I am reloading for a #4 mk2 I slugged the bore and after many measurements figured that the bore is .311 Would a .312 bullet bullet work better or would a .311 be better ??? Or does it really matter ??? And what about shooting .308 bullets ??? Jack
Reloading 303 Lee Enfield
- Thread starter got to go
- Start date
.308 bullets shoot very well in my Enfield. I was very surprised at the accuracy they showed.
Others report that accuracy suffers. It just depends on your particular gun and how well the rifling grabs the bullet. I've not slugged my bore so I can't compare it to yours but I would say that it won't hurt anything to try .308's and see what you get.
Some remove the the neck expander from their .303 die and just seat the bullet in the sized but unexpanded neck. Some swap it for an expander from a .308 caliber. Both methods seem to work fine.
I don't have any experience with which of the full diameter bullets would be better but I would say that you should try both and see.
Let us know how you make out.
Others report that accuracy suffers. It just depends on your particular gun and how well the rifling grabs the bullet. I've not slugged my bore so I can't compare it to yours but I would say that it won't hurt anything to try .308's and see what you get.
Some remove the the neck expander from their .303 die and just seat the bullet in the sized but unexpanded neck. Some swap it for an expander from a .308 caliber. Both methods seem to work fine.
I don't have any experience with which of the full diameter bullets would be better but I would say that you should try both and see.
Let us know how you make out.
You want a .311" jacketed bullet or a .312" cast bullet. A .312" will do though.
A 308" bullet is too small. It's the wrong bullet diameter.
Hornady makes a 174 grain .3105" FMJ bullet that will do. Sierra makes a 174 grain .311" Matchking and several Pro-Hunter SP's.
A 308" bullet is too small. It's the wrong bullet diameter.
Hornady makes a 174 grain .3105" FMJ bullet that will do. Sierra makes a 174 grain .311" Matchking and several Pro-Hunter SP's.
- Location
- Vancouver Island BC
.311 or .312 diameter will work fine in your rifle. The last trip at the range I loaded some old 180 grain Saber Tip bullets in .308 diameter for my No4, I saw no difference in accuracy. Not all Enfield rifles will give these results though.
Try Hornady 150 SP's... At min load, they are running at about 2400 fps, which is the original design MV for the LE. These flat based 0.312 in bullets are the most consistent performers in my 303's (along with RE15), and have diminished recoil - a consideration for steel buttplate equipped rifles. I call this load "303 Lite"...
I picked up box of Hornady .312 174 gr BTHP yesterday from the BCredneck. He was out of Sierra .311 174 gr. HPBT That's the one I really wanted. I picked up a bunch of Winchester 303 British a few weeks ago and it seems they are using .308 bullets I have been thinking about trying Speer's 200 gr. .308 spitzer. .556 ballistic coefficient 
Maybe not enough velocity
Maybe not enough velocity 
