Norma Brass Opinions
- Thread starter bigbull
- Start date
Hi, I'm reload 308 norma brass resized to 260 rem. I bought it fairly cheap and so far find it very nice. Lapua is still in my opinion the best (most consistant) but there are others who may know more. I've only been reloading for about 3 years. What caliber are you thinking about?
- Location
- Saskatchewan
I think it is some of the most uniform and highest quality brass made. Lapua might be a wee bit better, RWS is as good, and the Rem/Win/Fed stuff a distant third in my opinion. I have used it in .243, .308. 30-06, 7x57, 7x57R, 7x64, 8x57, and have had no problems with any of it. Some claim it is a bit "softer" than Winchester for instance, but that has not been my experience. Whether it is sufficiently better to justify the higher cost I will leave for others to decide. I like it.
Over the years Norma has made in brass in a wide range of calibers, and I've tried an awful lot of them, lol. Some of the Wby stuff they made back in the day was soft, but would harden up after a few firings, in my experience. I consider it good brass, generally speaking. - dan
Have some in 44 mag, easily the nicest and most consistant I have seen, never used Lapua though
I have some Nosler brass (made by Norma) in .223 Rem and I like it.
Very good brass, but in certain chamberings, appears just a wee bit soft. [the 6.5x55 comes to mind] However, not all. I have a fair bit of 308 Norma Magnum brass, and it is not soft. Ditto the 222 brass I have. I believe that Lapua has the edge, but only because it seems more consistent throughout the various offerings. Use your Norma brass with confidence! Eagleye.
daddylonglegs
CGN Regular
- Location
- Big River, Saskatchewan
I have used Norma brass extensively in 308 Norma Mag, 7X61 S&H, 358 Norma Mag, a host of Weatherby calibers, & 44 Rem mag. I have reloaded the 44 Rem mag brass over 20 times, and still no case mouth splits. I find Norma brass to be very close to Lapua in quality, and head & shoulders over any domestic brass. I like it!
I looked in my old Noma Gunbug's Guide, circa 1962, to see what they said about their brass.
The Norma book, which was their complete reloaders manual, consists of only 24 pages, including all the loading charts. This section on brass is over three pages, which shows the importance they place on the brass case in reloading.
I found the article so informative and so fitting to the topic here under discussion, that I have copied and posted three pages of it.
The print is a bit on the small side, so hope it is readable.
The Norma book, which was their complete reloaders manual, consists of only 24 pages, including all the loading charts. This section on brass is over three pages, which shows the importance they place on the brass case in reloading.
I found the article so informative and so fitting to the topic here under discussion, that I have copied and posted three pages of it.
The print is a bit on the small side, so hope it is readable.
Pathfinder
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Northeast Ontario
Ive started using it in 6.5x55 after ive had some fall in to my lap.....less internal capacity then winchester but its just as good or better. I havent' used for long enough to comment about longevity. I will keep using these as opposed to the american made stuff because the actual dimension are correct at the rim (.480) as opposed to the smaller american made brass (.473) The measurements are from memory but there was definitly a difference.
Gringo, I am not interested for any one caliber just a general opinion.
Kevguy, where does this information come from, that Nosler is made by Norma?
H4831, thanks for the read, good to be reminded from time to time.
Pathfinder, I think you hit the nail on the head. using brass that is dimensionally correct is a huge plus in case life, it is often the case why excessive primer pocket streching takes place, when the case has so much room to expand in any chambering. it's a given that case life will suffer not to mention it won't look very good with a huge bulge at the head of the case.
Of coarse a very strong small case will expand less than a very small soft case, and I think companies like Lapua have made their reputations on this.
Dimensional accuracy I think is the primary concideration for long term case life for reloaders, JMHO.
bigbull
Kevguy, where does this information come from, that Nosler is made by Norma?
H4831, thanks for the read, good to be reminded from time to time.
Pathfinder, I think you hit the nail on the head. using brass that is dimensionally correct is a huge plus in case life, it is often the case why excessive primer pocket streching takes place, when the case has so much room to expand in any chambering. it's a given that case life will suffer not to mention it won't look very good with a huge bulge at the head of the case.
Of coarse a very strong small case will expand less than a very small soft case, and I think companies like Lapua have made their reputations on this.
Dimensional accuracy I think is the primary concideration for long term case life for reloaders, JMHO.
bigbull
