Building a .303 bolt action - but doing it better.

[treeman]

For some reason the 8x57 is so underrated here in RSA. It’s a fantastic hunting round.

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Another fantastic round with a "big enough" bullet, another why did it not become equally popular ?

[dammitgriff]

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Another fantastic round with a "big enough" bullet, another why did it not become equally popular ?

Perhaps the 9.3 cartridge had some influence…?
It may deflect my interest from the .35 Whelan, but I favor the .357 availability of projectiles.

[Stevin]

I would guess that the reason for no other actions or rifles in 303 is that it won't do anything better than a 308 or 30-06. With 303 you have a similar diameter and weight projectile traveling at even slower velocities.

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This a 1000 times!

[A-R]

...Another fantastic round with a "big enough" bullet, another why did it not become equally popular ?

Nothing wrong with the caliber, especially when chambered in a modern rifle like a CZ550 or similar. It is still quite popular in Europe and especially Germany.

The lack of local popularity can likely be attributed to 2 reasons.
First, the cartridge became known from the surplus military rifles left over from WW2. These are usually not in the best condition and are made to fairly rough military specs. So the rifles are associated with the bargain surplus market, which does not really relate to a good hunting CV.
Second, the surplus 8mm rifles were less prolific than the common-as-dirt 303's or even the 7.62x51 (308W) Israeli Mausers. If more were sold locally, they just might have earned a better reputation.

Perhaps the 9.3 cartridge had some influence…?
It may deflect my interest from the .35 Whelan, but I favor the .357 availability of projectiles.

The 35 Whelen (named after it's inventor Townsend Whelen) is supposed to have a .358" barrel groove diameter. The correct bullets are the various 200 - 250 gn .358" rifle bullets. A .357" handgun bullet could be made to shoot in it, but the difference in diameter and the much softer construction of the handgun bullets are not likely to result in the kind of terminal performance this cartridge is capable of.

[janfred]

I would guess that the reason for no other actions or rifles in 303 is that it won't do anything better than a 308 or 30-06. With 303 you have a similar diameter and weight projectile traveling at even slower velocities.

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Even at a sedate 2450ft/s a 174gr bullet can, and have been used quite successfully at any sane hunting distances. As Messor has pointed out a few times, slow heavy bullets do less meat damage.

On a proper action, like the P14, reaming the chamber to .303Epps and the rifle should outperform the .308Win. The larger case capacity would allow you to drive heavier bullets faster. The fast twist would comfortably stabilise most long bullets.

[dammitgriff]

Is the P14 the only action strong enough to accommodate the EPPS modification?
A No. 4 EPPS would be cool.

[A-R]

Is the P14 the only action strong enough to accommodate the EPPS modification?
A No. 4 EPPS would be cool.

Many No 4's have been converted to Epps. The advantages are not great since the peak pressure is still limited by the action design.

In a P14 you can push the pressure up quite a bit, without any adverse effects. Basically, the 303Epps in a P14 operates in 30-06 territory.

[janfred]

No, it has been done quite successfully with No4 and No1 actions an Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The P14 was singled out as it is already what Treeman envisioned. A proper Mauser-type action barreled in .303Brit. In my opinion, reaming to an Epps chamber would remove all the cons of the cartridge.

Most people are just a bit apprehensive when using the No1 actions as there is a debate on how strong the WW1 rear-locking Lee actions actually are.

P14 actions have been rebarreled to all kinds of calibres in the past. Basically, gunsmiths have more trust in the front locking Mauser type actions.

[dammitgriff]

Is the P14 a controlled-feed affair, then?

[CorditeCrazy]

Is the P14 a controlled-feed affair, then?

Yes. It’s pretty much a M98 action