Brass Vs. Nickel Brass In 40 S&w

[Truegent2004]

I've noticed more and more shooters having exclusively nickel type brass over the traditional kind. One shooter told me that nickel is more "slippery" and feeds better?

Ok experts.......pros? cons? (assuming the costs were equal)

[Sean Gaines]

I shoot a glock, so it will eat dirt and shoot rocks, so it doesn't matter, brass or nickel. I believe your nickel cases have a better shelf life, but I could be wrong. Also I believe nickel can't be shot as many times as brass. I think alot of people use nickel because its easier to locate in the grass, and locate there cases easier, plus it looks better. But guns that may have feeding problems, it does seem to make sense about it being more slippery.

[Mistral404]

I have thousands of both. I do not treat them any differently. They all get loaded together and I do not notice any difference in the loading or shooting.

BTW: I used Brian's idea of One Shot. Works Great!

[Vlad]

I know my 9mm nickle loads feed better for me then normal brass. Not to mention that reloading is a pleasure once you combine nickle and OneShot.

[Interceptor]

I don't use any case lube when I reload 40. I do find that if I have a batch of both nickel and brass together that I am reloading, the nickel takes less force to size on my 550. I have access to 1000's of nickel once-fired Glock brass so that is my primary reason for using it. It seems in my experience that the nickel cleans up easier in less time in the tumbler also.

My $.02.

[gmshtr]

My department uses Speer ammunition - Gold Dot (nickel) and RHT (brass). I've never noticed a difference in reliability, but definitely in the reloading. The nickel stuff is much thicker, and I've always had a problem with my case bell getting hung up on the inside of the case. Also, the spent primers are a bit harder to get out of the nickel brass.

They're also giving me the same results at the chrono.

If I had the choice (and IF my reloader worked well with them) I'd probably go with nickel. It's much easier to clean! Just spray a little Boeshield T9 on it!

Phil

[Wim]

Not a comment on relaibility.

From Redding's website:

"Nickel plated cases are often associated with die scratching problems. Small particles of the hard nickel plating may be present from trimming and/or deburring operations and can find their way inside the dies."

OK, so we don't really trim or debur our pistol brass, but I avoid it where I can just in case and I have noticed that scratches can leave a really sharp edge on nickel cases (and I have seen nickel peel, but not recently).

[Skywalker]

My experience is similar to Interceptor's one.

I usually order mixed .40" brass form The Brassman, and I get some nickel plated brass mixed among normal ones.

I can always tell when a nickel brass in undergoing station 1 in my Dillon 650 (or in my previous Lee Pro-1000): it takes a lot less effort to resize and deprime.

IMO, the nickel plated brass is slicker, thus the carbide ring of the resizer doesn't drag on it as much as on brass, and dirt will not stick on it as much (hence easier to clean).

Apart from this, what I noticed is that they get cracked at the mouth easier and earlier than normal brass (4/5 firings as opposed to >10).

I don't over-belly or use a strong crimp on my .40" handloads, but it looks like the nickel plated brass is somewhat less elastic when it comes to stretching and crimping on the case mouth.

Variations in performances between the same loading in a nickel plated or common brass round? None that I've been able to discern.

Same applies to primer pocket size: I've never got any loose primers in nickel plated brass, but then I am not able to reload them enough times to experience any primer pocket enlargement.

So far, my gun has always run reliably with all kind of ammo (and it's not even a Glock... ), thus I cannot relate on better/worse feeding.

[achard]

nickel is better but brittle.

[Vlad]

From Redding's website:

"Nickel plated cases are often associated with die scratching problems. Small particles of the hard nickel plating may be present from trimming and/or deburring operations and can find their way inside the dies."

Even if that was true at worse I have to replace a sizing die once in a blue moon, its gonna cost me what .. less the $10 for a Lee carbide die? If I have to replace a die every year, to me that is very much worth the ease of sizing and the improved feeding in my gun.

[vincent]

I think most folks are using them because they look nice and aren't much more expensive.

I find the nickel cases are a bit harder and therefore don't last for as many loadings before they split. If you are resizing "Glocked" .40 cases for a 1911 the harder material means it takes a bit more effort to resize. I like case lube all the time but especially so with nickel cases. On the other hand nickel cases sure do look cool when highly polished. Therefore I use the nickel cases for "pimpin" match ammo and the brass cases for practice ammo. I don't think they perform any differently.

[kevin c]

Nickel is definitely slicker, literally, through my press and mags, especially if I leave on a bit of One Shot. AAMOF, I think that at least some of the "stickiness" problems I've seen w/ One Shot seem to be mainly on the regular brass, and not so much nickel.

Definitely agree with the cool factor. Also, easier to find my own brass, since I only have to pick through the nickel stuff.

Definitely agree also, with the shorter case life, though knocking down the belling seems to help a bit.

Kevin C.

[HI5-O]

I prefer the nickel cases because I can get them free , they are faster to clean and shine up in the tumbler, easier to resize, looks purty for a longer time than brass

barry

[Bigbadaboom]

Nickel is easier to see when you're hunting through the grass for your spent brass.

[DougCarden]

A buddy that made the President's 20 in our state and placed high at the PPC nats used to use Nickel brass exclusively in his .45 for that leg of the matches. He thought that the nickel would help feeding better. When we ransom rested ammo for 50yds the brass grouped better than the nickel, due to the nickel case mouth "springing" back when crimping. It also cracks earlier than brass cases, and I have seen several case dies destroyed by nickel brass as well. For myself who needs all the accuracy help I can get at matches.... I give the nickel brass away to friends that dont care.... My .02 cents

Doug C

[vincent]

Wow the consensus here seems to be that nickel cases are easier to resize. My experience has been the opposite - I find they make the press harder to run. Weird.

I do agree that they are easier to clean.

[sks30]

Hi guys I find that the nickle is easier to resize but what people might be mistaking is that the case die which bell the case mouth which is the powder drop on dillon dies sticks to the nickle cases and makes the ram more difficult to raise. I have also heard that nickle will give you a better crimp because the metal is less elastic and therefore won't spring back to its original shape.

Steve.

[Kevin Kline]

I never seen a difference. Over the 10 years of shooting IPSC, I shot new brass (brass and nickel), used old brass (brass and nickel) and once fired Speer brass from PD guns (brass and nickel). Ive never noticed a difference in reliability from one to the other.