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#Post#: 100--------------------------------------------------
1895 lee Enfield
DIR By: allmanav
Date: March 4, 2020, 8:36 pm
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Considering the trends in U.S. military firearm technology
during the 1890s, the country’s selection of a proprietary
straight-pull rifle is extraordinary. In addition to its
unorthodox action, the 6 mm Lee Navy was the smallest-caliber
longarm ever officially issued to U.S. fighting men at the time
of its adoption. The principal Army rifle at the time, the
Krag-Jorgensen, was chambered in .30-40 Krag, and large numbers
of .45-70 “Trapdoor”
Springfields were still in service. The Lee Navy was also the
first U.S. service rifle chambered for a U.S. cartridge
designated by millimeters rather than inches.
Close-up of the receiver ring on the Model 1895 Lee Navy, which
shows the U.S. Naval markings; on white
Though the Winchester 1895 Lee Navy had a short life span, it
did see action—most conspicuously in China’s 1900 Boxer
Rebellion and also in Cuba and the Philippines during and after
the Spanish-American War.
Arms inventor James Paris Lee (of Lee-Enfield renown) designed
the arm to meet specifications outlined by the U.S. Navy. Unlike
contemporary Swiss and Austrian straight-pulls, whose rotating
bolts came straight back on the same plane as the action, the
Lee rifle featured a camming arrangement that did away with bolt
lugs; instead, the action was locked by a pair of shoulders
milled into the rear portion of the bolt and the receiver.
The hooded front-sight blade seen on this NRA-Excellent
condition Winchester Model 1895 Lee Navy rifle.
A classic infantry-style arm of the time, the rifle featured a
47¾" overall length with a 28" barrel and 8-lb., 4-oz. heft. It
could be fitted with an 8¼"-bladed knife bayonet.
The cartridge and cartridge-loading setup of the Lee were also
unique. Employing a 112-gr. round-nose 6 mm (0.236") bullet,
fixed into a smokeless-propellant-charged, bottleneck
semi-rimmed case, its velocity was 2565 f.p.s and muzzle energy
was 2,217 ft.-lbs. Five rounds were clipped into a slim charger
and secured by a unique elongated wire locking lever.
The loaded charger was inserted into the top of the magazine
above the follower. Closing the bolt stripped off rounds, and
when the second cartridge had been expended the charger dropped
free through a hole in the bottom of the magazine. The Lee was
adopted by the Navy in 1895 and manufactured by Winchester
between 1896 and 1916. A total of 20,000 Lee Navys were
produced.
A folding, elevation-adjustable rear sight interrupts the wooden
handguard on the Winchester Model 1895 Lee Navy rifle.
Although the Lee Navy generally proved serviceable, it did have
a few glitches. The gun’s cartridge, for which the Navy’s Model
1895 Colt/Browning “Potato Digger” machine gun was also
chambered, created a bit of a cross-service logistics problem.
Because it was a Navy/Marine specific arm, that could have
probably been dealt with if there weren’t other difficulties.
Most critically, it was found that the gun suffered excessive
bore erosion due to the corrosive effect of the smokeless
propellant. There were also complaints that the trigger and
extractor springs were fragile, and the follower was weak at its
hinge rivet. Concerns were also expressed that the open magazine
well could collect dirt and debris, affecting the sear.
After much soul-searching, the Navy decided that it was probably
best to retire the Lee Navy, and Krags were finally ordered for
the Marines, only to be replaced shortly thereafter by 1903
Springfields. Still, Lees continued to be built and remained in
stores for some time. Interestingly enough, Winchester felt the
rifle had enough merit to warrant a sporting version, of which
some 1,700 were sold commercially from around 1897 to 1916. The
rifle shown here is in NRA Antique Excellent Condition, and as
such is worth in the $2,350 to $2,750 range, according to the
40th Edition of the "Blue Book of Gun Values."
Controls on the left side of the receiver on the Winchester
Model 1895 Lee Navy rifle.
Gun: Model 1895 Lee Navy
Manufacturer: Winchester Repeating Arms Co.
Condition: NRA Antique Excellent
Caliber: 6 mm Lee Navy
Manufactured: 1908
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