This gun has facinated me every since a PH told me, in 1978, that he considered it the best plains game cartridge ever. It seems,according to Taylor, that it shoots a 180 grain bullet @3000fps and a 250gn @2400fps. I know that this is basically a 30-06 size cartridge shooting a 33 cal bullet. It seems to me that these are pretty 'generous' velocities, especially over 60 years ago. What experience do you guys have with this round? thanks, capt david

I've been mulling one over for a while now. Sort of a classy 338-06. I believe Pete E who moderates the European forum has a very nice original.

I can report that the combo of a 250 grain bullet at that velocity hits very hard on plains game as I used a 35 whelen on my first trip and it was superb. I even caught my PH confering with another on how "that gun hits them very hard" after 1 shot drops on a zebra and blue wildebeest in 1 morning. After I took my eland with a quartering away shot he remarked that it seemed to have the same result as if I had hit it the same with a 375.

The 318 has better sectional density than the whelen due to its .330 bullet and woodleigh and hawk still make bullets for it.

If someone out there could do a rebore from an '06 I'd have it done right away.

I have no experience with the round, but this thread may be of help.

318 Westley Richards



Westley Richards sells ammunition. I don't know if it is from Romney or another source.

WR 318 ammunition

I believe LE Hussard in france offer an old westley richards modell 98 rifle in this caliber. have talk with this guy's last year about the gun, think it was for 1300 euro. they say its a custumer's gun and the price is to high because the barrel show you how bad this old cordite rounds are. but maybe you find it interestting and its of course original westley richards.

The .318 WR is a nice round, kind of like and 8mm/06 or a 338-06.

But a 9.3 x 62 does everything a .318 does and more since it is legal for dangerous game in some countries and can use up to 320 grain bullets. Recoil from the 9.3 is nominal and it fits into a 30-06 action without modification. And there are more sources for bullets, brass and ammo for the 9.3 x 62. So if you are investing in a new rifle or a custom rifle, a 9.3 is a bit more practical. It is also a classic round, having been designed in 1906 by Otto Bock of Deutschland.

According to what I can find It's actually loaded 180gn @2700 and 250gn @2400. It seems that with a 26" barrel, which many of these were, this could be duplicated with a 30-06. Bullets would be more avaliable and with a better SD. I'm not trying to put down a classic round. I wish I owned an original. capt david

If memory serves me aright, which it often doesn't, WMD Bell used one (he called his the .318 Axite) for elephants and thought it right dandy. Because of the excellent performance of the 338-06, the .35 Whelen and the 9.3s, it ought to be great caliber.

captdavid

I own an original 318 WR. Mine wasbuilt in 1922 and spent several years in Africa in the 20s and 30s.

Sine I only came to own this magnificent rifle since April I have yet to kill any game with it, but I plan on shooting a roebuck or two in the next couple of weeks.

I have been able to work up a nice load. 56 grains of H414 pushes a 250 grain Woodleigh at 2300 fps into a 2 inch group over irons at 100 metres. Which I am very happy with. This will be my plainsgame rifle for future hunts in africa.

Oldsarge, who posts on this board, has one too and is currently using it on a host of plainsgame in RSA. Can't wait to hear the results.

On paper and by many years of practice, the 318WR has a proven reputation of a stopper of all sizes of plainsgame.

Well worth the effort of finding - or building.

Who makes dies and brass?