Ross Rifle Barrel Problem

H

hugh manuell

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Hello All;

I have a Ross 1910 in 303 and the barrel is, I believe, unuseable. I can push a .312 jacketed bullet through with a cleaning rod without too much trouble. The bullet comes out with no rifling marks at all, just some scuffing. As best I can tell, I get a micrometer reading on the bore diameter of .315" or so. I have not test fired it yet. Other than the barrel, the rest of the rifle seems to be in good, shootable condition.

I have looked at some old threads and it seems that a re-barrel is pretty much out of the question. Old barrels in good condition are non-existant and a new barrel would cost a fortune.

So, I have been thinking of having my barrel re-bored to something like 35/303 or 338/303. I would like your comments on the practicality and economics of doing that. I presume the barrel would have to be parted from the receiver, is that a problem with these rifles? I want the rifle to be a shooter, not just a wall hanger. The original stock has been cut down to "sporter" and the barrel has been cut to 22", so the collector value would appear to be nil.

Hugh
 
Sir - if it's any consolation, today I was shooting a MkI L-E with a bore that measures .316". In fact, there were a few of us shooting it, and none of us could get a group larger than around 3" @100m, no matter how hard we tried. Of course, we are shooting .3155" bullet in it, too, which helps. Don't be giving up on the old stager quite yet - if there is visibly good clean rifling down that tube from end to end, then it will grip a bullet of the right size. I've heard that Ross barrels are made of comparatively softer material than most barrels - this may well be so - but they can also be stupendously accurate within the limitations of their designed performance parameters. They were the sniping rifle of choice for our troops in WW1.

You've answered your own questions with regard to the practicality and economy viewpoints. Is it practical? Yes, of course, a reline can be done. Is it economical? Unless your name is Trump, I doubt it.

My Can$0.02

tac
 
From a project I was going to do, was to use a P-14 barrel. I was told the threads are similar and if they needed to be changed there
was enough material on the barrel to machine new threads. The P14 and the Ross MK III have square threads.
 
All Ross Rifle threads are made to American standards.

The 1905 Ross was factory-available as a .35 Winchester sporter. Make brass from Hornady .405W.

Military Mag not long enough for this conversion.

What about CAST bullets? Even wheelweight metal (lubed) can be driven to 2200 and a Gas-Check will ensure obturation.

All you need for Cast is a clean bore (no pits and scrapes).
 
Don't give up on the old girl yet.First give the barrel a thorough cleaning to see if you have any rifling left,it could just be badly fouled.After it is clean slug the barrel and see what you come up with.I have a couple of old rifles that shoot surprisingly well with a over sized cast bullet.
 
Thanks for the responses so far.

The bore is clean. Rifling is visible, but not measurable, as far as I can tell. Bore is dark and the surface is quite rough.

I have never had anything to do with cast bullets and hope for a solution that avoids having to go that way.

My research to date leads me to conclude that a new barrel is out of the question economically, so I have concluded that, if the present bore is not useable, the only way out would be to have the old barrel re-bored to a larger caliber bullet in a cartridge based on the 303.

Hugh
 
This is an easy and cheap issue to solve. get a 308 barrel with a shank big enough to take the the Ross thread. Thread the shank. Run a 303Br. reamer into it and carry on shooting. use 308 bullets. I call mine a 308British.
 
Sleeving is also an option is it not? Ream out the barrel, put a 303 sleeve in, gun's back to original bore diameter, externally identical as it uses the old barrel. You'll even retain the stampings. I think that sleeving would be similar to reboring in price, but don't want to say for sure unless I'm wrong :p
 
Reboring is a standard, although not inexpensive solution.
Sleeving a .303? Personally I would be uncomfortable doing it.
There are chaps in the US who have sleeved demilled 7.62x54R medium machinegun barrels, using two diameter liners machined from Mosin Nagant barrels. I cannot imagine that this would be a cost effective alternative to reboring, if someone must be paid to do the work. As far as that goes, neither reboring or rebarrelling is cost effective, given the value of a sported Mk. III rifle.
 
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