Enfield .303 British bullet diameters

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enfield.303

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Hello -
I measured with calipers the following bullet diameters all intended for use in my Enfield .303:
Remington 180-grain flatnose soft-tip: about .3065"
Remington 174-grain Spitzer-shape UMC target round: about .309"
Federal 150-grain Spitzer-shape soft-tip: about .3115"

I measured these pre-loaded commercial rounds just in front of the brass;
does this amount of variation seem correct?

The only ones I have fired so far are the Remington 180-grain flatnose soft-tip: about .3065" and a couple went wide, perhaps .3065" is too small??
I measured the muzzle end of the barrel at .3033" with machinists gage pins, so it does not seem to be worn oversize.

Any insight from .303 users would be appreciated,
Thanks very much
 
The Lyman #48 Reloading book shows a bullet dia. of .311 & .312 depending on the manufacturer. You reading is for the lands and the bullet diameter is determined by the grove diameter.
 
Yep, normal diameter should be .311-312". I have heard of people who's bores were tight enough to shoot .308" bullets OK, but I personally don't in my Lee Enfield No.4 Mk.1.
 
I shoot exclusively the Hornady .312 diameter bullets. The .311 diameter bullets generally have poor accuracy in my Enfields.
 
To get the correct bullet diameter, you can't measure "just in front of the brass (case)." You have to pull the bullet and measure the portion of the bullet that is inside the case. That is the bearing area.

Jim
 
"...my Enfield .303..." Slug the barrel. Lee-Enfield barrels can measure between .311" and .315" and still be considered ok. Larger than .315" the barrel is shot out. A .311" bullet won't shoot worth beans through a .313" to .315" barrel.
Commercial bullets measure either .311" or .312". They won't be .3065" or .309". I believe Remington uses .311" bullets. Their site says .301", but that can't be correct.
Steve at .303british.com is seasonally making 200 grain .313" and .314" jacketed bullets.
 
I've been using Hornady .311 for reloading and I haven't had any issues. brass is another story though, maybe its just my gun, but i never reload my brass more than twice. the action is too hot and the casings tend to separate.
Lee die sets come with some pretty clear and useful information about reloading your .303s, i also recommend going to the hodgeton website for more data
 
Been using the 174gr Hornady FMJ/BT .3105 diameter in my No4Mk1* for some time now, great bullet, can get MOA with that load and iron sights.
 
If I neck-size my PPU brass it seems to last a long time (5-10 reloads). It doesn't matter what I do with S&B brass, it separates after 2 reloads. I have not bothered to buy anything more expensive since the PPU works so well. I get can 2-3 inch groups at 100 yards with the .312 Hornady on my 1943 BSA No.4 Mk 1 using the .312 Hornady (can't remember if it is 174 or 180 grain?). Of course, this is on a bag and being extremely careful with my technique. Have used both Accurate 2460 and H4895 with good luck. I would love to get some H335 but haven't found any yet (at the price I want to pay).
 
Thanks very much for the info everyone -
now I feel better about the .311 measurements I was getting; it seemed large at first but now .311 seems to be normal size,
Thanks again,
enfield.303
 
The reason it is called .303 Brit and not .311 Brit is because it is .303 from land to land. Most barrels are measured groove to groove. Or at least thats how I was told
 
While bullet diameters for breech loading guns are the same diameter as the groove diameter of the barrel, the names given cartridges are not nearly so precise. For example, in the U.S. cartridges called .30 caliber and .308 use the same diameter bullet; one is called from the bore size, the other from the groove diameter. More confusing are cartridges named with almost no relation to any diameter. The .38-40 (.38 WCF) uses a .401" bullet. The 9mm Parabellum uses a .355" (9.02mm) bullet, but the 9mm Makarov uses a .363" (9.22mm) bullet. It is usually best to just accept cartridge names; trying to figure out reasons for the names leads to insanity.

Jim
 
I too prefer the proper, larger diameter bullets for my Enfield but if your particular gun shoots the .308-ish diameter bullets accurately enough for your needs, that's hard to argue with. :)
 
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