.309 cast in a Lee Enfield .303

[keith119]

Hi all,

Finally just got around to joining but have visited this site many times.


I just purchased a .303 Lee Enfield and will soon begin reloading for it. I have a mold that produces .309 150gr boolits. I know Enfields usually have a wider bore .311 plus but when I place a jacket .308 boolit against the barrel it appears it would be a very snug fit if I were to force it.

In your experience do you think .309 cast boolits would do well considering what I have said?

I don't have the equipment to slug and measure the bore.

Thanks
Keith

[docone31]

I would mold up a couple of boolitts, then cut at least two in half. From there I would drive the nose portion of one of the cut castings down the bore and measure it.
From my experience, I need .314 to get results.
With jacketeds .311 is loose, even though a .308 jacketed bullet was tight feeling.
You need to slug first.
With your .309 mold, you can size it to .308, and paper wrap it up to .314.
That is what I do with my enfield(s), and it works great!
There are tutorials on the paper patching section.
I tried it, and I am convinced.