Brass Question

[FlyingHigh]

does the type of brass make a difference when reloading? eg: type x bullet, y grains of powder and winchester brass vs. type x bullet, y grains of powder and remington brass?

i'm thinking of loading up some 7mm for my gun. i have a ton of Federal PowerShok brass and a little bit of Remington CoreLokt. i'd like to reload similar loads, but have one more economical for plinking and one more higher end for accuracy. (naturally, i'd sight with the good stuff, and compesate with the other).

so, how much of a factor does brass play in reloading?

 

[Boomer]

The standard answer would be to work up your load each time you change components. My answer would be not to bother unless you switched to brass that was known to be of smaller volume, like the Nosler brass or military brass, or unless you were loading to maximum levels where slight changes in pressure could be dangerous. You might not get quite as many reloads from the Federal brass, but that depends on how hot you load them. What will happen over time is that after X number of reloads the primer pockets will expand, and when you can press a primer into the pocket with thumb pressure that brass should not be used. Accuracy comes from the uniformity of the brass as it pertains to volume, straightness, neck thickness, and work hardening of the neck. There is no reason why Federal brass cannot produce fine accuracy.

 

[Filthy1]

so, how much of a factor does brass play in reloading?

Let my tell you a little story...

2007 IPSC Canadian Nationals B.C.
Flight from Ontario to B.C... $500+
Hotel $500+
Match Fee $250
Drinking and spending money$1500+
Look on my face after going to the chrono stage and finding out I was shooting the match for no score... (because my bullets were too slow due to I changed to brand new Starline Brass for the match)... priceless!

 

[.Ben]

Let my tell you a little story...

2007 IPSC Canadian Nationals B.C.
Flight from Ontario to B.C... $500+
Hotel $500+
Match Fee $250
Drinking and spending money$1500+
Look on my face after going to the chrono stage and finding out I was shooting the match for no score... (because my bullets were too slow due to I changed to brand new Starline Brass for the match)... priceless!

that sucks big time

im jsut getting into relaoding and using mixed brass for starting loads but i will evenetully sart using the smae brass when i load for accuracy....

 

[FlyingHigh]

thanks for the info folks. i think what i'll do is load up my good Remington brass with better bullets and use them for accuracy and hunting. then i'll load up the Federal stuff with a similar/same powder load but a cheaper bullet for plinking. then i'll sight in for the good stuff and compensate for the other.

 

[vagrantviking]

If you aren't near max or going to a match that has velocity requirements (Wow bummer Filthy!), I would load them the same but keep them in seperate batches. Keep an eye out for any variations in pressure signs and you could go as far as shooting a target alternating lots every shot to see if they print the same or if you get 2 seperate groups.

If you are wanting to make up different loads anyway though that is a good way to play it.

 

[FlyingHigh]

i guess the whole idea behind it is to be able to cut cost as much as possible for plinking, but also be able to have a batch that are more expensive and more accurate for hunting and target shooting.

 

[stocker]

You are missing the point. Different makes of brass can vary quite a bit in their actual weight and internal capacity which effects pressure. One cartridge that I reload for using two types of factory cases and one type of re-formed case can have a 35 grain weight variance between the 3 types of cases. The reformed cases require 3 grains less powder (H4831) to achieve the same velocity and similar pressure as the lightest case. The extra 3 grains would put loads in the heaviest cases too high for smooth bolt lift and case life.

At a minimum weigh your individual makes of brass and if they vary much from each other develop your load individually for the makes. Generally you will find your accuracy will improve with the consistency of your loads.

 

[glang1]

Let my tell you a little story...

2007 IPSC Canadian Nationals B.C.
Flight from Ontario to B.C... $500+
Hotel $500+
Match Fee $250
Drinking and spending money$1500+
Look on my face after going to the chrono stage and finding out I was shooting the match for no score... (because my bullets were too slow due to I changed to brand new Starline Brass for the match)... priceless!

So Filthy One, what did you learn from you experience that you could share with the group? What distance were you shooting that your POI changed so much?

George

 

[joe-nwt]

You are missing the point. Different makes of brass can vary quite a bit in their actual weight and internal capacity which effects pressure. One cartridge that I reload for using two types of factory cases and one type of re-formed case can have a 35 grain weight variance between the 3 types of cases. The reformed cases require 3 grains less powder (H4831) to achieve the same velocity and similar pressure as the lightest case. The extra 3 grains would put loads in the heaviest cases too high for smooth bolt lift and case life.

At a minimum weigh your individual makes of brass and if they vary much from each other develop your load individually for the makes. Generally you will find your accuracy will improve with the consistency of your loads.

I would like to add the same info from a slightly different perspective.

We tweak our loads, some to the 1/10th of a grain, to acheive optimal accuracy with given components. I might suggest the tweaking was in vain if you are just going to randomly replace components without "re-tweaking".