The .303 cartridge appeared in a variety of configurations over its life. The standard WWII weapons--SMLE, No. 4, Bren, Vickers, etc.--could all handle the more recent marks of the cartridge. However, a fair number of older .303 weapons were still kicking around between 1939 and 1945, namely the Ross rifle, the Long Lee Enfield, some short Lee-Enfield carbines used by the NZ militia, Winchester M1895 carbines used by Canadian police forces, etc. Does anyone know if WWII .303 ammo was suitable for use in these weapons or not? I imagine that the Ross and the charger-loading Long Lee at least were fine with the Mk VII ball, but what about the Mk VIIIz and the various AP marks? Yes, I know VIIIz and AP were designed with MGs in mind, but I do know that you could use VIIIz in SMLE and No. 4 rifles in a pinch. Quite aside from chamber pressures, etc., would sights have been a problem with old weapons firing new ammo? Could you have gotten any kind of accuracy at all shooting VIIIz or even Mk VII ball in a pre-1910 weapon like a Lee-Enfield carbine or Winchester carbine? I know the answers may be obvious to some, but I am an ignoramus when it comes to this. Thanks, all.
Good question. I don't know about the other rifles you mentioned but the 1895 Winchester is a very strong action. Teddy Roosevelt had one in .405.
So I had read and heard. It could certainly handle the .30-06, which is a bit more powerful than the .303. I was wondering about the sights, though.
Hi TTH, I've only just noticed this particular thread. No, the Ross was most definitely NOT happy with MkVII ball, with jam rates up as high as 1 in every 2. This from a W2 era Irish home guard weapons instructor who was lumbered with instructing Volunteers on the Ross, supplied from the Uk along with ammo. As I'm sure you know, the Ross was a fine, accurate rifle - when used with Canadian-made .303 as brought to the trenches in WW1 by the CEF. But when the small amount they brought with them ran out, and they started using British-made .303, the problems started... The problem was that the tired and even somewhat sloppy manufacturing processes in the Uk during WW1 meant a certain...non conformity...of the neck dimensions of the brass. The sloppy, not-overly gas tight breech of the SMLE could handle this - or COULD be improved by an armourer fitting a different bolt head from the maintenance kit, which came with four different bolt heads to take up excessive clearance in the breech. But given a particularly mishapen cartridge, or a breech sloppy beyond the ability of an armourer to remedy it...and the Lee Enfield would still have stoppages as the neck of the cartridge "blew" and expanded to take up any free space in the breech and wedge itself well in there The problem thus with the much more accurately machined and gas tight Ross breech was of course that even slightly sloppy cartridges...which the Lees could accommodate ok...would "blow" and jam. Hence a goodly part of its bad reputation; often blamed on the mud of Flanders, its notable that the Ross STILL jammed when issued to coastguards and constabulary in Ireland during the War of Independence etc. I.E. Flanders mud-free areas. IIRC there were new production lines for the Zs and AP rounds, but .303 ball was still being produced on the old production lines by the start of WW2, and thus was still frequently coming out with wonky neck dimensions....and SMLEs still had the neck space problems. Believe it or not the whole issue is still creating problems today; having a reputable gun shop check the bolt head clearance and adjust is recommended for anyone purchasing an SMLE for anything other than hanging over the mantelpiece...and with genuine .303 getting really hard to get, as shooters resort to handloading the odd neck dimensions mean a much higher failure rate on reloaded brass as reshaping them when crimping in weakens them prematurely!
My Dad trained on the Ross with the RAF as late as 1944. His recollection of it was that he never trusted the 'straight pull' action - which proved well founded when one blew it's bolt out injuring a colleague. Whether this was due to age, the cartridge or user error he couldn't elaborate.
IIRC there was an early change to the number of engagement lugs on the Ross's bolt for this very reason, with an extra lug being designed in. Might have been one of the earlier items; to get them out of service in WWI the British government bought them all from the Canadians and reequipped the CEF with Lees. They were subsequently given out to all sorts of users...and I'm sure with not too much concern in extemis regarding what mark...! (Also IIRC, as late as the summer of 1940, RAF enlisted men weren't issued with personal small arms. Eventually, with the threat of invasion looming through the summer, all ranks were issued arms and as well as the personnel manning ground emplaced MGs in "defence flights", or the "flights" of various extemporised armoured vehicles issued to each airfield, the regular squadron and station personnel were expected to contribute to the defence of the airfield in the event of attack. Each field had an ideal protection force of two regular Army companies, but often this went down to one and cooperation with the local Home Guard, as by mid summer 1940 the requirement to guard airfields and all sorts of installations and locations was leeching a whopping 33,000 men from the Army's roster every day! Ideally, the Army would provide and command the outer line(s) of ground defence while the RAF manned the various gun emplacements, extra MGs issued, and various armoured trucks and makeshift armoured cars...and as a last line of defence the armed RAF ground personnel were expected to dig and man trenches running between the airfield's hangars, forming an "inner redoubt" In the end, of course, the RAF Regiment was formed and took over the Army's perimeter defence duties...often initially inheriting various bits of artillery and heavy weapons that had been emplaced since 1940 and had transferred from Army company to Army company!...but the station ground personnel were still issued small arms.)
