Dented casings on new ammo...

Rikakiah · August 9, 2013, 10:50 PM

Just purchased some Winchester 5.56 (white box). Most of the brass has little dents in it and one was half-covered in grey gunk and even appeared to have a fingerprint seared onto it. I realize this is probably their cheapest ammo, but come on, that can't be normal.

I was planning to save the brass to reload, but it almost seems as if it's probably been reloaded before, so I really have no idea how many more times I'd be able to load them...

Bezoar · August 10, 2013, 12:47 AM

isnt that the 20 dollar 20 round 55 gr fmj stuff?

Well fire a shot and see what the primer pocket is like, local gunstore claims its milspec ammu from a winchester overrun/failed to meet military testing standards.

Rikakiah · August 10, 2013, 12:52 AM

It's 55gr fmj, but was only 12 for 20 rounds, same as some Federal hollow points I also got. Federal brass looked factory fresh, almost polished.

**Unclenick** · August 10, 2013, 02:21 PM

Wipe it off and shoot it. That will iron the dings out. Then see how it looks and evaluate it.

LSU · August 10, 2013, 04:09 PM

I'd give it a good "once over look" and if the dings are the only problems, I'd shoot it and then examine the brass.

I had some dinged up .223 white box that had a few dings and it worked fine.

I'd also suggest you mark the dinged up brass with a sharpie so you'll be able to tell which ones were "dented". I didn't do this and I couldn't tell the dinged one against the "normal" ones.

I've since reloaded it and fired it all with no issues.

JimDandy · August 10, 2013, 08:14 PM

Before the recent scare I was getting 20x PMC .223 55 FMJ for 6.50, I just saw cases of it for 9.49 a 20 box. Of course the factory PMC is junk, but I'm hoping it reloads well.

TXAZ · August 10, 2013, 08:23 PM

Ditto on trying a couple. Had a similar experience but they all shot fine. My only concern was if there might be a chambering issue which there was not.

Real Gun · August 11, 2013, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Of course the factory PMC is junk, but I'm hoping it reloads well.

I couldn't help thinking it would make more sense to just buy brass.

howlnmad · August 11, 2013, 08:55 AM

Wipe it off and shoot it.

Rikakiah · August 11, 2013, 10:41 AM

Yeah, they're all pretty minor, most just below the shoulder, a few about halfway down. None of them seem major enough to distort the casing enough to prevent chambering. Guess we'll see next range time.

No real need to mark them, since it's pretty much every single Winchester. Will probably just get the Federal stuff next time since it's the same price, looks better, and isn't fmj so I can take creatures with it, too.

August 9, 2013, 10:50 PM	#1
Rikakiah Senior Member Join Date: June 29, 2013 Posts: 189	Dented casings on new ammo... Just purchased some Winchester 5.56 (white box). Most of the brass has little dents in it and one was half-covered in grey gunk and even appeared to have a fingerprint seared onto it. I realize this is probably their cheapest ammo, but come on, that can't be normal. I was planning to save the brass to reload, but it almost seems as if it's probably been reloaded before, so I really have no idea how many more times I'd be able to load them...

August 10, 2013, 02:21 PM	#4
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,061	Wipe it off and shoot it. That will iron the dings out. Then see how it looks and evaluate it. __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle

August 10, 2013, 08:23 PM	#7
TXAZ Senior Member Join Date: September 5, 2010 Location: McMurdo Sound Texas Posts: 4,322	Ditto on trying a couple. Had a similar experience but they all shot fine. My only concern was if there might be a chambering issue which there was not. __________________ Cave illos in guns et backhoes Last edited by TXAZ; August 10, 2013 at 08:44 PM.

August 10, 2013, 12:47 AM	#2
Bezoar Junior member Join Date: October 19, 2004 Location: michigan Posts: 578	isnt that the 20 dollar 20 round 55 gr fmj stuff? Well fire a shot and see what the primer pocket is like, local gunstore claims its milspec ammu from a winchester overrun/failed to meet military testing standards.

August 10, 2013, 12:52 AM	#3
Rikakiah Senior Member Join Date: June 29, 2013 Posts: 189	It's 55gr fmj, but was only 12 for 20 rounds, same as some Federal hollow points I also got. Federal brass looked factory fresh, almost polished.

August 10, 2013, 04:09 PM	#5
LSU Member Join Date: May 12, 2013 Posts: 38	I'd give it a good "once over look" and if the dings are the only problems, I'd shoot it and then examine the brass. I had some dinged up .223 white box that had a few dings and it worked fine. I'd also suggest you mark the dinged up brass with a sharpie so you'll be able to tell which ones were "dented". I didn't do this and I couldn't tell the dinged one against the "normal" ones. I've since reloaded it and fired it all with no issues.

August 10, 2013, 08:14 PM	#6
JimDandy Senior Member Join Date: August 8, 2012 Posts: 2,556	Before the recent scare I was getting 20x PMC .223 55 FMJ for 6.50, I just saw cases of it for 9.49 a 20 box. Of course the factory PMC is junk, but I'm hoping it reloads well.

August 11, 2013, 08:55 AM	#9
howlnmad Senior Member Join Date: April 29, 2009 Location: Harriman Tn Posts: 424	Wipe it off and shoot it.

August 11, 2013, 10:41 AM	#10
Rikakiah Senior Member Join Date: June 29, 2013 Posts: 189	Yeah, they're all pretty minor, most just below the shoulder, a few about halfway down. None of them seem major enough to distort the casing enough to prevent chambering. Guess we'll see next range time. No real need to mark them, since it's pretty much every single Winchester. Will probably just get the Federal stuff next time since it's the same price, looks better, and isn't fmj so I can take creatures with it, too.