No 8 Rifle Safety Case

It confused me too…
So are the No8s staying or not??

Maybe there is a sense of deja vu here. I’m sure that every time the future of the N°8 has been ‘in the news’, they have sent out a missive similar to [quote=“big_g, post:119, topic:719, full:true”]“The out of service date for the No8 will be managed to allow remaining stock of rifles, spares and specialist tools to waste out as armouries are converted. There is agreement in principal for Cosford Armoury to isolate serviceable stock for the benefit of Units still using the No 8.”[/quote]
has been rolled out, as a reason to keep N°8s in service.

Given this has happened for at least 20 years, just how many N°8s and associated parts are there?
Is it more a case that the people who are conversant with repair etc for N°8s are getting fewer and fewer so get something new.

It reminds you some ways of aircraft that are due to go out of service and then they find a way of keeping them going.

I would be inclined to agree with you but at our latest Wing shooting weekend our parent station’s armoury told us they will not be supporting the No8 rifle after 30th September.

What frustrates me is they knew two weeks before we did. If HQAC are able to send a memo to the armouries to stop issuing No8 Rifles, then how come it took two weeks to send a post-it note memo to us via the scrolling banner?

Of course HQAC may realize (perhaps after enough CFAVs point out the error) that without extending the No8 until the new CSBTR is ready we’ll see a similar “pause” in 0.22 shooting as we have seen with the gliding pause and so reverse the decision, but is that not an MOD decision?

I doubt the armoury have been advised by HQAC.

The DIN issued last September extended the Safety Case until 30 Sep 2016, this is what they will be working from.

Whoever is managing this process needs to issue a new DIN to extend the safety case, so that we can continue using the No.8 whilst we wait for the roll out of CSBTR to reach us.

What’s the current situation wrt service ammo in LPWs?

As far as I am aware it is mandatory.

If I remember I will check when I get home. I have the badly photocopied (then buried, lost, found and then scanned) policy somewhere. I believe it is MOD wide.

i.e. you must use service ammo?

I seem to remember an email about the ammo not having been tested in all varieties of rifle (which is silly as it’s just off-the-shelf .22)

Well, if 22" shooting is probably heading for a “pause,” there is always L81…

No there’s not!!

You couldn’t make it up.

Apparently, someone is “on it.”

That phrase doesn’t particularly inspire confidence.

If it is the person that I think it is, then we are likely to get somewhere.

Oh, new DIN for No 8 OSD seems to be “targeted” for urgent action.

Do you have the ref?

For the new DIN? Not yet, still under review/action I think.

The latest Bader announcement tells us more of what we already know, which is very little…

It is now generally known that the Savage Small Arms L144A1 Cadet Small Bore Target Rifle (CSBTR) has been selected to replace the No 8 rifle. The ATC will be issued with the CSTBR over three years starting in 2017.

Initially fielding will be slow to build up and it is not possible to confirm any sort of fielding plan at the moment. First year fielding will however need to take into account requirements for armourer and instructor training. On-going fielding will most likely provide a percentage of scaled rifles for each Wg until the full scale is met.

Initial training of SAAI/WIs from the SATTs and the Training Development Team (TDT) has already taken place and provided 12 qualified instructors who will cascade training as the rifle is fielded. Rollout of training will take account of Wgs whose ACF neighbours have already been/are about to be issued with the rifle so that we have trained staff where arrangements can be made to borrow rifles.

The out of service date for the No8 will be managed to allow remaining stock of rifles, spares and specialist tools to waste out as armouries are converted. Serviceable stock will be recovered and reissued for the benefit of Units still using the No 8.

They have also released the Wpn Pamphlet now, here.

It is unfortunate, that despite the repeated criticism and constructive comments of instructors on the SASC-led initial training to those 12 instructors mentioned above, they have ploughed forward with trying to make the drills for this akin to the Service Rifle. There is still a ‘tap-forward’ as a stoppage drill (on a bolt action rifle!!), as well as an ‘Obstruction’ drill… :ohmygod:

The tap forward sort of makes sense. I would assume that if the bolt isn’t fully closed the weapon will not fire, therefore a check that it is properly closed makes sense.

see comment 114 above…we knew this some time ago (3 weeks)

Which was my point…‘more of what we already know’