# Canadian Forces to Replace Lee Enfield by 2014



## RackMaster (Aug 26, 2011)

Yes you read that right. ;)  It's used by our "Ranger's" in the North and is still a great rifle.  I'm curious to see what the replacement will look like.



> *Canadian Forces Should See the Replacement of the Lee Enfield Rifle in A Little More Than Three Years*
> 
> August 25, 2011. 10:07 pm • Section: Defence Watch
> 
> ...


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## Diamondback 2/2 (Aug 26, 2011)

M1A1 would be a good replacement rifle for their environment.


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## AWP (Aug 26, 2011)

JAB said:


> M1A1 would be a good replacement rifle for their environment.



Beat me to it. I don't know how you could do better in that environment.


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## pardus (Aug 26, 2011)

JAB said:


> M1A1 would be a good replacement rifle for their environment.



Agreed.

If it had to be a bolt action, then a 7.62 version of the Lee Enfield would be hard to beat.
The Lee Enfield is a wonderful rifle, it's service history is testament to that.


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## RackMaster (Aug 26, 2011)

pardus said:


> Agreed.
> 
> If it had to be a bolt action, t*hen a 7.62 version of the Lee Enfield would be hard to beat.*
> The Lee Enfield is a wonderful rifle, it's service history is testament to that.



I know a few have already been changed over to 7.62 but when they looked at the cost of new barrels for all of them would be to much.  I think they are looking for a all new weapons system, more than likely bolt action due to the environment; otherwise because they also use it for personal use, any other option will have to be semi-auto.


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## pardus (Aug 26, 2011)

Just re-manufacture new Lee Enfields with a 7.62 barrel, the blueprints already exist, they are great rifles etc... Seems like a no brainer to me.


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## RackMaster (Aug 26, 2011)

pardus said:


> Just re-manufacture new Lee Enfields with a 7.62 barrel, the blueprints already exist, they are great rifles etc... Seems like a no brainer to me.



Lots of things are no brainers to us but it doesn't mean the beurocrats have a bit of common sense between them. ;)


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## pardus (Aug 27, 2011)

You are right brother!


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## Diamondback 2/2 (Aug 27, 2011)

I would think that they would go to a semi auto at this point, unless a simple deer rifle, there is no other reason for a bolt gun. I would not expect those dudes to be running all over the NW area with some bull barreled PR bolt gun, and the semi auto's at this point are just as accurate. The OBR would be another good option IMHO.

All that said, I don't know why they don't stick with the 303 (badass round) and the Lee Enfield has a bullet proof action, I tend to doubt that the barrels have been shot out on the ones they have, and all that without getting into the issues of having to retrain them all in operation and maintaining the new weapon. I have a Lee Enfield sitting in my safe and the damn thing is still working just fine.


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## pardus (Aug 27, 2011)

The .303 is a cool round, I like it personally and it has taken every type of game all over the world for a long time, however it was the one weakness of the Lee Enfield rifle. It was originally a black powder cartridge.
The Brits realized After the Boer war that the 7mm Mauser was superior in performance than the .303 and they started a program to change calibers.
Honestly, the best rifle overall was the P17. It was the most widely issued rifle to US troops during WWI which many don't know about.


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## Diamondback 2/2 (Aug 27, 2011)

I agree 7mm Mouser is a good round; it was my first hunting rifle. 30.06 is a great round as well, but I really think the 303 is comparable. I think the 308 would be better in that it would offer more variable loads for different game and two legged critters, more data, ect. But I also think there comes a point where if you’re going to keep a bolt gun and a comparable round, that it's just spinning the wheel. Personally I would again say go M1A1 for the distance, accuracy and reliability in cold weather. That said there are thousands of options out there, including the newer mouser rifles that have interchangeable barrels/bolt face. Even Remington came out with an inexpensive SPS in 308 that is putting out ½ MOA groups, but again why go with a bolt when you have semi auto. If they were talking about extended range or some other factor (300WM/338L) then it would be very different, but the difference between 303, 30.06, 7mm, 8mm and 308 are not enough to argue a new platform IMHO. Hell there is plentiful replacement parts in the aftermarket to fix any of the old Lee Enfield’s. I would say this is an effort to update, and if it is, then they should get with the times and go semi auto. Doesn’t have to be a M1A1, there are plenty of AR10 variants that can be looked at as well, maybe a updated G3 or even the new SCAR/ACR types.


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## SpitfireV (Aug 28, 2011)

M1A1s are quite heavy and long compared to an Enfield, which is to be expected but I'd also imagine weight in the Arctic might be a consideration.


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## AWP (Aug 29, 2011)

SpitfireV said:


> M1A1s are quite heavy and long compared to an Enfield, which is to be expected but I'd also imagine weight in the Arctic might be a consideration.



The SEALS use M14s in the arctic without any issues. The M14 in stock configuration is about 2.5-3.0 lbs. heavier than the Lee-Enfield.


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## SpitfireV (Aug 29, 2011)

Is that right? I didn't realise that- I've held Enfields before and they were reasonably light for something made of hard wood and the steeliest steel that ever steeled so I figured M1s were heavier.


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## AWP (Aug 29, 2011)

SpitfireV said:


> Is that right? I didn't realise that- I've held Enfields before and they were reasonably light for something made of hard wood and the steeliest steel that ever steeled so I figured M1s were heavier.



Sources vary, but the jungle carbine is the lightest at a little over 7 lbs., all of the other variants weigh in around 9 pounds.


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