He did say that the 150 grainer was better for critters like antelope or deer at longer ranges than the 174 was useful at.

Jacket thickness had a big part to play in the 150 grain Interlock bullet as it is thinner and will open up better at longer ranges.

Overall he said the 174 was the better choice for the 303, I agree with his advice.

 

 i have no issue with hornaday - only with marlin , both owned by the same company , justsayin .......

Rule #1 - For general hunting at close to medium range always use the heaviest bullet available.

Heavy bullets retain energy better than light bullets in normal hunting conditions (i.e close to medium range 50-250 meters). Heavier bullets at less susceptible to deviation if hitting a leave or grass blade. They also tend to travel slower with a "harder" punch. Therefore less meat damage.

 

Rule #2 - The longer the shot the lighter the bullet.

Lighter bullets loose more energy over distance, but retain velocity better, which compensates a bit for loss on energy.

 

Heavier bullets tend to expand better and more consistently and can thus have stronger jackets. Lighter bullets need to "come apart" quicker and thus the jacket needs to be thinner.

 

Think of it like a car and a truck. Put them on a straight and drive them towards a house. The car will get there quicker but will penetrate less. It will also crumple up quite a bit. The tuck will get there slower, but will continue through the house.

 

 

They finally showed up about 3-4 months later and I got 300ea 150's and 200ea 174 RNs So I should be good to go on these for along time.

 

I also got 100ea 215 gr Woodleighs.

 

I shoot mostly cast boolits in that gun, and my #4 Mk1* Long Branch was rebored to 35-303. Planning on a  250 gr Hornady and a 250 gr Cast Boolit for that gun.

 

I'm big on bigger bullets myself. I like 220's for the .30-06.

 These are dummies I loaded up to test feeding in the #4 all chamber and feed perfectly.

Randy

 

The Hornady's were about $25-26 a for a box of 100.  and the 174's would probably be good for anything IN N/A and a lot of Africa.

 

The Woodleigh's were nearly $50 for a box of 50, and really a Box of 50 would last a long time if you only used them for hunting. I got 2 boxes. I was told by Woodleigh that the 215's had taken every thing on Planet Earth. They also have a  FMJ solid version of that bullet if you need to shoot Elephants or such with your .303.

 

Randy

 

if monolithic bullets were not so expensive I would use them across all my rifle reloading range. You can't beat them for uniformity. 

Barnes recommends that you leave it bullet about .05 from the grooves but, I am not sure that the bullet OAL will fit in the mag.

 

The third is the 215 gr Woodleigh RNSP from AUS. They are sold by Midway and Huntington's.

 

All of these bullets are proven performers, with the 174 RN being very popular in Canada.

 

I have shot a lot of the 150 gr bullets and they have proven to be accurate on Silhouette Targets out to 500M.

 

I have 174's and 215's and will work up a loads for them soon.

 

Do look for .312 dia bullets as lots of one advertised are only .311 and won't produce as good accuracy as the .312's,,, and especially in worn barrels.

 

Randy

I was wondering about the Woodleigh 174gr bullets to reload for hunting.  Not sure it it would make a difference but, thought that since the bullet that seemed to be designed for the Enfield was a 174 gr bullet use their hunting version.