SMLE No1 MkV

[Bruce_in_Oz]

Many of them seem to have been shipped to India.

An interesting twist is that post WW2, Indian troops, apparently many toting MK V rifles, went to "French Indo-China" to deal with the surrender / repatriation of thousands of Japanese troops. Some of these Mk Vs seem to have been "mislaid" and ended up in the hands of Ho Chi Minh's 'Viet Minh" troops. There are a few (probably posed") photos of them "in the wild" in those parts, in the hands of suitably grim-looking Viets. Probably used for drill and propaganda purposes because of the limited availability of .303 ammo and appropriate spare parts, until they fell to bits and were scrapped

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[Alan de Enfield]

Many of them seem to have been shipped to India.

An interesting twist is that post WW2, Indian troops, apparently many toting MK V rifles, went to "French Indo-China" to deal with the surrender / repatriation of thousands of Japanese troops. Some of these Mk Vs seem to have been "mislaid" and ended up in the hands of Ho Chi Minh's 'Viet Minh" troops. There are a few (probably posed") photos of them "in the wild" in those parts, in the hands of suitably grim-looking Viets. Probably used for drill and propaganda purposes because of the limited availability of .303 ammo and appropriate spare parts, until they fell to bits and were scrapped

Maybe the best known picture :

[Surpmil]

Many of them seem to have been shipped to India.

An interesting twist is that post WW2, Indian troops, apparently many toting MK V rifles, went to "French Indo-China" to deal with the surrender / repatriation of thousands of Japanese troops. Some of these Mk Vs seem to have been "mislaid" and ended up in the hands of Ho Chi Minh's 'Viet Minh" troops. There are a few (probably posed") photos of them "in the wild" in those parts, in the hands of suitably grim-looking Viets. Probably used for drill and propaganda purposes because of the limited availability of .303 ammo and appropriate spare parts, until they fell to bits and were scrapped

There was probably plenty of Japanese-made .303 around, not to mention the vast stocks captured in 1941 and probably little used by the Japanese. The battlefields would have been gleaned by the locals too whenever possible as there has surely been a black market in arms and ammo there for centuries. They would have been quick to pilfer after Japan folded up as well.