Brass Life

3macs1

3macs1

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On shotgun I reload my target hulls 6x max and hunting hulls 2x max. Yes I could get more but that works for me and has been safe for over 40 years.
With brass say Lapua and winchester what can I set as a safe number of reloads before tossing.
Mainly 223. 243 and 280 I am reloading.
 
It all depends if you neck size or FL size, how hot you load, and the dimensions of your chambers and dies. If you have a tight chamber, and neck size with a neck bushing die, and don't load too hot, cases can last well over a dozen firings, possibly twenty. If you have a sloppy chamber, FL size every time, and load hot,your brass can be trash after a few firings. On average, I reuse my Lapua 223 brass from 10 to 15 times, and my magnum hunting loads 6 or 8 times.
 
I have a set of 200 lapua 308 cases that has seen 16 reloads (neck sized only Match chamber) and there have been no issues. I have not had to bump the shoulders and only annealed once . Quality brass pays for it self lots sooner then most people want to admit
 
So it sounds like I should invest in a neck size only die?? I have FL dies now.
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You have a few options, the cheapest being to simply adjust your FL die, so it doesn't push back the shoulder. That in itself should help increase brass life. I like the neck bushing dies because you can choose the bushing size to limit the amount that the brass gets worked.
 
I had some .308 Norma brass that I reloaded over 40x (I lost count, not exactly sure). I never had a case failure, just decided the experiment was over.

I neck sized, moderate loads and shot in a tight chamber. When I felt the brass in the neck getting hard (more effort to pull the sizer ball back out) I annealed the necks. I think I annealed 3 x in total.
 
The standard values for full length sizing are something like
  • 4 max reloads for M14 rifles
  • 6-8 reloads for AR rifles
  • 8+ reloads for beltless cartridges
  • 3-4 reloads for belted case cartridges
I've reloaded (full lenght sizing) Winchester 270 WSM with maximum loads 6 times and the cases were still perfect!
With neck sizing and annealing, sky is the limit and with quality brass 20 reloads is common but I always discard my brass after they have been trimmed 3 times.

Alex
 
I use Lapua brass in my .308 target rifle. I am into my 4th barrel. I use a Redding bushing die and full length resize and trim about every 4th loading. This batch of brass started out at 1800 pieces and I have only culled about 25-30 pieces in the last few years when the primers seat a little on the easy side. These I set aside for practice only, and discard after firing them once more. I have never annealed them and have only scrapped one piece of brass due to a split neck.
 
maynard said:
I use Lapua brass in my .308 target rifle. I am into my 4th barrel. I use a Redding bushing die and full length resize and trim about every 4th loading. This batch of brass started out at 1800 pieces and I have only culled about 25-30 pieces in the last few years when the primers seat a little on the easy side. These I set aside for practice only, and discard after firing them once more. I have never annealed them and have only scrapped one piece of brass due to a split neck.
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How are your loads for pressure. Would they be as heavy, or heavier, than standard maximum loads in a reloading book, or lighter than that?
 
H4831 said:
How are your loads for pressure. Would they be as heavy, or heavier, than standard maximum loads in a reloading book, or lighter than that?
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I run 46.00 +/-.02 gr of Varget with a 155 gr moly coated bullet. Velocity is 2940-2950 out of a 30" Krieger barrel. For me, accuracy means more than velocity and the only reason I know the velocity is because I checked it, just for ####s and giggles.
 
Rifle, head space, pressure. My M1A will get max 5 loads from Lapua brass, and that's pressing it.
Don't load Win/Rem anymore, it can't take the pounding.

She beats the christ out of brass :D
 
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