doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com '03 loads

A couple years back Michael sent me his favorites and I've lost it.

Would all of you mind posting what favorite bullets and/or loads you prefer for 1903s in 30-06?

Art

My normal 30-06 load is 45 grains of IMR-4895 under a 150 grain Remington Core-Lokt, overall length about the same as factory. This loading works through all the custom rifles I try out and runs around 2700fps. I like to shoot the older custom rifles with something close to factory ammo and not match grade. At one time I had several hundred rounds of this loaded now I’m out of 4895 and Remington bullets and have shot up most of the loaded stuff I had. Reloading stuff is slowly showing back up on the dealers’ shelves so I need to check on bulk bullets.

If any of you - like Michael - are looney enough to shoot the low numbered 1903s I suggest you keep the loads LOW. Maybe to Krag velocities.

If any of you - like Michael - are looney enough to shoot the low numbered 1903s I suggest you keep the loads LOW. Maybe to Krag velocities.

If any of you - like Michael - are looney enough to shoot the low numbered 1903s I suggest you keep the loads LOW. Maybe to Krag velocities.

My favorite loads are the two "International Match" loads from the early 1930s. That was originally 36.4 grains of HiVel 2 and the 172 grain GI bullet. The bullet left the muzzle at 2200 fps and the pressure was about 29,000 psi. Back in 1937, Phil Sharpe gave the DuPont equivalent as 38.8 grains of IMR 3031 with corrosive priming. That load was supposed to generate about 29,600 psi and push the 172 grain GI bullet at 2260 fps. Try the 3031 load with the 168 grain match bullet. You may want to tinker with the load by a couple of tenths. Shoots well in a classic Hammerli Martini, in my DHT issue 03, and in my Newton. Shoots less well in a Remington 03A1 and not well at all in a Remington 03A3.

I should also add that the 3031 load shoots well in the M-1 and functions the action. Another friend is a military rifle shooter but he has severe arthritis in his shooting shoulder. He can only shoot a few rounds of GI ball without pain. But says he can shoot the 3031 load "all day long".

Thanks for the starting points. I have quite a bit of 3031 and 4895 so I'll try both and see which works best.

My favorite is 40 gr. of 4064 over either a Sierra 168 gr. Matchking or a Sierra 165 gr. BTHP for hunting. Chronographed at 2400 fps/24" barrel. I would blush if I told you how accurate it is in several '03s and custom Mausers. Recoil is mild, which was the point of finding a low-vel load for a bantam weight sporter many years ago. Performance was so good that it became my sole (jacketed bullet) load for all of my .30/06's. Don't get me started talking about cast bullet loads!

Another load to try is 40.0 grains 4895, standard primer, just about any make of case and the 125 grain sierra spitzer. Very accurate not much recoil. This was suggested to me by the NRA many years ago when I wrote about a low powered load. I believe they called it a 300 meter load. Every time I've tried it accuracy was always good. Frank

For many years I had a NM 1903 that really liked H4895 with the little Sierra 125-gr spitzer. Also it liked the 168-gr HPBT, again with H4895. I got many, many 10-SHOT, yes 10-SHOT groups of 1 MOA and less, some even shot with the irons instead of the 8x Unertl!

I certainly didn't expect that level of precision with the military barrel & 10" twist, but 1903s have a rep for accuracy. This rifle had obviously been set up for target shooting by an armorer somewhere, it was very carefully bedded and shimmed in the action area of the uncut Type C stock and the barrel was fully free-floated all the way out, even when pulled down tight with the shooting sling. Lyman 17 & 48, also with an 8x Unertl. Unfortunately not the sniper version though. Bolt vibra-penciled with the action's serial #, all parts lapped and slick as glass, serial # right in the middle of a range of NMs but not specifically mentioned in the National Archives records. The barrel was a later replacement, a standard-issue 1943-dated Remington 03-A3 4-groove one, and appeared to be fully as accurate as any star-gauge barrel I've ever shot. Altogether a heckuva nice issue-resembling 1903 NM (almost a 'sleeper', very useful for sandbagging overconfident match opponents) that was very pleasant to shoot on the range but no good for anything else. A man made me an offer I couldn't refuse....

I really liked the Sierra 125-gr spitzer with H4895.
Regards, Joe