The De Lisle Carbine
One of the more usual WW2 British military firearms is the De Lisle Carbine, designed somewhat predictably by Mr De Lisle (William to his chums) & based on the ubiquitous Short Magazine Lee Enfield MkIII* - converted to .45 ACP by modifying the receiver, altering the bolt/bolt head, replacing the barrel with a modified Thompson submachine gun barrel & using modified magazines from the M1911 pistol.
The primary feature of the De Lisle was its very effective suppressor which made it very quiet in action - indeed working the bolt to chamber the next round makes a louder noise than firing a round. The De Lisle carbine was used by British commandos and special forces, and was accurate to 250 yards.
The De Lisle was made in very limited numbers; 129 were produced during the period of 1942 to 1945 in three variations (Ford Dagenham Prototype, Sterling production and one Airborne prototype).
Thompson submachine gun barrels were modified to provide the .45 caliber barrel, which was ported to provide a slow release of high pressure gas. The suppressor, 2 inches in diameter, went all the way from the back of the barrel to well beyond the muzzle (the suppressor makes up half the overall length of the rifle), providing a very large volume of space to contain the gases produced by firing. This large volume was one of the keys to the effectiveness of the suppressor. The Lee-Enfield bolt was modified to feed the .45 ACP rounds, and the Lee-Enfield's magazine assembly was replaced with a new assembly that held a modified M1911 magazine.
However as ARRSEpedia sadly reports, most of the De Lisles were destroyed after the war to avoid them falling into the wrong hands. (the wrong hands? you mean drunk squaddies with a desire for midnight lightbulb hunting?)
But now, Thames Valley Guns have got one in: not an original but one of a small batch manufactured from the original drawings in Scotland in 2002/3. It is in pristine condition with 100% bluing, matching numbers with no blemishes to the woodwork.
Yes, its very very spendy (on at a bank balance destroying £989.00) but its a chance to own an iconic weapon … plus, just think of all of its potential uses!
& no, I am not on commission. However if you want proof of how good Mr De Lisle's design is ...
Go on, reach for the credit card - you know it makes sense in oh so many ways. BTW Valkyrie Arms are marketing what they call their De Lisle Commando Carbine ™ for US$ 1,995.
Comments
Very nice, And just think of the possibilities....
Posted by: Larry Graham | January 27, 2008 10:52 PM
That's not a De Lisle in the video. It's a copy. At least I hope it is. anyone who fitted a scope and a Harris "The crappiest bipod in the world" bipod to a real De lisle wants Bull f'king (and that's swearing!)
He ought to learn a bit about holding, aiming and following through too!
Posted by: EX_STAB | January 28, 2008 12:35 AM
Now then EX_STAB ... what exactly is wrong with the Harris bi-pod??
Posted by: Mr Free Market | January 28, 2008 1:10 AM
There is a story about the deLisle - which may or may not be Gospel truth - that the first prototype was finished on the night shift and rushed over to SOE at 8 o'clock in the morning, where they tested it by shooting pigeons off the roof of the Tube Station across the street - as people were coming out and going to work. Nobody heard the shots, so they sent it to France that night and promptly ordered more of them!
Posted by: Gweilicus | January 28, 2008 3:53 AM
I read that for the Falklands to-do the sneaky petes suddenly decided these would be handy and went around to museums and a few folks that had them and asked if they could 'borrow them for a bit.'
My buddy John has a repro. VERRY quiet, and his does not even have a ported barrel, just the baffles.
Posted by: Walt | January 28, 2008 5:40 AM
Re: "what is wrong with Harris bipods?"
1) The attachment to the rifle is insecure and insufficient.
2) The bipod is difficult and extremely time consuming to attach to the rifle.
3) The bipod is extremely difficult and fiddly to detach from the rifle.
4) The bipod is noisy to deploy
5) The bipod can be noisy to fold.
6) The bipod is of a construction that is inclined to snag on vegetation etc and due to the exposed springs is especially noisy when this occurs.
7)The feet of the standard bipod do not provide a good grip in turf, vegetation or aggregate - they are only suitable for shooting from a bench.
8)The leg adjustment is difficult, insecure and because most models offer no tilt arrangement, requires an excessive amount of time to level the rifle.
9) Most models offer no tilt facility.
10) A pan facility is not available - panning the rifle on the bipod induces a side load that adversely affects consistency and henceforth accuracy.
11) The bipod does not provide sufficient stiffness to allow the user to lean into the bipod for stability - it is inclined to fold and collapse if this is tried. This problem can be obviated by arranging the bipod such that the legs are folded forwards but this in turn brings its own problems in terms of snagging or collecting vegetation.
12) When folded the bipod offers numerous snagging points and is generally clumsy and awkward to have affixed to the rifle when not in use. The external springs generate noise when touched or knocked. Unlike other bipods, it is likely to remain affixed to the rifle when not in use because of the difficulty encountered in fixing or removing it so these deficiencies are aggravated.
13) To summarise - it's a pile of shite.
Just buy a Parker Hale (Not the nasty Versapod copy) and leave your worries behind.
Of course if you buy the TRG, its dedicated bipod is superb.
Posted by: EX_STAB | January 28, 2008 11:21 PM
Here Here. Harris bipod is not the cats-ass for anything other than leisurly plinking from a kitchen table.
The slave-labour manufactured ones from PRC are a fraction of the price and also go 'spoi-ing'when you deploy them.
10 lbs of sand in a hessian sack, whilst not as portable, produces same or better results.
Posted by: giles chater | December 28, 2008 7:23 PM