7.63x39 enfield?

At surplusrifle.com, there is mention of Aussies converting a Lee Enfield barrel to 7.62x39 by shortening it - the front portion of the .303 chamber is close enough to work without reaming. Sounds a bit rough and ready, but apparently it works. If you compare a 7.62x39 cartridge with a .303, the similarity is striking. The .303's neck is somewhat longer, but you can see how it could work.
Anyway, this past weekend, I rechambered a .303 barrel for 7.62x39. Reamed until all trace of the .303 chamber was gone. Pretty conventional rechambering. This wasn't a Lee Enfield barrel, that will be the next one. Still haven't decided on how I will handle the bolthead - add a collar or counterbore the face. The barrel I will be using has been shortened, no front sight lugs, so indexing for top dead centre will not be an issue.
 
I saw a jungle carbine in 7.62x39 with an SKS mag weld-up at Epps on good Friday that doesn't feed. some People have funny Ideas. What a waste of a jungle carbine. I just had a really sick thought. Run a 7.62x54R reamer into a .303 barrel and then run Graf 8x56R brass into a 7.62x54R die and have a 7.62x56R rifle with an horrendously long neck and shoot 3 71grain .311 bullets out-of-it at a time like they did in those Greener double rifles of yesteryear? This makes 8x56R Hung. Owners want to kill you! Hee-hee.
 
Just aquired 2 JW-103 norks in 7.63x39 but one has a hatched barrel (corrosive ammo+no cleaning=bad) and I'm gonna remove the barrel on it and see what I can do. I'm thinking a #4 barrel and chuck it up on the lathe and just spin it back and work it with a chamber reamer but now my dumb a$$ shooting buddies have put another idea in my head and I might look at doing a 7.62x25 gopher getter (mostly just to see if I can :D ). Why is it buddies can cost so much money, I thought it was just wives and girlfriends!:nest: :nest:
 
Been really enjoying the barrel that tiriaq converted for me to fit on the Savage. Started life as a P14 barrel with a really nice looking bore. Barrel had been sporterised by BSA. Chopped to just under 20".

Very nicely cut chamber cleaning up any remnants of the 303 Brit.

Headspaced it on my Savage SA that was orig a 223. Changed to a 308 bolt head with a PPC extractor. Needed a bit of mods on the extractor for proper functioning but working great now.

Norinco surplus shot just like from an SKS - not very exciting.

Starting work up loads using Hornady 123gr SP (0.310") and a few 150gr SP. Both have shown very good accuracy potential.

Benchmark was my first powder but it is way too slow. Pressures are mild so I was using a Win LP primer. Worked well with test groups making a teeny tiny group at 200yds. Velocity of this load was just over 2000fps so a real slow load. Very mild recoil.

I then switched to WCC680 and Fed 210M primers. Working up to max load listed in an older Speer manual. No velocity but book is suggesting 2500 to 2600fps with the 123gr bullet. Will have to get some velocity numbers next time I am out.

Again, one of the test group was tiny at 200yds.

Went out today to retest but got horrid results today. 3 rds did snuggle up nicely even with the moderate gusty winds. But the rest were all over the map. Scratching my head I decided to measure the case lengths. WHOOOOPS - way over trim length.

Jamming necks into the throat is not good for accuracy :)

Anyways, cases are all trimmed and I look forward to testing the WCC680 load again to see if the great test group was a fluke or if this WWI/converted after WWII barrel has some potential.

I have been playing with the 223 center feed mags and they will hold a few of these Russian cartridges but the lips do not let the case sit high enough to feed.

With the shooting success, I decided that one of the mags had to be converted to the Russian. A couple of shallow notches at the back of the feed lips and I was able to bend them wider. The case now sits high enough to feed.

In a standard 223 mag, 3 7.62X39 cartridges fit and feed wonderfully. So I have a Savage repeater for this nice little cartridge. I wonder if a new follower might let me sneak a forth rd into the mag?

The mag is long enough that I can load 150gr SP if desired.

Surplus ammo doesn't seem to shoot worth spit BUT exchanging a Hornday bullet for the FMJ's seems to have excellent accuracy potential. However, those laquered cases don't extract easily. Maybe it only works in chromed lined chambers????

I am hoping that I can get some extra speed out of this Savage. Then it can be a nice mid range hunting rd with min recoil and report.

Likely the easiest conversion to this nice little rd.

Jerry

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I have a Ruger M77mk2 in 7.62x39, which has a 308 bore I think, and it shoots the surplus ammo fine.
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What do you use your 762x39 Ruger for? I have a 762x39 Mini Mauser and find that I almost never use it. Thinking of selling it actually. :(

I was mucking about with more 7.62X39 ammo in the new Savage 223 mag. OAL is perfect but some ammo doesn't sit high enough to feed. SO, this is not a reliable mag unless the lips are opened up to let the fatter case sit higher.
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A 300 Whisper would be a better fit to the Savage 223 rifle you have. The Whisper produces similar ballistics to the 762x39.
 
Absolutely, but I have had a soft spot for the Russian rd and been curious about what that little case could do in a bolt rifle. Playing with a Norc didn't go so well but this Savage is showing potential.

Will keep playing and see what I can make it do. Right now the weather has turned nasty so another week gone away. Oh well...

Jerry
 
Next conversion is going to be on a No. 4 action. Will likely try a Savage style barrel nut.
Years ago, I remember reading an article by Don Holmes about 7.62x39 experimenttion, in the first commercial AKs which came into the country. He was getting excellent results with 150gr. bullets.
 
I had a Ruger Mini-30. Cast 150 and 170 grain bullets and IMR 3031 seemed to work pretty well. (Way back then I didn't have a chrono).
 
Suputin said:
What do you use your 762x39 Ruger for? I have a 762x39 Mini Mauser and find that I almost never use it. Thinking of selling it actually. :(
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I sum times use if for dear hunting and mostly for cheap target practice. It a great little shooter and shoots under 1moa with federal ammo and around 2moa with surplus ammo. Should be a good rifle for my wife to use for hunting to.
 
Mystic I am glad your savage is working with that 223 center feed. I still intend on putting a bbl on my stevens but was not liking the idea of spending $350 on a new bbl just to shoot corrosive and inaccurate surplus. That P14 bbl idea sounds good, I will see if I can find one for cheap.
 
I was very lucky to get some smithing help from tiriaq.

If not, you have to include that cost into your build. At that point, buying a Shilen prefit barrel isn't any more expensive and will likely shoot a lot better. The CM barrels are also blued which is a nice touch.

Now saying all this, just had a nice day at the range in fairly light air. Narrowing my loads. Shot a very nice 1" 3rds group at 200yds with a load that did very well before. Looks like the barrel is a shooter.

Jerry
 
I'm in the midst of exactly this.

The Lee enfield barrel does not need to be rechambered with a 7.62x39 reamer. The 303 Brit and 7.62x39 are almost identical from the neck back, and a 303 barrel can be cut for the chamber end until enough of the base of the 7.62x39 extends for proper fit. Thread it in until it headspaces and secure it with a set screw. Make up a "block" to support the shorter round's bullet, and even use the same clip.

mattimoose said:
The absolute best conversion Extant is is cutting-off a .303 barrel and threading-it for an el-cheapo-segundo Carcano. End of story. otherwise it's just cheaper and easier to buy an SKS. The Carcano clips feed and the bolt face fits the 7.62x39 round better. You yust need to make-up a block for the front of the magazine for the shorter shell to ride. I used an extra piece of black nylon from a polaris snowmobile slider on my last two conversions. You can pick-up the double trigger Mannlicher Carcanos for next to nothing and do the conversion, no problemo. For these 6.5x54's that were made-up for canadian hardware stores in the 30's, you can even unthread the original barrel from itself and insert a smaller diameter chunk of barrel. These ones have a standard thread into the shank that threads into the barrel stub because the gain-twist rifling in the surplus mannlicher made-it necessary to shorten the barrel from the back.
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gallen270 said:
any smiths able to do a carcano conversion if supplied with an action and barrel?
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It's not cost-effective that way, do-it yourself; otherwise buy an SKS. I could do-it but don't want to. If you were in my hometown of Sudbury ont. Maybe, but I have too much work undone anyways.
 
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