8x57 brass from 30-06....tips?

Purple shoulder

Purple shoulder

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I need some 8 mil brass and have been thinking about ordering some but a couple days ago I was out shooting and picked up 40 or so 30-06 brass. On the way home I got thinking maybe I should make some 8 mils out of them. I know its a pretty simple process but just wonder if anyone that's done it can help me out with what they know about it (like trim before or after sizing, fire forming etc)
This would be for use in a yugo m48 so I don't think neck thickness will be an issue. It's also just for plinking and having fun so precision is not an issue. Any suggestions?
 
Sounds exactly what I would try in your situation - in actual fact, though, I just bought 8x57 brass from Tradex. Based solely on my experience making .243 out of 7.62 NATO, I would fully lube both case exterior and neck interior and try running a 30-06 case through an 8x57 Full Length sizing die. I am sure 95% of them will go through just fine - there is an "in between" line to follow regarding not enough versus too much case lube, but even if you dent some shoulders, they will smooth out on your first firing. Your product should be too long - I believe that the 30-06 to 8x57 will leave the necks too long. Trim to length before loading. This is also a good opportunity to carefully adjust your 8x57 full length die to get near "zero" headspace on your "wildcat" 8x57-06.
 
Several years ago I bought a Turkish Mauser and was in need of 8x57 brass.

I had a ton of 30-06 so I decided to do the conversion. It was super easy and is by far the most simple conversion I've done to date.

Just lube up the inside and outside of the necks real good and run em through your 8x57 die. After that trim to length and you're good to go.

I've been loading and firing those same lot of 50 pieces of brass that I converted for years and have yet to have any issues.

The only issue I will mention is if you have a 30-06 chambered rifle you have to be very carful not to mix up any of your convert 8x57 cases as they will chamber and fire in an '06 chambered rifle. Not a good situation.
 
I have run 30-06 through my 8mm die with not too much effort. As suggested though, if you have anything that uses 30-06 you should mark your converted brass. Side by side they are pretty easy to tell apart, but I haven't honed skills enough to actually spot an 8mm by shape (so I look at headstamps).

Size, trim, mark(differentiate), and enjoy.
 
Tenda has S&B for $28.99/20rd box of soft point or FMJ brass would cost you enough empty you could buy a few cases of these and have ammo for now and brass for later
 
An 8x57 Round will not chamber in a 30-06 rifle unless the '06 has a very sloppy chamber with plenty of headspace.

However, it is always good to be cautious if you have headstamps that do not reflect the cartridge as modified. Dave.
 
When I made 8mm from 30-06 I marked the 30-06 cases first , with a magic marker , to length. Then I put cut-off wheel on an angle grinder.
I wrapped a towel around the angle grinder so it had some padding , and put it in a vise to hold it. Then holding the marked shell casing I cut them off that way , being careful to leave the length line just showing. Then cleaned up the edge in the RCBS trimmer. This cuts off most of the neck. Then I annealed them. Then I formed them in the 8mm sizing die. Then a final trim in the RCBS case trimmer. My trimmer is not electric , and this cut way down on cranking by hand. This is not my idea. I read it online somewhere , and it worked great for me. The 30-06 is a lot longer than 8mm mauser , but if your trimmer is electric , I guess no need for the grinder. Trim away.
 
triggerman42 said:
When I made 8mm from 30-06 I marked the 30-06 cases first , with a magic marker , to length. Then I put cut-off wheel on an angle grinder.
I wrapped a towel around the angle grinder so it had some padding , and put it in a vise to hold it. Then holding the marked shell casing I cut them off that way , being careful to leave the length line just showing. Then cleaned up the edge in the RCBS trimmer. This cuts off most of the neck. Then I annealed them. Then I formed them in the 8mm sizing die. Then a final trim in the RCBS case trimmer. My trimmer is not electric , and this cut way down on cranking by hand. This is not my idea. I read it online somewhere , and it worked great for me. The 30-06 is a lot longer than 8mm mauser , but if your trimmer is electric , I guess no need for the grinder. Trim away.
Click to expand...

A mini chop saw for about $25.00 solves the problem.

https://www.amazon.com/TruePower-919-Cut-Off-2-Inch-colors/dp/B000VWHTUG?SubscriptionId=AKIAJJY2YKHHLJKYIBNA&tag=slk03b1-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B000VWHTUG
 
I did that few(10?)years back.I found that annealing cases prior to sizing helps a lot with proper forming of shoulder.

I also found that Fed made 30-06 cases are thicker and more brittle than Rem and Win cases.I couldn't load .325 casts and still chamber the round.
Maybe things are different now.
 
Eagleye said:
An 8x57 Round will not chamber in a 30-06 rifle unless the '06 has a very sloppy chamber with plenty of headspace.

However, it is always good to be cautious if you have headstamps that do not reflect the cartridge as modified. Dave.
Click to expand...

I've never tried an 8x57 in any of my 06 chambered rifles but I always mention this to anyone doing case conversions as a mix up "COULD" happen.
 
donor said:
I did that few(10?)years back.I found that annealing cases prior to sizing helps a lot with proper forming of shoulder.

I also found that Fed made 30-06 cases are thicker and more brittle than Rem and Win cases.I couldn't load .325 casts and still chamber the round.
Maybe things are different now.
Click to expand...

I forgot to mention that I did aneal them before doing anything and think it helped. They seemed to run through fairly easily.
 
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