Canuck Enfields get reprieve from the scrap heap
The WWII vintage .303 No. 4 Lee Enfield rifles used by the part-time soldiers of the Canadian Rangers will be given to their users, converted to drill rifles or released to the public.
The more than 5,000 Rangers, who specialize in arctic search and rescue and are organized in 200 often remote communities in Canada’s far north are paid for up to 12 days of service per year as they keep up their patrols. Their rifles are primary for protection against large predators.
The guns currently in use by the Rangers are Canadian-made Long Branch Arsenal No. 4 MK. I* and EAL models in .303 though they are being withdrawn from the field to be replaced by the recently selected Sako (Tikka)/Colt Canada T3 CTR (Compact Tactical Rifle) rifle in .308.
With speculation as to what was to become of the old war baby Enfields, the Canadian Department of National Defence has confirmed the guns will live on with some going to museums, others gifted to active Rangers who currently have them, a large cache converted to drill rifles, and the balance sold as surplus.
