The American rifles were painted with a red band to prevent the wrong ammunition being chambered (though contrary to myth, it was not possible to blow either rifle up in this way). 303 Pattern 1914 counterparts, were both in service with the British Home Guard in the Second World War. The well protected peep sight, mounted on the receiver, close to the shooter's eye, with a front sight likewise protected by strong steel ears, gave a sighting combination that was far superior to that on the Springfield, and by a considerable margin the best and most practical of any seen in that war." Though it was basically a typical Mauser, it was improved in several respects, and had a bolt and receiver of high grade nickel steel that gave it a superbly strong action. "The rifle that was being produced for the British was of a highly advanced design, making it the best military rifle used during World War I. firearms expert of the day, Major General Julian Hatcher Enfield' compared favourably with the M1903 Springfield. With a shared Mauser heritage, this 'U.S. 30-06 cartridge, it is actually possible to load the rifle's magazine with an extra round, giving it a slight edge over the Mauser's five, though far short of the Enfield's ten. 30-06 cartridge as the M1903 Springfield. version, differing only in its markings, which included the flaming bomb of the U.S Ordnance Department. The British Pattern 1913 bayonet was also copied for use with the U.S. Many rifles were built at a train factory, the Baldwin Locomotive Works at Eddystone, Pennsylvania. Production rates needed for industrial-scale warfare outstripped factory capacity, however, and necessitated that civilian factories build military weapons. ordered large quantities of the M1917, an American-built, British-designed weapon from those same companies. It was for these reasons of convenience that the U.S. 303 calibre, manufacture of which was contracted to three American firms Winchester, Remington, and Eddystone. However, the design survived in the form of the Pattern 1914, in the standard British. The outbreak of war in 1914 stopped Britain's efforts to introduce this new. The final design, adopted as the Pattern 1913, had the best features of both, with the exception of a backwards step to a five round magazine instead of the ten of the SMLE. Like the M1903, it too borrowed from the Mauser, and indeed early prototypes were converted M1903s. It was for this reason that America turned to a British design not the Lee-Enfield, but a new design originating from the same factory. But the need to equip up to four million soldiers could not be met from existing stocks. The latter, based on the German Mauser, was powerful, accurate, and robust. soldiers in the First World War carried British Enfield rifles than their own M1903 Springfield design. The entry of the United States into the war was one of the major contributions to Allied victory.
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