Sniper ammo
- Thread starter Timberlord
- Start date
Too hard to get in combat conditions. They just used what was issued to the troops. Sometimes they would test lots from thier supplies and horde certain ones, or so i was told. - dan
Lee Enfield
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Republic of Alberta
According to rumour, ammo for syncronized guns was popular post war.
Canadian sniping ammo was generally selected lots of standard Mark VII Ball ammo. The Defence Industries stuff was popular.
Sniping teams would test ammo that was available, lot by lot. When they came across a lot that made especially good targets, they would glom onto all they could get.
In Canadian service there was no special sniping round since the adoption of the .280 Ross, back before the Great War...... which was allowed to die quietly.
Sniping teams would test ammo that was available, lot by lot. When they came across a lot that made especially good targets, they would glom onto all they could get.
In Canadian service there was no special sniping round since the adoption of the .280 Ross, back before the Great War...... which was allowed to die quietly.
The above information came directly from a Canadian WW2 sniper with a lot of combat.
As far as the DCRA ammo is concerned, was it a SELECTED lot from regular production, as the shooters used to be told, or was it specially made. My old coach did the Bisley route 6 times and he said that it was all SELECTED from a given lot and then the boxes marked. You were DQ'd if caught in possession of ammo not from the lot selected for that year's shooting.
But it was regular-production stuff. Only the Yanks made special lots of Match ammo, and it was marked on the case-heads. Only time Canadians would have come in contact with this stuff would have been in something like the Palma match, where the host country provides weapons and ammo for both teams.
As far as the DCRA ammo is concerned, was it a SELECTED lot from regular production, as the shooters used to be told, or was it specially made. My old coach did the Bisley route 6 times and he said that it was all SELECTED from a given lot and then the boxes marked. You were DQ'd if caught in possession of ammo not from the lot selected for that year's shooting.
But it was regular-production stuff. Only the Yanks made special lots of Match ammo, and it was marked on the case-heads. Only time Canadians would have come in contact with this stuff would have been in something like the Palma match, where the host country provides weapons and ammo for both teams.
Okay, the pack is a 10 rd. paper version that I've seen dated back to pre WWI. This one is marked "CARTRIDGES SA BALL 303 inch 10 8 38 D.A.Q.Mk.VII C.I.A SPECIAL FOR DCRA OR PRA USE " The ammo has the typical parrallel stripes on cases.
As for more modern stuff, I used Lake City 72 7.62 NATO Ball for Comp. and during my Sniper Training with Canadian Forces 1980's.
Yes some lots shot well IVI and DA. It was sought out and used when possible.
However I don't know about WWII Sniper's ammo.
As for more modern stuff, I used Lake City 72 7.62 NATO Ball for Comp. and during my Sniper Training with Canadian Forces 1980's.
Yes some lots shot well IVI and DA. It was sought out and used when possible.
However I don't know about WWII Sniper's ammo.
Lee Enfield
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Republic of Alberta
Um, while it may be true that ammo was not issued specifically for sniper use, I have to argue with the idea that there was NEVER match loaded .303 for Canadians.
There was match marked ammo marked & issued for DCRA matches on specific years.
They were differing numbers of colour coded stripes around the body of the case.
Sometimes they were head-stamped the same year as the matches, others there was a 1 or more year lag from date of head stamp to issue.
Of course this was in the pre-WW2 era.
I've collected enough of the 1 year that I've been thinking of chronographing it.
Interesting...... was this specially-manufactured ammunition, or was it an existing lot that was selected and then marked? At this remove in time, it might be hard to find out.
Sometimes you will find Red Label ammo, which was kept to the tightest tolerances and was marked for the Air Force for synchronised machine-guns; it passed into the regular system after its expiry date was passed. This was regular-spec ammo that they sat on for the tightest tolerances as regards rim thickness, body size and priming. It was supposed to be super stuff because if it wasn't, you could end up shooting your own prop off. The adoption of the Hurricane with its 8 or 12 wing guns ended the necessity for special ammo for synchronised guns, at least as a front-line necessity.
There is just SO much to know about this stuff. Back inthe 60s, Peter Labbet wrote a series on "The Banded .303s" in GUNS REVIEW magazine (Ravenhill Publishing, London), showing many varieties of banded ammo. His book on the .303 cartridge likely is the last word.
Sometimes you will find Red Label ammo, which was kept to the tightest tolerances and was marked for the Air Force for synchronised machine-guns; it passed into the regular system after its expiry date was passed. This was regular-spec ammo that they sat on for the tightest tolerances as regards rim thickness, body size and priming. It was supposed to be super stuff because if it wasn't, you could end up shooting your own prop off. The adoption of the Hurricane with its 8 or 12 wing guns ended the necessity for special ammo for synchronised guns, at least as a front-line necessity.
There is just SO much to know about this stuff. Back inthe 60s, Peter Labbet wrote a series on "The Banded .303s" in GUNS REVIEW magazine (Ravenhill Publishing, London), showing many varieties of banded ammo. His book on the .303 cartridge likely is the last word.
