ARES Enfield No4. Mk1 and No4. Mk1(T)

[Armo1000]

https://youtu.be/PjqmmYJl228

 

Red wolf review of the rifles. Unfortunately (but kinda expected) it seem these rifles have sub par performance for a ridiculous £700 price tag. 
 

I’ll stick to my S&T for now. Only cost £299 and seems to perform better than this bank account draining paper weight…. 
 

Seems like this will inevitably join the pile of overpriced junk historic guns along with the likes of RWAs Enfield and ares own L1A1.

 

When will these Airsoft manufactures learn! Oh well, here’s hoping for the G&G and maybe S&T to manufacture a No4

 

 

Edited June 11, 2022 by Armo1000

[Crazy_Crystal]

2 hours ago, Armo1000 said:

https://youtu.be/PjqmmYJl228

 

Red wolf review of the rifles. Unfortunately (but kinda expected) it seem these rifles have sub par performance for a ridiculous £700 price tag. 
 

I’ll stick to my S&T for now. Only cost £299 and seems to perform better than this bank account draining paper weight…. 
 

Seems like this will inevitably join the pile of overpriced junk historic guns along with the likes of RWAs Enfield and ares own L1A1.

 

When will these Airsoft manufactures learn! Oh well, here’s hoping for the G&G and maybe S&T to manufacture a No4

 

 

Sadly you may be right... That bolt pull also looks very odd ... It shouldn't be stuff both ways unless they've done something very strange ?

[JimFromHorsham]

Sounds like they’ve tried to replicate the forward cocking action of the RS but have a standard rearward cocking spring mechanism . 
 

price was to be expected , im out .

[EvilMonkee]

On 09/05/2022 at 08:47, JimFromHorsham said:

https://www.davescustomairsoft.co.uk/Ares-L42A1-Rifle?search=Ares Lee Enfield
 

up for preorder , £694 ?

Ah Daves Custom Scalpers at it again

[Armo1000]

On 11/06/2022 at 14:05, EvilMonkee said:

Ah Daves Custom Scalpers at it again

 

£707.99 now at Daves Custom, haha. 
 

Patrol base have the cheapest one at £649.99. 
 

Not that it’s cheap either way lol. 
 

And still no proper reviews beyond RWA. Hoping Neo35 can get his hands on one of these to give us an in depth look. 

Edited September 7, 2022 by Armo1000

[RostokMcSpoons]

I'd like to see one up close.   I hanker after a deactivated No4 with a working bolt that can cycle deactivated rounds, this might scratch the itch for a bit less cash. And let me do some plinking with it too.

 

Edit:  Not much less cash... de-activated no4's are available with cycling bolt / dry fire / removable mag for £850.   I suspect the breech will be welded up so won't take dummy rounds, but it's the bolt-action itself that I have some weird case of "whatever-the-physical-version-of-ASMR-is" 

Edited September 7, 2022 by RostokMcSpoons

[1st commando]

3 hours ago, Armo1000 said:

 

£707.99 now at Daves Custom, haha. 
 

Patrol base have the cheapest one at £649.99. 
 

Not that it’s cheap either way lol. 
 

And still no proper reviews beyond RWA. Hoping Neo35 can get his hands on one of these to give us an in depth look. 

Patrol base always show lower prices when it's something they don't have. See what price they are when they actually get stock . Unfortunately things are getting really expensive, especially shipping and these rilfes come in a massive hard case which means only two fit in a case so are very expensive to ship in 

[BigBell1987]

43 minutes ago, 1st commando said:

Patrol base always show lower prices when it's something they don't have

Yep common website trick to generate traffic!

[Armo1000]

1 hour ago, 1st commando said:

Patrol base always show lower prices when it's something they don't have. See what price they are when they actually get stock . Unfortunately things are getting really expensive, especially shipping and these rilfes come in a massive hard case which means only two fit in a case so are very expensive to ship in 

Does make me wonder how much these things actually cost to produce. I remember seeing the S&T SMLE as low as £250 on some Asian websites, yet that sells for as a high as £450 on some sites. 

33 minutes ago, BigBell1987 said:

Yep common website trick to generate traffic!

Yeah their prices do go up and down, however i still find them to be one of the cheaper sites. And I got lucky with their S&T SMLE when they had it up for £299. 

Edited September 7, 2022 by Armo1000

[Nick G]

5 hours ago, Armo1000 said:

 

Yeah their prices do go up and down, however i still find them to be one of the cheaper sites. And I got lucky with their S&T SMLE when they had it up for £299. 

Same as I paid for mine from them. Got a very snarky reply when I posted on Dave's custom facebook page that the price of his current batch was quite a bit more than I had just paid !

[Armo1000]

In stock now at patrol base. Unfortunately they bumped the price to 659 from 649, but still the cheapest offering for this in the UK. 
 

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/ares-lee-enfield-rifle-no-4-mk-i-t-sniper-w-scope-and-mount

[Guest]

12 minutes ago, Armo1000 said:

In stock now at patrol base. Unfortunately they bumped the price to 659 from 649, but still the cheapest offering for this in the UK. 
 

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/ares-lee-enfield-rifle-no-4-mk-i-t-sniper-w-scope-and-mount

 I paid considerably less than that for a real one ??

[Armo1000]

52 minutes ago, rocketdogbert said:

 I paid considerably less than that for a real one ??

 

I agree, it is very expensive, but at the same time, you can't play airsoft with a working or deactivated Enfield, and a good one of those can cost up to £1000. Plus if you want a No4T Sniper, then you will be paying in the thousands for that. So yes it is expensive, but most of us will probably never get the chance to shoot or own a real No4T so this is the next best thing, and it does seem like a lovely replica from what I've seen so far. 

[EvilMonkee]

23 hours ago, Armo1000 said:

 

I agree, it is very expensive, but at the same time, you can't play airsoft with a working or deactivated Enfield, and a good one of those can cost up to £1000. Plus if you want a No4T Sniper, then you will be paying in the thousands for that. So yes it is expensive, but most of us will probably never get the chance to shoot or own a real No4T so this is the next best thing, and it does seem like a lovely replica from what I've seen so far. 

Yes, but its an Ares.......

[Armo1000]

1 hour ago, EvilMonkee said:

Yes, but its an Ares.......

 

Well lets wait on some proper reviews, but i did message a few people who own these and they are all very happy with them.

[Guest]

17 minutes ago, Armo1000 said:

 

Well lets wait on some proper reviews, but i did message a few people who own these and they are all very happy with them.

The trouble is, very few people who spend serious money on something are prepared to admit openly they made a mistake ??

[JimFromHorsham]

Some pics I took today

 

And a couple more 

 

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, JimFromHorsham said:

Some pics I took today

 

And a couple more 

 

Looking good

[Nick G]

A mate had his L42 turn up today. seems very nice, bolt pull is smooth , first tests suggest it shoots well, the scope is very clear. Externals are great , feels very robust. The mate in question used one back when he was in and said it feels very familiar.

[BigAl]

Considering the wood stock, scope and crate ( dodgy markings but they can be painted over and re done ) I think the price is reasonable.  Star / Ares Guns always look good as for performance well hell it airsoft, get tinkering.

[Armo1000]

2 hours ago, BigAl said:

Considering the wood stock, scope and crate ( dodgy markings but they can be painted over and re done ) I think the price is reasonable.  Star / Ares Guns always look good as for performance well hell it airsoft, get tinkering.

 

Yeah, as sated before, it is very expensive, but i think the value for money here is what makes it. You will not find a No4T anywhere near this price. And i don't think we will see another airsoft version like this, at this build quality, and accuracy for some time. A No. 32 MK I Sniper Scope alone, costs almost as much as this Airsoft version, and that's for a reproduction. 

Edited October 17, 2022 by Armo1000

[Armo1000]

Had my one arrive on Tuesday, from Patrol Base. Haven’t had a chance to shoot or even handle it much yet, so here’s my initial out the box impressions so far. 

 

Largely very happy and impressed with the rifle. It’s not perfect and I do have some gripes, but it is close, and is probably the best you are going to get for an Airsoft No4 Lee Enfield, at this point. 

 

It’s finish is superb, being made of full steel, and a lovely dark wood stock. Comes pre oiled and wrapped in greasy paper on all the metal and moving parts which is nice and unlike S&Ts offering. Weight is very similar to the real thing, so it is heavy, but still less of a burden than I expected, even with the No32 scope on it. The bolt pull is very smooth and easy, much better than the slightly awkward and stiff pull on the S&T SMLE, and does somewhat replicate that of the real thing, from what I hear. The trigger however is very heavy, so much so, that I thought it was stuck on safety the first time I pulled it. This doesn’t cause too much of an issue once you get used to it, and it may loosen up a bit with use. The replica No32 Scope is very nice, and clear, although, I did find that you have to really get close to the lens to acquire that clear picture, which is fortunately helped by the cheek riser.

 

On the flip side, my main gripe with it, comes from the fitting of the metal but-plate. It’s just not fitted well at all. Screwed in, off the mark so some metal is hanging out, and also leaving a gap on one side and the top. Its tighter on the other side as well, leaving a section of wood with some small splinters flaking off from the pressure. This seems very odd to me given the overall premium nature of this product, and attention to detail everywhere else on it. To compare, the but-plate on the S&T SMLE, is fitted perfectly all round, and that is a far cheaper product. Also some very small cracks where the but stock connects to the metal band. Maybe I was just unlucky with this and it’s nothing which can’t be overlooked to be honest, but it does bug me a bit given the price you pay, and otherwise excellent finish everywhere else. 

 

Also a bit of wobble with the front sight, but I think this can be screwed tight. I did try to fit a No4 MkII spike bayonet to it, as have seen photos of others do this on the rifle, but for whatever reason my bayonet did not fit on and I didn’t want to force it. 

 

So overall, on initial inspection, I do think this is a lovely and worth while Airsoft rifle as well as a superb replica of a No4T. Just a little annoying about the fitting issues, but that may just be bad luck on my part. I will have a good tinker and test fire with it over the weekend and share some photos here. 

Edited October 21, 2022 by Armo1000

[Armo1000]

Some closeups and comparisons with the S&T SMLE. 
 

 

Scope is very nice, although it would of been good for them to include some scope caps too for protection. 

 

 

This Ares Long Branch replica, with an appropriate No4MKII Long Branch made original spike bayonet. Just a shame it doesn’t fit. 

 

 

 

Now to the unfortunate but-plate fitting issue. Sadly looks crudely done next to the neat job on the S&T SMLE.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 22, 2022 by Armo1000

[MadMole]

mmmm my genuine bayonet fits fine on my straight No.4 Mk1 (non T) Ares

 

Modified genuine Mk3 flip[ up sight to fit and a 6.02 barrel and ML hop waiting to go in. Dad says its very realistic (was his service weapon), weight is right and even sounds nearly right , Shoots not bad out of box, I've only tried to 50m but probably a 25cm grouping at that distance. 432fps standard (stronger spring to go in). Smooth to cycle

 

I've linseeded the stock which not only gives it a great smell, but a better deeper color. Fitted a genuine WW2 sling, have a replica, cover, Bayonet frog and case, stripper clips and bandolier and a canvas case for it

 

Worth every penny, good for a wall hanger and the odd skirmish, to go with the Webley and Sten. Need to get some pattern 37 stuff now

 

Spare mags from Ares shop online at reasonable price

Need to get another bayonet and replace the spike with rubber, it looks so good with it on

[Armo1000]

Ares themselves recently got back to me regarding the stock issue. They were very apologetic about it, and are going to send be a brand new stock free of charge. So very good customer service from them. But then again you shouldn't expect anything less at this price point.