NOOB reloading questions for comment

[Hill]

Please read the email sent to a bullet manufacturer here in South Africa. The email keeps boucing back. So I was wondering if you guys could please comment.

Hi I hope you can help me or at least forward this onto someone who can.

I have a Lee Enfield P14 .303 British Rifle. The barrel had been shortened by the previous owner. From firing pin to tip it is 56cm,22in). Now when using your factory ammo it is accurate at 100m where I normally set it in.

However on trying to reload I am battling to find a powder charge to suit the barrel.

I am using Somchem powder. S335. It states a safe start load of 37.8gr for a 150gr head. And maximum load 42gr. I cannot achieve accurate groupings anywhere in this load range and get occasional flyers over a meter off the target.

I started a range of different loads this week end. Starting at 36gr and ending at 41gr with a .5gr increment.

Unfortunately I mixed up a couple of different casings. However just before starting the shoot I decided to mark each bullet hole according to casing.

The other casings used where S&B,Sellier & Bellot) and Highland AX. These casings seem to hold more powder than the PMP's. I checked a couple of cases and the eqivalent load in the PMP where always closer to the neck of the casing than the other two cases.

Anyway during the shoot I found the rounds using the PMP casings to be the most accurate. At around 36 to 37gr I achieved reasonable grouping at 30m but not great. Rounds using the other cases and even the PMP rounds above 37gr were erratic. 90% of the time the bullet hole was not round but elongated indicating to me that the bullet was possible tumbling.

My first question is, because the barrel is about 3 inches shorter than normal, should I be using a load with a lower charge?

Would it be possible to get the factory load details to try narrow my search to find the best load for this rifle? Things like powder type and amount.

Thanking you in anticipation.

 

[Winchester69]

Hill,

The problem you are describing is tumbling. It is not load related, nor would the length of the barrel have any effect. Essentially, the rifling is not stabilizing the bullet you are loading. Or, expressed differently, the bullet is too long for the rifling twist of the barrel. I am not overly familiar with the 303 British, but it sounds like you are shooting a military barrel. The original loading would have been a ball bullet, much shorter than a spitzer in the same weight. You might try loading a shorter configuration bullet in the same weight, or a lighter version of the bullet you are currently loading and see if you still have the tumbling problem.

Others who have experience with the caliber can provide more particulars.

 

[Asa_Yam]

The original loading would have been a ball bullet, much shorter than a spitzer in the same weight. You might try loading a shorter configuration bullet in the same weight, or a lighter version of the bullet you are curently loading and see if you still have the tumbling problem.

The Mk VIII round fired a 174 grain FMJBT projectile, and the older Mk VII round fired a 174 grain FMJ,flat based) spitzer. Additionally, most 150 grain projectiles won't be as long as the 174s, due to the latter incorporating wood or aluminum tip fillers,less dense than lead). If the rifle will stabilize a 174, it will shoot anything weighing less as well.

See http://enfieldrifles.profusehost.net/gh2.htm and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.303_British#Mark_7

One additional caution: Bores on .303 rifles can be up to .311-.312" in diameter. Many bullets made and sold these days are .308", and may not engrave in the rifling, especially at higher velocities. Try measuring bullet diameter - if the ones you're using are "undersized", look for fatter bullets.

 

[Asa_Yam]

Would it be possible to get the factory load details to try narrow my search to find the best load for this rifle? Things like powder type and amount.

How good are you at inserting cordite strands and cardboard wads into casings? :lol:

Seriously, typical .303 loads used a unique loading procedure. A mostly formed case was filled with a predetermined number of cordite strands, then capped with a cardboard wad. The case was then taken away for necking down, followed by bullet seating. Don't believe me? See http://www.gunboards.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=225020

An equivalent load to the Mk VII round would push a 174 grain flat based bullet,nominally .311") at around 2440 FPS.