SLR film prop - suggestions needed

[Snapper]

Greetings from the Grassy Knoll,

 

I bought a film prop SLR at Beltring. It needs tidying up a bit. I think it would have been made for Bloody Sunday or something earlier and would have been carried by someone a little more in the background. It feels right and looks well, but it has no butt plate (I bought one, but I think it needs the later plastic type, not the metal older ones, to fit better. It has no sights at all, but clearly had one which has been removed. I'm wondering if it is feasible to get a sight for it (or make one) and whether any other bits would enhance the look. Detail is basic/non-existent, but with some careful painting and a bit of metalwork it could look really cool. We've already sussed the bayonet lug has been set a little to far back to accept the sharp pointy thing. Not fussed about that, but I'd like to make the whole package look sweeter. Suggestions/advice please........

 

mb

[Tony B]

Butt plates are available commercially cut to fit, should be one similar. Have you tried your local gun dealear? The network can often get odd bits.

[Snapper]

Like a tw4t I opted to buy a metal plate at Beltring. The guy had hundreds of plastic types. My mitsake. I'm in no rush. It's just a bit of fun. Sorting a new motor comes first. I'm told there's a dealer called SLR Bits or something similar.

 

Ta

 

M

[Tony B]

Like a tw4t I opted to buy a metal plate at Beltring. The guy had hundreds of plastic types. My mitsake. I'm in no rush. It's just a bit of fun. Sorting a new motor comes first. I'm told there's a dealer called SLR Bits or something similar.

 

Ta

 

M

yes thers is a dealer called SLR but don't so gun parts.

[Markheliops]

Lets see a pici then pickle.

[Jonny666]

i am sure they only put the metal butt plate on the wooden stockted type, as mine is the plastic type and has the plastic butt plate, and sites are easy enough to find, but i am of course assuming you mean the iron sights and not the SUIT lol

[AlienFTM]

i am sure they only put the metal butt plate on the wooden stockted type, as mine is the plastic type and has the plastic butt plate, and sites are easy enough to find, but i am of course assuming you mean the iron sights and not the SUIT lol

 

To pre-empt the question.

 

SUIT (pronounced Zoot) is a Sight Unit (Infantry), Trilux. Issued to infantry (hence the name) to fit on the cover of an SLR and improve the overall standard of shooting within the infantry rifle section. (Just as today's infantry get a SUSAT - Sight Unit, Small Arms, Trilux for their SA80s.)

 

ISTR SUIT was a quite compact add-on which gave 1.5* magnification (I stand to be corrected) and instead of aligning Eyeball, Mark 1, backsight, foresight and centre of the observed mass to get the weapon to fire on target, it was only necessary to align the stalactite-format down-pointing arrow and the target (the SUIT's rear lens meant that the alignment of the eyeball was not critical - I suppose like a camera with a screen to watch instead of an eyepiece. But I never needed a SUIT sight so I am guessing.) The down-pointing aiming arrow meant that while you were engaging a target at say 200m, half your sight picture was not obscured by the arrow, so you might see who was creeping up closer and therefore a more immediate threat.

 

Trilux? Military-speak for glow-in-the-dark tritium. Used to pick out detail on the sight like the phospor to illuminate the numbers and hand on a watch dial. Also found in the Scorpion gunner's Quadrant Fire Control for semi-indirect fire of the 76. It is radioactive (being an essential component of Heavy Water), so that damage to a Trilux instrument led to an SOP of open the windows and clear the room.

[Snapper]

The thing is a wood and iron lump and I am assuming what was on the end was just a bit of metal to suit and not anything detailed. A proper metal butt plate comes up a bit thin. Maybe I'll do some scultping and keep it. I only want iron sites. A tri-lux jobby would triple the value of the thing. It's not massively important - just a little fun for winter projects. I'd like to make it look sweeter.

 

MB

[Tony B]

Query? did SLR actually have Susat? I remeber a huge great Image Intensfier fitted to them, weighed as much as the rifle, but never in genral use. Mostly iron sight.

[Bazz]

As Alien stated above, the SLR had a SUIT sight fitted.This was pre SA 80 days.

 

Bazz

Edited August 13, 2008 by Bazz
found more pics

[Tony B]

Not seen that one before. thanks.

[Bazz]

See http://www.ds-solutions.co.uk for inch SLR/L1A1 parts.

 

Bazz

[AlienFTM]

Query? did SLR actually have Susat? I remeber a huge great Image Intensfier fitted to them, weighed as much as the rifle, but never in genral use. Mostly iron sight.

 

In addition to the SUIT sight for general issue to the infantry, we did have NOD sights for SLRs. ISTR they were mounted onto a spare cover and simply swapped in / out for night / day use, which raised the question of breaking the zeroing every time you changed sight. This was an issue with the SLR anyway because backsight was mounted on one half of the broken rifle and foresight on the other half, so that shooting pedants would never break the rifle for cleaning after zeroing. If this caused a stoppage, the SOP was to wind up the gas setting until the gun fired.

 

In checking the derivation of the acronym NOD, I managed to find Clive's own work on this subject on this forum at:

 

http://www.hmvf.co.uk/pdf/Tabby04.pdf

 

Note it also refers to Twiggy. In 1976 in West Tyrone and Fermanagh we used both of these at the same time as one was replacing the other.

[AlienFTM]

Note it also refers to Twiggy. In 1976 in West Tyrone and Fermanagh we used both of these at the same time as one was replacing the other.

 

... although my memory may be flawed here since, reading Clive's work, Twiggy was bigger than I remembered and tripod-, not weapon-mounted. I suspect we did use Twiggy in OPS and I am sure we also had two different flavours of SLR-mounted night sight.

 

Baz, thoughts?

[Snapper]

See www.ds-solutions.co.uk for inch SLR/L1A1 parts.

 

Bazz

 

Top of the bananas to ye.

 

MB

[Rick W]

Out of interest how much did it set you back Mark? Was it from a company or a private individual?

[Bazz]

Alien, the 2 wpn sights for SLR were Suit and NOD, sometimes referred by some as "The Twilight Scope". Twiggy was a tripod mounted observation device based on the II principle.

 

Bazz

Edited August 13, 2008 by Bazz
more info

[Snapper]

It was only forty quid, which might seem a silly price, I was in a good mood and I like the idea of film props. In the cold light of day I might not have bought it. But sod that for a lark...

 

MB

[AlienFTM]

Alien, the 2 wpn sights for SLR were Suit and NOD. Twiggy was a tripod mounted observation device based on the II principle.

 

Bazz

 

I don't remember our troop having SUIT, but I do remember a motley collection of two different types of II sight.

[Adam Elsdon]

It was only forty quid, which might seem a silly price, I was in a good mood and I like the idea of film props. In the cold light of day I might not have bought it. But sod that for a lark...

 

MB

 

Thats the spirit... next thing will be really old tracked armour!! :-D

[Bazz]

MB,

 

Never did send you the SLR sling, do you still want 1 or 2?:???

 

Bazz

[Snapper]

No worries Baz, the rifle has one already which appears to be close to the real thing. I am seriously considering a deact, though. Ihave become very interested in SLRs for some unfathomable reason.

 

daft as a brush, me.

 

M

[Rick W]

I notice the Iltis seems to have a gun holder in the middle so looking for a cheapish looking replica. My budget will stretch to £40, so if anyone knows where I can get a bargain like that, let me know. Thanks

[Snapper]

You need an airsoft G3 but the top rubber clip for the barrel will need serious softening up. A basic 'spring' or hop-up thing is cool enough. I had one for FDE but never fitted the G3 because the top mount was so solid. But they do go well and have seen it done. I'm afraid my son would kill me if I attempted to sell the gun. It also took Uzis down the side of the driver and passenger in specific clip mounts.

 

MB

[Bazz]

Mark,

 

you are not alone, I think the SLR was the dogs b*****ks of rifles.

 

Bazz