Thread: How short on a 303?

Go as short as you want, just avoid rifle OAL below 762mm as it then becomes pistol OAL! Short barrel is just as accurate, and the velocity drop is insignificant for bush hunting ranges. SMLE barrels are whippy so shortening has potential accuracy advantages.

But short barrels mean bigger flash, bang and kick, and the .303 is already loud! If you can find a No 5 jungle carbine conical flash hider, it deflects some of that massive blast forwards and away from your ears --- opposite to what a muzzle brake does. Unfortunately the conical flash hider also increases kick.

If you have a SMLE to cut down, slug the barrel with a .32 lead buckshot, you may find the first portion of the barrel is nice and tight, then opens up the last 22cms or so. I'd cut the barrel back to where its bore is tight. No 4 enfields are usually uniformly bored so there won't be that dramatic transition in slug resistance about 22 cm from the muzzle.