I have always been told you can't reload steel casing. Is that true? I immagine it could damage dies because steel is much harder than brass, and that it would take more force to resize, but is it possible? Or is it the primers that cause problems?
steel 7.62x39
- Thread starter animalamidon
- Start date
Canadian_Zuk
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Pickering, Ontario
It's the flash hole in the case that causes the problem.
Brass cased ammo usually uses Boxer primers. The primers itself has a cup and "anvil" and the primer pocket in the case has one flash hole in the center of the pocket. This makes it easy to punch out the old primer.
Steel cased surplus ammo uses "Berdan" primers that do not use the "anvil", the anvil is formed into the case head and there are two flash holes on either side of the anvil. This is what makes the Berdan primed ammo much harder to reload.
Brass cased ammo usually uses Boxer primers. The primers itself has a cup and "anvil" and the primer pocket in the case has one flash hole in the center of the pocket. This makes it easy to punch out the old primer.
Steel cased surplus ammo uses "Berdan" primers that do not use the "anvil", the anvil is formed into the case head and there are two flash holes on either side of the anvil. This is what makes the Berdan primed ammo much harder to reload.
Steel and Aluminum cases CAN be reloaded, but may not last as long or be as easy to work with as brass. Most people do not Reload them.
Almost all steel are Berdan primed anyways.
Berdan primed cases also can be loaded, but Berdan primers aren't usually easy to find here and even in the US they are not always available everywhere. Some people do work to convert the pockets to Boxer but only in the rarest of cases would it really be practical to do. There are a few Euro calibres that are brass with Berdan priming and Boxer cases of these calibres are hard to come by if not impossible.
Almost all steel are Berdan primed anyways.
Berdan primed cases also can be loaded, but Berdan primers aren't usually easy to find here and even in the US they are not always available everywhere. Some people do work to convert the pockets to Boxer but only in the rarest of cases would it really be practical to do. There are a few Euro calibres that are brass with Berdan priming and Boxer cases of these calibres are hard to come by if not impossible.
x2. I am with you on that. At the price of surplus, reloading even brass cases is a waste of time. PRVI hunting ammo is affordable - compared to other brands, and is good stuff. Why reload?
