How many times can you reload a pistol case?

iScream · February 8, 2009, 12:15 AM

I thought this would be easy to answer from a search but apparently I'm not entering the right terms.

How many times can I reload the same pistol case? I'm sure there are plenty of variables influencing the answer but I'm not sure what the right ballpark is. If I'm reloading 38 Special brass for target shooting can I use the same case at least 10 times? Seems like many of the accuracy loads aren't at max powder. Seems logical to me that magnum loads would place much greater stress on the case and possibly reduce cycles. Is that true?

Thanks,
Chris

kyle663 · February 8, 2009, 07:47 AM

its not so much how hot the load is, although that does have a slight bearing to it. but its how much you expand the the case mouth. over stretching the case mouth puts more wear on it than anything. if you expand it just enough to get the bullet to start you should get longer case life. rifle cartidges i generally toss after triming 5 times. pistol , i reaload till i start seeing cracks on the case mouth.

billcarey · February 8, 2009, 08:30 AM

Yep, what he said. Also, be sure to check each shell carefully before reloading and toss the ones with spit mouths or split sides. I don't trim 38s so the fatality rate is more than trimmed ones. For what its worth I don't keep track of how many times but its more than 10...way more...

bc

Alleykat · February 8, 2009, 09:55 AM

How big is a house? How much does a car cost?

Snobal · February 8, 2009, 10:25 AM

I have not been tracking the number of times I've fired my .38 Special brass, but I got it as "once-fired match brass" in a trade at a pistol match in the 1960's.

Every once in a while I find a split neck and toss a case, but with lite belling and lite crimps, that brass just keeps going and going and going.

I have about 100 .308 cases that I've been using for cast bullet loads since I started shooting cast rifle bullets in the 80's. I have never had one of those cases fail --- but I only neck-size them. I truly don't know how many times they have been fired.

I did track the number of firings I got from .41 Mag cases. I bought, loaded, and tracked them in lots of 50 cases. Using just enough bell to get my cast bullets to seat and a lite crimp, I sometimes got the first split neck as early as loading # 20. I continued to use the surviving cases for practice. I would tell you how many loading some of them had --- but no one would believe it.

Steel Talon · February 8, 2009, 10:30 AM

Basically with straight wall cases, just inspect each case prior to your load session, cull out any dogs you find, such as split necks, and bulges.
Peace
ST~

CrustyFN · February 8, 2009, 01:03 PM

Quote:

How big is a house? How much does a car cost?

2,300 sq ft
$25,000
Did I win?

I load pistol brass until the case mouth splits or I lose it. It usually gets lost first.
Rusty

grymster2007 · February 8, 2009, 01:11 PM

I haven't loaded enough to know, but case brass is fairly resilient material and should maintain it's malleability over many cycles of pistol use. Rifle can be a different story because of the geometry of the cartridge, generally higher pressures and I would imagine, hotter working environment.

darkgael · February 8, 2009, 03:36 PM

I have some .45 ACP cases, used for target shooting, that I know have been loaded over 30X. I load them until they split.
Pete

iScream · February 8, 2009, 11:06 PM

Thanks everybody. This sounds better than I expected. Somewhere I got the idea that a brass case might only be good for 5 - 6 loads.

What about the nickel cases I see in the for sale section? My assumption is that nickel cases are less desirable than brass but I really have no clue.

-Chris

FrankenMauser · February 9, 2009, 06:05 AM

You didn't mention any of the cartridges, but keep in mind that auto-loaders (in straight-wall pistol cartridges) cause the brass to actually shrink in length.

Eventually, you can run into headspacing issues; if you don't measure periodically. You'll usually run into split mouths or other problems before shrinkage is an issue, but it is a very real possibility with low pressure loads and high reload numbers on the brass. (15-20+)

45Marlin carbine · February 9, 2009, 07:52 AM

I've found that for my autos the rim and head-face getting beaten up can be a detriment to reliability this usually happens right before case mouth splits anyway. so I put the beaten-up brass all into a 'shoot and scoot' brass tub that contains the brass I load for this practice - I don't pick it up. I segregate my brass according to make before I resort to dumping them all together thusly. seems I get tighter groups this way.
the amount of times loading depends somewhat on the quality of the brass - usually 5-6 times, maybe few more.
revolver rounds of course I load them until neck splits show up. nickel cases don't last as long.

ilbob · February 9, 2009, 11:17 AM

I have 38 special cases that have been reloaded many times, maybe into 3 digits (I don't bother to track how many).

As long as you shoot light target loads they can be reloaded many, many times.

Inspect them for case neck splits and put aside any that have splits.

Minimal belling to reduce working the case neck.

CraigC · February 9, 2009, 12:44 PM

I usually don't even keep track but I have loaded standard .38Spl brass with the old Alliant 2400/1200fps .38-44 load over 20 times without a single problem.

Voyager AL · February 9, 2009, 06:26 PM

+1 on the nickle cases splitting sooner than brass. But I still pick them up and use 'em. Til they split. Range pickups is the shiznit!

February 8, 2009, 12:15 AM	#1
iScream Member Join Date: August 25, 2008 Location: Tennessee Posts: 89	How many times can you reload a pistol case? I thought this would be easy to answer from a search but apparently I'm not entering the right terms. How many times can I reload the same pistol case? I'm sure there are plenty of variables influencing the answer but I'm not sure what the right ballpark is. If I'm reloading 38 Special brass for target shooting can I use the same case at least 10 times? Seems like many of the accuracy loads aren't at max powder. Seems logical to me that magnum loads would place much greater stress on the case and possibly reduce cycles. Is that true? Thanks, Chris Last edited by iScream; February 8, 2009 at 08:08 AM.

February 8, 2009, 07:47 AM	#2
kyle663 Senior Member Join Date: April 14, 2008 Location: IL Posts: 311	its not so much how hot the load is, although that does have a slight bearing to it. but its how much you expand the the case mouth. over stretching the case mouth puts more wear on it than anything. if you expand it just enough to get the bullet to start you should get longer case life. rifle cartidges i generally toss after triming 5 times. pistol , i reaload till i start seeing cracks on the case mouth. __________________ NRA member 22LR,17hmr, 9mm, 9mm makarov, 38 S&W, 38/357, 41mag, 44mag, 45ACP, 7.62x39, 7.62x54, 222rem

February 8, 2009, 01:11 PM	#8
grymster2007 Senior Member Join Date: May 22, 2007 Location: In the oak studded hills near Napa Posts: 2,203	I haven't loaded enough to know, but case brass is fairly resilient material and should maintain it's malleability over many cycles of pistol use. Rifle can be a different story because of the geometry of the cartridge, generally higher pressures and I would imagine, hotter working environment. __________________ grym

February 8, 2009, 03:36 PM	#9
darkgael Senior Member Join Date: February 9, 2006 Location: Homes in Brooklyn, NY and in Pennsylvania. Posts: 5,473	# I have some .45 ACP cases, used for target shooting, that I know have been loaded over 30X. I load them until they split. Pete __________________ “Auto racing, bull fighting, and mountain climbing are the only real sports ... all others are games.” Ernest Hemingway ... NRA Life Member

February 9, 2009, 11:17 AM	#13
ilbob Senior Member Join Date: November 29, 2006 Location: Northern Illinois Posts: 515	I have 38 special cases that have been reloaded many times, maybe into 3 digits (I don't bother to track how many). As long as you shoot light target loads they can be reloaded many, many times. Inspect them for case neck splits and put aside any that have splits. Minimal belling to reduce working the case neck. __________________ bob Disclaimers: I am not a lawyer, cop, soldier, gunsmith, politician, plumber, electrician, or a professional practitioner of many of the other things I comment on in this forum.

February 8, 2009, 08:30 AM	#3
billcarey Senior Member Join Date: February 3, 2009 Location: Florida Posts: 273	Yep, what he said. Also, be sure to check each shell carefully before reloading and toss the ones with spit mouths or split sides. I don't trim 38s so the fatality rate is more than trimmed ones. For what its worth I don't keep track of how many times but its more than 10...way more... bc

February 8, 2009, 09:55 AM	#4
Alleykat Junior member Join Date: July 26, 2007 Posts: 3,668	How big is a house? How much does a car cost?

February 8, 2009, 10:25 AM	#5
Snobal Senior Member Join Date: January 4, 2009 Location: Arizona Wilderness Posts: 121	I have not been tracking the number of times I've fired my .38 Special brass, but I got it as "once-fired match brass" in a trade at a pistol match in the 1960's. Every once in a while I find a split neck and toss a case, but with lite belling and lite crimps, that brass just keeps going and going and going. I have about 100 .308 cases that I've been using for cast bullet loads since I started shooting cast rifle bullets in the 80's. I have never had one of those cases fail --- but I only neck-size them. I truly don't know how many times they have been fired. I did track the number of firings I got from .41 Mag cases. I bought, loaded, and tracked them in lots of 50 cases. Using just enough bell to get my cast bullets to seat and a lite crimp, I sometimes got the first split neck as early as loading # 20. I continued to use the surviving cases for practice. I would tell you how many loading some of them had --- but no one would believe it.

February 8, 2009, 10:30 AM	#6
Steel Talon Senior Member Join Date: May 30, 2007 Posts: 138	Basically with straight wall cases, just inspect each case prior to your load session, cull out any dogs you find, such as split necks, and bulges. Peace ST~

February 8, 2009, 11:06 PM	#10
iScream Member Join Date: August 25, 2008 Location: Tennessee Posts: 89	Thanks everybody. This sounds better than I expected. Somewhere I got the idea that a brass case might only be good for 5 - 6 loads. What about the nickel cases I see in the for sale section? My assumption is that nickel cases are less desirable than brass but I really have no clue. -Chris

February 9, 2009, 06:05 AM	#11
FrankenMauser Senior Member Join Date: August 25, 2008 Location: In the valley above the plain Posts: 13,427	You didn't mention any of the cartridges, but keep in mind that auto-loaders (in straight-wall pistol cartridges) cause the brass to actually shrink in length. Eventually, you can run into headspacing issues; if you don't measure periodically. You'll usually run into split mouths or other problems before shrinkage is an issue, but it is a very real possibility with low pressure loads and high reload numbers on the brass. (15-20+)

February 9, 2009, 07:52 AM	#12
45Marlin carbine Junior member Join Date: January 26, 2007 Location: South-Western North Carolina Posts: 1,124	I've found that for my autos the rim and head-face getting beaten up can be a detriment to reliability this usually happens right before case mouth splits anyway. so I put the beaten-up brass all into a 'shoot and scoot' brass tub that contains the brass I load for this practice - I don't pick it up. I segregate my brass according to make before I resort to dumping them all together thusly. seems I get tighter groups this way. the amount of times loading depends somewhat on the quality of the brass - usually 5-6 times, maybe few more. revolver rounds of course I load them until neck splits show up. nickel cases don't last as long.

February 9, 2009, 12:44 PM	#14
CraigC Junior member Join Date: November 28, 2001 Location: West Tennessee Posts: 4,300	I usually don't even keep track but I have loaded standard .38Spl brass with the old Alliant 2400/1200fps .38-44 load over 20 times without a single problem.

February 9, 2009, 06:26 PM	#15
Voyager AL Senior Member Join Date: January 18, 2006 Location: Pittsburgh,PA Posts: 221	+1 on the nickle cases splitting sooner than brass. But I still pick them up and use 'em. Til they split. Range pickups is the shiznit!