Hi:
Is there any true to the rumor that after the SMLE #4 rifle was issued, the ANZAC forces chose to keep their SMLE #3 rifles ?

I don't know if I'd say chose so much as had to. They had all the tooling to produce MKIII's, I doubt they had access to the tooling for MKIV's (at least in the early war period). Just my thoughts though.

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James L. "Jim" Rhiner

I agree with Jim. The Lithgow factory had been making Mk III rifles since before WWI. I don't know if they had any intentions of making No 4 rifles or not but since the war started in 1939 it would have been a poor time to shut down and re-tooling.

+1 for the ANZACs staying with the SMLE. Between what they already had issued and in storage, they didn't need to attain the No. 4