Can CF members deploy overseas with personally owned weapons?

Aside from the serving member who are on this forum (and thanks for your service!) I don't think there is much interest or thought given to pistols throughout the Forces. I know when I was in the reserves, pistols were carried by some but never trained on or shot at all. I offered to give a friend of mines brother, who will probably be deploying again, some free training on pistols and his attitude was along the lines of "They are pretty much useless anyways so why bother training with them?"
 
When in Bosnia, my contact was issued a Hi-Power. His father claimed it looked like the one he had during WWII when serving in the RCAF. But according to my friend the gun worked flawlessly. The armourers do one hell of a job keeping things in shape.
 
What could you possibly accomplish with a pistol in Afghanistan?

You'd probably be better served throwing rocks at those ranges anyway.
 
C Broad Arrow said:
I said some troops as part of an evaluation. Comes from my contact who is in DND and involved in the prep of the troops etc. Glocks and others have been provided to medics and other combat arms where working a rifle is not the best suited given their job. But I do not know if they have become standard issue.

I do not have direct knowledge other than what I have been told. Morpheus as I said will likely have a better idea than me.
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I may be wrong here, but i thought medical personnel were supposed to be unarmed as per geneva convention (to prevent them from being intentionally fired upon). As i understood it it was under the rules of engagement that medical personnel were not to be actively engaged.
 
redddogg69 said:
I may be wrong here, but i thought medical personnel were supposed to be unarmed as per geneva convention (to prevent them from being intentionally fired upon). As i understood it it was under the rules of engagement that medical personnel were not to be actively engaged.
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And as soon as the Taliban sign that document I'm sure CF Medics will feel a whole lot better...lol
 
Medics in the CF are armed to protect themselves and their patients.


I have yet to see a Glock or any other sidearm besides a BHP, a 225 or a 226 issued to anyone in the CF.
 
if you are issued a pistol then you get to take it overseas... frankly the first thing I would be doing if issued a pistol would be going out and buying a dozen GOOD quality magazines like mec-gar for the BHP.
 
TIM_COX said:
if you are issued a pistol then you get to take it overseas... frankly the first thing I would be doing if issued a pistol would be going out and buying a dozen GOOD quality magazines like mec-gar for the BHP.
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+1. Original WW2 issue Inglis magazines were and are a nightmare. The BHP Can be fairly reliable, if it has brand new magazines. I've used it on occasions where it jams for one reason or another after every shot.

I'll post a link to a good article written by an PPCLI officer after completing his tour in afghanistan on Roto 2 from 2004-2005. It's a general summary of how his company's small arms performed in theatre, and his thoughts on improvements. As a heads-up, this is a .Pdf file. Skip to page 5 for the opinion on the BHP if you don't want to read the whole thing.

http://armyapp.dnd.ca/allc-clra/Downloads/bulletin/TheBulletinVol12No3eng.pdf
 
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y2k said:
Are the BHP in service all made during WW2? or did they make a second batch since then?
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All produced in 1944-1945 I think, they just bought so many that they had thousands in stock, brand new, until a few years ago. I think troops in Afghanistan were sometimes issued brand new, 1944/45 High powers up until a few years ago.
 
Anyone ever see the "Small arms of the CF" poster? Kinda funny in that it has the cadets' air rifle and the CNo7, and the Rangers' No4 on it next to all the really cool stuff. It does not have any pistols other than the BHP and 225 and 226 on it.
 
This thread is interesting to me, I guess because I'm curious as to what people would want to change? I mean, getting issued a Sig P226 is like, not something to be upset about. Can you ask for a better sidearm?? What would that be?

As for replacing the Hi-Power, well, i know it has lots of history and there are fans in this thread, and that the armorers do keep them running great. I still think its a piece of #### though. There are things that I would want to have LESS than a HP, but there are definitely better guns. Not really for the Sig though...what could you take to a theater that would be better than that??

Now that I think about it, I'm probably going to hear from a bunch of 1911 buffs who are talking about .45 cal. Thats an argument you could make I suppose :( IMO be happy with the Sig :)
 
Back in 04 when I was up in Wainwright for a bit, I saw the MP's carrying Glocks. Had to stop and take a double look to be sure, indeed they were. Another issue I was told about by one of the armours was the ammunition itself. The 9mm that was being issued was said to be too hot for the "non steel framed" guns, and was restricted to the HP. Don't know what the guys with SIG's or Glocks had in them.
 
I've fired all the the pistols in service within the CF (BHP,225 and 226). Always used our standard IVI ball ammo. Never had a problem.

The problem with BHP right now is that they are hit and miss. Some are still in great shape, but others are very poor... The mags are another issue. I've bring my own on my last tour.
 
I know this is slightly off topic, but what about privately purchased pigstickers? Or are you limited to Swiss Army/Multitool stuff, if at all? Or is it a use/weight issue only?
 
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