Thread: Resurgence of interest in the old "Three Oh"?

I remember reading in an old Australian Sporting Shooter mag in the late 70's and they were re-barreling/re-chambering 303's to 30-30. Something to do with the regulations there at that time?

Originally Posted by bumblefoot

I remember reading in an old Australian Sporting Shooter mag in the late 70's and they were re-barreling/re-chambering 303's to 30-30. Something to do with the regulations there at that time?

I think it goes back to the 40's The 25 - 303 also appeared, filling a void for Australian hunters and farmers, because at the time there was not a wide variety of choice in firearms or calibers and civilians were prohibited from owning any military calibers.

Originally Posted by Kiwi Sapper

I think it goes back to the 40's The 25 - 303 also appeared, filling a void for Australian hunters and farmers, because at the time there was not a wide variety of choice in firearms or calibers and civilians were prohibited from owning any military calibers.

Australia had a dumb law back then that banned military calibres so resulted in the 25-303 270-303 and a few others I think a 375-303 was one.

Originally Posted by shooternz

Australia had a dumb law back then that banned military calibres so resulted in the 25-303 270-303 and a few others I think a 375-303 was one.

IIRC that law banning mil calibres was in NSW only. Which was weird as Mick Smith Sports started out his business buying milsurp rifles an selling them interstate. Mick Smith also developed the 7.7x54 to get around the NSW laws of the day. Basically a 303 barrel set back 1 or 2 threads (cannot remember which).

The only people permitted to own an ex mil calibre in NSW were graziers, pest destruction, maybe a few others cannot remember. Micky D's posting of 303s for sale at Melbourne Firearms, Vic (a biggy in its time, still going) shows unadulterated 303s for sale.

In its day Mick Smiths in George Street Sydney was huge. Visited a couple a times in the 80's when the store was already in decline. Closed a few years ago.