A Canadian highlander picking his shots in spaghetti land
Private J.E. McPhee of (Canadian) Seaforth Highlanders, Foiano, Italy, 6 October 1943– 74 years ago today.
A sniper, McPhee is equipped with the excellent Lee Enfield No. 4 Mk. 1 (T). Chosen for accuracy, reworked, rebedded and custom stocked by Holland & Holland, these rifles and their 3.5x fixed scope were considered by many to be the best sniper rifles of the WWII era. The design, reworked in 7.62x51mm NATO in the 1960s, persisted as the L42A1 and remained in service with the British well through the 1990s.
An excellent example of a late-WWII British Enfield No.4 Mk I (T) sniper rifle fitted with the correct and matching No 32 MKIII scope that is marked on top of the tube “TEL.STG.No 32 MKII/O.S. 2039 A/A.K&S No17285/1944/broad arrow”, with the rings numbered 12 on the rear set with 13 and 15 on the front set. The mounting bracket is stamped with the matching serial number (E34422), and the scope number is correctly stamped on top of the pistol grip in front of the cheekpiece.with matching No. 8 Mark I metal scope can numbered to match the rifle and scope. Via RIA
As for the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada, they endure today as a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army based in Vancouver, BC; as a part of 39 Canadian Brigade Group, 3rd Canadian Division. They recently served in Afghanistan, where no doubt their snipers came in very handy.
It would be interesting to compare and contrast the sniper rifles and scopes of WWII. As a federal contractor you have my sympathy though you no doubt are expert in the field of zombies and their habits by the close observation of federal employees.