The Danish Sirius Dog Sled Patrol in Greenland still use the M1917, which performs reliably in Arctic conditions, as their service weapon.

Thus, even though improved Lee–Enfield variants (the SMLE) and .303 British Mark VII ammunition with pointed (spitzer) projectiles entered service after the Boer War in 1910, a committee was formed to develop an entirely new design of rifle and cartridge.

However, the onset of World War I came too quickly for the UK to put it into production before the new cartridge could be perfected, as it suffered from overheating in rapid fire and bore fouling.

They decided to ask these companies to produce the new rifle design in the old .303 British chambering for convenience of ammunition logistics.

The Enfield design was well suited to the .30-06 Springfield; it was a big, strong action and was originally intended to employ a long, powerful, rimless bottlenecked cartridge.

[4] Design changes were few; the stripper clip feed, internal box magazine, bolt face, chamber and rifling dimensions were altered to suit the .30-06 Springfield cartridge and the US pattern 5-round stripper clips, the stock was slightly redesigned, lightening it somewhat, and the volley fire sights on the left side of the weapon were deleted.

[5] An M1917 Enfield rifle was used by Sergeant Alvin C. York on October 8, 1918, during the event for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor, as the U.S. 82nd Division's (which York was a part of) official history states the division had been issued the M1917 (Eddystone), then replaced them with the No 1 Mk III Lee-Enfield while training with the British in the north of France, then were reissued M1917 rifles (Eddystone).

Lieutenant Colonel Charles E. Peterson (USAR, retired; 1920–2005), a Major in the 101st Airborne in the Normandy action, reported seeing some M1917 rifles issued to rear-echelon U.S. troops in France during World War II.

[13] Many were bought by the United Kingdom through the British Purchasing Commission for use by the Home Guard; 615,000 arrived in Britain in the summer of 1940, followed by a further 119,000 in 1941.

[14] These were prominently marked with a red paint stripe around the stock to avoid confusion with the earlier P14 that used the British .303 round.

The M1917 was also issued to the Local Defence Force of the Irish Army during World War II, these were part-time soldiers akin to the British Home Guard.

As with all belligerents, Canada entered the Second World War short of small arms to equip its expanding military.

They would also be issued to the Veterans Guard of Canada, the Pacific Coast Militia Rangers and the Royal Canadian Air Force.

For military purposes, mainly as last resort against aggressive polar bears and muskoxen, the Danish Sirius Dog Sled Patrol (Slædepatruljen Sirius) still use the M1917, designated as Gevær M/53 (17) by the Danish, as their service weapon, due to the high reliability of these bolt-action rifles in the harsh conditions of high Arctic Greenland.

The M1917 rear sight element was situated on an elongated receiver bridge, which added weight to the action, as well as lengthening the bolt.

One advantage was that when the bolt handle was turned up the lugs cleared each other immediately so full effort was applied to the extraction cam.

The location of the safety on the right rear of the receiver has also been copied by most sporting bolt-action rifles since, as it falls easily under the firer's thumb.

With the longer sighting plane, the M1917 proved generally more accurate at long distances than the M1903, at the expense of greater weight.

The M1917's long barrel and issued 16.5 in (419 mm) blade bayonet proved too lengthy and cumbersome for trench fighting, while its weight and overall length made the rifle difficult to use for some smaller-statured soldiers.

[21] The M1917 action made from nickel-steel proved very strong, and was used as the basis for a variety of commercial and gunsmith-made sporting rifles in standard and magnum calibers between the world wars and after.

During the Great Depression Model 30s were not selling well, and the company decided to develop a M1917 derivative targeted to Central and South American militaries.

This found only one buyer in Honduras, where strongman general T. C. Andino elected in 1932 started a military modernization program.

Additional surplus rifles were bought by European arms distributors and converted to 7.92×57mm Mauser, then sold for use in the civil war in Spain during the 1930s.