Pistol Brass ?

RDF · July 12, 2008, 05:19 AM

Hi

I'm working on some loads for my 9mm and 38. Will be for plinking,Idpa, and Cowboy shooting. How important l is it to use same name brass or is it ok to use mixed brass? Does a hunting load make a difference also? Will be loading 44 mag in the near future also.

Thanks
Rick

mniesen89 · July 12, 2008, 08:40 AM

Everybody has there own opinion of course, but mixing pistol brass is fine.As far as rifle cartridges go, if your looking for accuracy, you'll definitely want to keep your brass the same. Alot of people including me go as far as weighing each piece of brass and keeping those that weigh close to the same grouped!

I would assume your new to reloading? Have you picked up any manuals yet?

shu · July 12, 2008, 12:15 PM

38spl and 45acp are low pressure cartridges. The strength of cases and firearms both are likely to be much improved over the original design specifications, simply due to improvements in metalurgy and quality control. 38spl, originally sized for black powder, has plenty of freeboard between powder and bullet so differences in case volume between manufacturers is not important. I take what I can find and use them until they crack. My 38spl loads are mostly low to mid range target loads.

9mm is a higher pressure cartridge with not much freeboard. There is enough fairly fresh WIN brass arround for scrounging that I can standardize on. I may be just kidding myself though, because Winchester may well use several suppliers for their brass, with some variation in case volume due to thickness of wall and web.

For 357mag boomer loads I use purchased brass and keep it separated.

-shu

zxcvbob · July 12, 2008, 12:49 PM

I keep my nickel-plated brass separated from my yellow brass, cuz it just looks tacky if you mix it.
In .45 Colt, I only use Starline brass for my very-high-pressure Ruger Only loads. I also avoid Starline brass when I'm loading black powder or other low-pressure loads because it doesn't seal the bore very well at low pressures.
I have a bunch of RP brass separated out in .38 Special and .357M just because I bought way too many Remington 1.5 primers when they were cheap and they are too tight in other brands of brass.

Except for that, I leave it mixed up.

Crosshair · July 12, 2008, 01:28 PM

I just leave it mixed, the only time I separate it is for high end rounds like the 500 S&W and such.

RDF · July 12, 2008, 04:07 PM

I have been reloading a few years, but mostly 12 ga, some in .223, .243. 30-06 and 38's for cowboy. Trying to find a accurte load for my 9 mm's. Going to get a 44 mag next week and will load for it also. I have several manuals that I check out. Didn't know it the different case brands would make that much of a difference. I started to seperate the different cases and got to thinking about this, have about 6000 cases.

joneb · July 12, 2008, 04:50 PM

For my revolver ammo I don't mix it, same head stamp and the same number of reloadings. I try to do this with my auto brass but it is much more difficult.
I try to be as consistent as possible when reloading, I reload not only to save money but to produce ammunition that is more accurate in my guns than factory ammo.

WESHOOT2 · July 13, 2008, 11:29 AM

I can repeat on demand testing with the 9x19; single headstamp ammo, regardless of bullet, is more accurate than mixed heasdstamp ammo.

I can prove it with numerous guns.

I can prove it in every handgun cartridge I load for; amount, however, varies.
I do not normally sort for 45 ACP, but any bigger-match ammo gets made with one brand of case.

I have many cases.

Only the individual can decide if the time is well spent.

Walther22lr · July 13, 2008, 12:30 PM

For me, when loading rounds to be used in SASS, I don't worry about the headstamps being the same. At the distances involved, I don't think its worth the hassle.
Now for the long range side events, sure, I might sort them to get the best possible accuracy.

July 12, 2008, 05:19 AM	#1
RDF Senior Member Join Date: August 9, 1999 Location: West Liberty, Ky Posts: 133	Pistol Brass ? Hi I'm working on some loads for my 9mm and 38. Will be for plinking,Idpa, and Cowboy shooting. How important l is it to use same name brass or is it ok to use mixed brass? Does a hunting load make a difference also? Will be loading 44 mag in the near future also. Thanks Rick

July 12, 2008, 12:15 PM	#3
shu Senior Member Join Date: May 11, 2000 Location: lower rio grande valley, texas Posts: 216	38spl and 45acp are low pressure cartridges. The strength of cases and firearms both are likely to be much improved over the original design specifications, simply due to improvements in metalurgy and quality control. 38spl, originally sized for black powder, has plenty of freeboard between powder and bullet so differences in case volume between manufacturers is not important. I take what I can find and use them until they crack. My 38spl loads are mostly low to mid range target loads. 9mm is a higher pressure cartridge with not much freeboard. There is enough fairly fresh WIN brass arround for scrounging that I can standardize on. I may be just kidding myself though, because Winchester may well use several suppliers for their brass, with some variation in case volume due to thickness of wall and web. For 357mag boomer loads I use purchased brass and keep it separated. -shu __________________ If you would have Liberty you must accept that individual security is not the responsiblity of government. You must. - XAVIER ONASIS

July 12, 2008, 12:49 PM	#4
zxcvbob Senior Member Join Date: December 20, 2007 Location: S.E. Minnesota Posts: 4,720	I keep my nickel-plated brass separated from my yellow brass, cuz it just looks tacky if you mix it. In .45 Colt, I only use Starline brass for my very-high-pressure Ruger Only loads. I also avoid Starline brass when I'm loading black powder or other low-pressure loads because it doesn't seal the bore very well at low pressures. I have a bunch of RP brass separated out in .38 Special and .357M just because I bought way too many Remington 1.5 primers when they were cheap and they are too tight in other brands of brass. Except for that, I leave it mixed up. __________________ "Everything they do is so dramatic and flamboyant. It just makes me want to set myself on fire!" —Lucille Bluth

July 12, 2008, 01:28 PM	#5
Crosshair Senior Member Join Date: December 16, 2004 Location: Grand Forks, ND Posts: 5,333	I just leave it mixed, the only time I separate it is for high end rounds like the 500 S&W and such. __________________ I don't carry a gun to go looking for trouble, I carry a gun in case trouble finds me.

July 13, 2008, 11:29 AM	#8
WESHOOT2 Senior Member Join Date: February 20, 1999 Location: home on the range; Vermont (Caspian country) Posts: 14,324	why bother I can repeat on demand testing with the 9x19; single headstamp ammo, regardless of bullet, is more accurate than mixed heasdstamp ammo. I can prove it with numerous guns. I can prove it in every handgun cartridge I load for; amount, however, varies. I do not normally sort for 45 ACP, but any bigger-match ammo gets made with one brand of case. I have many cases. Only the individual can decide if the time is well spent. __________________ . "all my ammo is mostly retired factory ammo"

July 12, 2008, 08:40 AM	#2
mniesen89 Senior Member Join Date: October 21, 2007 Location: deland,fl Posts: 238	Everybody has there own opinion of course, but mixing pistol brass is fine.As far as rifle cartridges go, if your looking for accuracy, you'll definitely want to keep your brass the same. Alot of people including me go as far as weighing each piece of brass and keeping those that weigh close to the same grouped! I would assume your new to reloading? Have you picked up any manuals yet?

July 12, 2008, 04:07 PM	#6
RDF Senior Member Join Date: August 9, 1999 Location: West Liberty, Ky Posts: 133	I have been reloading a few years, but mostly 12 ga, some in .223, .243. 30-06 and 38's for cowboy. Trying to find a accurte load for my 9 mm's. Going to get a 44 mag next week and will load for it also. I have several manuals that I check out. Didn't know it the different case brands would make that much of a difference. I started to seperate the different cases and got to thinking about this, have about 6000 cases.

July 12, 2008, 04:50 PM	#7
joneb Senior Member Join Date: December 10, 2005 Location: Central , OR Posts: 1,888	For my revolver ammo I don't mix it, same head stamp and the same number of reloadings. I try to do this with my auto brass but it is much more difficult. I try to be as consistent as possible when reloading, I reload not only to save money but to produce ammunition that is more accurate in my guns than factory ammo.

July 13, 2008, 12:30 PM	#9
Walther22lr Senior Member Join Date: February 2, 2000 Location: Arizona Territory Posts: 296	For me, when loading rounds to be used in SASS, I don't worry about the headstamps being the same. At the distances involved, I don't think its worth the hassle. Now for the long range side events, sure, I might sort them to get the best possible accuracy.