Colt Canada C7CT
- Category
- Sniper Rifle
- Barrel
- 508 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.50 kg
- Introduced
- 2005
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Colt Canada C7CT is a designated marksman rifle variant of the C7 family, with 'CT' standing for Custom Tactical. Built as an accurized version of the standard C7/C8 rifles used by the Canadian Armed Forces, the C7CT provides accurate engagement capability out to 600 meters while maintaining system commonality with other fielded weapons in the Canadian inventory. The rifle features a heavy, free-floating 20-inch barrel surrounded by a tubular forestock, a two-stage match trigger, and a weighted stock designed to counterbalance the heavier barrel. The C7CT is typically equipped with a bipod, sound suppressor, and precision optics including designator rails. Designed to serve as either a sniper spotter weapon or a police containment weapon, the CT series meets or exceeds all applicable military standards for reliability, accuracy, lethality, maintainability, and safety across all environmental and operational conditions.
The C7CT was born from a practical Canadian military philosophy: why adopt an entirely new weapon system when you can take the proven C7 platform and engineer it to sniper-spotter accuracy? Canadian designated marksmen in Afghanistan used the C7CT to provide precision overwatch with a rifle that shared magazines, manuals, and muscle memory with every other C7 and C8 in the platoon.
The C7CT represents Colt Canada's approach to the designated marksman role using an evolved AR-15/M16 platform rather than adopting a completely new weapon system. This strategy provides significant logistics and training advantages for forces already equipped with C7/C8 rifles. The sustained rate of fire is approximately 10 rounds per minute for precision engagement. The distinctive tubular forestock provides a rigid, free-floating handguard that isolates the barrel from external pressures while providing multiple mounting points for bipods, lights, and other accessories. Sound suppressors are usually fitted as standard equipment.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Colt Canada Corporation
- Category
- Sniper Rifle
- Country
- Canada
- Status
- In production
- Produced
- 2005
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 508 mm
- Overall length
- 1006 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.50 kg
- Weight, loaded
- 5.10 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Gas operated direct impingement
- Firing mechanism
- Rotating bolt
- Trigger
- Two stage
- Capacity
- 30
- Magazine
- Detachable box
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Aluminum alloy
- Barrel
- Cold hammer forged steel
- Stock
- Polymer
- Finish
- Matte black
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 940 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 1776 J
- Effective range
- 600 m
- Maximum range
- 3600 m
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Free floating barrel
Heavy barrel
Match trigger
Weighted stock
Adjustable buttstock
Removable bipod
Picatinny rail
Suppressor ready
Tubular forestock
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 430 sniper rifles | 4.50 kg | 5.40 kg | Lighter than about 70% |
| Overall lengthAmong 429 sniper rifles | 1006 mm | 1150 mm | Shorter than about 90% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 434 sniper rifles | 508 mm | 620 mm | Shorter than about 80% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 434 sniper rifles | 30 | 6 | Among the largest capacities |
Answers
Questions about the Colt Canada C7CT
How much does the Colt Canada C7CT weigh?
The Colt Canada C7CT weighs 4.50 kg (9.92 lb) empty and 5.10 kg (11.24 lb) loaded.
What caliber is the Colt Canada C7CT?
The Colt Canada C7CT is chambered in 5.56x45mm NATO.
How many rounds does the Colt Canada C7CT hold?
The Colt Canada C7CT holds 30 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the Colt Canada C7CT?
The Colt Canada C7CT is 1006 mm (39.6 in) long overall, with a 508 mm (20.0 in) barrel.
Who makes the Colt Canada C7CT?
The Colt Canada C7CT is made by Colt Canada Corporation (Canada).
When was the Colt Canada C7CT introduced?
The Colt Canada C7CT was introduced in 2005.
How does the Colt Canada C7CT operate?
The Colt Canada C7CT uses a gas operated direct impingement action, and its firing mechanism is rotating bolt.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- Canadian Armed Forces
- 2005
- Royal Canadian Mounted Police
- Canada
- Danish Armed Forces
- Denmark
- Royal Netherlands Army
- Netherlands
Provenance
Confidence in this record
68%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/colt-canada-c7ct' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "colt-canada-c7ct", "name": "Colt Canada C7CT", "manufacturer": { "id": "colt-canada", "name": "Colt Canada Corporation", "countryCode": "CA", "foundedYear": 2005, "website": "https://www.coltcanada.com", "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": "active", "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-02-11 23:44:38", "updatedAt": "2026-02-18 03:43:46", "version": "90455fe86a2368df0893edde7b6c253f95946441351de9e84dbda9781abf0048" }, "category": { "id": "sniper-rifle", "name": "Sniper Rifle", "description": "Precision rifles optimized for long-range accuracy" }, "country_of_origin": "CA", "year_introduced": 2005, "barrel_length_mm": 508, "weight_empty_g": 4500, "action_type": "gas_operated_direct_impingement"}