My .308/7.62mm fullauto conversion- Plug & Play Success!!

[Lee Enfield]

Here’s a dumb question. IF the South African 7.62 barrels work as they do in .303 Brens, then will L4 barrels do the same thing?

Jumped on the S.A. 7.62 barrel so fast, then started thinking, “ you own two L4 barrels”....

Doh!

8mm and L4 Brens use other head spacing shoulders.

[AmEngRifles]

Don’t see why it would be longer? Shorter, yes. But point taken. I will measure and compare. The 7.62 does not have feed horns like the .303, so I suspect (but do not KNOW) that they will clear. I got some comparing to do. I need a set of 7.62 Go-No go gauges.

[tr63]

Don’t see why it would be longer? Shorter, yes. But point taken. I will measure and compare. The 7.62 does not have feed horns like the .303, so I suspect (but do not KNOW) that they will clear. I got some comparing to do. I need a set of 7.62 Go-No go gauges.

Any updates on the barrel you ordered , what type of front sight does it have ,is it a standard .303 blade or is it a Uzi type ? Did it headspace with out problem ?

[AmEngRifles]

Hey tr63, got the barrel but have been so busy, only dealt with it in a cursory fashion. I tried it n both a .303 and the L4. Don’t recall which one, but it locked up pretty tight in one rifle, meaning I had to use quite a bit of downward force for the latch to lock closed. These barrels have been refinished, so the parkerizing could be a little thick on them. Locked in fairly easy in the other...I think it may have the Uzi front sight, but do not recall without pulling it and looking at it again. It does have quite a few pitted areas, which have been covered by the parkerizing. Hopefully they did something to stop the rust or remove it before the park job? The bore is very nice. No pitts, no corrosion. All in all, looks more like a $500 barrel instead of a $600. If there were no putts or minimal, then $600 would have been appropriate.

As of right now, I have no 7.62 chamber gauges. Since I don’t usually “ build” rifles, it has not been a high priority on my list. As soon as I get some time to focus on it, I will turn my attention back to the conversion with this SA 7.62 barrel.

I still need to get with csmarcher ( came out “cam archer” first typing. I like that ID!) to work on my L4 which has given me fits. I don’t think I would ever recommend anyone BUY one of these rifles without getting to see it operate thru at least 3 mags of 28 rounds each. Building your own is another consideration. Saves you loads of money.

[tr63]

My South African 308 barrel arrived from GunPartsCoro by way of FedEx today . Along with a 7.62 extractor . The barrel came with a new gas regulator installed and the African black plastic carrier handle . It slid into my Bren Mk II and locked in properly with the existing barrel nut . It head spaced on the 7.62x51 Forster go gauge 1.630 and the bolt would not close on the no go or the field gauges . The front sight is the standard British blade type not the Uzi type . It has a very nice dark black Parkerization with no pitting . I paid $539.00 with my discount the normal price was $599.00 with free shipping .

[AmEngRifles]

Sounds like you got a nice package. I should have contacted GunParts and requested a replacement. They may still have a few?

[tr63]

Sounds like you got a nice package. I should have contacted GunParts and requested a replacement. They may still have a few?

When I placed my order for the barrel I asked if they could hand select for the best condition with least amount of pitting . The standard reply was that they do not offer that service. They pick the item off of the of top pile or from the top of bin and as the sales person on the phone said " you get the luck of the draw ". I noticed that my CZ-39 mags. will need the front tab added on to make a tighter fit in the mag. well . It head spaced with the min. 1.630 go gauge and the bolt will not close on a 1.634 no go gauge , I wonder ,is that too tight for a Bren Gun ? Maybe Joe H can jump in on the head space ? I have a C/R license and they gave me a dealer's discount that is why the barrel was $539.00 not $599.00 .

[Joe H]

tr,

Glad to see you are using the .308 Win. specs. Since the bolt will close on the go gage (1.630") and not close on the 1.634" the Bren should have adequate operating clearance. The min. space between the bolt and the locking shoulder should be not less than .002" for operating clearance.

Below find the Headspace section of the "Bren Manual". Note that the gages are for .303 British.


Joe

[tr63]

Thanks ,Joe for coming back with the head space information . I noticed that when I had the bolt fitted with the .303 extractor it will extract the .308 cases when I hand cycle the action ,is that normal ? I Had removed the extractor and the ejector when using the head space gauges . The barrel came with a gas regulator installed . Did the South Africans use the original .303 regulator with out modifications ?

[Joe H]

I noticed that when I had the bolt fitted with the .303 extractor it will extract the .308 cases when I hand cycle the action ,is that normal ? I Had removed the extractor and the ejector when using the head space gauges . The barrel came with a gas regulator installed . Did the South Africans use the original .303 regulator with out modifications ?

I noticed the same thing about the extractor. It appears to work hand cycling but is apparently unreliable in actual firing. There has a previous discussion about this quite a while ago.

Don't know if the regulator is the same as the .303. its easy enough to check. The big variable is the additional spring for the semi operation and how accurately you receiver has been welded. Only one way to find out.

Joe