John Gryphon
Well-Known Member
copied and pasted from a PDF file that i dont know how to add here.
Much has been written and expressed concerning the use of various calibres in the hunting fields of Africa, and many have come to be regarded as African classics. Nonewere quite so ubiquitous nor sofrequently used as the .303.However, a bit of a conundrumpresents itself concerning this grandold calibre in early Africa. Uponintroduction it was a sensation, butnotwithstanding this one has tosearch hard and long in the huntingliterature of old for any mention ofthe .303. It seems as though, after awhile, the .303 became so commonand so widely used that it waslargely taken for granted, andattention was diverted to moreexotic, more powerful andaltogether newer calibres.To find any sort of extensive andfavourable mention of it, one has toperuse the literature covering theend of the 1800's up to World WarOne. To place everything intoproper perspective, one needs to beaware of the nature of things prior tothe introduction of the .303.In the 1880's the firearm of choicefor big game in Africa was a largecalibre, cartridge firing blackpowder rifle; preferably a double,frequently a single shot and hardlyever a repeater. Romantic as thismay seem, the frustrations attendantthereto were many and varied. Wecannot properly comprehend thefull nature of these trials andtribulations until we try suchweapons for ourselves in the field,and not many of us have had theopportunity to do so. Perusal of thehunting literature of the period isrevealing, however. Arthur H.Neumann in his excellent bookentitled Elephant Hunting in EastEquatorial Africa is particularlyeloquent in his condemnation ofthese old black powder cannons. Inhis earlier expeditions, Neumannused a double .577”, and was widelycriticised for using a 'smallbore' onelephant! This would be the .577”black powder express, though,either 3 inch or 2 ¾ inch. As far asblack powder rifles went, though, itwas a smallbore! Neumann liked it,though, and had much success withit until some terminal mishaprendered it hors de combat and hewas forced to replace it with a larger10 bore rifle. This he did not like!Although the 10 bore wastechnically and theoretically moresuitable, in his own words.... “thedischarge of the (10 bore) wassomething of a shock, which,though its rubber heelplateprevented from hurting theshoulder, made one's head ache, andknocked one's fingers about cruelly.The volumes of smoke emitted, too,were appalling, and a source ofdanger; but its worst defect was thatThe .303 in Africa:The Early DaysBy Charlie HaleyC LA S S I C A F R I C A N C A R T R I D G E SThe .303 and its contemporaries. L-R: Martini-Henry .577 / 450, the blackpowder cartridge that the .303 replaced in military service: Mk II .303, notethat the bullet has a cupro nickel jacket: Mk V hollow point, the original“Dum-dum”: The Mk VII round with the lighter 174 grain spitzer bullet, notethat the bullet’s jacket is the copper coloured gilding metal: The 7 x 57 Mauserintroduced in 1892, note the cupro nickel jacket on the bullet.IIthe breech invariably jammed, andthe empty cases stuck, so that theyhad to be knocked out with a stick.Altogether, I found my prejudicesagainst big guns in no wayremoved…” For those of you whomay be wondering, a 10 bore fires abullet of approximately .775”, andeven this did not hold a candle to the8-bores (.835”) and 4-bores(1.052”), which were alsorecommended elephant slayers ofthe period. Although black powderdevelops more of a push than apunch, such massive bullets behindhuge amounts of powder develops arecoil which can be described asprodigious (among other things!).Your esteemed editor Don Heathand myself can attest to the effectsof firing a 4-bore cartridge singleshot rifle once belonging toFrederick Courtney Selous. Indeed,I recall a video sequence of Donfiring this awesome rifle; the bulletsped one way and Don and the riflesped the other way, leaving only acumulonimbus of black powdersmoke in the frame which an entireherd of elephants could have lurkedbehind!Neumann was not kidding about theeffects of the recoil either, as hedescribed later as to how hisbattered fingers (probablyhammered by the trigger guard)became septic, and laid him low fora while. I can vouch from personalexperience that there is nothing likethe anticipation of imminent painand suffering to affect ones'shooting in a profoundly adverseway! Recoil was not the least of iteither concerning the old blackpowder monsters; brass cases weregenerally thin, leading to thesticking cases already referred to.Accuracy was a considerableproblem too, particularly withdouble rifles. I have read numerousaccounts as to the problemsconnected with the old blackpowder doubles failing to shootboth barrels to the same point ofimpact, and I have had experience ofthis myself. I once had an otherwisedelightful .500 black powderexpress double rifle, but despite mybest reloading efforts I was neverable to better minute-of-dustbin-lidat 50 metres when firing bothbarrels. It would appear that themystical and arcane art of barrelregulation was not fully understood,let alone practiced, at this time. As ifthis were not enough, the leadbullets launched by these rifleslacked penetration, particularlywhen bone was struck, anddescribed a trajectory which madehits at longer range more a matter ofgood luck than good judgement.The .303 was a revelation when itappeared. Adopted by the Britisharmy in 1888, the Lee-Metford in.303 was Britain's first smallbore,high velocity military rifle firingjacketed bullets. The firstammunition was loaded with acompressed pellet of black powder,but I am certain that this was a stopgap measure; this cartridge wasintended to be loaded withsmokeless powder, and in shortorder the British had perfected theirnew Cordite smokeless propellant.The military were duly impressed,but the sportsman was equally takenwith this new phenomenon. Nomore clouds of game-obscuringsmoke, many rounds, minimalrecoil, high velocity and flattrajectory and, best of all, a jacketedbullet which penetrated into thevitals of even the biggest game.Even the largest calibred, heaviestbulleted black powder rifle couldscarcely equal this penetrativeperformance, and all who witnessedit were amazed at its shootingqualities. Neumann acquired a .303Lee-Metford rifle at about the sametime as the despised 10-bore, andquickly became an advocate of thelatter, describing its shootingpowers as 'marvellous'. Dennis D.Lyell was another .303 fan, using arifle identifiable from photographsas a Martini single shot sporter. Notmany of us would fancy tacklingelephant with a single shot .303, butLyell did! Compared to the other(black powder) rifles available, hefelt it was the better choice. Again,in his own words from The AfricanElephant and its Hunters, Lyelldescribes following a woundedelephant. “I wondered whether Iwould be safer with the big 10-bore,but decided to stick to the smallrifle, for I am a great believer inaccuracy and penetration. In myopinion, a six foot puncture from asolid .303 is likely to be moreeffective than half that distance witha larger bullet, so I stuck to the rifle Iknew best”. This is especiallyillustrative in that it is the only oldhunting literature that I am aware ofthat attempts to give a comparativereference as to the penetration of asmallbore solid vs. the old blackpowder lead bullets. Althoughundoubtedly subjective and not asthe result of scientific experiments,Lyell shot a great many elephant andhis opinion is well worth noting. Alevel of extra penetration whicheven remotely approximates this isnothing to be sneezed at! At thispoint it must be made clear that the.303 variant being talked about isthe old 215 grain fully jacketedround nosed bullet at a rated 2050fps. Many modern shooters havehad at least some experience withthe .303 cartridge and its variousrifles, but not many have comeacross this particular loading. Thisis not surprising, as it went outbefore the First World War! Thatlong, parallel sided bullet at what isC LA S S I C A F R I C A N C A R T R I D G E SA Martini-Enfield .303 sporter. Note the added safety catch, selected stock,fitted r ecoil pad and improved sights compar ed to the military versions.A take down .303 built on a mauser ’98 actionIVIItoday very moderate speed (but highvelocity in comparison to blackpowder) was the one which caughteveryone's attention way back then.After everybody's attention hadbeen duly caught by this amazingnew rifle and cartridge, thegunmakers of the era were not slowto supply the hunters withappropriately chambered sportingrifles. Most were based on the Leebolt action, duly slicked up andsuitably stocked. Refinements liketang safeties, five shot magazinesand moderate engraving could behad, and I have seen some to-die-forwood on some of those old sporterstocks too! Those old Lee SpeedSporters were lightweight, accurate,easy on the shoulder and generally adelight to handle. I have seen anumber of single shot .303's as well,most built on the Martini action. Infact, I recently came across adelightful Martini actioned .303sporter which appears identical tothe one pictured in Lyell's book itmay even be the same one, for all Iknow! Some were made on thesuperb Gibbs-Farquharson fallingblock action, and double rifles couldbe had as well. I once examined andgreatly coveted a superb doublebarreled sidelock ejector rifle byRigby. Naturally, the owner was notinterested in parting with it; even ifhe was, I have no doubt that mymeagre resources would haveproved unequal to the task ofacquiring it!W.D.M Bell, one of the best knownof all the elephant hunters, is bestknown for his exploits with suchsmallbores as the 6.5mm andespecially the .275 Rigby (a.k.a. the7mm Mauser) onthese huge beasts.He began hishunting career with a.303 (among otherless suitable rifles),as did most of theivory hunters of old,and it was the .303which led him tofavour thesmallbores. Again,the alternatives wereblack powder rifles.He was particularlyimpressed with thereliability of the .303Lee-Enfield (orMetford) action, although he doesn'thave much to say about it otherwise.Apparently it was the only rifle hehad which could take the peculiarhunting conditions he sometimesfound himself in followingelephant after they had availedthemselves of singularly glutinousmud baths, and which were nowmoving off in tall elephant grass upto 12 foot high. This mud wouldwipe off on the grass, and anyonefollowing behind would findthemselves liberally showered byvast quantities of dry and semi-dryearth. As one can well imagine, thiswould be very hard upon any rifle!Even the redoubtable Mauser wouldchoke upon this treatment, but theLee could shrug it off. I wassurprised when first hearing of thisaccount, as the Mauser '98 issupposed to be well-nighunstoppable in adverse conditions.However, the open topped Mauseraction does allow for considerableingress of unwanted foreign matterfrom above, whereas the Mark 1Lee-Enfield (and the Lee Speedsporters) were equipped with dustcovers which would veryeffectively shield the bolt from suchgrit and grime. Interestingly, Bellwas particularly scathing aboutfinely fitted double rifles under suchconditions; admittedly, they werewell sealed when closed, but let anyof that rubbish in when re-loading,and the rifle would now fail to closeagain. Speaking of reliability, it is onlyfair to mention that theaforementioned Neumann, fan as hewas of the Lee-Metford, wasconsiderably worked over by a cowelephant after his rifle failed to feed.It appears as though his LeeMetford resolutely refused to feedanother live round into the chamberafter firing, despite much furiousworking of the bolt. A short strokeseems unlikely, as he particularlymentions seeing the empty casedeparting upon attempting to reload. A defective or dirt-filledmagazine is possible, but I'mwondering if the magazine cut-offdidn't become inadvertentlyengaged. All of the early Lee actionshad this device, and it wouldn't takemuch of a tap to push it slightly in. Ifthis happened, rounds would indeedfail to feed from the magazine thatwas the cut-off's job! We'll neverknow, though, as Neumann offersno explanation as to why thishappened; no doubt he had otherthings to occupy his mind with at thetime! Later Lee-Enfields, madeduring the emergency conditions of1916, were not fitted with amagazine cut-off, as the benefits ofthis device were found to be moretheoretical than real. In his earlydays, Bell also mentioned using asingle-shot Fraser .303 rifle(probably based on the GibbsFarquharson action). This rifle gavehim endless problems with stickingcases: a combination, no doubt, ofearly thin brass cases, pressuresensitive cordite used in the tropicsand lack of primary extraction. Suchtroubles were soon sorted out,though there were a number ofproblems associated with theadoption of smokeless powder andits far greater pressures, whichtended to linger in the sporting riflecalibres. However, it is utterlyunthinkable to have perniciousproblems associated with one'smilitary calibre, and all theresources of the government wouldbe devoted to solving thempreferably A.S.A.P., and noexpenses spared! I did find an oldhunting reference where the nimrodconcerned was bemoaning theunreliability of the primers in manysporting calibres. Misfires andhangfires were all too common, andsaid hunter stated that the onlydependable ammunition he hadcome across was the British military.303. He heartily wished that theammunition makers would get theircollective acts together, and makeC LA S S I C A F R I C A N C A R T R I D G E SAn exquisite Gibbs-Farqueson built on the mediumsized action.IVC LA S S I C A F R I C A N C A R T R I D G E Stheir primers out of whatever theBritish army was making theirsfrom!Another notable user of the .303was Col. Patterson, who used a .303to deal with the man-eating lions ofTsavo. This is accurately depicted(for once) in the movie version,Ghosts and the Darkness, as is theincident where one of the lionsescaped when Patterson forsook histrusty .303 for a more powerful butunfamiliar single shot rifle.Patterson did feel (quite rightly) thatthe .303 was perhaps underpowered for this task, but heaccomplished it in the end. InRhodesia of old, though, “Yank”Allen was employed to shoot stockkilling lions in the huge Nuanetsicattle ranching empire. He probablyshot more lions than anyone else,ever, and he apparently usednothing but a .303 for the task.The probable causes of the .303'sfall into relative obscurity are nowbecoming apparent. It was so new,and possessed such magicalshooting properties in comparisonto the old black powder rifles, that itcame to be used for the very largestof dangerous game. We know thatthe .303 is not the best lion, buffaloor elephant calibre to be had, butback then it was all that there was.The British Army soon found thatthe long, parallel-sided bullet wastoo penetrative, and lacked stoppingpower and effectiveness even onhuman beings. A considerablescandal developed over this, and the.303 found itself in the centre of amajor controversy. The expanding“Dum-Dum” bullet was developedin India (at Dum-Dum arsenal,hence the name), and was found tobe gratifyingly effective on homosapiens, but then allegations ofbeastliness were hurled at the Brits.The lighter weight Mark VII spitzerammunition was eventuallyintroduced in 1903 to abide by theletter of the new Hague convention,which banned the use of soft nosedor hollow point ammunition inwarfare. The lack of terminaleffectiveness was addressed by useof a bullet design which encouragedtumbling and break-up upon impact.Needless to say there is no way thatMark VII ammunition is going topenetrate reliably on a large andpotentially homicidal animal, buthunters being as they are they triedto do so, and the .303 soon gained areputation for erratic and potentiallydangerous performance. Morepowerful nitro-express sportingcalibres were introduced, withbullets designed specifically forhunting, and the .303's period in thesun was over. It eventually came tobe regarded as the choice of thenovice, the tyro, one who eitherknew no better or who couldn'tafford anything more suitable. InJohn Taylor's book, theincomparable African Rifles andCartridges, the .303 doesn't evenwarrant a mention!Nonetheless, this does not alter thefact that the .303 is still one of thebest bushveldt calibres there is.When confined to use on softskinned, non-dangerous game andwhen equipped with suitablebullets, the .303 is hard to beat. Itdoes not have a flat trajectory, butthis is not a drawback consideringthe typical hunting rangesencountered hereabouts. Perhaps,too, this will discourage huntersfrom taking chancy shots at toogreat a range. Just because one has arifle of blistering velocity which canreach out far doesn't necessarilymean one has the skill to try and doso! Rather brag about how close youstalked than how far you shot. Thosemoderate bullet speeds will notdestroy half of a good eating animal,and also will ensure that standard,conventionally constructed, leadcored hunting bullets work just fine.Reliable bullet performance can betaken for granted, and there is noneed for hi-tech projectiles. Oneshould avoid the use of military ballammunition on game, particularlythe larger species. This is seldom agood idea, as not only is bulletperformance erratic to say the leastbut most military ammunition iscorrosively primed. I do wish thatthe older 215 grain bullet weightwas more readily available. Mostmodern sporting .303 ammunitionis loaded with 150 or 180 grainbullets, and while 215 grainers canbe had, they are speciality items andcorrespondingly hard to locate andexpensive. A 215 grain soft-nosedbullet would certainly be my No. 1choice in a .303 hunting rifle, as thiswas the bullet weight which broughtthe .303 to prominence in the earlydays. It hits hard, and penetratesreliably and well. Sadly, no-onemanufactures new rifles chamberedfor the .303 any longer. However,there are still a great many of themout there, and with a bit of T.L.C.and attention they can be made intoanything from a first class utilityrifle to a hunting rifle which canrank alongside the finest modernsporters. Under local law the .303 isdeemed to be suitable for the largersoft-skinned plains game such askudu, wildebeest, zebra and the like.Stick to game of this size, hunt withproper soft nosed bullets and youwill find that the .303 is as effectiveas it ever was when it briefly ruledthe hunting world in southern Africa.
Much has been written and expressed concerning the use of various calibres in the hunting fields of Africa, and many have come to be regarded as African classics. Nonewere quite so ubiquitous nor sofrequently used as the .303.However, a bit of a conundrumpresents itself concerning this grandold calibre in early Africa. Uponintroduction it was a sensation, butnotwithstanding this one has tosearch hard and long in the huntingliterature of old for any mention ofthe .303. It seems as though, after awhile, the .303 became so commonand so widely used that it waslargely taken for granted, andattention was diverted to moreexotic, more powerful andaltogether newer calibres.To find any sort of extensive andfavourable mention of it, one has toperuse the literature covering theend of the 1800's up to World WarOne. To place everything intoproper perspective, one needs to beaware of the nature of things prior tothe introduction of the .303.In the 1880's the firearm of choicefor big game in Africa was a largecalibre, cartridge firing blackpowder rifle; preferably a double,frequently a single shot and hardlyever a repeater. Romantic as thismay seem, the frustrations attendantthereto were many and varied. Wecannot properly comprehend thefull nature of these trials andtribulations until we try suchweapons for ourselves in the field,and not many of us have had theopportunity to do so. Perusal of thehunting literature of the period isrevealing, however. Arthur H.Neumann in his excellent bookentitled Elephant Hunting in EastEquatorial Africa is particularlyeloquent in his condemnation ofthese old black powder cannons. Inhis earlier expeditions, Neumannused a double .577”, and was widelycriticised for using a 'smallbore' onelephant! This would be the .577”black powder express, though,either 3 inch or 2 ¾ inch. As far asblack powder rifles went, though, itwas a smallbore! Neumann liked it,though, and had much success withit until some terminal mishaprendered it hors de combat and hewas forced to replace it with a larger10 bore rifle. This he did not like!Although the 10 bore wastechnically and theoretically moresuitable, in his own words.... “thedischarge of the (10 bore) wassomething of a shock, which,though its rubber heelplateprevented from hurting theshoulder, made one's head ache, andknocked one's fingers about cruelly.The volumes of smoke emitted, too,were appalling, and a source ofdanger; but its worst defect was thatThe .303 in Africa:The Early DaysBy Charlie HaleyC LA S S I C A F R I C A N C A R T R I D G E SThe .303 and its contemporaries. L-R: Martini-Henry .577 / 450, the blackpowder cartridge that the .303 replaced in military service: Mk II .303, notethat the bullet has a cupro nickel jacket: Mk V hollow point, the original“Dum-dum”: The Mk VII round with the lighter 174 grain spitzer bullet, notethat the bullet’s jacket is the copper coloured gilding metal: The 7 x 57 Mauserintroduced in 1892, note the cupro nickel jacket on the bullet.IIthe breech invariably jammed, andthe empty cases stuck, so that theyhad to be knocked out with a stick.Altogether, I found my prejudicesagainst big guns in no wayremoved…” For those of you whomay be wondering, a 10 bore fires abullet of approximately .775”, andeven this did not hold a candle to the8-bores (.835”) and 4-bores(1.052”), which were alsorecommended elephant slayers ofthe period. Although black powderdevelops more of a push than apunch, such massive bullets behindhuge amounts of powder develops arecoil which can be described asprodigious (among other things!).Your esteemed editor Don Heathand myself can attest to the effectsof firing a 4-bore cartridge singleshot rifle once belonging toFrederick Courtney Selous. Indeed,I recall a video sequence of Donfiring this awesome rifle; the bulletsped one way and Don and the riflesped the other way, leaving only acumulonimbus of black powdersmoke in the frame which an entireherd of elephants could have lurkedbehind!Neumann was not kidding about theeffects of the recoil either, as hedescribed later as to how hisbattered fingers (probablyhammered by the trigger guard)became septic, and laid him low fora while. I can vouch from personalexperience that there is nothing likethe anticipation of imminent painand suffering to affect ones'shooting in a profoundly adverseway! Recoil was not the least of iteither concerning the old blackpowder monsters; brass cases weregenerally thin, leading to thesticking cases already referred to.Accuracy was a considerableproblem too, particularly withdouble rifles. I have read numerousaccounts as to the problemsconnected with the old blackpowder doubles failing to shootboth barrels to the same point ofimpact, and I have had experience ofthis myself. I once had an otherwisedelightful .500 black powderexpress double rifle, but despite mybest reloading efforts I was neverable to better minute-of-dustbin-lidat 50 metres when firing bothbarrels. It would appear that themystical and arcane art of barrelregulation was not fully understood,let alone practiced, at this time. As ifthis were not enough, the leadbullets launched by these rifleslacked penetration, particularlywhen bone was struck, anddescribed a trajectory which madehits at longer range more a matter ofgood luck than good judgement.The .303 was a revelation when itappeared. Adopted by the Britisharmy in 1888, the Lee-Metford in.303 was Britain's first smallbore,high velocity military rifle firingjacketed bullets. The firstammunition was loaded with acompressed pellet of black powder,but I am certain that this was a stopgap measure; this cartridge wasintended to be loaded withsmokeless powder, and in shortorder the British had perfected theirnew Cordite smokeless propellant.The military were duly impressed,but the sportsman was equally takenwith this new phenomenon. Nomore clouds of game-obscuringsmoke, many rounds, minimalrecoil, high velocity and flattrajectory and, best of all, a jacketedbullet which penetrated into thevitals of even the biggest game.Even the largest calibred, heaviestbulleted black powder rifle couldscarcely equal this penetrativeperformance, and all who witnessedit were amazed at its shootingqualities. Neumann acquired a .303Lee-Metford rifle at about the sametime as the despised 10-bore, andquickly became an advocate of thelatter, describing its shootingpowers as 'marvellous'. Dennis D.Lyell was another .303 fan, using arifle identifiable from photographsas a Martini single shot sporter. Notmany of us would fancy tacklingelephant with a single shot .303, butLyell did! Compared to the other(black powder) rifles available, hefelt it was the better choice. Again,in his own words from The AfricanElephant and its Hunters, Lyelldescribes following a woundedelephant. “I wondered whether Iwould be safer with the big 10-bore,but decided to stick to the smallrifle, for I am a great believer inaccuracy and penetration. In myopinion, a six foot puncture from asolid .303 is likely to be moreeffective than half that distance witha larger bullet, so I stuck to the rifle Iknew best”. This is especiallyillustrative in that it is the only oldhunting literature that I am aware ofthat attempts to give a comparativereference as to the penetration of asmallbore solid vs. the old blackpowder lead bullets. Althoughundoubtedly subjective and not asthe result of scientific experiments,Lyell shot a great many elephant andhis opinion is well worth noting. Alevel of extra penetration whicheven remotely approximates this isnothing to be sneezed at! At thispoint it must be made clear that the.303 variant being talked about isthe old 215 grain fully jacketedround nosed bullet at a rated 2050fps. Many modern shooters havehad at least some experience withthe .303 cartridge and its variousrifles, but not many have comeacross this particular loading. Thisis not surprising, as it went outbefore the First World War! Thatlong, parallel sided bullet at what isC LA S S I C A F R I C A N C A R T R I D G E SA Martini-Enfield .303 sporter. Note the added safety catch, selected stock,fitted r ecoil pad and improved sights compar ed to the military versions.A take down .303 built on a mauser ’98 actionIVIItoday very moderate speed (but highvelocity in comparison to blackpowder) was the one which caughteveryone's attention way back then.After everybody's attention hadbeen duly caught by this amazingnew rifle and cartridge, thegunmakers of the era were not slowto supply the hunters withappropriately chambered sportingrifles. Most were based on the Leebolt action, duly slicked up andsuitably stocked. Refinements liketang safeties, five shot magazinesand moderate engraving could behad, and I have seen some to-die-forwood on some of those old sporterstocks too! Those old Lee SpeedSporters were lightweight, accurate,easy on the shoulder and generally adelight to handle. I have seen anumber of single shot .303's as well,most built on the Martini action. Infact, I recently came across adelightful Martini actioned .303sporter which appears identical tothe one pictured in Lyell's book itmay even be the same one, for all Iknow! Some were made on thesuperb Gibbs-Farquharson fallingblock action, and double rifles couldbe had as well. I once examined andgreatly coveted a superb doublebarreled sidelock ejector rifle byRigby. Naturally, the owner was notinterested in parting with it; even ifhe was, I have no doubt that mymeagre resources would haveproved unequal to the task ofacquiring it!W.D.M Bell, one of the best knownof all the elephant hunters, is bestknown for his exploits with suchsmallbores as the 6.5mm andespecially the .275 Rigby (a.k.a. the7mm Mauser) onthese huge beasts.He began hishunting career with a.303 (among otherless suitable rifles),as did most of theivory hunters of old,and it was the .303which led him tofavour thesmallbores. Again,the alternatives wereblack powder rifles.He was particularlyimpressed with thereliability of the .303Lee-Enfield (orMetford) action, although he doesn'thave much to say about it otherwise.Apparently it was the only rifle hehad which could take the peculiarhunting conditions he sometimesfound himself in followingelephant after they had availedthemselves of singularly glutinousmud baths, and which were nowmoving off in tall elephant grass upto 12 foot high. This mud wouldwipe off on the grass, and anyonefollowing behind would findthemselves liberally showered byvast quantities of dry and semi-dryearth. As one can well imagine, thiswould be very hard upon any rifle!Even the redoubtable Mauser wouldchoke upon this treatment, but theLee could shrug it off. I wassurprised when first hearing of thisaccount, as the Mauser '98 issupposed to be well-nighunstoppable in adverse conditions.However, the open topped Mauseraction does allow for considerableingress of unwanted foreign matterfrom above, whereas the Mark 1Lee-Enfield (and the Lee Speedsporters) were equipped with dustcovers which would veryeffectively shield the bolt from suchgrit and grime. Interestingly, Bellwas particularly scathing aboutfinely fitted double rifles under suchconditions; admittedly, they werewell sealed when closed, but let anyof that rubbish in when re-loading,and the rifle would now fail to closeagain. Speaking of reliability, it is onlyfair to mention that theaforementioned Neumann, fan as hewas of the Lee-Metford, wasconsiderably worked over by a cowelephant after his rifle failed to feed.It appears as though his LeeMetford resolutely refused to feedanother live round into the chamberafter firing, despite much furiousworking of the bolt. A short strokeseems unlikely, as he particularlymentions seeing the empty casedeparting upon attempting to reload. A defective or dirt-filledmagazine is possible, but I'mwondering if the magazine cut-offdidn't become inadvertentlyengaged. All of the early Lee actionshad this device, and it wouldn't takemuch of a tap to push it slightly in. Ifthis happened, rounds would indeedfail to feed from the magazine thatwas the cut-off's job! We'll neverknow, though, as Neumann offersno explanation as to why thishappened; no doubt he had otherthings to occupy his mind with at thetime! Later Lee-Enfields, madeduring the emergency conditions of1916, were not fitted with amagazine cut-off, as the benefits ofthis device were found to be moretheoretical than real. In his earlydays, Bell also mentioned using asingle-shot Fraser .303 rifle(probably based on the GibbsFarquharson action). This rifle gavehim endless problems with stickingcases: a combination, no doubt, ofearly thin brass cases, pressuresensitive cordite used in the tropicsand lack of primary extraction. Suchtroubles were soon sorted out,though there were a number ofproblems associated with theadoption of smokeless powder andits far greater pressures, whichtended to linger in the sporting riflecalibres. However, it is utterlyunthinkable to have perniciousproblems associated with one'smilitary calibre, and all theresources of the government wouldbe devoted to solving thempreferably A.S.A.P., and noexpenses spared! I did find an oldhunting reference where the nimrodconcerned was bemoaning theunreliability of the primers in manysporting calibres. Misfires andhangfires were all too common, andsaid hunter stated that the onlydependable ammunition he hadcome across was the British military.303. He heartily wished that theammunition makers would get theircollective acts together, and makeC LA S S I C A F R I C A N C A R T R I D G E SAn exquisite Gibbs-Farqueson built on the mediumsized action.IVC LA S S I C A F R I C A N C A R T R I D G E Stheir primers out of whatever theBritish army was making theirsfrom!Another notable user of the .303was Col. Patterson, who used a .303to deal with the man-eating lions ofTsavo. This is accurately depicted(for once) in the movie version,Ghosts and the Darkness, as is theincident where one of the lionsescaped when Patterson forsook histrusty .303 for a more powerful butunfamiliar single shot rifle.Patterson did feel (quite rightly) thatthe .303 was perhaps underpowered for this task, but heaccomplished it in the end. InRhodesia of old, though, “Yank”Allen was employed to shoot stockkilling lions in the huge Nuanetsicattle ranching empire. He probablyshot more lions than anyone else,ever, and he apparently usednothing but a .303 for the task.The probable causes of the .303'sfall into relative obscurity are nowbecoming apparent. It was so new,and possessed such magicalshooting properties in comparisonto the old black powder rifles, that itcame to be used for the very largestof dangerous game. We know thatthe .303 is not the best lion, buffaloor elephant calibre to be had, butback then it was all that there was.The British Army soon found thatthe long, parallel-sided bullet wastoo penetrative, and lacked stoppingpower and effectiveness even onhuman beings. A considerablescandal developed over this, and the.303 found itself in the centre of amajor controversy. The expanding“Dum-Dum” bullet was developedin India (at Dum-Dum arsenal,hence the name), and was found tobe gratifyingly effective on homosapiens, but then allegations ofbeastliness were hurled at the Brits.The lighter weight Mark VII spitzerammunition was eventuallyintroduced in 1903 to abide by theletter of the new Hague convention,which banned the use of soft nosedor hollow point ammunition inwarfare. The lack of terminaleffectiveness was addressed by useof a bullet design which encouragedtumbling and break-up upon impact.Needless to say there is no way thatMark VII ammunition is going topenetrate reliably on a large andpotentially homicidal animal, buthunters being as they are they triedto do so, and the .303 soon gained areputation for erratic and potentiallydangerous performance. Morepowerful nitro-express sportingcalibres were introduced, withbullets designed specifically forhunting, and the .303's period in thesun was over. It eventually came tobe regarded as the choice of thenovice, the tyro, one who eitherknew no better or who couldn'tafford anything more suitable. InJohn Taylor's book, theincomparable African Rifles andCartridges, the .303 doesn't evenwarrant a mention!Nonetheless, this does not alter thefact that the .303 is still one of thebest bushveldt calibres there is.When confined to use on softskinned, non-dangerous game andwhen equipped with suitablebullets, the .303 is hard to beat. Itdoes not have a flat trajectory, butthis is not a drawback consideringthe typical hunting rangesencountered hereabouts. Perhaps,too, this will discourage huntersfrom taking chancy shots at toogreat a range. Just because one has arifle of blistering velocity which canreach out far doesn't necessarilymean one has the skill to try and doso! Rather brag about how close youstalked than how far you shot. Thosemoderate bullet speeds will notdestroy half of a good eating animal,and also will ensure that standard,conventionally constructed, leadcored hunting bullets work just fine.Reliable bullet performance can betaken for granted, and there is noneed for hi-tech projectiles. Oneshould avoid the use of military ballammunition on game, particularlythe larger species. This is seldom agood idea, as not only is bulletperformance erratic to say the leastbut most military ammunition iscorrosively primed. I do wish thatthe older 215 grain bullet weightwas more readily available. Mostmodern sporting .303 ammunitionis loaded with 150 or 180 grainbullets, and while 215 grainers canbe had, they are speciality items andcorrespondingly hard to locate andexpensive. A 215 grain soft-nosedbullet would certainly be my No. 1choice in a .303 hunting rifle, as thiswas the bullet weight which broughtthe .303 to prominence in the earlydays. It hits hard, and penetratesreliably and well. Sadly, no-onemanufactures new rifles chamberedfor the .303 any longer. However,there are still a great many of themout there, and with a bit of T.L.C.and attention they can be made intoanything from a first class utilityrifle to a hunting rifle which canrank alongside the finest modernsporters. Under local law the .303 isdeemed to be suitable for the largersoft-skinned plains game such askudu, wildebeest, zebra and the like.Stick to game of this size, hunt withproper soft nosed bullets and youwill find that the .303 is as effectiveas it ever was when it briefly ruledthe hunting world in southern Africa.
