New reloader need Help !

The Bolt Action

The Bolt Action

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Hi Cgn Members.

I just order a reloading kit yesterday for solving a little problem a have.
I baught over 1000 rounds of 8mm Mauser ammo that was too old to use now.
They are 50's and 60's date Yugo surplus and after shooting about 50 of them, many case splits ( or craked ).
Many guy's told me to just get a reloading kit and pull out the bullets and powder from these old hardened unreliable prime case and put that stuff inot brand new brass case and nwe quality boxer primers.

As i said, i buy the reloading kit now and i as you reloaders out there,
wath kind of brass and primers should i buy ?? Wath to avoid at all cost ??
Who is a good dealers for these items ??

Thanks for the Help

Oliver
 
May I ask, where are the cases cracking?

If the case mouth is cracking, I'd just continue to shoot them as is.

If the area just ahead of the extractor groove is cracking, it would be wise to have the rifle checked out, as this might indicate excessive headspacing.

As for brass the only type I would avoid is Federal, as the brass tends to be soft and the primer pockets seem to become oversized quickly.
 
Canuck223 said:
May I ask, where are the cases cracking?

If the case mouth is cracking, I'd just continue to shoot them as is.

If the area just ahead of the extractor groove is cracking, it would be wise to have the rifle checked out, as this might indicate excessive headspacing.

As for brass the only type I would avoid is Federal, as the brass tends to be soft and the primer pockets seem to become oversized quickly.
Click to expand...



Here is some pics.

4oct004.jpg


4oct005.jpg
 
the bullets should be WEIGHED to determine what they are, but LOSE the powder- you have no idea as to what powder it is, what the burn rate is etc- treat them as SOMEONE ELSE'S HANDLOADS; SOMEONE YOU DON'T KNOW; then use NEW cases and the MINIMUM STARTING LOAD ; the cases you have shown as examples are JUNK with a capital J - they're also probably BERDAN PRIMED , being from EUROPE , ( that means they have a slightly DIFFERENT DIAMETER and TWO flasholes- and almost impossible to reload over here even if your cases were intact- in short , ONLY THE BULLETS are salvageable
 
spooksar said:
Have the rifle checked out before you shoot it again from your pictures it looks like a chamber problem
Click to expand...

+1. That was my initial impression, too. What were you shooting them out of?

A couple of other things...

First, the bullets themselves can probably be reused if you pull them. Bullets and brass are the expensive bits in ammo, so that could save you a couple of hundred bucks over commercial bullets.

Next, Yugoslavian ammo of that vintage might, I think, be corrosive-primed, which just adds another headache to the problem. Actually, looking again at the photos, they might actually have been primed with fulminate of mercury or one of the related compounds. Yugoslavia, I gather, kept using that stuff long after most other nations ditched it - the reason being that brass reacts poorly to mercury. I seem to recall seeing some cases on display in the UK with a similar damage pattern. If - if - that's the case, then the cases cannot realistically be salvaged. No way of telling from this distance.

If a qualified gunsmith green-checks the rifle and you want to try reusing the cases, take a look down the mouth of a spent case to see if it's one flash hole or two as per T-star. If they're Berdan-primed with two holes, junk the lot as he says - it's not worth the hassle.

If on the other hand they're Boxer-primed, with just one flash hole, you can possibly salvage the cases and anneal them to make them workable again. The 'how-to' can be found by googling - it's not hard.

The propellant, as noted, needs to be flushed, burned or strewn lightly on your lawn as fertilizer.

All in all, I've never been that eager to save a couple of bucks. My eyes are precious and old ammo with major case problems is pretty dodgy.
 
Based on those pictures, I'd pull the bullets, save the bullets, and safely dispose of the powder and primed shells.

While I was doing that, I'd have the gun at a reliable gunsmith to have him check it and make sure it's still safe to shoot. To my eyes, something looks wrong with where those cases are splitting. Cracks like that would make me extremely nervous.
 
OK. Thanks for the info's.

I will get the rifle check before shooting it again.
They are Berdan primed case and i will trow them away. I will keep only the bullet and press them into new case with new powder and boxer primer's.

I will be very surprise if the rifle is not good and safe too shoot.
I put maybe 500 rounds trough her without any kind of problem before and she is shooting strait as a 72 years old rifle can shoot. ( better that i can do anyway).
I get tired of buying 30-35$ ammo box and get cheeper 50's and 60's dated Yugo surplus and the problem started right away:rolleyes::rolleyes:

So i guess a ammo problem more that a rifle problem but i will get her checked anyway, in fact eyes are precious.
 
I would pull the bullets (collet puller would be handy for this many) and throw scrap the brass and powder.

I would aslo have someone competent check out that rifle. It could just be the old brass but better safe than sorry. Have you fired new ammo out of it? What happened?

I believe the mercuric primers would not cause this on initial firing, but it is my understanding that after the first firing the brass is exosed to it and then not suitable to reload.
 
hk33ka1 said:
I would pull the bullets (collet puller would be handy for this many) and throw scrap the brass and powder.

I would aslo have someone competent check out that rifle. It could just be the old brass but better safe than sorry. Have you fired new ammo out of it? What happened?

I believe the mercuric primers would not cause this on initial firing, but it is my understanding that after the first firing the brass is exosed to it and then not suitable to reload.
Click to expand...


Yeah, as i said earlyer, i shoot about 500 rounds trough the rifle ( new rounds mainley ppu) and never have any kind of problem.:confused:
 
hk33ka1 said:
I believe the mercuric primers would not cause this on initial firing, but it is my understanding that after the first firing the brass is exosed to it and then not suitable to reload.
Click to expand...

One would think, but I do remember one of the instructors specifically mentioning that the British Army had had problems with mercuric primers. As I do not believe that they were big into reloading, I suspect there was more to it than just cases splitting after firing.

A thought, as an EWAG only. Mercuric primers certainly deteriorated with time, especially in hot climates. Do you think it possible that elemental mercury could've been released as they deteriorated and found its way into the case that way?

Interesting problem, anyway.
 
The Bolt Action said:
Yeah, as i said earlyer, i shoot about 500 rounds trough the rifle ( new rounds mainley ppu) and never have any kind of problem.:confused:
Click to expand...
I am inclined to agree that a rifle that safely fired 500 rounds would not suddenly develop a problem with its chamber... but...

There is a faint line in the case on the right and also the one on the left, this is near the case mouth and the carbon is darker behind this line, I think that the COL of the cases in this ammo is too long and your case necks are getting into the throat. I would measure the length of the brass cases that worked (ppu) and compare with the yugo ones, I bet the yugo ones are longer.

If you are using MilSurp you should know the distance from the boltface to the throat in your rifle, and make sure you are at least 15 thou less than this distance. For most chambers the distance from the end of the case to the thoat is 15 thou, but it can vary as can COL of the brass in military ammo.

You can also measure this distance yourself, you can get the tool from Sinclair.
 
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