.303 British to 6.5x53R Dutch

[mac60]

As the groove diameter of my M95 carbine is ~.270" I load the Cruise Missile beagles up to .2715"+. 16gr 2400 under that bullet has given 50yd groupsike 1"x1 3/4" which is as good as I can see these days.
A friend also has a Dutch carbine. His jacketed bullet loads yield about the same size groups as my cast loads. The jacketed bullets are sized down from .277".

I couldn't get the thing to shoot cast well at all. I haven't slugged the bore yet. With coww the mould I have drops .269" - .270". I need to slug the bore - maybe I can improve things if I load some unsized.

Good Cheer - I don't shoot the Dutch M95 much so the 100 pcs. of brass I have will most likely outlive me. I have 2 rifles that shoot .303 Brit. so what .303 brass I have I'm kinda hoarding.

[Good Cheer]

mac60,
I've gotten lucky and found new .303's!

[DonHowe]

I couldn't get the thing to shoot cast well at all. I haven't slugged the bore yet. With coww the mould I have drops .269" - .270". I need to slug the bore - maybe I can improve things if I load some unsized.

I "beagled" the Cruise Missile mould up to .272" and do not size it, just crimp the gas check. My bore is horrendous so from a clean bore I push patches loaded with bullet lube thru the barrel to "pre-condition" it. The CM bullet carries lots of lube and a few fouling shots gives the bore a nice coating of lube over the roughness and the old girl shoots acceptably well.
I tried paper patch bullet early on only to have a clean bore destroy the patches. At 50yds a shotgun might have given a tighter group. One day on a whim I fired a the few remaining PP loads after shooting lubed bullets and having a good lube coating in the bore. Paper patches were not shredded and the mild-jacketed-velovity loads grouped well.
Soots of lube is the key! Oh, and I water drop the Cruise Missile bullet and load over 166.0gr/2400 powder.

[Gobeyond]

I bought my cases on GB, not too bad price. I tried a lead .269 bullet from western 165 grain and a 258 PP. Both had their troubles. I used 4895, Varget, 4227 with descent accuracy at 200 yds. Will shoot more .269s but try to tune the powder. It likes262 better- unleaded. Forming is great will have to make the invest and do. LGM on gb suits me.

[Indy650]

crap I dont have any of those other dies needed. Anyone know if any companies sell the 6.5X53R brass?

[15meter]

crap I dont have any of those other dies needed. Anyone know if any companies sell the 6.5X53R brass?

I used the dies listed because that's what I had on the bench if you've got kinda sorta the same sized dies, give them a try, what I did was trial and error to get a workable solution.

You may get to the same place with a different set of dies.

8x57 to start the shoulder back?

30-30 started reducing?

Experiment might get you what you want.

What dies do you own?

Anybody nearby you can mooch dies from?

Good luck!

[TheAbe]

Well, here’s my 2 cents. I just formed a few cases which appear to be the dimensions of 6.5x53r from .303 British in 2 major steps. Step 1: trim .303 case using 7.65x53 Mauser trim length mandrel and deburr/chamfer. Step 2: after lubrication, form with full length 6.5 Japanese/Arisaka die w/o the expansion pin. This would appear to set back the shoulder to the appropriate location as well as the start of the neck. I need a Dutch chamber to test them in, but there is an M95 New Carbine at a local shop that will be coming home with me my next trip there, and hopefully these will fit. If this works, it would make the forming process a bit simpler than those so far proven. Does this look about right?

[pworley1]

I found a 6.5x54 trim die used years ago and it makes quick work of forming brass. Run the 303 into the trim die, trim, size, anneal load shoot.

[2152hq]

I form 6.5x53R from 303Brit. My 303 cases are all once fired HXP-72/73 dated Greek Military.
They are boxer primed and very good brass.

I anneal the brass down to the shoulder first. But I don't let it get red hot. No need to get the brass that dead soft.
Just a few seconds in the propane flame and let it cool on the floor.

Resize in FL 303 die.

Then I have been going straight to a 6.5 M/S FL sizer die for forming.
With care they form in one step. You have to use plenty of sizing lube (Imperial Wax).
It helps to start sizing then pull the case back out. Swipe the lube back around the case again and back into the die.

Out they come with the long neck and if I don't get the lube too far down on the case,,no lube dents in the shoulder. That just comes froma bitof practice.

Trim to approx length.

Then one step I need to do that doesn't seem to be mentioned by others is that I need to Inside Neck ream.
But not for the reason of thinning the neck brass. But instead for removing what is called the 'Donut' of brass that builds up at the base of the neck Inside the newely formed case.

All that reduction in diameter and shoulder push back,,the brass has to go somewhere and it can't go to the outside of the case as the die prevents it.
So any excess pushes & piles up on the inside.

Check your reformed 6.5 from 303 cases for that ring of brass at the base of the neck.
Or you may discover it when you are 1/2way thru the reloading process.
Simply inserting a bullet if it'll slide in or a twist drill shank of very close dia will tell you if it's there as either will stop dead against it.

To remove the ring, I guess the proper way is a reamer and such set up.
Not having that, I mearly used an appropriate Letter drill IIRC right. 'G' I think it is at .262
The point is sharp, the flutes are dulled so as not to remove brass from the side walls of the neck.

Quick work of Mr.Donut is done with this in a drill press/ MillDrill.

Then final trimming to length. ect and load.

I get approx 8 to 10 reloads out of the cases in a Sporter built on a Romanian bbl'd action w/ orig bbl.
Always min loads (6.5M/S) and surplus 160gr FMJ bullets that I bought several 100 of in bulk in the last Century for $1/100

I have a 1896 Portuguese Short Navy rifle that will get a try out this summer as well with the ammo.

Range toys,,all of them.