How many reloads are too many for brass?

[Matt Griffin]

I think this has been covered, but I couldn't find it. I started getting clicks at the first of the year, and it has steadily gotten worse, despite cranking up my mainspring. I finally got around to checking my ammo, and the primers are all .04-.06 deeper than they should be! This is the same brass I've been using for the last year, so I'm thinking it must be worn out after 6-7 loads (at least) but wanted to see if anyone could confirm with another experience.

H.

[Allgoodhits]

My .38spl brass lasts until it either cracks, splits, bulges or will no longer hold a firm enough crimp. My loads are +P but not super hot. I probably have brass that has been reloaded twenty ot more times at least.

Are you sure your misfires are not another issue, such as weakened main spring or end shake, or different brand of primers?

MJ

[Matt Griffin]

Pretty sure, I've wrung out all the usual suspects. Same primers, same brass, same guns, thorough cleaning of channels, guts, etc. But what I consider a "firm shove" that I used with great success in 2009 (maybe one click in 1000) is now seating them down to .015 and beyond. It used to be a nice .008-.010 and was very reliable. I even went home at lunch and gave a primer a regular seat, it went to .010, then a firm seat pushed it down to .017, which is definitely failure range.

When I first started reloading for revo I experimented with different force on the seating, and in order to get down to .017 back then I was leaning into the machine with both hands and flexing the entire assembly.

I'm going to try and score some range brass tonight, see if I can get a different result with once-fired.

H.

[Carmoney]

My supply of mixed .45 ACP brass has been slowly building for 23 years. Some of that stuff is so old the headstamp is barely readable, but I never throw away a piece of .45 brass until it splits down the side. Six or seven reloads on a piece of .45 brass is just barely getting started!

Since I started running my revolvers with ultra-light actions, I have used a hand-priming tool. My press, even with a firm push on the handle, doesn't always do the job.

Unless you're talking about some extreme variation, the actual depth of the primer is not that big a deal. What matters is whether the primer is fully seated or not. I'll bet there is more dimensional variation of the primer pockets in the raw brass, particularly with mixed brass like mine, than you could ever create simply by priming and decapping a piece of brass a bunch of times. I don't see how that would create any meaningful wear.

My guess is that your rounds with deeper-seated primers will still work just fine--with the primers fully seated.

Edited April 5, 2010 by Carmoney

[Matt Griffin]

Mike,

Thanks for the info, particularly since I'm using one of your action jobs. It was my experience when I was first testing primer seating that past .015 you start getting failures, either because it's too far of a reach or because the primer is being damaged. I also settled on Winchester brass just because I had a lot of it, and I was getting a very consistent depth five loads ago, everything was coming out .008-.010. Maybe it's because I've started lifting weights . . .

H.

[Carmoney]

Not long ago, I acquired some used .45 brass in which the primer pockets had been reamed. Why anybody would do this I have no idea. Obviously, the primers seat a bit deeper in this brass. It's visibly noticeable. But it all goes bang, as long as I make sure the primers are properly seated.

When in doubt, hand-squeezing the primers is awfully good insurance, which is why I recommend it so strongly.

Has anybody on this forum ever seen my revolver misfire during a major match? (insert slight sound of crickets chirping....otherwise dead silence......)

[DougCarden]

Damn, man.....now we have to start a pool....... Good thing the Nats are in Vegas again....LOL

DougC

[Round_Gun_Shooter]

I think it is time you replaced all your brass. To help you out, I will take all you have and pay the shipping.

[TonyT]

For the high presssure cartridges such as 9mm and 40 S&W I scrap the brass after 4 or 5 reloads. With the low pressure cartridges such as 38 Special and 45 ACP I use the brass until it starts fraying at the neck.

[Matt Griffin]

I loaded a few hundred to .008-.012, where I used to have the best success. I may have just been overseating them due to the winter layoff. I lost my rhythm! Here's hoping they run correctly.

H.

[glockwerkes]

Run it till it splits. I second Mike's advice on hand seating. (Convienent, as he does my trigger jobs.) Since doing that, no misfires or light strikes (knock on wood).

[John Z Sr]

I keep all my .45 revo brass separate from my 45 brass that goes in the semi's. I have yet to have one split, and some of them have been reloaded over 15 times. I always hand prime, as has been mentioned, and never have problems, knocking on wood as well.

[professor]

My 45 brass also gets reused indefinitely. Just to spread out the usage, I'll 'rotate the stock' by keeping track of the dates of batches that have been fired. They go through a cleaning cycle after getting back from a match, and the oldest stuff is reloaded first.

All the primers go in with a Lee hand-press. My only problems lately have been finding Federal LP primers.

[Matt Griffin]

While I appreciate the fact that the hand primer allows you to get a certain "feel" to the priming, my press seems capable of overseating, so I don't know that it would help. With the powder return not cranked down too tightly, the priming motion is separate and I have a good bit of feel with it as is. Are you folks just squeezing the hell out of the hand seaters, or is it something else to be developed and learned?

That said, my .008-.012 batch ran flawlessly, I'm going to tune down a spring and see where it starts failing. I really think I was just overcrushing the primers after the winter layoff.

H.

[Carmoney]

I use a K&M priming tool, and give every round a gentle, but very firm, squeeze. Every primer winds up below flush and flat. When it's flat, you know it's seated all the way against the bottom of the pocket and it's not going to move when the FP hits it. That's what you want. Nothing less, nothing more.

[Matt Griffin]

At this point I'm fairly sure I was overseating. I finally managed to get the arm on my 650 nice and tight, and I was really leaning into it. I remembered that the best result is for me to advance until I feel the primer just starting to seat, then give a firm, somewhat fast shove. I did a batch last night and mic'ed out the primers, it's staying right at .012 for most of them.

H.