Sellier & Bellot brass

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Newfie_1986

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I have been running some .338 Sellier & Bellot through my TRG. I plan on reloading the brass, but I have found it will need to be trimmed. Is it normal to have to trim the brass after shooting it once ? Or is something I should expect with Sellier & Bellot brass ? From my reading online I didn't think I would have to trim the brass right away I figured I would get a reload or two in first.

I have ran some Privi Partizan 308 through my Savage 10TR and it is still within spec to reload.

BTW I am new to reloading and only just starting to get tools/ materials together. I am starting with a Hornady Single stage Lock N Load kit.

Thanks
 
Newfie_1986 said:
I have been running some .338 Sellier & Bellot through my TRG. I plan on reloading the brass, but I have found it will need to be trimmed. Is it normal to have to trim the brass after shooting it once ? Or is something I should expect with Sellier & Bellot brass ? From my reading online I didn't think I would have to trim the brass right away I figured I would get a reload or two in first.
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It all depends on your brass original dimensions and your chamber dimensions. If your brass is short and the chamber long then they can grow quite a bit in length, and they may grow more on the second firing.

Unless you are reloading a lot of different cartridges I find the Lee tools the easiest to use. You would need these two parts:

Case Length Gauge/Holder
Cutter and Lock Stud

If you have a few cases to do, and you are not taking a whole bunch off each one, just use those two pieces by hand. If you have a bigger job then mount the lock stud in a drill and use it to supply the power. Very easy to do. Don't bother with the other case trimming stuff that Lee tries to sell you.
 
Bottle neck cases tend to stretch when full length sized. Do yourself a favor and pickup a Lee Collet die. You'll find you can go a few reloads before having to trim.
 
Biggest problem I had with S&B 338L brass was that not all of it would fit in the 338 shell holder. I had to use the shell holder from my 45-70 for some.
IIRC I had to trim some of the S&B cases after 1F, I really like S&B 308win brass but my S&B 338 brass just sits in a bag now.

When you check your cases next reload hopefully you'll get to skip trimming.
 
Biggest problem I've had with S&B (pistol) brass is that their primer pockets are very tight; I swage them as a matter of course, otherwise it's next to impossible to get a new primer in. It's the cheapest 'quality' 9mm ammo here, and most people use a lot of it - and just leave the empties on the ground - so we've collected a lot, and use them all the time; good brass.

I'm about to start reloading with S&B primers - anybody have any observations? I normally specify CCI, but only because I have a small tool box I store them in, and the Federal primers' box takes-up a whole lot more room.
 
gwesson said:
Biggest problem I've had with S&B (pistol) brass is that their primer pockets are very tight; I swage them as a matter of course, otherwise it's next to impossible to get a new primer in. It's the cheapest 'quality' 9mm ammo here, and most people use a lot of it - and just leave the empties on the ground - so we've collected a lot, and use them all the time; good brass.

I'm about to start reloading with S&B primers - anybody have any observations? I normally specify CCI, but only because I have a small tool box I store them in, and the Federal primers' box takes-up a whole lot more room.
Click to expand...

Yup. I usually separate all the S&B brass from the rest then swage or ream the primer pockets.

Curious about those S&B primers as well.
 
This confused me at first as well. Depending on the dimensions of your chamber versus the factory size of the ammunition, you may need resizing very quickly...maybe even after first fire. After the brass is fire-formed, and assuming I am reloading into the same firearm, I will do a neck sizing only and check head space with the Lyman head space gauge...which can check length at the same time. If head space needs a little shoulder bump, I do that first. Then check length...and trim as needed. I find that **usually** once it's been through that process, neck sizing is all it needs for a few fires. I'm not sure if that's the best process...but that's what I do. :)
 
It's not unusual for 1F brass to need trimming. The chamber dimension will dictate how much it will need to be trimmed to chamber properly: Either way, it should be trimmed so the case mouth is square... particularly in an expensive caliber (such as 338 Lapua), which is almost solely used for precision shooting. Neck size the brass and only body size/shoulder bump when necessary to ensure the bolt closes properly.

S&B brass and primers are good components: I have and use both in rifle and handgun calibers. However, as has been pointed out, some calibers will need their primer pockets chamfered to make primer seating easier.
 
I had an issue with S&B brass in 6.5x57. The primer pockets were the right diameter however they were not cut deep enough. The new Federal LR primers sat above the case head, and verniers showed that the walls of the factory primer cup were less in height than a Federal primer cup wall. A lyman primer pocket reamer fixed it. Overall the quality of the brass itself was not bad.

The S&B factory ammo that I fired had up to .040" headspace over CIP specs though. Not a typo...40 thou as measured with a case comparator against correctly sized cases. If your case legnth is unusually long after firing I would check for case head separation before reloading it. Or put an electric tape shim on an unfired case head and try to close your bolt (safely) to check the head space. See how many layers it takes. The s##t almost blew my d#mn gun up.

PPU brass is great stuff though.
 
S&B does not have a stellar reputation for .338LM brass. Same with Hornady.

This is one of those calibers where you owe it to yourself to buy Lapua brass and Scenar bullets. ;)
 
Got over 100 rounds of the S&B brass that has been fired through my rifle, plus another 100 rounds in fired. I also have 80 rounds of Privi Partizan. I'm thinking I will try and run the S&B brass and see where it takes me for now.
 
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