.303 British Surplus ammo

[Crusader]

I went to the range today with some friends and brought along my new RFI No1 Mk3. I had purchased a few boxes of mid 50s British Mk7 surplus ammo and brought some to shoot.

What complete crap.

Although I had no duds, out of the three boxes I shot through I had at least 15 hang fires.
In addition, every single round in every single box shot low. LOW. I was hitting anywhere from 6 inches to 4 feet low at 100 yards. What the heck?


Just a warning to anyone planning on buying Mk7 surplus ammo.


As a side note, I am interested in purchasing other kinds of .303 british surplus if anyone has any for sale.

[Quiet]

Stay away from the Pakistani (POF) surplus .303Brit ammo.
None of it is any good.
Lots of hangfires and failure to fires with that ammo.

[Crusader]

Yeah I already knew to stay away from POF. This Mk7 came in a similar looking box and in 32 round quantities but I figured I couldn't go wrong with British made ammo...wrong.

[Palimino Stripe]

Groan.

No offense but everyone is such whiners when it comes to surplus .303. Yeah the ammo is 40-60 years old, yeah there will be some hang fires, get over it. If you want ammo that shoots reliably, and hits exactly where you're aiming- buy brand new $20/20 box ammo. But If you want some relatively cheap plinking ammo- have some fun with the surplus...



-Palimino

[Norsemen308]

^^^second... its been sitting in a warehouse for a billion years... and many of it would shoot LOW straight out of the factory... 4-6 inches low still gets a german in the gut...

[bUm805]

I like the surplus .303 because of the cordite.

[Quiet]

Groan.

No offense but everyone is such whiners when it comes to surplus .303. Yeah the ammo is 40-60 years old, yeah there will be some hang fires, get over it. If you want ammo that shoots reliably, and hits exactly where you're aiming- buy brand new $20/20 box ammo. But If you want some relatively cheap plinking ammo- have some fun with the surplus...



-Palimino

But, my .30Carbine and .30-06 surplus ammo from 40-60 years ago does not hangfire and is just as reliable & accurate as current commerical made ammo. Guess, I'm expecting too much.

[Palimino Stripe]

But, my .30Carbine and .30-06 surplus ammo from 40-60 years ago does not hangfire and is just as reliable & accurate as current commerical made ammo. Guess, I'm expecting too much.

You're right- it's a matter of expectations. Some ammo from 1917 still shoots just fine. I guess that means I should just expect all surplus ammo to shoot brilliantly. /sarcasm.

All I'm saying is that people need to just accept some surplus ammo for what it is- and just have fun with it...

I don't know about anyone else- but even if I go shooting one day and don't hit anything I'm aiming at- I still have fun shooting...

Some people and their expectations

-Palimino

[M1A Rifleman]

I like the surplus .303 because of the cordite.

Why would you like cordite, its very erosive.

As far as shooting very low: Unless you have had it shoot POA with other ammo, it sounds like you may need a shorter front sight blade to raise your POI. Remember, these rifles were factory zeroed by a armorer. Troopers were taught to hold over/under and use windage with their rifles. Sight blades were not swapped out for each shooter.

[AaronHorrocks]

Not all ammo is made the same. Some will hold up over time, and others will not. It depends entirely on the components, the quality, and the manufacturing process. Generally U.S. made ammo from the 1950's is as good today as it was the day it rolled out of the factory.

As with all manufactures, of all sorts of products, different designs and different materials are tried and produced. What may have worked for a new cheaper priming mixture 60 years ago, (or even in the 1980's as seen on French .50 BMG) may have degraded over the decades to cause hangefires and even duds.

Rather than shooting all the old ammo you come accross, you might want to hang on to it and save it. After all, most of it is being sold as a novelty, and not for actual use.

[Full Clip]

Start reloading.

[paul0660]

Isn't the Mk7 made in India? "British manufacture" but not made in Britain.

[smle-man]

Isn't the Mk7 made in India? "British manufacture" but not made in Britain.

Mk7 or Mk VII describes the bullet type and not the location of manufacture. Mk VII ammo was made the world over. I've noticed the same problem with UK ball from the early 50s, a lot of it is hang fire. Your shooting low problem may be that you are anticipating the shot and lifting your head when you pull the trigger which causes the muzzle to dip. I've done it myself with hangfire ammo. This stuff is great for teaching proper follow through!

[rojocorsa]

http://palmettostatearmory.com/303-british-ammo.php

Here. $13.95 is the best I've seen for new production .303 this ammo does not disappoint. I prefer it to S&B as well.

[gazzavc]

http://palmettostatearmory.com/303-british-ammo.php

Here. $13.95 is the best I've seen for new production .303 this ammo does not disappoint. I prefer it to S&B as well.

Thats a good deal in todays market.
.303 surplus is scarce at the best of times.

The Paki POF stuff is rubbish. The British stuff is hit or miss.

Depending how the ammo was stored in to OP's case will reflect on how it shoots , or if it shoots at all.

Unless you can find some of the 70's HXP Greek .303 , avoid the surplus altogether and use the privipartizan new loads.

Your shooting will be better and you'll enjoy your Enfield/Bren/Vickers a lot more.

Gary