303 Match and Bench Rest Loads
- Thread starter diopter
- Start date
You'll have to work up the load for your rifle. No two rifles will shoot the same ammo the same way.
There are no Bench Rest loads for the .303 British. The rifles won't do BR accuracy.
Match loads are another thing, but you'll need to find some match grade bullets. Slug the bore first though. Lee-Enfield barrels can measure between .311" and .315" and still be ok. Larger than .315" the barrel is shot out.
Most factory bullets are .311" or .312". Sierra makes a 174 grain .311" Matchking, but that won't help if your barrel is .312" or larger.
There are no Bench Rest loads for the .303 British. The rifles won't do BR accuracy.
Match loads are another thing, but you'll need to find some match grade bullets. Slug the bore first though. Lee-Enfield barrels can measure between .311" and .315" and still be ok. Larger than .315" the barrel is shot out.
Most factory bullets are .311" or .312". Sierra makes a 174 grain .311" Matchking, but that won't help if your barrel is .312" or larger.
I agree. If you seriously plan to shot Vs at 600 with a .303, you'll almost certainly have to buy a new barrel, anyway. If that's the case, I'd personally just buy a .308 diameter match barrel and have an experienced gunsmith chamber it using a .303 reamer, to yield a ".30-303". This will give you better options for match bullets (i.e., any .308 match bullet), and you should be able to just use .303 data and dies. Even then, I'd question your ability to get "one hole" groups simply because the action is not engineered to produce that level of accuracy, nor is the forend bedding designed for that kind of high-grade, consistent shooting. Still, it will undoubtedly be fun to try.
(I'm currently having one of our CGN gunsmithing gurus do exactly this with an old Parker Hale hunting Lee Enfield of mine and I'll write a full report in a couple of months.)
(I'm currently having one of our CGN gunsmithing gurus do exactly this with an old Parker Hale hunting Lee Enfield of mine and I'll write a full report in a couple of months.)
Guys, This info is for a friend of mine in the states. He has three VG .303 No4s, including a Long Banch T, plus an Enforcer in .308. He shoots shoots DCRA matches in BC, Swiss Matches in BC and NRA Highpower Matches in Washington state. He's looking for tried and proved data for the .303s in the rifles original configuration. He already has multiple target and match rifles in both .308 and 7.5x55.
Someone must have workup decent match loads for Ross rifles in .303
Someone must have workup decent match loads for Ross rifles in .303
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"...has three VG .303 No. 4's..." He should know about the barrel diameter issue then. The diameters are so varied(I've heard of .3105" barrels too) that there is no 'tried and proved data' that every rifle will shoot well. He has to slug the barrels and work up a load, using the cloesest bullet diameter he can, for each rifle.
