Mexican Match .303 British help

Blastattack

Blastattack

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Hello all. I need to load up some quick and cheap .303 and need some help. I've heard of Mexican Matching .303 using 7.62x39 and making nice and light plinking loads using the pulled bullet and powder. However, I do not have any x39, but do have a crate of Chinese 147gr Ball 7.62x54R. I'm wondering what the proper powder load should be. My understanding is that 7.62x54r powder is similar if not identical to IMR 4895, and that it can simply be substituted one for the other. I just need a fairly light load. Accuracy and power are not critical as the best I need to shoot is a ~6" x ~12" target at no further than 25 yards.

Any help is appreciated.
 
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I think the powder in Chinese surplus is a bit faster than 4895 , considering the velocities they get and the fact that the 10 I pulled down and weighed averaged 45.5 gr and that is below the starting charge listed for h4895 on the hornady website , if you are going to do this and considering the performance needs you have listed , I would error on the light side for your choice of powder charge
 
Well, the Chinese sure are accurate loaders. I measured ten rounds and 7 out of 10 were exactly 44.5gr, while the remaining three were 44.6, 44.3 and 43.0. I think i may have lost some out of the 43 as it took a lot of force to remove, and some powder made it's way out.

So, try 35 grains of it and call it a day?
 
Blastattack said:
Well, the Chinese sure are accurate loaders. I measured ten rounds and 7 out of 10 were exactly 44.5gr, while the remaining three were 44.6, 44.3 and 43.0. I think i may have lost some out of the 43 as it took a lot of force to remove, and some powder made it's way out.

So, try 35 grains of it and call it a day?
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yes. that will work. It will go BANG, but recoil will be much less.
 
Mexican Matching is pulling FMJ's and seating a hunting bullet of the same weight.
Downside to doing what you're thinking is that you have no idea what powder is in there. It won't be IMR anything.
Hodgdon gives a max load only of 44.2 of IMR4895 for a 150(close enough). I'd drop 10% and work up. A 150 out of a .303 isn't going to be terribly hot given that Ball used a 174. The bore diameter won't make any difference at 25 either.
 
sunray said:
Mexican Matching is pulling FMJ's and seating a hunting bullet of the same weight.
Downside to doing what you're thinking is that you have no idea what powder is in there. It won't be IMR anything.
Hodgdon gives a max load only of 44.2 of IMR4895 for a 150(close enough). I'd drop 10% and work up. A 150 out of a .303 isn't going to be terribly hot given that Ball used a 174. The bore diameter won't make any difference at 25 either.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. I will disagree on your definition of Mexican Match though. I've always read that you simply remove and equally redistribute the powder back under the factory bullet, and thus inconsistent rounds become more consistent.

Anyays, tomorrow will be a big resize and prime day, and I may even finish a couple. I have enough chargers and Boxes to hold 200 rounds, so we'll see what we can do.
 
(Thread reactivation!)

What does the collective wisdom think about 7.62x54R for .303BR Mexican Match? My initial thought is yes, but ... The powder charge is designed for a bigger case capacity with a more pronounced shoulder, therefore much different pressure curve. The other issue would be the x54R bullet weighs less than a traditional Mk 7.
 
I would highly recommend against it. You are talking about both a larger case and a higher max pressure.
As a point of reference for scale purposes, if you compare load data for the same powders and bullet weights there is a significant difference with the starting loads for 7.62x54R usually above the max loads for .303 British. There are many other variables to take into account so there is a chance it might be safe in certain situations but I would guess it would produce pressures higher than those rated for a .303 British case nearly all the time if not all the time.
Would it blow up your rifle? That really can't be said, but it would be dangerous and careless at a minimum.

If you're going to pull 147-149gr 7.62x54R bullets for use in .303 British, just use conventional load data for 150gr bullets and scrap the powder. There is also conventional data for 125gr bullets for .303 British so you can use commercial powders with pulled 7.62x39 bullets as well. I've used a bunch of pulled 7.62x54R bullets in .303 British but never reuse the powder; only with 7.62x39.
 
LUTNIT said:
I would highly recommend against it. You are talking about both a larger case and a higher max pressure.
...

I've used a bunch of pulled 7.62x54R bullets in .303 British but never reuse the powder; only with 7.62x39.
Click to expand...

I wasn't going to head straight to bench informed with the certainty of internet banter. There just aren't a lot of .311 FMJ bullets around anymore - except in 7.62x54R cases. The powder is of course chemistry, and specific to each cartridge, and differ between factories.

Thanks for the advice.
 
I'm with billythreefeathers - if you want cheap, quiet, low recoil go with the Lee 155gr cast bullet(Wheel weights + 2% tin)and 17 - 20gr of 2400 or 16 - 17gr of H110 or 9 - 10gr of Unique. No pulling apart, washing, hoping etc. and a permanent, repeatable, always available solution.
Grouch
 
maple_leaf_eh said:
(Thread reactivation!)

What does the collective wisdom think about 7.62x54R for .303BR Mexican Match? My initial thought is yes, but ... The powder charge is designed for a bigger case capacity with a more pronounced shoulder, therefore much different pressure curve. The other issue would be the x54R bullet weighs less than a traditional Mk 7.
Click to expand...

If you are asking "is it ok to pull the 7.62x54 bullet and powder and put them in a 303 case?" No. Too much powder/pressure. Drop the charge by 5 gr to get a snappy laod and by 10 gr for a mild plinking load.
 
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