.308 win brass re-sizing question

V

valmet762

Regular
EE Expired
Rating - 100%
2   0   0
Location
socialist republic of toronto
I picked up about a hundred empty 308 win cases at the club a few weeks ago.. they are all once fired.

when I run them thru my press to re-size, there is no resistance at all in the stroke (except a bit when it punches out the primer)... on the up stroke when the neck is sized there is absolutely no resistance at all.. when I use other cases I can feel resistance on the up stroke and down stroke..

i noticed on the cases in question, the bullets seat very easily and i can actually move the bullet in and out of the case by hand..

I measured the neck (inside dimension) and got .303 on the good cases and .304 1/2 on the loose cases after they have been resized..

i'm loading for my norc and i'm wondering if the force of chambering a round will knock the bullet further out as it slams into the chamber..

i'm thinking of using a crimp when I load these cases just to be safe..

I'm sure some gun nut must have seen something like this before..

any ideas or suggestions?
 
There should be some resistance. It will vary depending on the brass but not to the point where there is none.
Also that the bullet will slide in & out is not a good sign. If the neck is being resized properly then there should be resistance on the bullet.

It is hard to tell the exact problem without looking at the cases. Do you have other .308 cases to compare these problems ones to. ??
 
If the inside measures .303" or .3045" you should end up with .0035" to .005" press fit when seating the bullets. This will work just fine in a bolt rifle but since you are loading for an auto loader I would crimp them.
 
The brass has had it's neck thinned, probably by reaming but maybe by external turning.
The "no- resistance" sizing indicates they were fired in a very tight chamber.

I don't think it's really "once fired", it sounds like someone put an awful lot of work into that brass, the only way brass like that gets dumped is when it's been used enough that the owner thinks it's worn-out.
I'm thinking that that brass isn't a very good choice for the M14.
 
personally, the only once fired stuff i trust is factory that i've run through my gun myself- i alway buy virgin if i'm buying components- remember, military brass is also once fired, but you and every one else has no idea whether it's gone through a rifle, sub, or gpmg- and some of those fire from open bolt or have adjustable headspace
 
this is commercial winchester brass.. i cant tell if it's been turned or not.. when i get home tonight i'm going to measure the neck thickness and compare it to my good brass.. if the neck thickness is ok, I might load a couple and try them out (crimped and non crimped)..

if somebody had turned the neck to make it thinner, what would be the advantages of doing something like that?
 
Turning makes the bass thickness more uniform, which _can_ equal better accuracy.

This ammo has been fired in a very tight chamber, maybe even in something called a "tight neck" chamber. This is for advanced users only, using this sort of chamber cases require an absolute minimum of prep to reload.
I expect that if you pop-out the primers and have a careful look at the primer pockets you'll find they are all flat bottomed with a very square internal bottom edge. They will have been "uniformed".
 
compared some brass measurements... good to questionable... i'm probably too spooked to load this stuff now, but just for the sake of curiosity.. here's the specs..

good brass - neck thickness .014"
neck diameter (outside) .333"
neck diam. (inside) .303"


questionable brass -neck thickness .013"
neck diameter (outside) .3315"
neck diam. (inside) .3045"

the measurements were taken after i ran them thru my resizing die.. both are winchester cases... the good one had resistance, the questionable one had none..

I took the decapping pin/expander ball assembly out of the die.. the ball measures .306" at the widest part.. when i run the pin and ball thru the neck manually there is resistance in both cases..

please let me know what you think..
 
Take the expander out and run a case through the die again. Then see how the bullet fit is.
Srsly, I wouldn't use it in your 'rinco. If you've got a .308 bolt, I'd use it with no hesitation.

And if the brass thickness is .013" it's not a 'tight-neck'
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom