New .303 MLE! - powder selection and other quandaries

[norsk]

Mid range powders work fine in the 303.

W-748
Norma 203B / 204
N-140
N-11

The throat in your Rifle is likely a bit worn from a diet of cordite . If you find some 215 grainers all the better,I suggest you keep yourself to flat based bullets as they will " slug up" obturate in the bore.

You might have to load your bullets quite far out in the case to avoid too much run out,remember this will lower the initial pressure so dont be afraid to compensate with a heavier charge.

Alternatively you can use a smaller charge of faster powder such as N-202 ,or dear I saw it an even smaller charge of Unique or N-110.

Nice Rifle you have,I have one just like it.

Norma used to load 215 trainers,Dominion in Canada did too.

 

[Dalua]

Mr Lyman's trigger pull gauge gives an average of 8 lbs, 11 oz over five pulls.

Is it a two-stage trigger?
My No4 Mk1 has Stage 1 at 4lb, and then another 2.5lb to fire. So looks like 6.5lb on the gauge, but is really just 2.5lb - which is much lighter than I thought it would be, actually.

 

[Smellydog]

Is it a two-stage trigger?
My No4 Mk1 has Stage 1 at 4lb, and then another 2.5lb to fire. So looks like 6.5lb on the gauge, but is really just 2.5lb - which is much lighter than I thought it would be, actually.

Is that right? Surely if you are pulling 4lb how will you feel a lighter second stage??

That's a new one on me

 

[Dalua]

Is that right? Surely if you are pulling 4lb how will you feel a lighter second stage??

That's a new one on me

Have you used a 2-stage trigger?

 

[Smellydog]

Have you used a 2-stage trigger?

Often. The first has to be lighter or you won't feel the second.

 

[Dalua]

Often. The first has to be lighter or you won't feel the second.

I will measure mine again - but I'm fairly certain that's not correct. If you pull 4lb and hit a stop which requires a further 2.5lb to pass it, how would you not feel it?
Perhaps my first post was unclear...

 

[Smellydog]

I will measure mine again - but I'm fairly certain that's not correct. If you pull 4lb and hit a stop which requires a further 2.5lb to pass it, how would you not feel it?
Perhaps my first post was unclear...

No sir. If your trigger trips at 2.5lb but the first stage is 4lb you'd never feel the second stage. It would feel awful with loads of travel and little to no prediction.
The 4lb of force would not stop for 2.5lb.

 

[Dalua]

No sir. If your trigger trips at 2.5lb but the first stage is 4lb you'd never feel the second stage. It would feel awful with loads of travel and little to no prediction.
The 4lb of force would not stop for 2.5lb.

Maybe not - but that's not the circumstance I've described.

 

[Mr. Gain]

Is it a two-stage trigger?
My No4 Mk1 has Stage 1 at 4lb, and then another 2.5lb to fire. So looks like 6.5lb on the gauge, but is really just 2.5lb - which is much lighter than I thought it would be, actually.

Sadly not. It is single stage. There is just a hint of vibration before it breaks, so I can try and hold it there, and then squeeze through, but the best approach seems a positive pull with an emphasis on keeping the movement straight down the line of the rifle.

 

[norsk]

Sadly not. It is single stage. There is just a hint of vibration before it breaks, so I can try and hold it there, and then squeeze through, but the best approach seems a positive pull with an emphasis on keeping the movement straight down the line of the rifle.

Mine was horrible too. I disassembled ,lubed and stoned the sear. Its not bad now.

Try a clean and lube,if not,a few strokes with a diamond hone. Easy does it!

 

[Mr. Gain]

Mine was horrible too. I disassembled ,lubed and stoned the sear. Its not bad now.

Try a clean and lube,if not,a few strokes with a diamond hone. Easy does it!

Thanks. It's already pulled things apart for a good clean and lube before measuring the pull weight. The contact surfaces on the sear and bent look pretty slick already, too, but I guess a couple of passes with a hone can't hurt...

 

[norsk]

Thanks. It's already pulled things apart for a good clean and lube before measuring the pull weight. The contact surfaces on the sear and bent look pretty slick already, too, but I guess a couple of passes with a hone can't hurt...

I bet you can find a diy guide on the web somewhere. Its not hard to do,but its easy to over do,although not the end of the world because parts are cheap.

When you are happy with it. Cock your unloaded Rifle and thump it butt first onto the carpet,then again from the muzzle end a few times just to be sure.

 

[Stalker-of-the-deer]

The triggers are heavy but you learn to shoot them and get used to it! They are made heavy for a reason...

Then again the accuracy of military rifles is also not great. You will learn quickly if its your first experience

 

[Mr. Gain]

The triggers are heavy but you learn to shoot them and get used to it! They are made heavy for a reason...

Then again the accuracy of military rifles is also not great. You will learn quickly if its your first experience

I spent a few years in green/DPM in the '80s and '90s and put rounds downrange at every opportunity, so that experience has managed expectations to an extent. Nevertheless, the fact that the Lee Speed was specifically produced as a sporting rifle, not a military one, undoubtedly raised my expectations a demi-smidgen.

 

[norsk]

If yours is similar to mine in that the trigger is single stage ( I think all MLE's are too?) then you can definitely lighten the pull.

Accuracy wise,mine is about 4 MOA which is absolutely fine for my intentions.

Who made your Rifle,do you know?

 

[Mr. Gain]

If yours is similar to mine in that the trigger is single stage ( I think all MLE's are too?) then you can definitely lighten the pull.

Accuracy wise,mine is about 4 MOA which is absolutely fine for my intentions.

Who made your Rifle,do you know?

London Small Arms Co.. I'm not sure about the date of manufacture. MLE service issue was 1895-1904, but presumably Lee Speeds were still made from existing stock after 1904.

 

[norsk]

London Small Arms Co.. I'm not sure about the date of manufacture. MLE service issue was 1895-1904, but presumably Lee Speeds were still made from existing stock after 1904.

Mine was made by Bonehill,I think there were quite a few manufacturers, BSA being the most prolific. There is a dedicated forum to these Rifles on nitroexpress.com however I cannot log in there any longer.Maybe you will have more luck.

 

[Mr. Gain]

Re. 1. dust cover removal: it took me a while, but this weekend I finally figured out a method that works and is kind to the cover.

The key tool is a brush from one of those steel / bronze / nylon cleaning brush sets. The rectangular tail end can be slid sideways between the cover and the bolt, butted up against the near end, and then rotated 90° to lift the tip of the cover out of its slot. The handle then sits square on its narrow face, holding the cover clear without need for further support. This frees up your hands to give the far end a light with a nylon hammer, which pings the cover free. A sweet sound!

I hope this information is of use to someone!

The next step is to get a key to release the striker and its spring.

Shooting with the rifle is at once enjoyable and frustrating. It points well, my 125-grain load with 46.5 grains of Varget is very comfortable in the shoulder, and the whole experience is wreathed in an intoxicating aura of Young's 303 and linseed oil, to the extent that it has occurred to me to base my future powder choice on aroma compatibility rather than ballistic efficiency.

With the current load - of which 20 rounds remain - the MPI seems to be about 20 cm high and 5 cm right at 100m. I say "seems" because I'm more "patterning" than "grouping" at present.

Current scapegoats are (a) the sight picture, which - even with the focus mercifully provided by the EyePal - isn't exactly positive, and (b) the 8 lb 10 oz of squeeze needed to trip the sear. Trying to maintain the sight picture while building up the required pressure on the trigger therefore required unusual amounts of concentration: a test I mostly failed!

Obviously, load development will have to wait until I can learn to shoot consistent groups. On the plus side, all the bullets were going through the target nose-first. In the circumstances, that's a win I'll take.

 

[norsk]

Here are some pictures of where I did my trigger polishing. Simply used a very fine diamond hone.

I am pleased that yours shooting "only" 20cm high,unfortunatly mine shoots quite a bit higher than that with MK IV Ball.

 

[Mr. Gain]

Here are some pictures of where I did my trigger polishing. Simply used a very fine diamond hone.

I am pleased that yours shooting "only" 20cm high,unfortunatly mine shoots quite a bit higher than that with MK IV Ball.

I envy your chequering!
That looks very smart. Is it important for the strokes with the hone to be applied up/down and fore/aft, not side/side: or is the finish so fine that it doesn't matter?