Once fired brass... yeah right!

[Lugnut]

Just wanted to vent a little. I ordered a couple thousand pieces of once fired .45 brass... supposed to be 95% once fired- mostly police brass. Yeah... sure it is. I'd say it's 5% once fired! I've been doing this reloading thing for a little bit now so I think I can do a fair job of determining how new/old a case is... by looking at things like the black soot in the case, the lettering on the headstamps, rim wear, primer colors, primer seal, etc. These weren't that expensive so they be left behind after reloading. I've also never seen such a mix of brass... here the stuff in the mix- I'm not kidding!

TZZ
FIOCHI
CBC
PMC
AMERC
WW
FRONTIER (Never heard of this!)
FEDERAL NT (Small primers- sucks!)
WIN
WW
S&B
R&P
AP
GFL
WCC
CCI
SPEER
PMP
CorBon
Starline

WTF??? I doubt police departments shoot all these loads!!! Ughh!!!

Oh- and if anyone says they's gladly take them off my hands... I'll take a rep point away!!

 

[Finalygotabeltfed]

They are all good except the AMERC....toss every one you have. Absolutely the worst brass on planet earth.

 

[Cross-X]

Start worrying Lug, some of those elderly brass cases might well could kill ya! (evil grin)

 

[Lugnut]

Start worrying Lug, some of those elderly brass cases might well could kill ya! (evil grin)

I'll be sure to be shoulder to shoulder with you at the firing line when I test them!

 

[Cross-X]

I'll be sure to be shoulder to shoulder with you at the firing line when I test them!

That's a deal, so long as you have lots of liability insurance and a ton of valuable property in MA!

 

[HangEmHigh]

Where did you order the brass from?

 

[EddieCoyle]

They are all good except the AMERC....toss every one you have. Absolutely the worst brass on planet earth.

+1

Don't be tempted to even try to load these. You'll be sorry when an off-center flash hole breaks off your decapping pin. I feel bad even giving them to a scrap dealer.

 

[Lugnut]

Where did you order the brass from?

No one around here. That's all I can say.

 

[Lugnut]

+1

Don't be tempted to even try to load these. You'll be sorry when an off-center flash hole breaks off your decapping pin. I feel bad even giving them to a scrap dealer.

Yeah- they are tossed. However.. the bodies of the other brass looks good, no "Glock" buldges or any damage (headstamp areas look worn which is strange) but how exactly does one tell if the primer pockets are tight enough when using a progressive press? I can tell when some are tight for sure but sometimes I find new brass (like CCI) pockets that seem loose too.

 

[Dan S]

The Frontier brass is from Horandy. That's the name they used when they first started selling ammo.

 

[codenamepaul]

All my 7mm Hornady Light Mag brass says Frontier.

 

[howie]

They are all good except the AMERC....toss every one you have. Absolutely the worst brass on planet earth.

I 2nd that.amerc is junk

 

[scottb]

45 acp is considered a 'low' pressure case compared to say, 40 SW and 9mm which have much higher CUP pressures. At one time I shot and reloaded a bunch of 45 and I never found a loose primer pocket. In fact, the only time I threw out a case is when it split. Brass life is outstanding in 45 acp.

In my experience loose primer pockets are infrequent. I've loaded 'lots' of 40SW at factory velocity and beyond and rarely feel loose primer pockets. You'll know the pockets are a little loose when the primer inserts with little resistence. If or when this happens, don't worry - the round will be fine in a safe and properly maintained firearm.

If you're loading 'really' hot 45. and you're concerned about blowing out primers you'd probably be using new brass or brass from new ammo that you've fired previously anyway.

With a progressive press your biggest worry should be a double charge. And in 45 acp with proper attention and appropriate powders, that's not even an issue.

 

[EddieCoyle]

In my experience loose primer pockets are infrequent.

You've got to hang around with me more.