Slugged a No4MK1

PEI ROB

PEI ROB

CGN frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
94   0   0
The slug came through with fairly good consistancy and emerged at .3035" and .320".

Looong chamber btw, kind of freaked me out a little when I checked the first piece of brass. The bright ring at the web looked as if the brass stretched and started to fissure. Kind of like a piece of brass after being flexed too much. It was just the rough chamber making marks in it but the shoulder blowing ahead .0365" made me stop and check things out. For fun, I sectioned a piece of brass and it is fine even with the .0055" chamber stretch.

What diameter projectile should I go with in this two small groove?

Cheers
 
Not to second guess you because I have no idea but I didn't think it was shot out, actually the edges look fairly good. Even if it is, I'm keeping it for a deer hunt. The barrel has two small grooves in it and the rest is all .3035" It is the opposite of a modern barrel where the lands are narrow and the grooves are the actual diameter of the barrel.

On this, the bore diameter was finished at .303" and two small grooves were cut deeper into it.

Cheers
 
Just for a kick, load an 8mm (0.323") bullet in a fired case and mike the neck. Is there enough clearance to fire? How about a bullet for .32 Winchester 0.321" if my old memory serves.
 
PEI ROB said:
The bright ring at the web looked as if the brass stretched and started to fissure.
Click to expand...

All Lee Enfields I have seen "stretch" the brass like this ....
How many reloads do you think the brass is good for?
 
Tumbleweed LMAO :mrgreen: ... At first, then I thought about how long ago that was :cry:

Splatter I really don't think a .323 will chamber in the neck from my measurements. I don't have any 8mm projectiles to try. Pretty sure a .321 would fit though. Not sure I want to send a .321" projectile down this .303" bore though.

peter3334 No idea. I must admit I do not have dies for .303 :oops: and no reloading 303 experience or knowledge at all. I have about 20 or so sets of dies but I never had a .303 until now.

After actually examining the rifle and brass together, I don't think the chamber is large at all according to specs. Not very straight to put it kindly but good to go nonetheless. The factory ammo on the other hand is fairly small compared to the chamber so that was the cause of the visible difference.

The first thing I would need to do is tighten up the extractor to rim play by at least .010 so the case stretch will take place at the shoulder. That should help alot the first firing. After that, neck size so it headspaces off the shoulder and hope the action isn't too springy.

I'll take any advise you guys have, including where to get a set of used dies :wink:

Cheers
 
If you are just going to neck-size, you could use 7.62x54 dies.
I've used .308 dies; but that wasn't ideal too much neck working, same problem with any of the short .30 magnums. They'd all work; but the neck would get more working than it really wants.
 
Enfield barrels are considered shot out if the rifling measures greater than .315".
"...started to fissure..." Sounds like the headspace is excessive too.
 
Headspace for sure.
Kevin @ Dycor Special Services is an Enfield "Nut" read expert, you might want to give him a call (780-930-2337) and discuss this with him. If it is a No 4 as you mentioned then we have bolt heads to re-headspace this piece for you.
Is the rifle Sportorized or still full wood?

Scott
Dycor Special Services
 
A sporter. Nice gift though :D The bolt head is a #1 so I have hope. Is there such a thing as a #4 bolt head? :lol: Bubba method reveals 14 thou headspace over a winchester factory case, pulled and deprimed of course. How much are your bolt heads?

Cheers
 
Usually we trade bolt heads, headspacing fee is $25.00 for No 4's.
That includes a pretty good check of the rifle. Kevin loves Enfields to him they are a work of art. 14 thou, seems a bit out, these rifles had generous headspace due to wartime manufacture of ammunition. Had to fit and fire right!
I'm guessing by your name that you're in PEI?
Do you want to ship us the rifle?

Scott

Dycor Special Services
 
14 thou would be free space from the bolt face to the rim of a factory case, not a headspace guage from the face to the chamber lip. This bolt face is very flat and smooth and the extractor looks sharp and smooth too, likely a result of being sporterized by a gunsmith?

If I am correct, or a reasonable fascimile of being correct, a #3 would be the best I could do with a bolt head swap, 0.003" for each number?

Yep, PEI. Leaving Friday for deer hunting with it. :D If I was near you I would be there going over it instead of typing this. :wink: I'd like to tighten it up though, I'll call in a couple of weeks.

Cheers,
Rob
 
Sometimes swapping bolt heads is more work than envisioned. I've seen two sported LE's that had the back end of the bolt head ground down to increase firing pin protrusion. Also, your existing bolt head may have been stoned down on the face. Best to check the bolt head length. Even among as-issued heads of the same #, there is substantial variation - a typical #1 dimension would be 0.630 in.
Have a look at the brass - are your primers backing out substantially? This is a telling sign... If you continue to feel that heaspace is excessive, or you want to reduce your brass stretch, you can use fL dies and partially resize your brass to match the chamber - usually about a "loonie" width between shell holder and die. This is your least expensive option, will most likely increase your accuracy, and allows the prospect of using the brass in other rifles.
 
Well I didn't get a deer with it, I got one with Rachel dolled up with an EOTech instead :) Most of the time I had the sporter but I took out Rachel to intimidate the rest of the clan :D

Anyhow, I measured the bolt head and it is .6285 measuring at the contact ring on the back, not in deep. I tried a .010" hard plastic shim made into a washer between the bolt head and the bolt and it chambered fine with a unfired empty case. The shim was .012" when I started but the bolt head wouldn't line up. So I figure if I had a longer bolt head, things would tighten up and I know I can go at least .010".

Am I barking up the right tree guys?

Cheers
 
A military GO is .064, NO GO is .074. A civilian FIELD is .074, I believe. How thick is the rim of the cartridge case you are using in your experimentation? If it is .060, and there is .010 indicated by shimming, this would suggest at least .070 from the breech face to the bolt face, and perhaps more. Might still be within the upper limit of military spec. Do fired cases, when sectionned, show incipient separation? If you have a #1 head, it would be worth trying a #2 or #3. #3s are often a bit pricey, if you can find one, because they are the "last chance". Lee Enfields tend to have generous tolerances, and usually work just fine. For your own peace of mind, it would probably best to get access to a set of real gauges, and find out exactly what the situation is. There must be someone on PEI with a set.
 
Bubba method #2 or was that 3 :) also revealed .014" "play". The case is a new winchester round with the bullet pulled and the primer removed. It measures .0600" base thickness. Bubba method #2 involves using a fired primer partially seated then closing the bolt on that case. Depth gauge the primer and add base thickness. I had sectioned a case right off the bat, it looked good actually, I was surprised to be honest.

I gave Kevin a call, he was out of #2 and #3 heads. Not a problem, it is still safe to fire. I think I'll just keep an eye open for a #3 instead of making it a priority, I'm sure there's another project around here needing to be finished ;)
 
The late Frank Marshall, who vote many articles for the Cast Bullet Association, wrote several article on using cast bullets in the 303 British.

While the 311/313299 is usually mentioned as the bullet for this cartridge, in his articles he found that the barrels were more likely to be in the 32cal range and so he experimented with moulds intended for the 32-40, 32spl., pre WW1 8mm (.319 bore) and the WW2 8mm, usually achieving top notch results after finding and fitting the correct diameter bullet.

The measurements given are comparible to those noted in Marshall's work.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom