peashooter85:The Lee Enfield No. 5 MK I Jungle Carbine,During World War II the British War Ministry
peashooter85:The Lee Enfield No. 5 MK I Jungle Carbine,During World War II the British War Ministry saw a need for a carbine length version of the venerable Lee Enfield. In March of 1944 the Lee Enfield Mark I was developed and first issued to British paratroopers in Europe. A light and handy carbine, the No. 5 was a shortened version of the Lee Enfield No. 4 Mark I. A new stock was added, one of a more sporting type of ergonomics, which was lighter and easier to wield. Weight saving metal cuts were made in various places along the carbine, for example even the knob on the bolt handle was hollowed out to save weight. A rubber butt plate was used in place of a metal buttplate to save weight and compensate for the extra recoil created by losing weight. Perhaps the feature that stands out the most is the large conical flash compensator added to its muzzle.While the No. 5 MK I was first introduced in Europe, the carbine became most popular with British soldiers serving in the jungle regions of the Pacific Theatre. It was the perfect rifle for use in thick and dense terrain because of its lightweight and compact size. This earned it the unofficial nickname “jungle carbine”. After the war it also very popular with British soldiers in Malay Emergency, a conflict against insurgent communist forces in Malaysia after WWII.Unfortunately the Jungle Carbine was phased out quickly due to a phenomenon called “wandering zero”, a condition where the rifle could not be sighted in properly due to inherent inaccuracy. British Ordnance conducted several tests to determine why this occurred, and made some suggestions, but the design was recalled regardless. The funny thing is that collectors and shooters today cannot replicate wandering zero on their vintage jungle carbines. Many have theorized that the British were just trying to find an excuse to phase out their Lee Enfields in order to adopt modern automatics such as the L1A1. -- source link