303 British and Cast Bullets. Anyone had luck with this?

[haroldclark]

I have a 303 Brit MK something with nice peeper sights and I'm going to shoot cast bullets in it.

Does anyone have any experience with bullet sizes and powders in this cartridge.

I tried an as cast Saeco 309 bullet that actually measured about .310 to .311.  It shot fairly well out to 200 meters, but leaded the barrel from what I suspect is too much blow by.

I am considering the Saeco 180 grain bullet listed as .311.  I'm sure it will cast .312 or larger, hopefully.

Any input will be appreciated.

Harold Clark

[ediehaskell]

With the Brit, I'm betting you will need to go to .314 or larger. Best thing to do, is just go ahead and slug your bore.

[Nobade]

A tremendous amount of work has been done with these rifles by the Canadians and British concerning cast bullets in it. The latest Precision Shooting mag has a pretty good article on them in fact. But of course the first thing to do is clean absolutely all copper fouling from the rifle's bore, and make either a cerrosafe cast of even better an impact impression of the throat. This will tell you what your bullets need to look like. Once you have the proper mould, you're well on your way. And yes, the SAECO #305 (I think it's the one) casts out at .314 on the driving bands and .303 on the nose, in the alloy I'm using. (It works wonderfully in Microgroove Marlins!) One thing to watch is sometimes with .303's the chamber is too small to allow safe release of a throat sized bullet. Make darn sure that's not the case with your rifle or you'll be sorry.

[The Cast Bullet Kid]

Hi
Yeap, I have done a bit with the .303.
I have a mint No.4 Mk2 in which I shoot a Lyman 311466 mould that was opened up to throw .315 projectiles in hardish alloys which are then sized to .312 for the Mk 2's groove.
I also had one of the cavities altered to FN configuration for game hunting.
I have yet to work up any really high velocity loads though am currently studying Veral's book from LBT which is a gem.
Yesterday I put down a good group at 100m which would measure just over MOA using 20gr of H4227 over a WLR primer under a WW 311466 flat nose lubed with Beaver Grease.  Didn't get a chance to clock it but guessing around 1600fps.  Most accurate load I have shot with cast in this rifle.
It used to go really well with the 311466RN in Lino over 11gr of 800X but has gone off the boil for some reason.
The big secret with .303's as with any rifle (though especially these) is to slug the barrel and establish the inside dims of bore and groove as they REALLY vary.  Mine is very good but friends have them in the groove from .309 to .315.
I really like the Loverin style bullets as they have a very long bearing surface and Lee Enfiends have a long troat designed to handle the initial loading of a 215gr blunt bullet.  Be careful with bore riding designs as they rely greatly on the match of the nose diameter to the bore dims (ie: if the nose is .303 and your bore is .301 it will rattle down the rattle).
Good luck.

[haroldclark]

Thanks for the input on the Ole 303.  It is going to be a while before I can get the bore slugged and etc.

Thanks again for the info.

Harold Clark

[w30wcf]

haroldclark,

I would suggest Lyman's 314299. It was designed specifically for the .303 British.   I could send you a few samples from my mold to try if you email me your address.  w30wcf@erieonline.com

w30wcf

[9 Mile]

I have shot 303 a lot using an NEI mould and the Lyman 314299.  It is a barrel of fun with cast bullets.  Long Range is especiall fun.  When you think of a 36" diameter gong at 800 yards measured distance and the 303 with the original peep sights and cast bullets, you begin to see what can be done.  It requires attention to casting detail, practice, practice, practice, like you can't believe, but when you hear it "Clang",  you're hooked.  I can't hit that gong near like I would like to or have seen accomplished shooter do, but it's is a true shooting challenge and cast bullets in the 303 can accomplish it.

[haroldclark]

At this time, I have a bit of a problem with my slug stuck in the barrel of the Brit 303.  I used a Saeco #315 173 gr bullet as cast and popped it into the breech with a primer and 1 grain of WW231.  It went in just fine and I was able to push it in about 8 inches from the throat and then it stuck.

Before I started, I oiled the barrel with Kroil Oil, oiled the bullet and fired it.  The bullet measured as cast between .311 and .313.  I can't believe the slug is stuck.  I have a steel rod that I have tried to intimidate it out with and it won't move either way.

Any Ideas?  I have never had one stick before.  I put the penetrating oil in from the muzzle to let it set about 1:45 PM and it is now 6:45 PM.  I haven't tried it since.

Right now the bullet is about 2 inches ahead of the throat.

Harold Clark

[kenjuudo]

PM comming your way.

[haroldclark]

Thanks for all the suggestions fellas.

I left the barrel with a generous amount of Kroil Oil on top of the bullet.  Just for the hell of it as I passed by it a minute ago, I whacked on the steel rod with my hammer and it moved after a few strokes and then it started really moving.

Wallla, it is out.

Harold

[haroldclark]

The slug that I retrieved from the Brit measured out at .313"  I started with a bullet measuring between .310 and .311.  After it got stuck and I hammered it with a steel rod from both ends, it definitely filled the bore.  I cleaned it very well and it seems like I didn't kill the barrel with the rod.

There was enough copper in the barrel to start a mining operation.  Now I'm just down to dirt and grime.  Hopefully, I can get enough time over the weekend to run some lead wipe through it.

I'm really leaning toward the Saeco bullet at 180 grains.  I have had such good luck with Saeco Molds and the resulting bullets.

I want to use this rifle to shoot stanking at the 200 Meter Silhouette range with cast bullets.  The iron sights on the Brit make it a great option for this game.

It is really tough to find Excellent peep iron sights  with fine adjustments for standard rifles.  I have several Williams and Lymans peepers.  Returning to a previous setting without counting clicks is kind of a pain.

[savage99]

Although I am  "Lyman man", I have found that the Lee .314, 185 grain mold casts and shoots well in both my 303 Savage (slugs out to .308, but I use an oversize .312 sizer) and my 7.7 Arisaka which sizes out to .314. I would think that the Brit would like the 185 grainer, and it ought to cast out to a happy diameter.

Best wishes

[haroldclark]

What gas check size do you guys use on the 303 or Jap bullet?

Harold

[9 Mile]

My NEI and Lyman both used 30 Caliber gas checks.

[curator]

Check out Steve Regwell's website: www.303british.com   There is a link to an article "cast bullets in the Lee Enfield" on this site. It contains some good information which will help you be successful.

 First you need clean the barrel and to get all the copper out of the bore. A throat slug is more important than a bore slug as you should select a bullet that is 1/2 thousandth less than throat diameter for best results.

A generally successful combination is the Lyman #314299 slug cast of wheel weight alloy and 16 grains of Aliant 2400. Check to see thet the "nose" of the Lyman bullet does not slide easily into the bore at the muzzle--if it does accuracy may suffer.

 Many times you can get away with a bullet that is a little under optimum size by using a filler. Read the article---it explains all this!

[haroldclark]

Thanks to all for the info and thanks to Curator.  I will check out the website you provided.

HaroldClark