Any difference in Winchester versus Remington brass?

tpcollins · June 17, 2012, 11:12 AM

I was going to order some dies, brass, and bullets to load .223 Remington. I've always used Remington brass but those are on backorder for the moment however they have Winchester available. I'll be shooting coyotes out of an AR15 - any difference between these two brass companies? Thanks.

jmortimer · June 17, 2012, 11:25 AM

From what I have read, Winchester brass is better quality. Starline is good choice.

math teacher · June 17, 2012, 11:27 AM

There may be a slight difference in wall thickness which would result in a slight difference in case capacity. Unless your load is near max, you probably won't notice the difference.

In answer to your second question, it has been proven that a shot from the grassy knoll would have killed Jackie also.

Marco Califo · June 19, 2012, 11:18 PM

Compared to other cartrides, 223 are very consistent between brands, and also, Mil-spec. The differences are so small, I sort for primer crimp, rather than brand. I use the same loads in all 223 cases.

http://thefiringline.com/forums/atta...7&d=1339727055

Rifleman1776 · June 20, 2012, 07:40 AM

What Math Teacher said. I used all brands of 30-06 brass but kept Winchester for max and max-max loads as the case capacity was greater than others. Military is thicker and has smaller capacity but it's reloading life is almost forever.

wncchester · June 20, 2012, 09:38 AM

It get's amusing to read some web experts loudly proclaiming "Win/Fed/Rem/etc" cases as "great" or "junk" as if every production lot ever made by them will be identical for yesterday, today and forever more. Yeah, there are modest differences in brass alloy and, sometimes, in forming and thickness but none of it's consistant in detail and whether or not the average differences are good or not for each of us will vary by how it's used ... or misused.

If you can't buy the brand you want, buy the brand you can get and go shootin'!

abber · June 20, 2012, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Starline is good choice.

I don't believe Starline to be an option for .223 brass.

Marco Califo · June 20, 2012, 09:24 PM

Another advantage of LC (that is the headstamp of the Lake City, Independence, MO 64056‎ US Army ammunition manufacturing facility) is that the head stamp also includes the year of manufacture: LC 08 was made in 2008. This is an advantage because if you sort by year you are more likely to find very consistent properties, like exact same alloy, same manufacturing process, etc. That can give you more consistency than you can get with commercial brass, from one case to the next, that may have been made this year, or in 1968, you will never know. When you buy mil-surplus brass it usually comes in a narrow year range. I bought a thousand LC from GIBrass.com about 5 years ago, that includes 98, 99, 00 and a few strays.

mohr308 · June 21, 2012, 01:06 AM

Im getting ready to order some LC brass from this guy…
http://store.brassmanbrass.com/servl...sed/Categories

wingman · June 21, 2012, 07:25 AM

I don't care for Remington brass,winchester ok,lake city brass is excellent for my AR several reloads,but for consistent accuracy from my bolt gun I use Laupa.

For your question I would always chose winchester over Remington brass.

wncchester · June 21, 2012, 08:43 AM

"LC ... includes the year of manufacture... This is an advantage because...you are more likely to find very consistent properties, like exact same alloy, same manufacturing process, etc."

That sounds good and might be true IF the makers restricted any changes in stamping dies and alloy suppliers only on Jan 1. But I doubt that's the way it's done.

tpcollins · June 25, 2012, 06:42 AM

I've only used Remington brass for .204 and .243 so far. I just prepped 100 pcs of Winchester brass for .223 last night. When using the debur tool on the inside of the flash hole, I felt a slight "tug" on one case. In using the primer pocket reamer, I never felt it reaming the bottom of the pockets. I remember removing alot of brass at the bottom of the Remington brass.

So the Winchester brass seemed alot easier to prep - at least to me. And the full "WINCHESTER" stamped on the head looks kinda neat as well. I'll reload various loads towards the end of this week and then head for the range . . .

243winxb · June 25, 2012, 07:50 AM

No difference between Rem & Win brass in 243 win. Before using the tool, FL size & trim to length before flash hole reaming when using the Lyman tool.

http://photobucket.com/firearmsreloading

jmortimer · June 25, 2012, 09:03 AM

As noted above, there is no Starline for many of the common rifle calibers including .223, which is too bad as they make some good brass at a fair price. It appears they are not into bottle-neck cases so much.

Sure Shot Mc Gee · June 25, 2012, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Any difference in Winchester versus Remington brass?

For 223. I've allways preferred Federal over the other two myself. With Winchester a close second. So to answer the OPs question more precisely. Is there a difference in their dimensions or materials. I'm not qualified to say. I suggested my preference. Sorry, that's about all I can do tpcollins.

What direction did that last shot at Kennedy come from? Maybe you tpcollins have the answer. I suspect it may have came from behind the grassy knoll myself.

June 17, 2012, 11:12 AM	#1
tpcollins Senior Member Join Date: February 18, 2009 Location: SE Michigan Posts: 558	Any difference in Winchester versus Remington brass? I was going to order some dies, brass, and bullets to load .223 Remington. I've always used Remington brass but those are on backorder for the moment however they have Winchester available. I'll be shooting coyotes out of an AR15 - any difference between these two brass companies? Thanks. __________________ What direction did that last shot at Kennedy come from?

June 19, 2012, 11:18 PM	#4
Marco Califo Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2011 Location: LA (Greater Los Angeles Area) Posts: 2,602	They are all pretty close Compared to other cartrides, 223 are very consistent between brands, and also, Mil-spec. The differences are so small, I sort for primer crimp, rather than brand. I use the same loads in all 223 cases. http://thefiringline.com/forums/atta...7&d=1339727055 __________________ ............ Last edited by Marco Califo; June 20, 2012 at 09:25 PM.

June 20, 2012, 09:24 PM	#8
Marco Califo Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2011 Location: LA (Greater Los Angeles Area) Posts: 2,602	Win and Rem - What Year? Another advantage of LC (that is the headstamp of the Lake City, Independence, MO 64056‎ US Army ammunition manufacturing facility) is that the head stamp also includes the year of manufacture: LC 08 was made in 2008. This is an advantage because if you sort by year you are more likely to find very consistent properties, like exact same alloy, same manufacturing process, etc. That can give you more consistency than you can get with commercial brass, from one case to the next, that may have been made this year, or in 1968, you will never know. When you buy mil-surplus brass it usually comes in a narrow year range. I bought a thousand LC from GIBrass.com about 5 years ago, that includes 98, 99, 00 and a few strays. __________________ ............

June 25, 2012, 06:42 AM	#12
tpcollins Senior Member Join Date: February 18, 2009 Location: SE Michigan Posts: 558	I've only used Remington brass for .204 and .243 so far. I just prepped 100 pcs of Winchester brass for .223 last night. When using the debur tool on the inside of the flash hole, I felt a slight "tug" on one case. In using the primer pocket reamer, I never felt it reaming the bottom of the pockets. I remember removing alot of brass at the bottom of the Remington brass. So the Winchester brass seemed alot easier to prep - at least to me. And the full "WINCHESTER" stamped on the head looks kinda neat as well. I'll reload various loads towards the end of this week and then head for the range . . . __________________ What direction did that last shot at Kennedy come from?

June 25, 2012, 07:50 AM	#13
243winxb Senior Member Join Date: July 26, 2011 Location: USA Posts: 1,730	No difference between Rem & Win brass in 243 win. Before using the tool, FL size & trim to length before flash hole reaming when using the Lyman tool. http://photobucket.com/firearmsreloading Last edited by 243winxb; June 25, 2012 at 07:56 AM. Reason: add link

June 17, 2012, 11:25 AM	#2
jmortimer Junior member Join Date: January 24, 2010 Location: South West Riverside County California Posts: 2,763	From what I have read, Winchester brass is better quality. Starline is good choice.

June 17, 2012, 11:27 AM	#3
math teacher Senior Member Join Date: February 5, 2012 Location: Southwest WA Coast Posts: 559	There may be a slight difference in wall thickness which would result in a slight difference in case capacity. Unless your load is near max, you probably won't notice the difference. In answer to your second question, it has been proven that a shot from the grassy knoll would have killed Jackie also.

June 20, 2012, 07:40 AM	#5
Rifleman1776 Senior Member Join Date: April 25, 2010 Location: Arkansas Posts: 3,309	What Math Teacher said. I used all brands of 30-06 brass but kept Winchester for max and max-max loads as the case capacity was greater than others. Military is thicker and has smaller capacity but it's reloading life is almost forever.

June 20, 2012, 09:38 AM	#6
wncchester Senior Member Join Date: December 1, 2002 Posts: 2,832	It get's amusing to read some web experts loudly proclaiming "Win/Fed/Rem/etc" cases as "great" or "junk" as if every production lot ever made by them will be identical for yesterday, today and forever more. Yeah, there are modest differences in brass alloy and, sometimes, in forming and thickness but none of it's consistant in detail and whether or not the average differences are good or not for each of us will vary by how it's used ... or misused. If you can't buy the brand you want, buy the brand you can get and go shootin'!

June 21, 2012, 01:06 AM	#9
mohr308 Senior Member Join Date: January 15, 2012 Location: Western New York Posts: 466	Im getting ready to order some LC brass from this guy… http://store.brassmanbrass.com/servl...sed/Categories

June 21, 2012, 07:25 AM	#10
wingman Senior Member Join Date: August 20, 2002 Posts: 2,108	I don't care for Remington brass,winchester ok,lake city brass is excellent for my AR several reloads,but for consistent accuracy from my bolt gun I use Laupa. For your question I would always chose winchester over Remington brass.

June 21, 2012, 08:43 AM	#11
wncchester Senior Member Join Date: December 1, 2002 Posts: 2,832	"LC ... includes the year of manufacture... This is an advantage because...you are more likely to find very consistent properties, like exact same alloy, same manufacturing process, etc." That sounds good and might be true IF the makers restricted any changes in stamping dies and alloy suppliers only on Jan 1. But I doubt that's the way it's done.

June 25, 2012, 09:03 AM	#14
jmortimer Junior member Join Date: January 24, 2010 Location: South West Riverside County California Posts: 2,763	As noted above, there is no Starline for many of the common rifle calibers including .223, which is too bad as they make some good brass at a fair price. It appears they are not into bottle-neck cases so much.