how does the .303 brit stack up?
i purchased a 1963 lee-enfield No. 1 Mk 3. i also got some 174gr ammo for it and was wondering how this rifle/ammo will perform. also, is there a significant supply of surplus ammo in .303 brit?
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The 303 brit is in it's surplus form a round that is somewhat less potent then the .308 winchester, say some better then the 300savage. In many cases it has primers that are not as clean as the modern variety and need more attention if you want to keep your rifle from rusting. Down under, parts of india and africa the 303 brit has a major following and gets the job done from varmints to larger besties. Don't let the surplus rounds get you down, there are good enough hunting cartridges out there and if you reload you can of course taylor your stuff to your needs. Surplus 303 will likely be available for may years to come, if at diminishing prices. 0 -
Amazing how many folks ask these type questions ... after they make their purchase[;)]
Now to you questions.
First they are good rifles and unless yours has problems (our your eyesight is "aged") there should be no problem with parking your shots within a 6 inch circle at 100 yards.
Ammo wise, there is a lot out there, but some of it is pretty "crap" stuff. Also I'm sure that there is still a fair amount of milsup that is corrosive laying about. There are many commercial sources for 303 as well.
If you only have time to do two things so-so, or one thing well ... do the one thing!0 -
Balistically it falls somewhere between the 308 Winchester and the 30/40 Krag. This, I feel, makes it entirely adequate for up to deer sized animals. When handloading, the choice of bullets in this country is a bit limited, but some good numbers are offered. I have owned several Enfields over the years; the 2 most accurate were a No. 4 and a P-14 that I still own. The No. 4 (sporterized) had a superb 2 groove barrel and with open sights would group handloads (150 grainers) into less than 2 inches. The P-14 (mil-spec), with about the same handloads will shade an inch at 100 yds. Since it is so robust, the P-14 will also take a lot more pressure than the springy old English Enfields. When up-loading this cartridge, keep in mind that the case life is short to begin with (4 or 5 reloads), and gets to the point of 1 or 2 loads at max pressures.
"When I cease learning...I'm dead"(Me)
"Power corrupts...Absolute power corrupts absolutely"(Descartes?)
"History is written by winners"(Patton)
"You get a lot farther with a kind word and a gun than you do with a kind word alone!"(Al Capone)
"There is nothing lower than the human race...except the French" (Samuel Clemens)0 -
Great gun, great caliber, 308 equivalent. Lots of ammo available as surplus. Mostly corrosive, so clean routinely. The Indian stuff is filthy as is the Paki but the latter is quite accurate. There is some South African also that is nice. One thing: if you reload, DO NOT full-length resize. Those chambers are universally overlong and the cases stretch. If you F-L them, you will be lucky to get two reloads before separation. If you Neck size only, they will last forever. Good luck!
Morty0 -
Yep, great knock-around rifles. I've owned most models on and off since my first one in 1960. Fine hunting rifle for anything, the brits used 'em for lions, tigers, buffs and elephants in a pinch!! Either reload your own or buy u.s. factory ammo, surplus is too suspect.
SEMPER FI MAC, SEMPER FI0 -
Military specs show (cartridge, bullet, velocity, energy) arranged by energy. (numbers copied from COTW)
7.62x54R, 185gr bullet @ 2660fps, 2910fpe
8mm Mauser, 154gr bullet @ 2880fps, 2835fpe
7.62Nato, 168 HP-BT Match @ 2680, 2680fpe
7.62x54R, 147gr bullet @ 2886fps, 2727fpe
30-06, 172gr FMJ-bt ball @ 2640, 2640fpe
30-06, 220gr FMJ-rn ball @ 2300, 2585fpe
7.62Nato, 150gr bt ball@ 2750, 2520fpe
30-06, 150gr FMJ ball @ 2740fps, 2500fpe
30-40 Krag, 220gr FMJ ball @ 2200fps, 2365fpe
303 Brit, 175gr bullet @ 2440fps, 2310fpe
8mm Mauser, 226gr bullet @ 2095fps, 2200fpe
303 Brit, 215gr bullet @ 2050fps, 2010fpe
7.7x58 Jap, 175gr bullet @ 2400fps, 2237fpe
IOW None of the main battle cartridges of WW1 or WW2 are wimps.
Some guys like a mag full of lead, I still prefer one round to the head.0 -
These rifles have some of the smoothest actions you will find on a military rifle.
The rifle and ammo should be more than adequate for almost any game in the lower 48 states. No problem there.
Surplus ammo was a little sparse about a year ago. Most of what I was able to find on the market was corrosive. I just bought a No. 5 Jungle Rifle and didn't want to feed it any corrosive ammo. There is some ammo made in Portugal with brass case and boxer primer, copper bullet and is quite good ammo. It was being sold by:
www.coledistributing.com
for a reasonable price. I bought 500 rounds and have been satisfied. I also bought some nice modern component reloaded hunting ammo with 174 grain soft points from
www.georgia-arms.com
It was reasonably priced and quite good.
Regards,
Heavyiron[8D]0 -
I like my trusty .303 brit so much i bought a 2nd. installed an easy to install no-gunsmith scope mount on the better one and feed it only commercial ammo or my own reloads. that other one i keepas a plinker and use mil-surp ammo
it's the caliber of choice for destroying bowling balls "LOL"
i was fortunate enough to aquire a large quantity of mil surp ammo from S.O.G. a few years back packed on stripper clips dated in the 40's
never had a mis-fire
i think it is probably corrosive so as per the advice of another expert out here
i crry a small bottle of ammonia/water mix and swab the bore just one time after shooting and before i take it home and clean it.after running the 'ammonia' patch thru the barrel once i then rub my bolt face with the patch. his advice seems to work cause i've done it now since i bought it back in 1993 and accuracy is still splendid and the bore and rifling look just fine to me (although i have to admit i'm no expert) hopefully an expert will jump in here now and provide better cleaning advice after i get the rifle home because for the past two years i have gotten lazy and usually just stick it back in the safe when i get home without further cleaning
wwould love to hear an expert advise what i should start doing cause i love this rifle----it';s funto shoot
"I will NOT attempt to re-arrange the furniture on the deck of the Titanic."0 -
I`ve owned a .303 british for a couple years and have found that it is devastating on deer-size game, a good load is Federal Classic 180 grains pointed soft point. All the deer that I have droped with this rifle have been hit right were i wanted it even at 250 yards.
Coyote Hunter
Redfox0 -
Excellent cartridge. Good guns.The .303british has been around the world and back and killed all there is to kill. 0
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