Rate my Garand brass

Kayser · June 29, 2011, 11:58 PM

So, I have a ton of Lake City brass that I've put through my Garand and stuffed into a bucket. I'd like to start reloading it.

I think my Garand is probably "average" when it comes to beating the case mouths up. Here's a selection of some of the more severe ones

http://www.dobsis.com/gbrass.gif

Looking for opinions on the reloadability of some of the dingier ones. Most of the mouths are just flatted, but a few have a definite pinch in them. Is a full length sizer going to be able to smooth these out? Are the pinched ones just going to scratch the heck out of the die?

I have 2000+ rounds of the stuff, so it's probably enough to last me the remainder of my natural life assuming it's good for 3-4 reloads.

Thanks for any advice!

oakfloor · June 30, 2011, 12:26 AM

I had a old beater Garand that would do that, I took a phillips screw driver to push out the case mouths and full length sized and trimed, and they came out round 99% of the time, and use the standard 4895/150grn load they should last awhile. I could always tell how many loadings they had by the dings on the rim. I got about 3-5 reloads before I let them fly, as mine probley had a fat headspace, Shoot safe.

dmazur · June 30, 2011, 12:28 AM

Those aren't bad.

When I first started reloading for the Garand I used needlenosed pliers (in the closed position) to help straighten cases with creases. Lately I've been using a tapered punch mounted in a large wood ball, to reduce hand fatigue.

I don't bother trying to straighten the ones with a slight dent on one side.

I haven't had any problems with a full-length resizing die not removing creases and dents, especially if I remove the worst of the crease before asking the die to handle it.

My understanding is that clean brass helps prolong die life. The mouths look like they still have powder residue. While you probably don't have to clean them, a pass through a tumbler for a few hours wouldn't hurt.

Geezerbiker · June 30, 2011, 02:03 AM

I think it's more important what year is head stamped on those cases. If they were originally corrosive primed, I would recycle rather than reload them...

I've resized and reloaded cases that were a lot more beat up than that...

Tony

Kayser · June 30, 2011, 02:13 AM

LC '68

Older than me

Still have several hundred unfired still sitting around.

**Unclenick** · June 30, 2011, 10:37 AM

They're yungin's then. I don't know of any problem with ones that had been corrosively primed (haven't been any since '53 except for one odd lot of FA '58 match ammo) as long as they are not corroded and you clean them with soapy water to remove the salt. It's mercuric primers that weaken brass, and I don't believe the military ever used them in .30-06, even when it was a new development or when Europeans went back to mercuric priming to make the earliest non-corrosive primers.

If you want the official tool for the job, get the Sinclair mandrel die body and the right tapered point mandrel (they'll tell you which one over the phone if you tell them what you want to do with it; there's more than one close size). It will iron the dents out. Dents don't hurt anything until the neck starts to work-harden, and usually you are done with the case by then because of the rim battering and the pressure ring growing.

Civil War Life · June 30, 2011, 12:05 PM

They are no good at all. Send them to me and I'll pay the postage.

June 29, 2011, 11:58 PM	#1
Kayser Senior Member Join Date: May 29, 2002 Location: Illinois :( Posts: 550	Rate my Garand brass So, I have a ton of Lake City brass that I've put through my Garand and stuffed into a bucket. I'd like to start reloading it. I think my Garand is probably "average" when it comes to beating the case mouths up. Here's a selection of some of the more severe ones http://www.dobsis.com/gbrass.gif Looking for opinions on the reloadability of some of the dingier ones. Most of the mouths are just flatted, but a few have a definite pinch in them. Is a full length sizer going to be able to smooth these out? Are the pinched ones just going to scratch the heck out of the die? I have 2000+ rounds of the stuff, so it's probably enough to last me the remainder of my natural life assuming it's good for 3-4 reloads. Thanks for any advice! __________________ ----------------- Box Of Truth Afficionado!

June 30, 2011, 12:28 AM	#3
dmazur Senior Member Join Date: July 5, 2007 Location: Pacific NW Posts: 1,310	Those aren't bad. When I first started reloading for the Garand I used needlenosed pliers (in the closed position) to help straighten cases with creases. Lately I've been using a tapered punch mounted in a large wood ball, to reduce hand fatigue. I don't bother trying to straighten the ones with a slight dent on one side. I haven't had any problems with a full-length resizing die not removing creases and dents, especially if I remove the worst of the crease before asking the die to handle it. My understanding is that clean brass helps prolong die life. The mouths look like they still have powder residue. While you probably don't have to clean them, a pass through a tumbler for a few hours wouldn't hurt. __________________ .30-06 Springfield: 100 yrs + and still going strong

June 30, 2011, 02:13 AM	#5
Kayser Senior Member Join Date: May 29, 2002 Location: Illinois :( Posts: 550	LC '68 Older than me Still have several hundred unfired still sitting around. __________________ ----------------- Box Of Truth Afficionado!

June 30, 2011, 10:37 AM	#6
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,057	They're yungin's then. I don't know of any problem with ones that had been corrosively primed (haven't been any since '53 except for one odd lot of FA '58 match ammo) as long as they are not corroded and you clean them with soapy water to remove the salt. It's mercuric primers that weaken brass, and I don't believe the military ever used them in .30-06, even when it was a new development or when Europeans went back to mercuric priming to make the earliest non-corrosive primers. If you want the official tool for the job, get the Sinclair mandrel die body and the right tapered point mandrel (they'll tell you which one over the phone if you tell them what you want to do with it; there's more than one close size). It will iron the dents out. Dents don't hurt anything until the neck starts to work-harden, and usually you are done with the case by then because of the rim battering and the pressure ring growing. __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle

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June 30, 2011, 12:26 AM	#2
oakfloor Senior Member Join Date: December 10, 2009 Posts: 111	I had a old beater Garand that would do that, I took a phillips screw driver to push out the case mouths and full length sized and trimed, and they came out round 99% of the time, and use the standard 4895/150grn load they should last awhile. I could always tell how many loadings they had by the dings on the rim. I got about 3-5 reloads before I let them fly, as mine probley had a fat headspace, Shoot safe.

June 30, 2011, 02:03 AM	#4
Geezerbiker Senior Member Join Date: March 20, 2011 Location: Willamina, OR Posts: 1,908	I think it's more important what year is head stamped on those cases. If they were originally corrosive primed, I would recycle rather than reload them... I've resized and reloaded cases that were a lot more beat up than that... Tony

June 30, 2011, 12:05 PM	#7
Civil War Life Senior Member Join Date: January 15, 2011 Location: Virginia Posts: 166	They are no good at all. Send them to me and I'll pay the postage.