Has anyone rechambered an Enfield to a magnum cartridge using the original barrel and had any success? I need to have the chamber re-cut on my sporter P17 as it's a little sloppy.

Unless you have a real minty barrel you may want to consider a new barrel. It will cost a little more but you will have a brand new barrel not made under war time tolerances.

If it is a minty barrel you won't want to alter it! They are mega expensive to collectors, far more expensive than a new match grade barrel. Just buy a new barrel and get a quality item with less fuss. Maybe sell the old one to finance the new good barrel.

Parting thought, get some Horniday light mag ammo and duplicate the 300 H&H balistics. Why bother to alter the rifle for such marginal gains?

quote:

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Originally posted by snowman:
Unless you have a real minty barrel you may want to consider a new barrel. It will cost a little more but you will have a brand new barrel not made under war time tolerances.

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[ 09-06-2002, 20:19: Message edited by: scot ]

I have an Enfield chambered in .30-06 but with a .311 grooved barrel. I reccommend completely rebarrelling.

It is not a .311 bore, that is a myth. Some folks wrote about a subject they did not research. Phil Sharp being amoung the early offenders. Others repeated the misinformation.

It is 5 groove and difficult to measure. The armories did not rechamber 303 barrels. That is bunk. You will nottice the P-14 outside contour is not the same as the P-17. If you measure the diameter of a slug pushed through each the P-14 it is larger than the P-17, not the same. If you take the time to make a press fit gauge for the bore diameter of you P-17 you will find it to be about .300. The grooves are about .093" wide. The grooves are about .005" deep. But, since you have an odd number of grooves the idea that you now have a theoretical .310 groove diameter is not true. If you do the math, the AVERAGE bore diameter is less than an '03 Springfield barrel. Acual testing , by me, examinining .308 diameter bullets revovered from a water tank, show the entire bearing surface of the bullet was in contact with the bore.

Bottom line,
1. Don't believe everything you read.
2. Don't shoot .311 bullets in you P-17.

Builder,

Unless that P-17 has a lot of sentimental value I would sell it. It's not that great of a rifle anyway.

i did that on a chopped 1903a3. It's a cheapy rebarrel/boltface, magazine mod. Hell, I bought the chopped 1903 for 85, a stock (bishop) for 12, and had my buddy-the-smith (about 8 yeras ago) do the barrel/face, and I did the mag. add the price of a trigger and a box of acraglas, I had 235 bucks in the thing.

but, if you are going to rebarrel anyway, just get a m70
jeffe

Gents,
I would also recommend selling the gun,,, TO ME ! I love the big ole' actions,,I have one each in -06,35 Whelen,375 Taylor,416 Rem Mag,458 and will soon have my smith start on a 510 Wells. All on the P series rifles...they work for me.45nut