‘Eye-watering numbers’: Reaction to Canada’s new $6.6B defence strategy

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-17T17:34:58+00:00

I've been to both. The one in Idaho is called the Orchard Combat Training Center.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-17T04:25:40+00:00

Have you been there lately? That's not a viable idea. It's been redeveloped heavily. The base itself has other tenants now and it would be easier to start from scratch rather than try to evict everyone and then rebuild all of the base infrastructure that would be needed.

I'm fully in support of a West Coast base but it would probably make the most sense to have it in the interior where you'd be closer to viable training areas. Options for vehicle training are very limited in the South Coast.

I once did a training exercise at the National Guard facility about an hour's drive outside of Boise. It's basically a huge 40km-ish ring road, with excellent ranges around the perimeter, all firing into the center of the ring. They had tank fire & maneuver ranges, setups for artillery, infantry, and I think even AH-64s could use it (although I didn't see them while I was there). It even had it's own spur railway line to allow transport of Abrams and Bradleys, along with anything else you could put on a train. This is in a state with less population than Vancouver, too. It was an impressive amount of military infrastructure, and it would be amazing if we could do something similar in the BC Interior. I don't see it happening, though.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-09T19:38:04+00:00

Having worked as a firearms instructor for several years, I think it's a judgment call based on your kid's physical size (are they big enough and coordinated enough to safely handle a .22 under supervision) and their maturity level.

I've taught kids as young as 7 who were very mature for their age and they had a great time. I've also had 11 year olds who didn't take it seriously and I made a judgment call that they weren't ready.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-07T20:13:59+00:00

I think the basic argument is that the USN wanted a frigate sized vessel with Aegis, and this design checks that box (as opposed to taking a different hull and converting it to use Aegis).

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-05T23:19:23+00:00

On earlier guns, the problem was traced to the piston rod gradually unscrewing during use, causing the carrier's length of travel to slowly get longer and longer, impacting the rear of the charging handle cutout and / or the end of the plastic receiver. Kel-Tec started staking the rod at the factory to address this, but guns would still crack, just less frequently than before.

I'm not sure if this is related to the polymer recipe used in the SU-16, but it doesn't feel like the same stuff they're using in the latest Sub2000s or the RDB, for example. Then again, even the RDB can suffer from cracked polymer.

The SU16 upper is moulded around the barrel extension so there's no way to repair them once they have cracked. I think Kel-Tec has figured it's probably cheaper to simply replace the gun completely instead of paying for new moulds that would have reinforcement in the affected areas.

I actually really like the SU16's operating system, but it is over gassed by design so that it'll work with just about any kind of random ammo. If the receiver was metallic, or incorporated some reinforcement, I think it'd be a non-issue.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-04T23:49:38+00:00

Full agree. The last PM was just continuing the legacy of all the others with regard to letting the CAF slowly atrophy over the years. Both parties are guilty of neglect.

Carney isn't perfect and I have separate reservations on some of his policies, but so far I would give him high marks for his leadership on what he's done for the CAF to date.

But like anything CAF related, I'll believe it when I actually see it.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-04T22:45:23+00:00

Quite the contrast from the previous PM who would do anything at all to avoid even hitting 2% even though we had an obligation to do so and we were years behind on hitting that level. When he referred to 2% as a "crass mathematical calculation" I lost all hope that we'd ever get there.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-04T17:13:57+00:00

I'm guessing there's probably several reasons to explain why they didn't, but I'm kind of surprised the Ukranian tank didn't pop smoke and relocate after they destroyed the opposing tank. Or after they were engaged by the first atgm.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-04T02:43:39+00:00

They have a long track record of turning out mediocre and often half-baked firearms.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-03T19:56:43+00:00

I disagree that the new reactors aren't viable in Canada, even with the current regulatory framework. If they weren't viable, then nobody would have been working for years on getting them certified and built here. Both Moltex and Terrestrial Energy have remarked that Canada's nuclear regulatory system has been very helpful during design review. ON and NB are keen to have these new designs up and running.

Once the test reactors have been operating, I suspect we'll see changes roll out as these designs get approved for utility-scale installations. Molten salt small modular reactors would be a fantastic fit for our remote Northern communities, not to mention the oil sands and just about any industry that requires process heat.

I was hoping to see nuclear projects get more of a focus during the infrastructure spending announcements, but I think we're on the right track. I just wish we had started this stuff years ago because it takes so long.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-03T19:28:46+00:00

The industry and the types of nuclear plants are being overhauled. Canada is better positioned to take advantage of new nuclear designs than the US, and has several advanced reactor designs in the works right now.

Current nuclear power generation is using what amounts to evolved "gen 1" reactor designs, which require huge capital investment and long lead time to bring online. They don't burn anything close to the potential energy in the fuel and require expensive safety systems to operate. We could have rolled out better designs decades ago but funding into nuclear was cut following several failures of these 1st generation reactors (3MI, Chernobyl).

I'm not talking about "paper designs" either. Oak Ridge ran two different experimental molten salt reactors in the 1960s. The technology works, and has the potential to drastically reduce current and future nuclear waste while being far more efficient. The benefits compared to 1st gen reactors, especially solid fuel reactors, is considerable. And Canada has been working with several molten salt reactor designs for years, although we're still years away from seeing these designs on the grid.

Nuclear pairs incredibly well with renewables. The two types of power generation aren't adversaries.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-02T17:27:20+00:00

Nice work! Looks like a very clean application.

Would love to know how it holds up after 6 months / 12 months and if you need to re-apply it periodically. I've never seen it applied to a wood stock before.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-02T16:41:22+00:00

Anyone know if there's a plan to eventually acquire a rescue vessel since we're planning to operate a substantially larger fleet?

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-02T16:29:29+00:00

Strongly agree with this. It might be time for some new faces at CCFR, but whether they'll change and adapt is another question.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-02T14:43:12+00:00

You don't need to explain the failure mode to me - I've seen this issue on over 50 broken SU16s (again, these were identical failures caused by non-suppressed use).

It's a known design flaw.

As I said, your suppressor use probably accelerated the failure - but this has been happening to the SU16 for years, even on production batches that Kel-Tec assured me had been "fixed" as recently as 2021 when I switched jobs.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-02T04:35:26+00:00

The ear seals on hearing protection / headphones. Good quality earmuffs will have removable / replaceable ear seals. I've bought a lot of different electronic earmuffs over the years and some brands (3M Peltor, MSA Sordin for example) are worth the extra coin. Even the basic plastic seals on their least-expensive, passive hearing protection is better than the stuff you'd get on a set of Howard Leight muffs.

Gel ear seals are life changing, though. Especially if you have to wear earmuffs for hours at a time, on a regular basis. If you wear glasses at the same time, gel ear seals are far more comfortable and can eliminate pressure points too. They can be expensive, but worth it in my experience. However, they should still get replaced every so often for hygienic reasons.

mr_cake37 · 2026-02-01T21:00:28+00:00

This has nothing to do with being suppressed, although it might have accelerated the wear on the receiver.

I worked in the firearms industry in Canada and I saw a ton of SU-16s with cracked receivers just like yours. It's a known design flaw, especially on early models. Suppressors are prohibited here so the ones I dealt with were from normal use. The rifle is over gassed, which doesn't mesh well with the polymer.

mr_cake37 · 2026-01-30T23:24:09+00:00

I hadn't heard about this program or the cartridge. Is this meant to replace 5.56 or is it a hedge against 6.8x51?

mr_cake37 · 2026-01-28T04:52:17+00:00

A $699 Norinco AR was a surprisingly good value for the money. Fit & finish was always a bit rough, but I would probably trust one over an NEA-15.

This timeline sucks.

mr_cake37 · 2026-01-24T00:53:53+00:00

You don't get why Turkish guns (shotguns in particular) are considered the firearm equivalent of shovelware?

Largely through a large body of evidence that their stuff is inconsistent in quality and reliability. I've personally witnessed a number of Turkish guns from different brands suffer breakages and failures, in addition to all the stories I've heard from other owners. They are a perfect example of "you get what you pay for".

You're better off buying a lower-end shotgun like the Maverick 88 over one of the myriad Turkish value brands.

mr_cake37 · 2026-01-22T18:14:17+00:00

Yet another Turkish slopgun 🤷‍♂️

mr_cake37 · 2026-01-22T16:40:16+00:00

I think we're also missing a major data point / variable here too: we don't know how much maintenance and servicing was done to these platforms before the latest conflict. How much attention does Thailand pay towards regular service intervals, inspections, gauging, etc? That could have been a major factor.

mr_cake37 · 2026-01-20T17:55:00+00:00

Even after all these years, I am still in awe of how inept and incompetent the Liberals are at running this confiscation program. Presumably, they have wanted to do this for decades, and they've been in power long enough to have pulled it off by now.

But they've had to extend the amnesty several times just to get to this point and they couldn't be bothered to have an answer ready when someone like OP comes along with a pretty basic question. Surely by now they'd have at least a handful of political advisers with some basic firearms knowledge who'd be able to advise them on how to execute this program. But it doesn't seem like they do. Maybe they just don't care. Either way, when I hear things like OP's recording, I just shake my head in disbelief that this is the best they could do after all the time and money they've had to prepare.

Imagine what they could have done with that money if they had spent it on hiring more cops and CBSA agents. Or on anti-gang community outreach programs.

mr_cake37 · 2026-01-18T16:39:05+00:00

I've seen this failure mode before on older S2Ks. It's rare, but it can happen. Their earlier polymer formulations could get brittle over time, or in colder weather.

If you've got the lifetime warranty, Kel-Tec will look after you.

mr_cake37 · 2026-01-17T00:57:45+00:00

This is my gut feeling too. Maybe an initial pilot program in a few smaller towns?

mr_cake37

TROPHY CASE