paper patch .303

[camerl2009]

ok what size bullet to use in papper patching the .303 brit

[docone31]

This I have experience with.
I take the Lee .303B mold, cast it up with whatever alloy I have in my pot.
I water drop it, then size it to .308. From there, I take a strip of paper, 1" wide, X 1 3/8" long, with angles cut in either end. I have done this without angles and neither works better.
I wrap this with a cigarette roller, with the strip soaking wet. I remove the wrapped casting, then twist the tail. I set to dry.
When dry, I size to .314. This fits the bore in my Smelly, beautifully. I load to start data on the same grain weight in jacketed.
I can put the clip in the center of my target. The barrel does get hot, but it comes out clean.
The .303 brit is a great paper project. It performs well.

[nanuk]

docone1: have you worked with a 2groove?

[docone31]

My SMLE, my Smelly, is a five groove, my 03-A3 is a definate 2 groove.
Both love the paper patch.
I fire them as I would jacketeds.

[DIRT Farmer]

A different approach, in deferance to my way oversize chamber waiting for money to have the barrel set back and rechambered in my 2 groove Savage #4, a 311 as cast Lyman 170 grain with two wraps of copier paper wraped dry slight smear of paste wax 20.5 of IMR 4227in a case expanded with a Lyman 31 m die casting to the lands with slight pressure to close the bolt. Works well, cheep to shoot.

[nanuk]

thanks Docone31 and Dirt... I have a No4Mk(1 or 2?) with a 2groove. I really like that rifle, and want to PP for it.

I have read elsewhere that 2 grooves are finicky sometimes with GGCB but never really heard much about PPCB's.

Worth the effort to try. my goal is to get a moose rifle out of it. Heavy for caliber PP at 2000fps if I can get it. great for Bush/tree stand.

I've got my CigRoller!

[camerl2009]

thanks Docone31 and Dirt... I have a No4Mk(1 or 2?) with a 2groove. I really like that rifle, and want to PP for it.

I have read elsewhere that 2 grooves are finicky sometimes with GGCB but never really heard much about PPCB's.

Worth the effort to try. my goal is to get a moose rifle out of it. Heavy for caliber PP at 2000fps if I can get it. great for Bush/tree stand.

I've got my CigRoller!

its MK 1 dont think thay made a no 4 mk 2

[sav300]

I believe the No4 mk1 has the trigger mounted on the trigger guard and No4 mk2 has the trigger mounted on the action.

[docone31]

The trick, which makes it differ from Black Powder, is to size the prime casting larger. That is why I size my .303 to .308, then wrap.
I have tried sizeing to .300, and .301, and got nothing. The larger sizeing, then wrapping, gives the rifleing something to push against in the bore.
That is why I use that number for the .30s, and .303. The .30s I then size wrapped to .309, and the .303 to .314. With your MK4, you will probably want to size to .308, then wrap with a cigarette roller. This will give you .317-.318. Your bore is most likely .316.

[nanuk]

The trick, which makes it differ from Black Powder, is to size the prime casting larger. That is why I size my .303 to .308, then wrap.
I have tried sizeing to .300, and .301, and got nothing. The larger sizeing, then wrapping, gives the rifleing something to push against in the bore.
That is why I use that number for the .30s, and .303. The .30s I then size wrapped to .309, and the .303 to .314. With your MK4, you will probably want to size to .308, then wrap with a cigarette roller. This will give you .317-.318. Your bore is most likely .316.


thanks for that docone31. I have read your numbers before and they seem to make sense.

the bullet needs to be a bit larger than bore diameter, and them patched to a bit larger than groove.

I just have to find a way to get there.

are there any concerns about bullet style? ie/long bore riding nose? it would be undersized.. I plan on the 311284, and I have a 314299.

[docone31]

I use the Lee 303B mold, and the Lee .30cal mold.
I use Lee sizers for paper patching.
The casting does grow a bit after final sizeing. My .309, grows to .310 after a couple of weeks.
And so on.
I look at it this way, if it works for a cast load, then the patch is merely a buffer. Why use anything other than standard cast molds?
So far, so good for me.
Again, BP is different.

[herbert buckland]

I tryed the .30 mould at first and could not get it to work ,I took the advice to size a 303 bullet down to .308 and got instant results,have not got the acuracy I am after yet but geting 4 inch groups at a 100 meters and have got a few pigs with this load,it is defently a good hunting load,if I could only get a a 600 meter target load I will be very pleased

[303Guy]

The No4 Mk2 does exist. It has the trigger mounted on the action instead of the trigger guard. I have two two-groove No4's. I haven't fired the one with a mint bore yet. Both mine have a throat worth taking note on. The throat is tapered from the transition to the bore at a shallow angle which I can't remember. This means that a tapered PPCBoo with a .318 parallel shank for seating should work just fine. It does kinda set a limit on the boolit weight/length. It could make a heavy for caliber boolit a bit tricky. One wants as much of the boolit length engaging the riflin as possible to compensate for there being only two driving rifling lands. (The five groove barrels handle 220gr boolits just fine). Be aware that with the amount of material being displaced by the bore, there is a tendency to form a feathered base edge on the core. I have tried a rebated base boolit which seems to solve that problem. No field trials as yet - only test tube firing and that with the rust textured bore (which shoots J-words scary accurately).


Your bore is most likely .316. Ummm ... that would be groove diameter.[smilie=1: Bore would likely be .304. (Groove diameter on these barrels would be a bit 'loose' - makes no difference to a J-word).