.204 Case life expectancy

BLS700 · January 15, 2009, 09:03 PM

How long should I expect a .204 ruger case to last loaded to Mid to max velocities? I know there's alot of different factors here so I'm just looking for a ballpark. I'm using Winchester Brass currently because that is all I could find. I'm trying to decide how much to stock up on since getting components for this caliber is not too easy in my area. Thanks for any help.

cobra81 · January 15, 2009, 09:59 PM

After 4 loadings (mine are all Winchester), with medium (3800 fps) loads, I am experiencing about 4 cases out of 100 with splits in the neck or shoulder area. I full-length resized them for the first two loadings, before acquiring a neck-sizing die, which is all I have used since then. Hope this helps.

BLS700 · January 16, 2009, 09:39 PM

yes that does help. thank you. I was hoping for a little better than that but kind of knew I was being unrealistic.

January 15, 2009, 09:03 PM	#1
BLS700 Senior Member Join Date: June 18, 2008 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 229	.204 Case life expectancy How long should I expect a .204 ruger case to last loaded to Mid to max velocities? I know there's alot of different factors here so I'm just looking for a ballpark. I'm using Winchester Brass currently because that is all I could find. I'm trying to decide how much to stock up on since getting components for this caliber is not too easy in my area. Thanks for any help.

January 15, 2009, 09:59 PM	#2
cobra81 Senior Member Join Date: February 18, 2005 Location: Land of Lincoln Posts: 336	After 4 loadings (mine are all Winchester), with medium (3800 fps) loads, I am experiencing about 4 cases out of 100 with splits in the neck or shoulder area. I full-length resized them for the first two loadings, before acquiring a neck-sizing die, which is all I have used since then. Hope this helps.

January 16, 2009, 09:39 PM	#3
BLS700 Senior Member Join Date: June 18, 2008 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 229	yes that does help. thank you. I was hoping for a little better than that but kind of knew I was being unrealistic.