Short Magazine Lee-Enfield Rifle and Pattern 07 Bayonet Components Display Case

Display cabinet containing the various stages of manufacture of the component parts of the Short Magazine Lee-Enfield Rifle (SMLE) and Pattern 1907 Bayonet. The parts are mounted within a display case made from polished Australian timber. The components have been divided and mounted into three roughly triangular shaped sections within the case, from the un-worked to the finished parts.

The first section on the left as you look at the display houses the components for the oil bottle, bayonet scabbard and wooden grips, barrel, the wooden top hand guard plus other various parts. The middle section contains the stages of manufacture for the firing mechanism, including the bolt, bolt body, trigger guard section and trigger workings. There is also the fore end cap, wooden butt and a variety of other smaller parts. In the final section is the manufacturing stages for the bayonet, lower front hand guard, magazine, charger clip and butt plate. In total there are 405 pieces on display plus one missing. The completed bayonet and the final stages of charger clip were missing from this case after being exhibited in the Second Melbourne Exhibition in June 1929. These parts have been replaced and the finished bayonet is manufactured by Wilkinson UK, with 9 '15 (September 1915) stamped on the ricasso. In the centre of the display is an engraved white plate with 'STAGES IN THE AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURE OF THE LEE-ENFIELD .303 RIFLE. BASIC WEAPON OF THE AUSTRALIAN INFANTRYMAN IN THE TWO WORLD WARS AND KOREA'. [This caption was added by the Memorial in the mid 1950s] One of the unfinished barrels has come loose from its mounting.

This display case was given to the Memorial in June 1920 by the Lithgow Small Arms Factory (LSAF). It was used to demonstrate the numerous components that went into making the .303 Short Magazine Lee-Enfield Rifle and Pattern 07 Bayonet.

This case and contents was initially a table top and displayed at the Second Melbourne Exhibition in 1929. Originally the case had a small scroll attached to the upper portion of the frame, with 'AUSTRALIA' written over the letters 'SAF'. A larger scroll in gold lettering 'Commonwealth Small Arms Factory' was bracketed to the top of frame. The scrolls, stars screws, and legs have since been scrapped. The AWM workshop refurbished the timber case in the late 1950's prior to its display on the Memorial's lower ground floor.

The LSAF came about because of Australia's desire to be self sufficient in the production of small arms. In 1901 during the Boer War, the Australian colonies became a federated nation and wanted to secure the latest bolt action rifles from Great Britain. Supplies were difficult to obtain because all available rifles went to British units.

The need for an adequate arms supply was recognised by Prime Minister Alfred Deakin. In 1903 Lithgow Progress Association and the local Member of Parliament Joseph Cook, lobbied the government for a small arms factory to be built in Lithgow. The town and surrounding area had the necessary resources and transport links to produce and deliver small arms. Deakin backed the idea of an arms factory and in April 1908 land was purchased in Lithgow with the tender for the tooling machines being advertised in December.

The Australian government sent two naval offices on an information gathering tour of small arms factories around the world. They went to factories in England, Europe, Canada, the United States of America (USA) and Japan. The factory that impressed them the most was Pratt and Whitney in the USA and their tender was eventually accepted. Three months before the first sod was turned for the factory, in December 1909, six specialist mechanics went to Pratt and Whitney, for training on their machines. The machinist returned in 1911, with the factory officially opening on 8 June 1912.

With the advent of the First World War demand for the .303 saw production jump from 15000 per year at the beginning of the war to 80000, towards the end. This was achieved with the introduction of shift work and extra staff, 500 in 1912 to 1300 in 1915/16.

At the end of the war, production of the .303 was reduced, but with spare equipment in Britain available to manufacture the Vickers machine gun, machinists were sent to learn how to make the weapon and the first Australian Vickers was made in 1928. Overall, production continued to decline and so did the number of staff, with only 250 during the depression era.

The Second World War saw the construction of the Bren and Vickers machine guns with the manufacturing process decentralised to Bathurst and Orange and numerous other feeder factories. The total of Brens made was 17430 and 12350 Vickers. The number of No1 MK3 and MK3* produced from 1912 until the end of the Second World War was 640580.