Ruger #1 303 British and moose

[Johnn Peterson]

Albertaal,

Hunting season was right around the corner when my 303 arrived and all I had in my bullet "hoard" in any quantity were some Speer 180gr.RN and Hornady 150gr.Sp , so bullet testing was limited.
The Speer shot so well with little effort and that is what I went with for hunting loads, unfortunately nothing edible presented itself to test them on in the barren wastelands where I prowl....there is always next year...
For me, the Speer has always been a good and dependable hunting bullet in any of my other 303s.
My Brother in the Yukon uses a 215 Woodleigh in his 303 rifles and I am trying to weasle some from him to try.
I do think these rifles would be good cast bullet shooters with the right combination of bullet and powder.

I've mentioned this previously , in a pair of Jungle Carbines I have I seem to get better accuracy results with bullets of 0.312" diameter, such as the Hornady 174gr and the Woodleigh 215gr. I got my supply of 215gr Woodleigh bullets from Corlane Sporting Goods in Dawson Creek. Perhaps give them a shout if you're trying to get hold of some.

 

[10x]

Albertaal,
I do think these rifles would be good cast bullet shooters with the right combination of bullet and powder.

The Lyman 314299 is an excellent bullet as well as the 311467 (loverin design)
Those bullets over unique or 3031 give great accuracy up to 1700 fps with wheel weights out of several 303 rifles including a rolling block.
Slug your 303 bore - some of these guns are plus .314 and if the grove diameter (and the bullet nose diameter) is more than 0.001" larger than the major diameter of the cast bullet and or the nose riding diameter the bullet may yaw or tumble badly.

I will be trying the 311465 (150 grain loverin) this winter over Unique and 3031.

 

[TimC]

Can you drive cast lead to about 2700 fps? Over here we need 1700 foot pound for large deer, tends to put cast out of the picture!

 

[Fred M]

Big Mouth Tim C.
Quote: I'd rather pass up on a deer than have one run off with a jaw shot off to die later.

Well You should! From the ear hole to the jaw is at least 4", or a 4" radious that means an 8" diameter pie plate? You should stay home if that is
all you can hit.

People that don't know how to shoot always criticize people who know how to shoot. So if you want to keep any respectability keep your wisdom to yourselve. I am not telling you where to shoot your deer.

I only have two deer tags. not a hundred or more like you, and can't affort to blow away a 1/2 deer with a body shot. Over the last 1/2 a century I killed most of my deer with head shots and precission fitted handloads.

 

[Why not?]

How many did you wound over the past 50 years? Deer shot in the heart/lung area die quickly, every time, with very little meat loss.

Ted

 

[TimC]

Read what I wrote, I dont have two weeks to take my 1 or 2 deer, this I do for a living most of the year. The deer bobs his or her head up and down unexpectedly, its not a risk I take or advocate. in fact its a shot that if you took on a level 2 course here would get you a fail. I have met many who claim to shoot all their deer head shots. I have lost 2 deer in 10 years and I stalk every week with or without clients.
edited to add that a deer shot in the lungs isnt blown half awaay but killed cleanly and humanely. That is the least you can do for your quarry, show it respect!
Also I'd like to know how much meat you expect to harvest from the ribs of a deer, dont tell me hotshot that you cant hit a heart sized target and the shoulder gets in the way.
Now all insulting aside there is no need to wound a deer with modern rifles and ammo. Shot placement is everything, do it right and one shot should suffice. I have shot a deer in the head, I was called to a deer collision and used a shotgun to put the poor creature down with a shot to the atlas joint. It was writhing around and I had to step on its neck. The one deer I let a good client neck shoot was for the reason that I knew he could do it and the deer had to be removed due to the damage he was doing to the young saplings in a plantation. I would have sat and waited if it was just me.

 

[10x]

Can you drive cast lead to about 2700 fps? Over here we need 1700 foot pound for large deer, tends to put cast out of the picture!

With paper patching - yes for some.
The paper acts like a jacket.
Check out paper patched bullets on castboolits...

 

[TimC]

Thanks, it does seem to be fiddly, the law here calls for projectiles designed to expand. Lead surely covers that. I had a few enquiries from club members wanting to stalk deer with their old rifles. I could only tell them the law not how to work within it!

 

[rookie wildcat]

If you are content to own those el-cheapo plastic guns that have no bit of class or refinement (I own them too, so save the reply), then have at it. If all it is for you is very small groups, then you will probabaly save a lot of money during your shooting career shooting these run-of-the-mill guns. They are plenty these days. You should try the Marlin X7 while you're at it.

The fellows that buy these Rugers are buying more than small groups. These rifles can be tweeked to shoot better and offer so much more pride of ownership for the shooter. These are very cool and classy, special order rifles, something that can't be said about your Mossberg or my Marlin.

.

Which is why I originally wanted one. I understand the appeal, the lines, and the history. Just hard to reconcile the accuracy in such a new rifle. That begin said, I will wait for Albertaal to post after he has broken in the barrel and worked up a round. I may still get one, the jury has not come back in, yet.

 

[Leeper]

This is indeed an interesting development in traditional Darwinian evolutionary theory, Bill, and suggests an interesting twist which you may not have realized: Survival, not of the fittest in this case, but, indirectly, of the most widely-read, ie Adaptation through Education. In this case it appears that the moose are developing tougher hides in response to OUR superior education as regards the development of ammuntion. I'll pass it on to my girlfriend, who teaches genetics at university. Admittedly, she works with fruit flies (surely a more suitable game for the lowly .303) but since, as she says, "we are genetically 50% identical to a banana" (and 99.9% identical to one another, regardless of race or colour) I'm sure she will immediately understand. She might even be able to get a much-needed publication out of this. Would you like to be listed as co-author?

Stuart

Stuart,
As I see it, the big problem, for your girlfriend, would be that the fruit fly has a long way to go to achieve the required bullet resistance even using a 303 as the baseline. I would be concerned that the fruitfly, whose best defence against a 303 is it's diminutive size which places a premium on accuracy, might be inclined to go in a direction opposite to what might be expected and tend toward even smaller size. Of course, this might be for the best. I'm not sure I want to see large, bulletproof fruit flies.
Tell your girlfriend to be careful if she elects to undertake this line of research and to keep a flyswatter on hand! Regards, Bill.

 

[stocker]

TimC: You don't need 2700 to get the energy figure you require. You can get that much easier with a larger caliber, heavier bullet at slower speed, say 1900-2000 fps. Check out the 35 Whelen, 45-70 etc. Whether they would suit your locale I can't venture a guess.

 

[POPS]

.303BRITISHcan;t possibly kill MOOSE!!!

I Guess growing up as a non francophone in QUEBEC,back in the 60's i was too ignorant to know that my 25 dollar #4 Mk.1 from EATONS department store in MONTREAL, shooting 180 Gr. KKSP (kling kore soft points) was unable to down a moose . I guess the two that dropped to one shot each in 1963 and 1964 did not know that either. both ran over 100 yards. one away from me and one ,ran pass me. (i did drop my rifle and shimmied up a nearby cedar tree on that one.) Must remember in future to use only my .308 NORMA mag or my .300 Win mag. POPS. p.s. as was said,. those that can not shoot seem to think its their rifle(CALIBRE) thats the problem and not their lack of marksmanship. spend time at the range or woods,. shoot at reasonable distances. do YOUR part.