Boer or Brit?

[shark_za]

Its very simple.
The No 1 is a falling block of the type most used by British gumakers.

It has to be .303
.275 is second choice and only then if you use proper headstamped ammo.

If you take a Mauser action then shoot 7x57.

 

[Rocked and Loaded]

I was just scrolling down to the bottom of the thread to post this and you beet me to it
remember, you shoot a better class of animal with the 275 Rigby........


gumpy

 

[Rocked and Loaded]

Its very simple.
The No 1 is a falling block of the type most used by British gumakers.

It has to be .303
.275 is second choice and only then if you use proper headstamped ammo.

If you take a Mauser action then shoot 7x57.

The rimmed case does seem to lend itself to a falling block action.

 

[Brett Rossouw]

7x57mm Mauser
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.303 British
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You honestly can’t go wrong with either. In my personal experience, the 7x57mm Mauser has always been more accurate than the .303 British. But I’m well aware that this is only because my 7x57mm Mauser is a properly built sporting rifle (a Churchill Gunmakers Model Deluxe) which I have been using with proper sporting ammunition. By contrast, all of the .303 British rifles which I have used during my wartime service and also during my water buffalo culling days for the Ministry of Forests… were government issue Lee Enfields with army surplus 174Gr gilding metal jacketed military ball ammunition. If I was using a properly built sporting rifle in this caliber, along with proper sporting ammunition… then, I have absolutely zero doubt that the .303 British would also prove to be immensely accurate.

I have used the 7x57mm Mauser (loaded with 175Gr Winchester Super X soft points) to even take the largest of bull eland with perfectly placed shots to the heart-lung region through the soft region behind the shoulder. It works, but shot placement is extremely critical. A .30-06 Springfield loaded with 220Gr bullets (such as Remington Core Lokts or Sako Hammerheads) is more forgiving. So by this approximation, I‘d say that the .303 British loaded with proper 215Gr expanding bullets would perform slightly better on eland than a 7x57mm Mauser and 175Gr expanding bullets.

From a nostalgic point of view… it all depends on who you are inspired by in the field. Would you like to pay homage to your proud German heritage by choosing Paul Mauser’s 131 year old marvel of a cartridge ? Or would you like to take inspiration from the likes of British heroes such as F.C Sealous and his Holland & Holland fall-block rifle in .303 British ?

Like I said, you honestly can’t go wrong with either.

Hi I'm new here I've been hunting all my life and back home in Zimbabwe (Rhodesia) I used my father's boer war OVS mauser 7x57 I rate it better than the trusty old 303

 

[DG870]

 

[Matthias5662]

Perhaps when speaking of Boers mention that the rifle is a 7x57 Mauser. When speaking to the Brits just say its a 275 Rigby . Both the 303 and 7x57 you have are very nice rifles!

 

[HWL]

Hi I'm new here I've been hunting all my life and back home in Zimbabwe (Rhodesia) I used my father's boer war OVS mauser 7x57 I rate it better than the trusty old 303

Because?..... the 7mm's bullets were better?... or the rifle was better?... or both?
My intention was, to give the Brit a real chance with it's best bullet and in a good (comparable) rifle.
Btw.... my first rifle was a 7x57R/16 ga Heym combination gun.
It serves me well since 1974.....

HWL

 

[Amphibious]

I have the same .303 Ruger. One of the very first created for the original non-catalog run. It will most certainly be on my next safari. I have loads with the 215 woodleighs and 174 hornady that should suffice. Leup 1-4x28 on top. great stalker.

 

[Rule 303]

I would go the 303 but a 174 to 180 grain bullet. Shoots a bit flatter than the 218grain and it and the 303 go glove in hand. In the No1 you can push the 303 harder than in the SMLE. When you do this it gives nothing away to more modern rounds as far as trajectory goes at normal hunting ranges.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I am prepairing for my next trip to South Africa in May.
I intend to hunt some plains game in the bushfelt, next to Thabazimbi.
Oryx, waterbuck and hartebeest is on the list.
Perhaps a leopard....if I can get a permit.
I want to hunt with a single shot and a "very South African" cartridge.
Ruger #1 Sporter in .303 British with 215 gr Woodleigh SPRN, or #1 International in 7x57 Mauser with Hornady 175 gr SPRN.
Both rifles wear a 5-15x42 Zeiss Diavari.
Now, what to choose?
View attachment 578876
HWL

@HWL
303 with a 180gn round nose at 2,500fps would be fine as well.

 

[Bert the Turtle]

450/400. Bigger bullet=bigger fun.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I don't understand what you mean.

@grand veneur
Australian translation for you.
The 308 is like an arse, almost everyone has one. It's a boring little cartridge that was born in the 1950s. It doesn't have the same panache as the 303 or 7mm.
If the 08 had kept its original designation of T65 it would have had an air of mystery.
The old three O and 7mm even tho old have CLASS.
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

View attachment 579784

@DG870
Heads I win, tails you lose.
Bob

 

[PCC600]

This thread is really about nostalgia... A more modern approach is a .308Win. with Norma 180 grain Nosler Partition.. Not to say the 2 other dont work..

A 303 will do anything a 308 can do .

 

[PCC600]

@grand veneur
Australian translation for you.
The 308 is like an arse, almost everyone has one. It's a boring little cartridge that was born in the 1950s. It doesn't have the same panache as the 303 or 7mm.
If the 08 had kept its original designation of T65 it would have had an air of mystery.
The old three O and 7mm even tho old have CLASS.
Bob

Absolutely spot on !

 

[PCC600]

I am a huge fanboy for both the 7mm Mauser and the 303 . My 7mm was my working rifle when I owned cattle / sheep farms around OZ . In a BRNO VZ 24 rifle with an old Pecar 4x scope I shot countless deer , pigs and dogs - all pests to me . No head mounts - pure culling . Just a beautiful rifle / cartridge combo . I have never owned or been interested in military rifles therefore 303s we’re not in my gun safe . In recent years I have fallen for 303s big time - but only in commercial rifles ( 2 x Lee Speed No 1 Pattern ) . Both shooting 215 grain RNSN . Not military surplus and not military ammo - they are brilliant . Also have a Purdey double - shoots 180 grain pills at 2550 fps all day long . Great on deer. Two great calibres - love them both .

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

A 303 will do anything a 308 can do .

@PCC600
And then some with more class.
My father used to say the 303 was to big for anything in Australia bar Buff and crocs. He shot bucket loads of both back in the day (late 40s) for a living.
Bob

 

[PCC600]

@PCC600
And then some with more class.
My father used to say the 303 was to big for anything in Australia bar Buff and crocs. He shot bucket loads of both back in the day (late 40s) for a living.
Bob

Yes I do get a bit tired of the pizzling the 303 gets . It really is a great cartridge and it turns up in some really spectacular rifles . In OZ the sporterised and plain military rifles have taken more buff and crocs than any other cartridge/ rifle combo . I suspect plenty of dangerous game in India also fell to this combo and I have a sneaking suspicion that in British colonial Africa it was also at the top of the pile .

 

[Rule 303]

Yes I do get a bit tired of the pizzling the 303 gets . It really is a great cartridge and it turns up in some really spectacular rifles . In OZ the sporterised and plain military rifles have taken more buff and crocs than any other cartridge/ rifle combo . I suspect plenty of dangerous game in India also fell to this combo and I have a sneaking suspicion that in British colonial Africa it was also at the top of the pile .

The 303 cops a lot of flack for 2 reasons. 1) It is rimed 2) It is not loaded to the hilt because of the SMLE action. In a stronger action like the Ruger No1 or M98 it can be loaded up. Same as the 303 ammo for the Bren Gun and other machine guns were.

Now the old SMLE, No4 etc actions were not meant to be sporting rifles, they were designed and built for warfare all over the globe. This they excelled at.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

The 303 cops a lot of flack for 2 reasons. 1) It is rimed 2) It is not loaded to the hilt because of the SMLE action. In a stronger action like the Ruger No1 or M98 it can be loaded up. Same as the 303 ammo for the Bren Gun and other machine guns were.

Now the old SMLE, No4 etc actions were not meant to be sporting rifles, they were designed and built for warfare all over the globe. This they excelled at.

@Rule 303
A properly tuned SMLE is capable of outstanding accuracy.
I have a No4 in 25-303 that will group less than an inch all day every day.
A mate in the New England area has a No1 Mk111 smle that he used for hunting and field rifle competition. He won a lot of competition shoots with that old girl.
The old No1 Mk111 my father and I built years ago was capable of hitting house bricks all day at 300 yards with a 4x scope in a field side mount.
So if you know how to tune them they shoot well.
Bob