Hand gun case prep? Is this req'd?

Onagoth

Onagoth

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So, as you may have noticed, I am just getting into handgun reloading and had a lot of questions. Thanks to everyone for the feedback.

My next question is how much case prep you guys do for handgun cases. I have seen vids on youtube for guys who do none, except to tumble the brass. Also, wouldn't very little be getting done if a turret press is used and the case is resized in the first station, and primed immediately after?

I have always thought, so far, that the resizing should be kept separate since the cases need to be cleaned, examined, flash holes cleaned, measured,etc. It seems a lot of reloaders skip these steps?

So...What do you all do? Full prep, some prep, no prep?

Thanks
 
I tumble, then inspect, and then use case lube just before loading.

As everything in handloading, it may depend on your particular gun. Revolvers are very forgiving of sizing.
 
Good brass in = good brass out.
If you are using "range brass" or brass from an unknown source you must be extra careful.
Lots of competitive IPSC shooters are shooting 10,000++ rounds per year, as you can imagine they are not doing a lot of case prep. They also have lots of experience, and I have still witnessed several case failures resulting in "bad" days at the range.
 
I just tumble, quick inspection, run through progressive press. This is for most handgun brass, including range brass. So basically no prep at all.

If you are using carbide dies then you don't need any lube but I use a quick spray in the bucket, so it gets on a few of the cases, it just makes sizing easier.
 
Tumble and look for cracks on the way into the press. If I run into the odd one with next to no primer tension, I pause long enough to paint the head of the case with a marker which indicates the last time it will be reloaded.
 
I guess it really depends on what kind of end product you want.
I shoot an STI TargetMaster 45acp and I am really picky about what goes through my gun. After 4 hours of polishing, I scan my upturned brass for any cracked ones, under a magnifying light. Then I remove any with large flash holes and put them in my tall grass collection. Then I have this little lid that I flip them over to remove all but the winchester head stamp, again rejects go in the tall grass bag. Then they get lubricated with Lymans quick spray and thrown in the hopper of my dillon 650. Then resize, deprime, reprime, add powder, check powder, seat bullet and then carbide crimp and were done.
my 2 cents!
 
.... Trimming to length, with handguns is a minor issue. This is particularly so when it comes to 38 Special/357 magnum. (Revolvers in general are very forgiving! ) ..... If you have Carbide Dies, as long as the Brass is clean, you can forgo the messy Lube process. But, do check on every step of the way regardless, for Cracks and overly loose or out-sized Primer pockets and flash holes. Pistols cartridges that head-space on the case mouth do need to be checked a little more frequently for "stretching" thus a set of calipers or even a trim die, becomes a necessity, eventually. Good lighting over your Bench is a must ! A magnifying glass is worth having to check if that mark is crack or a scratch ! ..... David K
 
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