.303 Brit Black Powder Load?

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deerslayer303

New member
Hey ya'll I hope everyones Monday has been as good as possible. Well I got the thinking (yeah I know....uh oh...:rolleyes:) Anyway the .303 British was originally a B.P. Cartridge. SO, I got this old lyman Ammo Maker kit from 1959. It has a mold for a 205gr. boolit and .313" diameter. I'm thinking of casting up some of those boolits and propelling them with real Black. So I know I should fill the case. Should I use FFFg or FFg. And should I figure out where the bullet sits in the case at the right COL and say make a mark on the case and fill to that point? Any lastly will good ole Pyro work as well? Thoughts?
 
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10851Man

New member
@deerslayer303,

I have loaded my 7.62 X 39 level full of Pyrodex and seted the bullet, compressing the charge. Less recoil and report than smokeless, but surprisingly good accuracy.

I did this only to see if I could use BP as an apocalyptic substitute...FWIW
 
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Hawg

New member
You're going to have to compress the powder a couple of times before seating a bullet. The original British round used a 71 1/2 grain pellet and a wad that was inserted into the case before the neck was formed.
 
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deerslayer303

New member
Good Stuff Guys,

You're going to have to compress the powder a couple of times before seating a bullet.
Click to expand...
How do I do that? Seat a bullet and pull it back out? And also, these bullets are for gas checks, can I leave the gas check out, since I'm using B.P.? I think this will be fun!
 
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Strafer Gott

New member
Cordite was an awesome improvement. I keep forgetting how old this cartridge is. I'm not sure a compression plug will help you much with that bottleneck. Better get the vibrator out.
 
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wogpotter

New member
I've tried this, but the sucess was at best iffy.
Heres the trick, try to get as much powder in as you can. Then try to add a bit more..........., then some more......

Theres no way you can duplicate the original load as it was a solid pellet dropped into the case before the neck was formed. (Imagine a factory doing that today):eek:

Long, very long, drop tube, shake vibrate & so on to settle as much as possible. Top up case & seat bullet. I got about 38 grains in, but the original was 43 IIRC. Gas check? You won't need no steenkeen gas check! the 215Gr load was about 1850 FPS IIRC & you may get 1/2 to 2/3 that.

DO remember to clean for B/P afterwards.:D
 
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deerslayer303

New member
You won't need no steenkeen gas check!
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LOL ^ thats funny right there! I have to try this at least once or twice! :D I may take a wood dowel or something to try and pack the powder down. So FFFg should be my best bet to get as much in and compressed as possible, right?
 
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Logan5579

New member
So FFFg should be my best bet to get as much in and compressed as possible, right?

Yes
Smaller granulation means more powder will fit in a given volume, and more surface area to "burn" when you light er off :D
 
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deerslayer303

New member
Here's the plan Stan! I have a 15lb chunk of Lead that I used to weight a Racing Go Kart. Its hard as crap, so I'm gonna smelt that down and cast the 311299 bullet. I'm gonna go ahead and gas check em, since they are designed for it I guess. And maybe it will help. Then I will lube them with beez,parrafin,tallow, and cut em out with a fired case. Then I will fill, vibrate, fill, and shove a boolit in there. And try er out!
 
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Logan5579

New member
Everytime I've heard "hold my beer and watch this" I knew it would be something funny...and maybe a trip in the ambulance :eek:

But I never seem to have a video camera handy...:p
 
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Mike Irwin

Staff
the British black powder load was a pellet, but does anyone know how they pelletized it?

Colloidion?

Ran it through a rabbit?
 
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wogpotter

New member
Why would you do that when you're desperately trying to cram every last itsy-bitsy-teensy-tinsy bit of powder in the case?:confused:
 
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wogpotter

New member
the British black powder load was a pellet, but does anyone know how they pelletized it?
Click to expand...
I heard they just damp moulded it during manufacture. Once dried it was dropped into the primed cylindrical case which was necked down over it.
OSHA would have a heart attack!
 
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Doc Hoy

New member
Little off topic but I had to say this for you FL guys.

When I travel to FL about once or twice per month I go to a Wednesday night auction in 301 near Zephyrhills.

At about 7:00 pm they start auctioning off firearms. Since I am not an FL resident I am not even permitted to touch the modern weapons. I bid only on the antiques and BP stuff. But when I was there three weeks ago they had 5 .303 British in original configuration. Most were substantially complete. One was missing the bolt. None of these rifles brought more than $90.00. The one with the missing bolt went for 65.00. The tears were rolling down my cheeks.

I say this just to make you FL guys aware.
 
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