Question . I have about 1000 Imperial brass in 308 win. is this stuff any good , it was stored for years in gallon pickle jars all oiled up, a bit tarnished but it looks good , the fellow who gave it to me said he couldn't load 308 win for his browning lever rifle as it wouldn't chamber(one of every 5 or 6 would sometimes work ).I have no idea how many times it was fired but I suspect only once because of his problem with reloading.I weighted a few anthey are all over the place from 157 grains to 198 grains, a lot of variation. thanks for your replies in advance John-Montrock
Imperial brass
- Thread starter montrock
- Start date
I don't know the vintage whether it is 60's or 70's but I will load some and give it a try,and yes it seems to have a film of oil all over them but not sure if any oil inside as I haven't bothered to check yet but I definitely will tumble before use to clean it up and make it nice and shiny . I may also have to boil them if too much oil inside .I will have to weight and separate to get some sort of uniformity but that's a good project for our northern Ont. winter. Thanks for replies. John- Montrock
M12shooter
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- East St. Paul, mb
Dominion and CIL brass from the 60's and early 70's was not bad stuff at all. I found IVI brass to be way too hard.
"...this stuff any good..." Yep. It didn't really need to be stored in oil though. The oil has to come off first. Especially from the inside. A tumbler won't do it well enough. A bath in Varsol or any other degreasant will.
"...from 157 grains to 198 grains..." Not entirely unusual for hunting ammo brass. 1,000 cases are most likely from different lots. Doesn't matter too much for hunting ammo reloading, but it's not a bad idea to spend the time separating 'em into close weights.
"...his problem with reloading..." Likely not FL resizing properly. Lever actions(Semi-autos and pump actions do too) require it. You win.
"...IVI loaded ammo is very poor, but I thought the brass was OK..." Yep. Good brass. Mediocre ammo. Usually goes bang every time though.
"...from 157 grains to 198 grains..." Not entirely unusual for hunting ammo brass. 1,000 cases are most likely from different lots. Doesn't matter too much for hunting ammo reloading, but it's not a bad idea to spend the time separating 'em into close weights.
"...his problem with reloading..." Likely not FL resizing properly. Lever actions(Semi-autos and pump actions do too) require it. You win.
"...IVI loaded ammo is very poor, but I thought the brass was OK..." Yep. Good brass. Mediocre ammo. Usually goes bang every time though.
I have found that most Imperial brass in .308 was very poor stuff. Often the case neck thickness was insufficient to be sized down and to grip a bullet. Clearly this will depend on the vintage of the Imperial brass, as mentioned above. With the availability of other, newer, brass, I don't even bother trying to use Imperial (especially the stuff with small headstamp letters).
Your mileage might vary, but with .308 so common, you might be better off getting new stuff. Try it if you want and maybe it will be fine.
Your mileage might vary, but with .308 so common, you might be better off getting new stuff. Try it if you want and maybe it will be fine.
Sunray I almost forgot this guy didn'y know about small base dies and when I mentioned it to him he said he had been reloading for 40 years and never heard of that before and all his old reloading buddies were the same and told him you couldn't reload for 308 semis levers or pumps , after I done some all he would say is good luck and when you miss a moose because of this then you will know I told you so . Well he has since passed on but never did admit to sb dies making a difference .(Before we had internet and G N forum) Thanks John-Montrock
- Location
- The Conservative part of Ontario
Don't listen to these guys, that brass is no good at all. Send it to me, and I'll dispose of it for you. 
I suggest you try a few first, watch for hydrogen embrittlement.
It's likely all the brass will be just fine. But one never knows, work up the first few and check the brass.
I tried fire forming some old brass (range finds, lots of exposure to the elements) a while back, and it blew holes in the shoulder. That brass was not stored in oil though, and I think that the oil should make yours just fine.
I suggest you try a few first, watch for hydrogen embrittlement.
It's likely all the brass will be just fine. But one never knows, work up the first few and check the brass.
I tried fire forming some old brass (range finds, lots of exposure to the elements) a while back, and it blew holes in the shoulder. That brass was not stored in oil though, and I think that the oil should make yours just fine.
