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Brian Enos's Forums... Maku mozo!

Nickel Brass


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Well, they have it half right. It is stronger (harder) but that is what makes it split sooner. The harder it is, the less times it can be worked (sized) before it just gets too hard and instead of stretching, it splits. Most of the time, this will happen in the belling/powder drop station of the press. There is nothing wrong with nickle brass per se, but you don't get as many reloads out of it. On the other hand, many shooters use the nickle brass (even though they know it won't last as long) because they feel that it feeds smoother in their guns, because it is slicker. So, I say load it it you have it, but don't go out of your way to buy it to reload.

PS. There is sometimes the issues of nickle plating flaking off when re-sizing, and getting stuck in the die, which can scratch the brass very badly.

Edited by GrumpyOne
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Are there any advantages to using nickel brass as opposed to regular yellow brass I have been told it is stronger and is less prone to splits

Nickle is more prone to split, the advantage and the reason they do nickle casing is for corrosion. Brass when left in a gun for a while will start turning green. Nickle stays nice and slick forever.

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I load a lot of .38 Spl+P for IDPA competition. Nickle plated brass from Win & Rem never makes it through the 3rd resizing without a split on the body (not the case mouth) and some don't make it past the second resizing... Speer or Federal nickle plated seems to last a bit longer. The process of plating the brass with nickle seems to make it more brittle. I can run brass cases for 10 -12 loads. Nickle plated brass splits much more quickly. I have reached the point that I won't even pick up nickle plated .38 brass anymore. It's not worth the effort to sort, tumble, and run through the sizing die only to feel that sickening "light pull" on the handle" that tells me the case has split. I would NEVER purchase .38 Spl nickle plated brass with the intent of making good loads... brass lasts much longer, and costs less to buy. I have little experience with 9mm nickle brass, but .45 ACP nickle brass doesn't seem to split as often (although I'm only using Speer or Federal there... no info on Win or Rem in 9mm or .45).

GOF

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It's funny.. I have about 2k of the Federal Nickel plated brass and have used it for years.. some of the brass has been sized/used for so long that the nickel is wearing off and the underlying brass is showing through.. if you are losing your nickel plated brass to belling the mouth, it is likely you are belling it too much. You only need enough to not shave lead or just enough to seat a jacketed bullet. Higher intensity cartridges like 9mm and 40 S&W generally tend to split on me by the 4th or 5th reload but not always.. I have has my fair # of brass also do the lengthwise split though it could be due to using it in different 40 cal firearms (P16, S&W 610, Sig 229, and a Glock 35)

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