Surplus .303 Ammo Questions

Comes in crates, cases, cans, & belts like this.

Be aware that Mk7 .303 ammo is corrosive primed, and loaded with cordite powder.

If you have a real good barrel, cordite is known for burning throats out.

rc

Uhh then give me the guy's address and have him sell it to me

Just my opinion, but if you have a nice Enfield with a great barrel that you don't really want to shoot high round counts through, just set yourself up to load your own rounds. Buy new brass and components, and go to town. It's not hard to do and lots of fun, and you can make much more accurate ammo. For one caliber and low numbers, a single-stage press would be fine. You'd need a case trimmer and some decent powder scales too, but you could make great target or hunting ammo quite easily.

Leave that corrosive old surplus for the guns that are already beat. That stuff was made for fighting wars and killing people and destroying machines/airplanes/etc. They didn't particularly care what it did to the guns, they had lots more guns and machinegun barrels to replace the burned out ones. Wasn't made for sporting purposes and isn't suited for them. JMHO of course.

Look into it then. Rolling your own can be very satisfying.

IMO British produced MKVII ammo is about the best there is. In sealed cans, it should be sure-fire ammo. It has all but disappeared from the market, and would be a good investment, even if you don't plan to shoot it right now. This is the stuff Enfields were made to fire.

I have some of that MKVII ammo in Vickers belts and on Enfield stripper clips in cloth bandoleers in the metal cans.All has been sure fire,but use your corrosive primer cleaning drill.

If the price is good, take it. But i wouldnt buy these ammo, i rather get a few boxes of new Privi Partizan 180 gr SP for hunting. ANd thats what i got, non corrosive and shoot tight groups at 100 yds.

It really depends on what you wanna do with the Enfield.

If it's just a fun gun, then a little extra time will negate the corrosive effects of the primers entirely.

If you plan on hunting with it, well, you can't use ball ammo anyways.

If it were me, I would absolutely have no qualms about buying it and burning it up.
And besides, it's so much better than the Pakistani stuff it's not even funny.

Prvi is the way to go if you don't want to shoot Corrosive surplus.

I'm in your area and AIM Surplus has excellent prices on the Prvi.

http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.a...n+PPU+.303Brit+174grn+FMJ+20rd+Box&groupid=25

http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.a...vi+Partizan+PPU+.303+150gn+SP+20rd&groupid=25

http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.a...n+PPU+.303+Brit+180grn+SP+20rd+Box&groupid=25

Depending on the price I'd probably go for it. I know finding .303 can be hard, and some of the surplus stuff is prone to hangfire. If you don't want it, though, I'm sure someone else will snap it up.

Corrosive primers to be sure but IIRC most MkVII ammo was not loaded with cordite. Corrosive primer residue is supper-simple to deal with: pour some warm water down the barrel, a couple of dry patches then a bit of oil.

HoosierQ said:

I have a line and dibs on purchasing a case of Mk7 .303 ammo. It is in a wooden crate...unopened. I trust the guy totally in terms of integrity...work with him, known him for years, shoot with him, etc. However, he is no .303 ammo expert so before I chunk down cash, I want some facts.

I am seeking a sample by way of a case from his opened case and a picture of the markings on the box.

All of that said: Can ammo this old (WWII he says) be any good? Does the wooden box sound right? He says he think it is in a fabric belt? Does that make sense?

I do not shoot my Enfield a lot but commercial ammo for it is hard to find where I am and expensive. This acquisition is not cheap but this box will last me a very long time so I want to know what I am getting into before I buy.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Click to expand...

I am with Kurush on this one, give us the guys name & we will buy it & split it up between us...........

My Enfield is quite happy with PPU, I would think twice about shooting corrosive. But investing in a full crate - that's an investment that could be used if need be. You get the best of both worlds. An investment in a commodity that you know will only appreciate and a back-up ammo source. Gee, if I had that option, it sounds so much better than shares in Yahoo :banghead:

I have posted a number of times, on this forum, about the chemistry and rules of thumb, for propellant lifetime.

Ammunition has a shelf life, the propellant lifetime is the first thing to go, though those old primers had a finite shelf life.

Gunpowder is aways breaking down, gunpowder breaks down faster with heat.

You want to look for evidence of nitric acid gas release within the cartridge cases. Look for corroded bullets, corrosion on the cases, etc.

Signs like that mean you should walk away.

Without chemical analysis of the percentage of stabilizer left in the powder, it is impossible to determine how much shelf life good powder still has.

Powder shelf life, rules of thumb, given to me by an Insensitive Munitions expert, double based powders 20 years, single based 45 years.

So when you are talking WWII era ammunition, it is at the long end of shelf life for single based powders, do not expect it to last for another 50 years if it is still good.

My g/f bought a few boxes of 1947 .303 for her Enfield. That ammo has given bunches of hangfires in the rifle.