Any Reason To Sort .44 Mag Brass?

mmattockx

mmattockx

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I just started reloading for my Redhawk. I bought a bag of 500 once fired brass, mixed headstamps. For my first 50 rounds I sorted out Winchesters, but is it really an issue to mix headstamps when shooting light .44 Special level loads? I plan to sort out 100 pieces of Winchester brass for the heavier loads, but should I bother with the rest?

Thanks,
Mark
 
I sort mine but mostly just for the heck of it.

I really really doubt that it could make any dfference at all unless you were trying to squeeze that last 10fps out of it before the action locked on you.
 
I'm with VV, I do it but mostly just because.

If I do encounter any issues with loading, I double check to see if I have the same issue with the other brass.

Hasn't happened yet (fingers crossed, knock on wood, salt over shoulder) . . .
 
It wouldn't really take that long to do would it?

But no, for most general purpose plinking you will not noticxe a difference.
 
Case thickness can vary a lot and it might be an issue with neck tension. I would keep Federal/ Winchester/ Starline for heavy loads, then try to match lots.
 
kg said:
Case thickness can vary a lot and it might be an issue with neck tension. I would keep Federal/ Winchester/ Starline for heavy loads, then try to match lots.
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I plan to keep Winchester brass for the heavy stuff. Since I am shooting lead, I am flaring and then roll crimping to keep the bullets in place, how much neck tension variance will I get with some thickness variation? It will affect the crimp, no doubt, but how much variation are we talking about?

Mark
 
using a roll crimp you might want to sort for length (if you have lots 2-300)
as crimp will vary from short to long

and when you get a split case you can trim it to 44 special length and shoot it some more with different load data
 
just having some fun said:
using a roll crimp you might want to sort for length (if you have lots 2-300)
as crimp will vary from short to long
Click to expand...

Fair point. I did some spot checking and found about 0.010" variation in lengths. I loaded the first batch using a single stage setup to let me check everything at every point and visual inspection of the crimps looked good to me. I will have to check lengths more closely on the next batch to see if I can notice a difference in performance.

I guess I will find out this weekend at the range.

Mark
 
mmattockx said:
Fair point. I did some spot checking and found about 0.010" variation in lengths. I loaded the first batch using a single stage setup to let me check everything at every point and visual inspection of the crimps looked good to me. I will have to check lengths more closely on the next batch to see if I can notice a difference in performance.

I guess I will find out this weekend at the range.

Mark
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I'll bet you a beer you won't see any noticable difference and one day you will give up putting the calipers to hangun brass and just reload and shoot it.:)
 
joe-nwt said:
I'll bet you a beer you won't see any noticable difference and one day you will give up putting the calipers to hangun brass and just reload and shoot it.:)
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You are probably right. I was checking because it was new brass (to me) and the first time I loaded for .44 Mag. Once I get a comfort level with how the brass lives I will likely just carry on without worry.

Mark
 
mmattockx said:
I plan to keep Winchester brass for the heavy stuff. Since I am shooting lead, I am flaring and then roll crimping to keep the bullets in place, how much neck tension variance will I get with some thickness variation? It will affect the crimp, no doubt, but how much variation are we talking about?
Mark
Click to expand...

I don't like crimping because I don't like trimming (... got uneven case lengths when I started reloading 38/357; other shooters have argued that crimping didn't cause length variations.)

So I rely on neck tension. With my dies and a 44-40 expander, 429 bullets would hardly hold in R-P cases; W-W/Federal/Hdy were twice as thick and worked fine. I didn't change the sizing die as I hate the "bottle of coke" look my buddies got on their brass with theirs.

It's difficult to quantify, but I could seat 429 bullets in R-P or IMI cases with hardly any application of strength on the Press' lever; and then easily push them further, rotate them or pull them out.

Compare the results you get with your dies and bullets in the various brands, you wil soon get a feel of it.
 
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