Aluminum and Steel vs. Brass Catridge Cases

CalvinandHobbes · October 23, 2008, 08:55 AM

Hi all, I'm pretty new to the forum and just purchased my first firearm: a Sig p-6/225.

I've been to the range a few times with it and have been WOWed by the reliability and quality of the gun alongside my friends' other 9mms (couple of Kel-Tecs). Needless to say, having all this fun has run me through about a 1,000 rounds of Wal-Mart Winchester FMJ. (about $22 per 100 rounds after tax here). I've been looking online at a wide assortment of websites to see if I can get ammo in bulk and help my wallet out when I go to the range. It seems steel cased import ammo and aluminum Blazers are the cheapest things out there and I'm wondering if using steel casings or aluminum ones could pose any problems or perhaps damage my gun's feed/barrel/extractor.

I know you that typically steel and aluminum casings are on-reloadable; that's not an issue for me at this point (I'll probably be looking for a reloader in a couple of years down the road). But could anyone with some more experience than I fill me in on any other drawbacks to shooting a $7 box of Wolf or $8 box of Blazer Aluminum vs. a $13 box of American Eagle?

Thanks for your help!

Chris

JWT · October 23, 2008, 09:13 AM

I shoot Blazer aluminum 9mm, .45ACP, and .40 S&W all the time. Never had any malfunctions with literally thousands of rounds of the ammo. It's realatively clean and is generally the least expensive ammo I can find. Suits my purpose fine for practice.

gb_in_ga · October 23, 2008, 09:19 AM

None of the above.

I have used steel cased and bi-metal cased ammo in the past. I suspect that the use of such caused serious issues with 2 handguns -- bad peening in 1 case, possible extractor failure in another.

Never again.

My guns get brass or nickel plated brass from now on.

DWARREN123 · October 23, 2008, 09:33 AM

I have and do use steel for mil-surp but nothing else.

DennisD · October 23, 2008, 09:48 AM

I reload so I only use brass but even before I started reloading, I always used brass. Wish I had picked up all that shiny once fired I left on the public range I used to go to.

BTW, welcome!

Smaug · October 23, 2008, 10:10 AM

I normally load my own, so I use brass. On the rare occasions that I buy blasting ammo, I will buy Blazer if it is cheaper.

CalvinandHobbes · October 23, 2008, 11:00 AM

Thanks for the welcome Dennis. I like the forum.

Appreciate ya'll's feedback. JWT, I've got 1000 rounds of blazer aluminum on the way so we'll see how that works! Hope things go as well as they have for you. Natchez has it for 7.99 a box if you're interested.

Gb in Ga... sounds like steel is not the way to go. I am pretty skittish about putting steel in my gun. What do you meen bad peening? Also, is aluminum what you'd call a "bimetal" case?
Thanks for the feedback!

Chris

madmag · October 23, 2008, 11:46 AM

Yes, I use steel & Aluminum. I did have issues (sticking in chamber) with the early Wolf steel when they had the lacquer coating, but now they have corrected that issue, so it works fine for me.

Blazer aluminum gives me less trouble than Blazer Brass. The Blazer Brass is the worse I have ever had with set-back problems. Aluminum has been OK.

James K · October 23, 2008, 12:21 PM

The steel used in cartridge cases is a mild steel, not a lot harder than some copper-zinc (brass) alloys. I don't know what "peening" was experienced, but a hot load would be a more likely cause than the cartridge case material. Aluminum is soft, but aluminum cases are deliberately made non-reloadable (yes, some people have managed to reload them, but it is not recommended) because aluminum has a low elasticity compared to brass, which means it does not have the "springiness" needed for re-use.

Steel case material has drawbacks. It wears factory tooling faster than brass and, left uncoated, it rusts. Brass, over a century, has proven near ideal as a cartridge case material. But cost may force cartridge companies to go to other materials, and work is being done not only on steel and aluminum but on other materials, including plastics.

Jim

bikerbill · October 23, 2008, 04:59 PM

read somewhere that steel can damage extractors ... anybody know?

FireCop203 · October 23, 2008, 05:15 PM

I have used aluminum, steel and brass in all of my guns. Never had any problems at all.

Lashlarue · October 23, 2008, 05:42 PM

Have seen too many kabooms using Blazer aluminum cases.Cannot be used to get your Texas CHL, at least that was the rule when I got mine!

tekarra · October 23, 2008, 06:29 PM

I use steel, aluminum and brass. I prefer brass, but Blazer aluminum is cheap compared to reloading. Have fired several thousand aluminum and steel rounds with no problems. The lacquered steel cases caused some cleaning problems, but some are now are flashed with copper so that overcomes the concerns of steel wearing the chamber prematurely. It also prevents rust. If steel cases were boxer primed it would be so much easier to pick up using a magnet.

lee n. field · October 23, 2008, 07:00 PM

Brass mostly, because Blazer Brass is reloadable and isn't a whole lot more expensive than the regular Blazer ammo.

Aluminum sometimes, if I happen to aquire it somehow. I don't buy it.

Steel, only in my Makarov, which thrives on the stuff.

dogtown tom · October 23, 2008, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Lashlarue: Have seen too many kabooms using Blazer aluminum cases.Cannot be used to get your Texas CHL, at least that was the rule when I got mine!

If Blazer caused as many "kabooms" as you infer, then CCI/Speer wouldn't be in business due to product liability lawsuits.

Blazer has ALWAYS been legal for CHL students in Texas. Many instructors fail to read the following from the Texas DPS Instructors Handbook.

Quote:

TITLE 37 PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONS
PART 1 TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
CHAPTER 6 LICENSE TO CARRY HANDGUNS
SUBCHAPTER G CERTIFIED HANDGUN INSTRUCTORS
RULE §6.75 Ammunition

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Only standard Sporting Arms Ammunition Manufacturing Institute (SAAMI) ammunition may be used during training and qualification. This section applies only to instructor training and qualification provided by the department.

Rmart30 · October 23, 2008, 08:50 PM

Quote:

Appreciate ya'll's feedback. JWT, I've got 1000 rounds of blazer aluminum on the way so we'll see how that works! Hope things go as well as they have for you. Natchez has it for 7.99 a box if you're interested.

Dicks sporting goods has Remington brass cased 9mm $7.49 on sale Basspro has brass WWB 100 rd bulk packs $18 and some change

Ive shot wolf and blazers also with no problems.

Brian Williams · October 23, 2008, 09:16 PM

Sometimes I will use Aluminum for a range training day or most competition.

Colorado-Shooter · October 23, 2008, 09:48 PM

I reload all of my 40 S&W range ammo, its far superior to blazer aluminum junk and I load it for $5.75/box.

skinewmexico · October 23, 2008, 10:02 PM

I've shot over 6,000 rounds thru my XD9 in IDPA competitions, and I'm still waiting for my first FTF or FTE. Works for me. I sure liked it better when I could buy it at Academy for $3.87.

**JohnKSa** · October 24, 2008, 12:45 AM

I've used a lot of Blazer aluminum. I do not consider it to be poor quality ammunition, it functions well and is quite accurate in my experience although I do have one gun that doesn't seem to like it.

I have shot a bit of steel-cased ammunition and while I've had generally good results I do not consider any steel-cased ammunition to be of good quality. It will usually work ok, but it's a step down in quality from either aluminum or brass.

farnorthdan · October 24, 2008, 11:28 AM

So only brass for me

Delaware_Dan · October 24, 2008, 11:35 AM

The only ammo I shoot thats not brass is out of the AK, never out of my pistols.

flight954 · October 24, 2008, 11:42 AM

I only occasionally shoot steel cased ammo from my rifles (AR/AK because of cost), only shoot brass in the handguns.

**Mal H** · October 24, 2008, 06:28 PM

CalvinandHobbes - why did you make the poll multiple choice?

kostner · October 24, 2008, 06:38 PM

Another reloader and have been using brass for thirty years now. Hoping not to have leave a lot of steel cases around my house on Nov. 4th. but am ready.

View Poll Results: Do you use Steel or Aluminum catridge casings when shooting cheap "blasting ammo?"
Yes, regularly	24	26.97%
Yes sometimes	32	35.96%
Never have, might in the future	8	8.99%
Never have and never will	25	28.09%
Multiple Choice Poll. Voters: 89. You may not vote on this poll

October 23, 2008, 08:55 AM	#1
CalvinandHobbes Member Join Date: October 13, 2008 Location: Dayton, OH and STL, MO Posts: 15	Aluminum and Steel vs. Brass Catridge Cases Hi all, I'm pretty new to the forum and just purchased my first firearm: a Sig p-6/225. I've been to the range a few times with it and have been WOWed by the reliability and quality of the gun alongside my friends' other 9mms (couple of Kel-Tecs). Needless to say, having all this fun has run me through about a 1,000 rounds of Wal-Mart Winchester FMJ. (about $22 per 100 rounds after tax here). I've been looking online at a wide assortment of websites to see if I can get ammo in bulk and help my wallet out when I go to the range. It seems steel cased import ammo and aluminum Blazers are the cheapest things out there and I'm wondering if using steel casings or aluminum ones could pose any problems or perhaps damage my gun's feed/barrel/extractor. I know you that typically steel and aluminum casings are on-reloadable; that's not an issue for me at this point (I'll probably be looking for a reloader in a couple of years down the road). But could anyone with some more experience than I fill me in on any other drawbacks to shooting a $7 box of Wolf or $8 box of Blazer Aluminum vs. a $13 box of American Eagle? Thanks for your help! Chris

October 23, 2008, 09:19 AM	#3
gb_in_ga Senior Member Join Date: February 15, 2005 Location: Pensacola, Fl Posts: 3,092	None of the above. I have used steel cased and bi-metal cased ammo in the past. I suspect that the use of such caused serious issues with 2 handguns -- bad peening in 1 case, possible extractor failure in another. Never again. My guns get brass or nickel plated brass from now on. __________________ COME AND TAKE IT http://www.tamu.edu/ccbn/dewitt/batgon.htm Formerly lived in Ga, but now I'm back in Tx! Aaaand, now I'm off to Fla...

October 23, 2008, 09:33 AM	#4
DWARREN123 Senior Member Join Date: January 22, 2006 Location: BETWEEN TN & KY Posts: 1,758	I have and do use steel for mil-surp but nothing else. __________________ Have a nice day!

October 23, 2008, 09:48 AM	#5
DennisD Senior Member Join Date: December 2, 2004 Location: Texas Posts: 365	I reload so I only use brass but even before I started reloading, I always used brass. Wish I had picked up all that shiny once fired I left on the public range I used to go to. BTW, welcome! __________________ What part of "... shall not be infringed" do you not understand?! NRA Life

October 23, 2008, 09:13 AM	#2
JWT Senior Member Join Date: March 16, 2007 Location: Southern Arizona Posts: 3,888	I shoot Blazer aluminum 9mm, .45ACP, and .40 S&W all the time. Never had any malfunctions with literally thousands of rounds of the ammo. It's realatively clean and is generally the least expensive ammo I can find. Suits my purpose fine for practice.

October 23, 2008, 10:10 AM	#6
Smaug Senior Member Join Date: June 4, 2004 Location: SE Wisconsin Posts: 3,210	I normally load my own, so I use brass. On the rare occasions that I buy blasting ammo, I will buy Blazer if it is cheaper. __________________ -Jeremy "Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength." - Eric Hoffer

October 23, 2008, 11:00 AM	#7
CalvinandHobbes Member Join Date: October 13, 2008 Location: Dayton, OH and STL, MO Posts: 15	Thanks for the welcome Dennis. I like the forum. Appreciate ya'll's feedback. JWT, I've got 1000 rounds of blazer aluminum on the way so we'll see how that works! Hope things go as well as they have for you. Natchez has it for 7.99 a box if you're interested. Gb in Ga... sounds like steel is not the way to go. I am pretty skittish about putting steel in my gun. What do you meen bad peening? Also, is aluminum what you'd call a "bimetal" case? Thanks for the feedback! Chris

October 23, 2008, 11:46 AM	#8
madmag Senior Member Join Date: February 7, 2007 Location: The South Posts: 4,239	Yes, I use steel & Aluminum. I did have issues (sticking in chamber) with the early Wolf steel when they had the lacquer coating, but now they have corrected that issue, so it works fine for me. Blazer aluminum gives me less trouble than Blazer Brass. The Blazer Brass is the worse I have ever had with set-back problems. Aluminum has been OK.

October 23, 2008, 12:21 PM	#9
James K Member In Memoriam Join Date: March 17, 1999 Posts: 24,383	The steel used in cartridge cases is a mild steel, not a lot harder than some copper-zinc (brass) alloys. I don't know what "peening" was experienced, but a hot load would be a more likely cause than the cartridge case material. Aluminum is soft, but aluminum cases are deliberately made non-reloadable (yes, some people have managed to reload them, but it is not recommended) because aluminum has a low elasticity compared to brass, which means it does not have the "springiness" needed for re-use. Steel case material has drawbacks. It wears factory tooling faster than brass and, left uncoated, it rusts. Brass, over a century, has proven near ideal as a cartridge case material. But cost may force cartridge companies to go to other materials, and work is being done not only on steel and aluminum but on other materials, including plastics. Jim

October 23, 2008, 04:59 PM	#10
bikerbill Senior Member Join Date: September 19, 2007 Location: Lago Vista TX Posts: 2,425	read somewhere that steel can damage extractors ... anybody know? __________________ "The welfare of humanity is always the alibi of tyrants." Albert Camus

October 23, 2008, 05:15 PM	#11
FireCop203 Member Join Date: October 8, 2008 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 22	I have used aluminum, steel and brass in all of my guns. Never had any problems at all.

October 23, 2008, 05:42 PM	#12
Lashlarue Senior Member Join Date: September 26, 2008 Posts: 533	Have seen too many kabooms using Blazer aluminum cases.Cannot be used to get your Texas CHL, at least that was the rule when I got mine! __________________ I've made a lot of money in my life, most was spent on booze, babes, guns, and poker,the rest I wasted!

October 23, 2008, 06:29 PM	#13
tekarra Senior Member Join Date: May 26, 2007 Posts: 1,164	I use steel, aluminum and brass. I prefer brass, but Blazer aluminum is cheap compared to reloading. Have fired several thousand aluminum and steel rounds with no problems. The lacquered steel cases caused some cleaning problems, but some are now are flashed with copper so that overcomes the concerns of steel wearing the chamber prematurely. It also prevents rust. If steel cases were boxer primed it would be so much easier to pick up using a magnet.

October 23, 2008, 07:00 PM	#14
lee n. field Senior Member Join Date: October 12, 2002 Location: The same state as Mordor. Posts: 5,568	Brass mostly, because Blazer Brass is reloadable and isn't a whole lot more expensive than the regular Blazer ammo. Aluminum sometimes, if I happen to aquire it somehow. I don't buy it. Steel, only in my Makarov, which thrives on the stuff. __________________ "As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven. "

October 23, 2008, 09:16 PM	#17
Brian Williams Senior Member Join Date: September 4, 2001 Location: Lancaster, PA Posts: 1,288	Sometimes I will use Aluminum for a range training day or most competition. __________________ Brian <><

October 23, 2008, 09:48 PM	#18
Colorado-Shooter Junior Member Join Date: August 13, 2008 Posts: 10	I reload all of my 40 S&W range ammo, its far superior to blazer aluminum junk and I load it for $5.75/box.

October 23, 2008, 10:02 PM	#19
skinewmexico Senior Member Join Date: November 10, 2007 Posts: 227	I've shot over 6,000 rounds thru my XD9 in IDPA competitions, and I'm still waiting for my first FTF or FTE. Works for me. I sure liked it better when I could buy it at Academy for $3.87.

October 24, 2008, 12:45 AM	#20
JohnKSa Staff Join Date: February 12, 2001 Location: DFW Area Posts: 24,973	I've used a lot of Blazer aluminum. I do not consider it to be poor quality ammunition, it functions well and is quite accurate in my experience although I do have one gun that doesn't seem to like it. I have shot a bit of steel-cased ammunition and while I've had generally good results I do not consider any steel-cased ammunition to be of good quality. It will usually work ok, but it's a step down in quality from either aluminum or brass. __________________ Do you know about the TEXAS State Rifle Association?

October 24, 2008, 11:28 AM	#21
farnorthdan Senior Member Join Date: December 3, 2007 Posts: 371	Reloader here So only brass for me __________________ Believe NONE of what you hear; HALF of what you see and ALL you believe Accuracy is king,penatration is queen but why not jack'em in the process if you can.

October 24, 2008, 11:35 AM	#22
Delaware_Dan Senior Member Join Date: February 15, 2008 Posts: 1,304	The only ammo I shoot thats not brass is out of the AK, never out of my pistols.

October 24, 2008, 11:42 AM	#23
flight954 Senior Member Join Date: November 1, 2006 Location: Cypress, Texas Posts: 933	I only occasionally shoot steel cased ammo from my rifles (AR/AK because of cost), only shoot brass in the handguns.

October 24, 2008, 06:28 PM	#24
Mal H Staff Join Date: March 20, 1999 Location: Somewhere in the woods of Northern Virginia Posts: 16,949	CalvinandHobbes - why did you make the poll multiple choice?

October 24, 2008, 06:38 PM	#25
kostner Senior Member Join Date: November 28, 2007 Location: Kommifornia Posts: 120	Another reloader and have been using brass for thirty years now. Hoping not to have leave a lot of steel cases around my house on Nov. 4th. but am ready.