks and ATMs, TV stations, &c. Their 'Peaceful protesters, not terrorists' signs featured on CNN, BBC, MSN, Yahoo, AAP and other 'news' reporting 'the army advancing and shooting unarmed protestors and civilians'. The 'news' did not show them commandeering petrol tankers to set ablaze, nor buses and army trucks being hijacked and the occupants not shooting at them because of religious beliefs, then being beaten or killed. Thai television footage in Bangkok showing blackshirts (red shirt para-military guards) shooting M79, M16 and assorted pistols was not aired on international news either. How much other international TV and internet news is false???

• Seh Daeng was shot by a sniper, likely from the HSBC building on Rama IV road. The leader and organizer of the blackshirts boasted of killing 18 men, working for the CIA, &c., was a renegade army general. He had said that snipers could not get him because he  was 'a moving man'. Murphy's law. He was shot at Lumpini Park with a head shot at 45 degree angle through the temple, exiting from his neck. Likely 7.62mm ball from about 250 metres. The park is surrounded by trees and there were thousands of supporters in the park at the time. So we can add another axiom for the sniper... the target was taking a shit, lighting a cigarette or lit up and posing for a television interview with CNN.

• New sniper record. British army member of the Household Cavalry in Helmund province, taking out two Taliban machine-gunners at 8,120 feet (2.47 km) with consecutive shots from an Accuracy International L115A3 .338 Lapua. Craig Harrison had returned from hospital in the UK after earlier being hit by a roadside IED, breaking both arms. This surpases the record of a Canadian soldier in March 2002 who shot an Al-Queda gunman at 7,972 ft.

• Our film documentary page on the Sparrow Force is in Pre-Production, with travel to Timor, Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia and Northern Territory, the former 7 Military District. When Post Production gets under way with the new Avid release, we will offer the RSAF Enfield Pattern Room CD/DVD as well. Estimated time is between one and two years.

• News from Oren Truitt... 'As a Webley collector for years I cursed those barbarians who milled the back of Webley cylinders to shoot .45ACP. After years of frustration, I finally did something about it. I am a professional gunsmith with over 30 years experience repairing and restoring antique firearms. I've obtained laser cut steel spacers from a precision machine shop, which I sweat solder to the rear of Webley .455 cylinder and ejector. The edges are dressed to match the profile of the original parts and hide the seam. The seam may be slightly visible, depending upon the condition of the cylinder. This returns the cylinder and ejector to proper length to shoot the .455 round. I do not need the pistol, just the cylinder and ejector'. Visit www.truittandson.com for all your gunsmithing needs.

• Larry Riling of Ray Riling Arms Books went Chapter 7 according to legal papers sent to us as a creditor. A sad end to a fine tradition. Visitors can check on the internet: ripoffreport, complaintsboard, &c. for more details.

• Brian Labudda, myself and a retired SAS regiment sniper did a shake-down in a range test of A.I.A. rifles on a long weekend last year with some surprising results. For comparison, we used my .308 Savage Mod.10 FLP (tactical, heavy barrel, left hand action). Check the Field Test page at www.australianinternationalarms.com.au 

• The Savage M10 however has not lived up to expectations; overly tight chamber blew out the ejector, extractor, and now another ejector. No comparison in our experience with my A.I.A. M10-B2; it is more accurate and shoots well with any .308 or 7.62 ammo. We're still waiting for a refund on the Savage but the Australian agent does not want to accommodate us according to the latest report, despite the rifle being faulty when it was purchased.

• Another new book Helmet book... 'The Wolseley Helmet in Pictures - From Omdurman to El Alamein'. Succeeding, even surpassing 'Military Sun Helmets of the World' by Peter Suciu in the USA and Stuart Bates in Australia. See www.militarysunhelmets.com Full-size A4 hard cover of 127 pages in full colour, another welcome addition for the uniform and headgear collector. The British issue is probably the best, with Victorian origins at the height of the Empire's power. This is reasonably priced at AUD$45 and $35 in the USA, the same as their earlier 'Military Sun Helmets' book. To order, you can go to their website, however we have purchased some stock for ourselves to sell in Australia. So Australian and New Zealand members can contact Ian at idskennerton@hotmail.com

• John Swinfield's book launch was attended by about 120 members at the AACSA meeting in late August. Ian Cummins, MC at the meeting, introduces John, seated beside Shooters Party MP, Roy Smith, far left.
   
   

• Another book of interest, but not necessarily about collecting... Ron Owen's 'The Range Officers Handbook' has shooting, reloading, safe handling and general history of British guns. Over 530 pages, 1000 illust.,A$75. Enjoyable read with Ron's political bias and wry English humour. A great gift! Owen Guns site at www.owenguns.com offers much more!

• John Wray, former Army inspection officer at Lithgow SAF and more recent curator of the Lithgow SmalI Arms Museum, passed away in early January. A keen ammunition, bayonet and militaria collector, his contribution towards keeping much of the SAF history alive will be an everlasting memorial. John died after a long battle with a brain tumor. A memorial library has been allocated at the new Lithgow Small Arms Museum, we are informed.

• Mike Baldwin, formerly weapons curator at the National Army Museum also passed away as has Humphrey Smith in New Zealand.

• Another new website is Medals Gone Missing... useful for anyone buying medals.

• New titles from International Military Antiques NJ, are available in Oz as well as from Grants Pass. Guns of the Gurkhas, German Makers Codes, Hotchkiss manual, German Bayonets (Carter), Treasures of Nepal, &c. See our Reprints & Miscellaneous pages.

• New internet gun auction site, this time in Australia. Organizers, Michael & Nathan King are offering an initial 'free-of-charge' setup. Go to http://gunauction.com.au and see what is on offer. You might even want to sell some of your own firearms or militaria.

• New pix of the wartime Long Branch factory are now posted on the internet. Just go to
  www.pbase.com/mrclark/long_branch_factory_production_photos : post a message to say thanks to Mr. Clark for posting them too!  And from Afghanistan, another hoard of guns... http://s131.photobucket.com/albums/p296/rlanicek/CFD%2002-13-2008/?start=all

• New website for collectors arms on the east coast of the U.S.A.... David Prawdzik's new www.antiquegunroom.net is up and running now. Check it out for goodies.

• BSA Shirley FTR'd and converted No.4 rifles after the end of WW2, utilising new parts dated 1954-58. Recently noted in the US, a keen observer logged a number of Mk 1/2 'hung trigger' rifles. The broad arrow mark and finish is a little different to WW2 and immediate post-war production, likely a War Office contract for another country, possibly in Africa.

• The Lee-Enfield's superiority as a battle rifle: British Sgt. Snoxall recorded 38 hits on a 12-in. bull at 300 yards in only sixty seconds. Proficiency... the rifle was rapidly loaded in order to fire as many rounds as possible in one minute, dubbed by participants, 'the mad minute'. No other hand-operated bolt action service rifle can claim such a record. Enfields rule!

• 38 new Handbooks ... .US Krag, Carcano, MAS 36, Beretta Pistols, Hi-Standard Pistols, Glock Pistols, .303 SMLE, British No.4, M17/P14, Mauser Rifles & Carbines, Winchester Mod. 97, Winchester Mod. 12, M1 Carbine, M1 Garand, 1903 Springfield, FN FAL, M14, AR15/M16, Browning Hi-Power, C'96 Mauser pistol, .45 M1911, Luger, P-38, Makarov, AK47, SKS, Mosin-Nagant, Mod. 70 Winchester, Mod. 94 Winchester, .22 Mod 61 Winchester, Jap Service Pistols, 6.5mm T38 Arisaka, 7.7mm T99 Arisaka, S&W Revolvers, Walther PP & PPK, .22 Ruger Mk I & II, Schmidt Rubin Rifle & Carbine, Ruger Mini-14.

• Check our website at www.enfieldcollector.com site; it will eventually have specific pages on .577 Enfield, Snider-Enfield, Martini, MLM & MLE, SMLE, Rifle No.4, &c.

• Proofed Action Assembly numbers confirm the original fitting of a breech bolt & body on many SMLE actions, especially Lithgows. This number was stamped prior to the serial number, upon the body, barrel and bolt groups being proof fired. The PAA (Proofed Action Assembly) number was stamped in small engineers stamps underneath the bolt handle and on the corresponding area at the rear, right of the action body. However, not all SMLEs are PAA marked; this is yet another indicator for an overall picture in the markings scene.

L-E Parts Catalogue

SniperRifles

SchmidtRubin

Mini-14

US Krag

CarcanoRifle

7.5MAS 36

HiStandard

BerettaPistol 

GlockPistols

NOW ~~~  Small Arms Identification Series   new releases ... $10.00 ea.
SAIS #22 British Empire Sniper Rifles with parts, line drawings, mounts & scopes.
New information on the Canadian, Australian & Indian conversions.
SAIS #23 Lee-Enfield Parts Catalogue shows MLM, MLE, SMLE, No.4, No.5 & .22 rifle parts by items. Side by side comparisons: bodies, bolts, sights, nosecaps, furniture, &c.