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After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 7:05 pm
by KZN185
Hey guys, as per title, I am after a scope for my .303 bush rifle. If any of you have a good quality scope lying around that you aren't using and wouldn't mind me taking off your hands, flick me a message. something around 30-40mm, fixed or vari power would be awesome.

cheers.

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 7:34 pm
by haynzy
ya dont need a scope for a 303 they dont shoot that far

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 8:41 pm
by Swamped
If its for an old war .303 a scope just means you can miss things at bigger distances. If your in tight bush the iron sights will be heaps better.

my 2c

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 9:10 pm
by wopass
.303 not accurate???

really???

put one in the hands of a steady hand shooter and tell them its not accurate :lol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhuKDKFs ... re=related

for example

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 9:46 pm
by Swamped
The .303 cartridge is accurate but the gun is usually what determines it in the end. You can't say from that one video that every .303 is accurate lol. Anyways you should be able to pick up a fixed 4 power or even a vari-power scope for bugger all off trademe. Some of the gun shops will part with second hand ones if you have trouble finding one too.

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 10:30 pm
by Moriarty
haynzy wrote:ya dont need a scope for a 303 they dont shoot that far


Haynzy, for many many years, the balinger belt in NZ was shot with .303 briish using enfields of ALL marks at ranges out to 900 yds. For even lomger, the Bisley shoot was done at similar ranges. Look em up !!! 300, 600, 900 yds. 10 rounds. IRON sights, 2 minutes of angle.

Most of the older guys I know who hunt started with one, I did, Wopass did and his papa did. My son uses one and you will never prise his sticky hands off it. Its a Parker Hale conversion of a number 3 and wears a fixed 4X bushnell banner some 40 years old. Shoot? better than I can, now, best we ever got out of that one was minute of angle. Pauls used a number 4 for years, and could easily get minute groups.

dont shoot far!! HAH!!! 180 gns at 2450 FPS

B

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 11:22 pm
by Jafa
:lol: :lol: Thought Haynzy's comment might get a few replies :lol: :lol:
Nothing wrong with a Lee-Enfield in good nick, but the rear locking lugs and a lack of front lugs has the potential for inaccuracy, as opposed to a Mauser based action..... my 2c

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 12:55 am
by Sadam_Husain
KZN185 wrote: If any of you have a good quality scope lying around that you aren't using


Putting ther 303 argument aside your on the right track looking for a good quality scope, it dosent matter how accurate and straight the rifle shoots if the scope cant cope with the recoil and stay sighted in then its not worth a piece of shit, I spent my first year of hunting scaring off shitloads of deer spraying shots all over and around them till I brought a good leupold scope then the deer all started to fall over.... never looked back :wink:

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 8:23 am
by Jafa
Sadam_Husain wrote:
KZN185 wrote: If any of you have a good quality scope lying around that you aren't using


Putting ther 303 argument aside your on the right track looking for a good quality scope, it dosent matter how accurate and straight the rifle shoots if the scope cant cope with the recoil and stay sighted in then its not worth a piece of shit, I spent my first year of hunting scaring off shitloads of deer spraying shots all over and around them till I brought a good leupold scope then the deer all started to fall over.... never looked back :wink:


Good advice right there 8)

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 9:10 am
by wopass
http://peloi.co.nz

look for him on tardme,
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Sports/Hunting ... 326582.htm

seems to be a decent quality bit of kit (i have a peloi 4-16 ranger)awesum prices and primo guy to deal with.

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 9:47 am
by haydgq
I use a Bushnell Elite 3200 3-9x40 its a good scope for the price and with the rain guard coating its awesome in the wet and foggy conditions and they gather good light when needed. They are the new model of Bausch and lomb elite scopes and can be brought on TM quiet cheap, But then a fixed 4x is probably all that's needed on a bush rifle.

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 1:06 pm
by KZN185
right, from all that i have decided to keep my leupold vxIII on the .270WSM and get a fixed power 4x for the .303

I am not after a scope that will fog when it gets wet and fail if it gets a bump or 2, a nice old vxII might do the trick.

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 4:18 pm
by KZN185
so, no old scopes around?

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 6:54 pm
by Bubba
wopass wrote:.303 not accurate???

really???

put one in the hands of a steady hand shooter and tell them its not accurate :lol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhuKDKFs ... re=related

for example


Umm .303 or .308??

Didn't mean to get off the subject

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 8:03 pm
by haydgq
Bubba wrote:
wopass wrote:.303 not accurate???

really???

put one in the hands of a steady hand shooter and tell them its not accurate :lol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhuKDKFs ... re=related

for example


Umm .303 or .308??

Didn't mean to get off the subject


Yip its a .303

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Thu May 14, 2009 11:05 am
by wopass
Bubba wrote:
wopass wrote:.303 not accurate???

really???

put one in the hands of a steady hand shooter and tell them its not accurate :lol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhuKDKFs ... re=related

for example


Umm .303 or .308??

Didn't mean to get off the subject


wouldnt expect you to be able to tell the difference bubba as you cant even grow a decent stachio :lol:

:wink:

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Thu May 14, 2009 11:20 am
by Bubba
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhuKDKFs ... re=related

Wrong on both accounts yah big hairy beast. but this is not the place to get in to a pissing contest.

My comment was on the link. The author comments about using 308 ammo. Now I admit that I am no gunsmith but I would not think a standard .303R would fit a .308 NATO/Winchester round in the chamber unless it was rechambered and re-bored in which case it's not a .303 then is it? so I’m guessing it would have to be a .308R (is there such a beast) or maybe a .30cal which is rimmed and is 7.62mm but not .308

.303 converts to 7.696mm so that would mean a 7.62mm round could rattle down the barrel. Regardless they say that they are using a 308 round, from that I am 70% certain that it must be rechambered to fire something different from a .303R

The other things to consider is 300 yards prone on a range isn't really that impressive. There was a link of a guy firing one at 1100 yards, now that was impressive.

Back to the original subject. I have two .303's and a Parker Hale .308 and agree about just using the .303 with iron sights, or just get a 1.5 power scope that way you can still snape shoot with both eye open and keep a wide range of vision.

I may have a old sctatched 4 power scope tucked away somewhere. Can't remember the brand but it's German and old, but still ok

it's a Weaver!! Good scope in it's day

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Thu May 14, 2009 6:41 pm
by haynzy
Consider that can of worms well and truley open :lol: :lol:
Theres no doubting that in the right hands the 303 is a deadly weapon, just ask any german (no offence intended) But in saying that in the right hands a disston hand saw con produce a far superior cut than ant modern dropsaw, problem is the number of people that possess the skills to master both the lee enfeild and the disston are as rare as rocking horse turds.
Been on to many trips with novices with their grandads 30 that ends in either a clear miss or worse a wounded animal that is never found due to a knob with a gun they are not able and scared of shooting. And thats coming from someone who has accounted for many sika with said calibre.
For now though I will stick with my .260

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Thu May 14, 2009 7:32 pm
by wopass
Bubba wrote:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhuKDKFshhA&feature=related

Wrong on both accounts yah big hairy beast. but this is not the place to get in to a pissing contest.

My comment was on the link. The author comments about using 308 ammo. Now I admit that I am no gunsmith but I would not think a standard .303R would fit a .308 NATO/Winchester round in the chamber unless it was rechambered and re-bored in which case it's not a .303 then is it? so I’m guessing it would have to be a .308R (is there such a beast) or maybe a .30cal which is rimmed and is 7.62mm but not .308

.303 converts to 7.696mm so that would mean a 7.62mm round could rattle down the barrel. Regardless they say that they are using a 308 round, from that I am 70% certain that it must be rechambered to fire something different from a .303R

The other things to consider is 300 yards prone on a range isn't really that impressive. There was a link of a guy firing one at 1100 yards, now that was impressive.



bubba, go read a handloaders bible then read the information given by the shooter at the end of the vid...then get back to me when you actualy know something :roll: big P woulda smaked me if i said sumthing that dum :lol: 303 is NOT the size of the projectile


whats the imperial measurement of a 303 projectile????..something like ohh i dunno maybe 0.311"....they must have used standard 30 cal proddys which are 0.308" but you still a we todd it

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 8:46 am
by Moriarty
projectile sizes

.243 = 6mm
.270 = .277
.303BR = .311 or .312 7.7mm
.308 win = .308
ALL .so cal
7.7 Jap = .311
8mm Mauser = 7.92


Bubbsy, FYI There wqere a series of so-called "Queensland calibres" because at THAT time, QA citizens could NOT own military rifles

All based on .303BR cases
22 Falcon (Full length and safe ONLY in a prewar number 4)
303/22 = .224
303/243 = .243
303/25 = .257 (Had a number 4 in this, wish I had kept it)
.303/270 =.277
.303/308 = .308

I had a P14 Enfeild (not a lee-enfeild) that was so badly made during wartime, I could push a .303 slug though it with a cleaning rod, so I reloaded it and made...

.303/8mm and at last it would hold a 300 mm group at 200 didnt matter, jap deer at 50 feet still became venison!!!

last but not least......... The Poms made...

.303/375
.303/410

both a little sluggish (pun) because of only having around a 40 gn capacity case.


And yes, Wopass, I woulda!!!! made a special trip tp do it too!!!

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 9:28 am
by haydgq
Moriarty wrote:projectile sizes

.243 = 6mm
.270 = .277
.303BR = .311 or .312 7.7mm
.308 win = .308
ALL .so cal
7.7 Jap = .311
8mm Mauser = 7.92


Bubbsy, FYI There wqere a series of so-called "Queensland calibres" because at THAT time, QA citizens could NOT own military rifles

All based on .303BR cases
22 Falcon (Full length and safe ONLY in a prewar number 4)
303/22 = .224
303/243 = .243
303/25 = .257 (Had a number 4 in this, wish I had kept it)
.303/270 =.277
.303/308 = .308

I had a P14 Enfeild (not a lee-enfeild) that was so badly made during wartime, I could push a .303 slug though it with a cleaning rod, so I reloaded it and made...

.303/8mm and at last it would hold a 300 mm group at 200 didnt matter, jap deer at 50 feet still became venison!!!

last but not least......... The Poms made...

.303/375
.303/410

both a little sluggish (pun) because of only having around a 40 gn capacity case.


And yes, Wopass, I woulda!!!! made a special trip tp do it too!!!


I reakon those .303/25's would of been a great caliber, But i suppose with the 257 weatherby and 25-06 around theres no need, Wish i had of kept my 110 savage in .25-06 it had a 28 inch bull barrel and it was a real tack driver but then my tikka T3 shoots as good if not better and fark it weighs a lot less. :D

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 9:31 am
by Bubba
Thankyou Bob

So it was a 303 rifle chambered in .308, is that not what I asked? :roll:

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 9:53 am
by Moriarty
haydgq wrote:I reakon those .303/25's would of been a great caliber, But i suppose with the 257 weatherby and 25-06 around theres no need, Wish i had of kept my 110 savage in .25-06 it had a 28 inch bull barrel and it was a real tack driver but then my tikka T3 shoots as good if not better and fark it weighs a lot less. :D



It WAS!! As I said, wish I had kept it.

Load was 39.5 gns hogdon 4895 117 gn HPBT Speer

26inch barrel and 3000fps and straight too. fkn heavy of course, but a sweetly tapered bbl.


Sure, the Weatherby and 25.06s in various makes/models were available of course, but I quite like the No.4 action. fast, self cleaning, unlike a Mauser derivative, and accurate (minute of deer) out to too far away to shoot. Not forgetting, as a newly married young man with a kid, who could afford a $600 note for a flash rifle compared to $150 for the L.E? With Redfield 3 to 9 scope??

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 10:04 am
by Moriarty
Bubba wrote:Thank you Bob

So it was a 303 rifle chambered in .308, is that not what I asked? :roll:


no you didnt.

The Author never mentioned a 308. :shock: :shock:
you asked, was it a 303 or 308

the reply was 303.

FYI, not even a No 4 in good nick will safely and continuously handle the pressures etc of a factory 308W load


The droughts broken in Wellington.

Re: After a scope for my .303 bush rifle

Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 10:42 am
by haydgq
On a different note, has anyone used any of the newly developed 6.8 rem spc projectiles in a .270 ( .277/6.8mm), Some of the 110gr pills like the Barnes triple shock would really move in a .270 case and the fact that they are not varmint bullets would make them lethal on Goats/small Deer etc