Lapua vs Hornady brass - 300 win mag

Blinkmaster

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Hello,

I am wondering if anyone has any experience with Lapua vs Hornady brass performance for 300 win mag, specifically around accuracy. There is a $0.75 difference in price per case and I was wondering if it is worth it.
My use case is simple, want to develop loads for moose hunting, no competition use. Still want to be decently accurate within 350 to 400 yards.

I will be using a Tikka T3X Lite Roughtech Ember for these loads. Once I figure out a decent load, I will likely stick to it and will not be doing much reloading as I'd only be using this for actual hunting. So I would be more interested in terms of accuracy of the brass rather than number of times brass can be reloaded.

Any thoughts greatly appreciated! Have an awesome day!
 
I switched to lapua brass from federal in my 300WM, and my groups shrunk significantly. Went into rifle season completely confident in my rifle. Worth the extra money IMO.
 
The biggest difference is in the longevity of the brass. Hornady brass is known for being a bit softer, and the lapua will hold tight on the primer pockets for more reloads... but with your stated use... I don't think you're going to be worrying about the 4th loading vs the 8th or 9th.
 
Lapua, Peterson and RWS is the best which I use. I'm weaning myself off of Nosler and Weatherby/Norma brass, they are very soft. Hornady is most soft as well. Two to three handloads is about maximum, before the primer pockets open-up.
 
Get the best brass you can. I tried making the Hornady work, swapped to Lapua and shrunk that group immediately.
 
Thank you all for the feedback! I will probably go with Lapua, even though it will be painful when I'll drop a case in the woods... as todbartell indicated. :)
 
Blinkmaster, the folks above who all answered part of your question, were mostly stuck on case longevity. That's all fine and dandy, but your main concern was "accuracy"

A few did comment on accuracy, but briefly.

There are some good reasons people gravitate to the time/field proven qualities of the 300 Winchester Magnum. However, if you're getting primer pockets loosening up after three reloadings, which happens, then there are other factors involved.

As often as not, magnum cartridges need to be load very close to maximum pressures to give the best accuracy/velocity combination.

Many folks just have to get another 50fps out of their rifle/cartridge combination, and focus on it over accuracy, this directly transfers to "short case life" no matter how soft or hard the case.

Granted, some cartridge cases have had their metallurgy tweaked to provide more strength and even better, more consistent weights. Lapua, Norma, Peterson, Federal Match, etc are some of the brands that have this quality.

The reason people gravitate to magnum cartridges isn't always a "good" reason and it comes back to bite them, as many just can't handle the recoil, even though they won't admit it. This limits how much they practice with the rifle/cartridge combination. Also you pay more for magnum cases/ammunition, which also puts limits on practice.

The original intent for using magnum cartridges was the ability to propel HEAVY bullets as fast as a standard cartridge propelled lighter bullets, and it still stands true for many shooters/hunters today.

However, new projectile designs such as Monometal bullets have changed the original parameters, so that velocities with these very strong, reduced weight bullets can be pushed much faster and still be consistently effective on game. Bonus.

There is a lot more to it than what has been written in this thread, by all who've responded, but IF ACCURACY is your main concern, mixed with acceptable velocity, then you will need to delve into other issues than the case and case life.

Case life is mostly determined by PRESSURE generated by your loads, and how you prepare your cases.

When you purchase Lapua/Norma/Nosler/etc cases, you aren't just getting "stronger" cases, you're getting a higher level of quality control, which minimizes inconsistencies such as case weight, metal distribution in critical areas, metallurgical consistency and the list goes on.

This contributes a lot towards "consistent" accuracy, but it's only the beginning.

I honestly don't worry about which cases are supposedly better, but I'm not shooting magnums either.

For the rifles I hunt with, I purchase at least 100 cases per lot, and weigh them for consistency, set aside those which are significantly lower or higher and use what's left for hunting. Usually I lose between 5-10 cases from a batch of 100.

I've got old Dominion cartridge cases for my 30-06 with well over 80 reloads, same for Gevelot 7x57 and 8x57. My reloads are all HOT, especially for the metric designations. The rifles I shoot them from are strong and I load them accordingly.

Right now, Lapua and other premium brands of cases are still available, but don't hold your breath for the price to come down any time soon.

The companies manufacturing them are gearing up for Western military resupply, if they haven't already, and that trumps civilian supply every time. You may just end up having to reload whatever is available. So, if you don't already, look at neck resizing only, rather than full length resizing every time for case longevity and optimal accuracy.
 
I've got old Dominion cartridge cases for my 30-06 with well over 80 reloads, same for Gevelot 7x57 and 8x57. My reloads are all HOT, especially for the metric designations. The rifles I shoot them from are strong and I load them accordingly.


Hmmmm……… well over 80 reloads, loaded hot…..

I suppose you can just toss primers in the general direction of the cases and have them fall into the pockets by now?
 
Hmmmm……… well over 80 reloads, loaded hot…..

I suppose you can just toss primers in the general direction of the cases and have them fall into the pockets by now?
You've never used Dominion Ctg cases????? When I wrote HOT, that may mean something different to you, than me.

My 30-06 load is not over maximum 56.5grains of H414 sl 10, which is a surplus lot of proprietary W760 but a bit slower, over CCI 250 Magnum primers, under 180 grn Speer Mag Tips = 2700fps.

The cases are neck sized only and get full length annealed after four firings. Loose primers have never been an issue.

My 7x57 loads duplicate the Brazilian military load, 51.0 grains H414 sl 10, CCI 250 primers, under 140 grain bullets = 2900fps from a 24 in bbl, It's acceptable for their mausers in equatorial heat and very accurate in any 7x57 I've used it in. Lyman lists a similar load, safe in 93-95 Mausers, using 49.0 grains of W760 = 2700fps from a 22 in bbl, generating 39,500 CUP or very close to 45,000 psi.

I have Lapua cases for the 7x57s and most of them have at least 35 reloads on them.

You need to do more due diligence.
 
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I merely asked how the primer pockets were holding up on brass that you said has been reloaded 80 times each (with hot loads no less). You were the guy who said that you don’t have a problem with pockets because you “full length anneal” after every four shots.
Whats your process to tighten up primer pockets after 35 reloads? Does it change at 50? 70?

Sorry, I laughed because I thought you were trying to be funny.
 
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I have never used Hornady brass in 300 WM load development but used Lapua and PPU brass. Lapua is excellent, PPU as well. PPU brass weighs the same as Winchester brass, while Lapua and Federal weigh the same. PPU price is the third of Lapua's. While 95% of the brass in a Lapua batch will be +/- 1 grain in weight, 95% of PPU will be +/- 2 grains, so I separate them in two groups and load them for 2 different bullets.
I always measure neck thickness in new brass, and neck turn if it varies by more than 2 thousands of an inch. This usually increases accuracy significantly even for Lapua brass.
 
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See Peterson has "long" brass for the 300WM, it's apparently mid range between min and max on the CBTD, shud be far less stretch on the initial shot, which often hurts a guy on belted brass. I have two cartridges in Peterson, no issues with it There was a Forster podcast discussing the long brass with a Peterson rep this week.
 
Lapua, Peterson and RWS is the best which I use. I'm weaning myself off of Nosler and Weatherby/Norma brass, they are very soft. Hornady is most soft as well. Two to three handloads is about maximum, before the primer pockets open-up.
Nice selection of brass, never tried Peterson brass. I run the other two in 2 of my 600+m rifles, I need to luck into a deal for some good brass for my .308 Win. The .338 LM gets a diet of Lapua brass, my CG63 is still feasting on the last of my RWS JAKMATCH before I turn them into reloads.. All getting annealed for long life.
 
Lapua is better bras than Hornady. That's just the truth. Does it matter for a hunting rifle? F@ck no.

Hornady 100% will last 4-5 firings without annealing. If you anneal they will last many more.

I use Lapua and ADG brass for several rifles but my moose rifle is a 375 Ruger and I use Hornady brass and although I like shooting it I will never wear out the 500 pc of brass I have for it. I anneal them but I probably don't need to, honestly.
 
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