Wildcats based on 303 Brit

I'd send it to Ron Smith and get him to open it up to 35/303.
Not a big deal for him.
If you are not worried about keeping the barrel, i have a great wildcat in 6.5/303Epps on a Martini action that is a lot of fun!
Cat
 
Noel said:
I've heard Epps made some wildcats based on this case but haven't had much luck finding info....

My 1895 SRC seems to have a wore barrel and I am tempted to open it a smidge. Ideally it would go to 35 WCF to stay properly chambered but I don't have enough meat in this barrel and I think it would need magazine mods.

Of course another barrel would be an option but good luck finding that. One from an enfield is not an option ......

Thinking of going to 8mm or maybe 338 but that would be pushing it... iirc the muzzle is just under .600". The lands burnt out but I think the grooves are alright. Is it possible the bore is oversized?

Suggestions welcome!:D
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Noel, that rifle can be slugged from the muzzle end. It doesn't have to be pushed all the way through the whole barrel length. It can be done the same as if you were going to load a muzzle loader, then put a rod down barrel and knock out the slug from the breach end.
 
catnthehatt said:
I'd send it to Ron Smith and get him to open it up to 35/303.
Not a big deal for him.
If you are not worried about keeping the barrel, i have a great wildcat in 6.5/303Epps on a Martini action that is a lot of fun!
Cat
Click to expand...

What is the minimal wall thickness at the muzzle bearing in mind there is an iron sight on there which may or may not be dovetailed on there. It is so well blended in like my Krag sight I can't tell how it is mounted.

Makes me wonder how it will feed from the mag into the breech with that fat slug hanging out there.
 
Noel: You should talk to Ron about this one. Given the age of the barrel I'd guess he would recommend about minimum .150 wall thickness measured from the groove. He's the expert. 8mm rebore may be iffy if there is any pitting that needs to be cleared to get clean surfaces before re-rifling. I think most of the re-borers like to make a larger jump if possible to ensure they've got a good surface to start with.
 
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If the number or size of grooves or rate of twist is different doesn't the distance from the finished land to land have to be at least as big as the original groove to groove? Maybe not enough parent material to work with?
 
Why not try fire-lapping to smooth out the bore to see if it might shoot well enough that way?
I used to have a mould that cast .316-.317 bullets that might do nicely.
In any event, you have nothing to lose at this point by fire lapping.
I'll root around in the bowels of my basement to see if I still have that mould.
 
For .303 wildcats chaeck out Cartridges of the World from Gun Digest. You may also want to look at P. O. Aclkley's books.
 
Lots of help coming in here, thanks everyone!

Outside of muzzle is officially .615", bore groove measures .316" for the first 3/16". Won't get a chance to slug it until next week now. I know some of you won't be able to sleep until I had posted that.
That makes it sound like slugs mould is the ticket if he can find it. I wonder if the chamber neck will allow an oversize case slide in. Time will tell....
 
Here's some wilcats based on the 303. My favorite is the 338/303, but I like the 303 epps improved.

Meredith 303/22
22/303 Varmint-R (22 Varmint-R)
22 Wasp
22/303 Sprinter
22/303 (22 Rocket - 22-4000)
22/303 Epps
22/303 British Improved 40
220/303 British
243/303 (6mm/303 British)
6mm/303 Epps
25/303 British
25/303 Epps
6.5/303 Epps
270/303
270/303 Epps
7mm/303 British
7mm/303 Epps (7mm/303 British Improved)
7.7x54mm Rimmed
303 ICL Improved
ICBM
303 Epps Improved (303 British Improved)
8mm/303 Epps
338/303 Epps
338 JDJ
35/303 Epps
375/303 Epps
 
Noel ; I think .316 is too large to consider to rebore to 8mm (.323 groove) as it would leave pretty shallow grooves, and .615 muzzle is at the bottom edge for 358 cal. with just a bit better than .120 wall thickness but may be doable, .338 is another option which would give another little bit of barrel wall thickness. Your bore sounds pretty worn in the throat already. Almost enough that you could use the original .318 diameter 8mm bullets if you could find them. Would depend on the bore diameter throughout the length to allow that unless you could reswage them. I have a 210 grain mould that drops at .314 (Lyman 314299) I could send you some samples to try out but you may get some leading in the portion of the barrel that is .316.
 
Hi Stocker,
Agreed on all points. I will get the slug job done for an official number but looking down the bore, it is in bad shape.
One other option if the bore is just oversize would be to try and bump up .312" bullets too.
I have some of Ben's 32-20 bullets I could use to slug, but they may be on the hard side.

Thanks again for all the tips.
 
Noel: use a pure lead slug. A standard method is to use one of the fishing egg sinkers of appropriate size after you cut the wire out of it. Or, lead buckshot that can be expanded a bit by flattening slightly with a hammer. Lube the bore lightly and use a brass or steel rod with wraps of masking tape every couple of inches to cushion any deflection of the rod. A short rod (6" for starting down the oiled bore) a brass hammer and a longer rod for the rest of the trip. Have the rifle upside down, bolt retracted and let the slug fall out onto a rag or cushion to prevent damage to it. Takes longer to write it than to do it. If the wear is progressive from breech to muzzle you can probably push the rod rather than tapping it all the way. If you remove the bolt you can work from the breech end and make a series of slugs and measure them at intervals along the barrel.
 
A rimmed version of the .35 Rem can be made from the .303 Brit. Uses .35 Rem dies with a .303 Brit shell holder. But it is shorter then a .303 so you could not rebore your barrel.
 
However, you could just rebore to 35-303, still use the 35 Rem dies to load, and go hunting. :D

Noel, one of my 358 Winchesters has a muzzle that measures right at .600, so I don't think reboring your rifle to 35 should be a problem at all. Ron will certainly be able to tell you.

Keep us posted!
Ted
 
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