.303 Projectiles

Wally

Wally

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Just bought a Lee Loader for my .303 the other day so I'm about to join the ranks as a Reloader!

I'm just wondering what you guys uses for .303 projectiles? I had a look around on the net to see what I could see...... didn't see much :(

ww w.303british.com has those 200grain units for sale but they are freakin expencive!

I would like to find some Balistic tip boat tails or hollow points or something cool/accurate.

Anyway, Tips, links, and info are all appreciated!

Cheers,
Wally
 
Sierra has a 174gr. Match King, Hornady has a 174gr. FMJ BT, that's about it for exotics. No Ballistic tips, no partitions, no controlled expansion. The selection of 303 slugs is pretty benign, but considering most all of the components originate from the USA and the 303 never made great in roads it suffices to say whst do you expect.
The Sierra game king slugs have great accuracy potential, and the hornady interlocks are good game performers.
good luck
 
Hornady 150 SP or 174 RN work best for me - using the 150's at min load gives about 2500 fps - the design MV - I call it '303 lite".
Both are flat base, and at the ranges I shoot (100-200 y), seem to consistently group better than boat-tails, or other brands of flat base.
 
downwindtracker2 said:
Woodleigh out of Oz has bonded core up to 215gr.The 200s would likely be the most accurate.There are 180 Sierra psp and 180 Speer rn.
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Steve Redgwell has 200 grainers which have received some very good feedback from CGN'ers. Available in .311, .313 & .314, so should shoot well in worn bores. The Woodlieghs are made to the old Kynoch specs (in fact Kynoch loads them in their ammo) but they are pretty pricey in Canada.

:) Stuart
 
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Thanks for the info. It makes me wonder how hard it would be to make Jacketed bullets?.....
My Enfield came out of the Grease so I'm not sure what the bbl is reading. I have some lead and I'm gonna slug the bbl as soon as I get around to it. Hopefully I'll be able to use that factory stuff, as I sad, 303british.co m is turbo expencive!!
 
Wally said:
...It makes me wonder how hard it would be to make Jacketed bullets?........303british.co m is turbo expencive!!
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I'd say Steve's prices are pretty good for a small-run, premium bullet. Woodleighs will run you considerably more. I wouldn't use them for informal plinking but that's not what they're intended for. I doubt that trying to make your own would be cost-effective unless you were making a few thousand, plus there will be a learning curve, which Steve R has already weathered. It will be rather more involved than just casting lead bullets. But if you're one of those "gotta have a new project" guys, go to http://www.corbins.com/ and go crazy!

:) Stuart
 
"...Available in .311, .313 & .314..." Right. Before you worry about buying bullets, slug your bore to find out what diameter you need. Hammer a cast, .30 calibre bullet through the barrel and measure it with a micrometer. Then buy the bullet that's closest.
An Enfield barrel can measure .311" to .315" and still be considered to be ok. Anything greater than .315" is shot out.
"...turbo expencive(sic)..." You're looking at custom bullets for a military cartridge that has been obsolete for 50 years. If you want to use custom bullets, you gotta pay for them. They're likely not the best thing for a casual reloader anyway.
 
sunray said:
"... turbo expencive(sic)..." You're looking at custom bullets for a military cartridge that has been obsolete for 50 years. If you want to use custom bullets, you gotta pay for them. They're likely not the best thing for a casual reloader anyway.
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Wally may have been referring to the Corbin gear. Anyway, Steve's bullets are much less than Woodleighs, which run around $1.00 apiece up here. (Midway I think has them for about the same price as Steve's- the problem is getting them.)

OTOH, I have had very good accuracy from bulk Remington 180gn RN and Speer 180 gn spitzers in both my MkIV Nº1 and my BSA-sporterized P-14. The latter shoots around 1.25" @ i00 metres with a Weaver 4x on it. I'm hoping to take that one to Africa for plains game in a year or two. I want to try Steve's 200 grainers in it.

:) Stuart
 
Hornady 174grn RN is what I use. Sounds like you have an enfield out of warstocks so I suspect that it's been rebuilt at one time or a later manufacture. I would think that any standard .311 or .312 bullets would work out fine in that rifle.
 
OK, I finally got around to slugging the BBL. .313" is what i'm lookin at if i'm not mistaken.

I was thinking about casting my own bullets but I thought there were a bunch of cons to using cast bullets? Maybe I'm wrong...???
 
Sometimes it takes longer to get accurate loads w/cast and sometimes you have to try several designs to get good accuracy, to push them to 2400fps or so they will have to be hard cast gas check bullets and in a small bore like this expansion and penetration may be more iffy on big game. M.T.Chambers shows a 206gr. hard cast, spitzer, in diff. dia. for the .303.
 
I've just gotten into reloading as well and am waiting for the courier to drop off some components. I'll be using a die to fully resize some once fired .303 brass, but plan on using my .303 Lee loader to neck size them afterwards as per the article on .303british.com.

Back to your initial question, there are 150 and 174 grain bullets available from Hornady and Sierra in the $20/100 range that should work fine, as others on this site have attested. I ordered some Hornady 150 grainers with other items from Higginsons Powders, though you can certainly get them from closer, SIR being a competative bet when it comes to the cost of reloading supplies. Even if these bullets are not some unusually fancy design, reloaded by you they should still outclass store bought cartridges and are worth the effort.

That's my two cents,

Frank:)
 
ben hunchak said:
Sometimes it takes longer to get accurate loads w/cast and sometimes you have to try several designs to get good accuracy, to push them to 2400fps or so they will have to be hard cast gas check bullets and in a small bore like this expansion and penetration may be more iffy on big game. M.T.Chambers shows a 206gr. hard cast, spitzer, in diff. dia. for the .303.
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M.T.Chambers? Couldn't find anything on them.

Beadwindow: I'm thinkin of buying some Hornady bullets but I still can't find anything in .313" for a reasonable price.
 
you could also try the 123gr bullet for the oh crap I forgot what it was 123gr or 125gr .311" AND I realize your bore is .313" mine goes .313"/.314" and I got 1" groups with that load...too bad I didn't have my chrony at that time. But I had to replace the .303 with a .300WM cause the bbl in front of the chamber is starting to "alligator" (cracks) for 1 1/2" in front of the chamber.......Know any good gunsmiths that specialize in #4 Mk 1's for rebarreling????
 
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