What do do with military steel and brass?

Nero45 · December 20, 2008, 04:26 AM

What the heck can I do with military steel and brass? I know that with some of the brass I can reload but the steel? Also how the heck do they load steel rounds anyway? Thank you for the help.

NuJudge · December 20, 2008, 08:36 AM

Berdan cases load much like Boxer-primed cases. The anvil in the primer is just part of the case.

Reloading Berdan primed cases is also very similar to Boxer. The biggest problem is getting the primers. Once you accomplish that (none have been available for several years), spent primer removal is accomplished several ways, hydraulics or prying them out. I usually use the RCBS tool on rifle calibers. I can deprime almost 200 cases during a 1 hour TV program.
http://www.surplusrifle.com/shooting...ding/index.asp
http://www.davecushman.net/berdanprimers.html

Some steel cases are Boxer primed. Some of the Wolf steel cased .45 and .223 cases I have observed are Boxer primed. I've shot a lot of steel cased US WWII .45acp loaded by Evansville Chrysler that is Boxer primed.

Most Military cases, whether Boxer or Berdan, have their primers firmly crimped in place. Getting the little buggers out is sometimes impossible. 1980's South African Brass-cased Berdan-primed .303 comes to mind: the primer sealant they used must have been epoxy, with quite a crimp. Some US-made WWII brass-cased .30-'06, the punch goes through the primer, rather than pushing it out.

Ozzieman · December 20, 2008, 09:15 AM

The best thing to do with steel cases is to throw them away, or scrap them out. I would not try to reload steel cases at all.
I have little problem getting primers out of military cases, I just work the press slowly. Yes I do some times punch the decaping pin through the primer but with good quality needle nose pliers I can dig the primer out.
As far as Berdan, that is also one reason that I work the press slowly, if I get to a case that is a berdan then I back off and it gets scraped.
The Berdan system is a very good system it just does not reload easily. The fact the there are two small holes instead of a center large one makes them very difficult to work with.
Personally I would not mess with them unless I had no other way to go. I know of one manufacture that has a hydraulic tool that uses water to push the primer out.
For crimped primer, RCBS and Redding makes a set of dies that swedge the primer pocket out to the correct diameter. There ease to use and come with what’s required for small and large pockets. It will also work for any case.
I also use a small drill mounted wire brush that’s the size of the holes to clean out any crap or loose brass from using the pocket tool. If you have any problem finding anything you need, try out the following site.
They are a great company to work with and have some surprising tools that make reloading easy.

http://www.sinclairintl.com/

December 20, 2008, 04:26 AM	#1
Nero45 Senior Member Join Date: March 7, 2008 Posts: 265	What do do with military steel and brass? What the heck can I do with military steel and brass? I know that with some of the brass I can reload but the steel? Also how the heck do they load steel rounds anyway? Thank you for the help. __________________ Nero45 Revolvers are a disease. Once you buy one your doomed for life! Within temptation are our lives on this earth until we leave -me

December 20, 2008, 08:36 AM	#2
NuJudge Member Join Date: October 17, 2005 Location: SE Michigan Posts: 86	Are you referring to Berdan steel and brass cases? Berdan cases load much like Boxer-primed cases. The anvil in the primer is just part of the case. Reloading Berdan primed cases is also very similar to Boxer. The biggest problem is getting the primers. Once you accomplish that (none have been available for several years), spent primer removal is accomplished several ways, hydraulics or prying them out. I usually use the RCBS tool on rifle calibers. I can deprime almost 200 cases during a 1 hour TV program. http://www.surplusrifle.com/shooting...ding/index.asp http://www.davecushman.net/berdanprimers.html Some steel cases are Boxer primed. Some of the Wolf steel cased .45 and .223 cases I have observed are Boxer primed. I've shot a lot of steel cased US WWII .45acp loaded by Evansville Chrysler that is Boxer primed. Most Military cases, whether Boxer or Berdan, have their primers firmly crimped in place. Getting the little buggers out is sometimes impossible. 1980's South African Brass-cased Berdan-primed .303 comes to mind: the primer sealant they used must have been epoxy, with quite a crimp. Some US-made WWII brass-cased .30-'06, the punch goes through the primer, rather than pushing it out.

December 20, 2008, 09:15 AM	#3
Ozzieman Senior Member Join Date: December 14, 2004 Location: Northern Indiana Posts: 6,117	The best thing to do with steel cases is to throw them away, or scrap them out. I would not try to reload steel cases at all. I have little problem getting primers out of military cases, I just work the press slowly. Yes I do some times punch the decaping pin through the primer but with good quality needle nose pliers I can dig the primer out. As far as Berdan, that is also one reason that I work the press slowly, if I get to a case that is a berdan then I back off and it gets scraped. The Berdan system is a very good system it just does not reload easily. The fact the there are two small holes instead of a center large one makes them very difficult to work with. Personally I would not mess with them unless I had no other way to go. I know of one manufacture that has a hydraulic tool that uses water to push the primer out. For crimped primer, RCBS and Redding makes a set of dies that swedge the primer pocket out to the correct diameter. There ease to use and come with what’s required for small and large pockets. It will also work for any case. I also use a small drill mounted wire brush that’s the size of the holes to clean out any crap or loose brass from using the pocket tool. If you have any problem finding anything you need, try out the following site. They are a great company to work with and have some surprising tools that make reloading easy. http://www.sinclairintl.com/