Life expectancy of Brass?

kingknives · October 4, 1999, 05:10 PM

As a beginner reloader, I was curious as to how many rounds I should be able to get from a piece of brass. Assuming I'm shooting average 9mm & .45 loads. Thanks

TEXAS LAWMAN · October 4, 1999, 08:45 PM

Unless you are hotrodding the ammo, you should be able to reload 9mm and .45ACP brass virtually indefinitely (or until the base [rim] is beat up so badly it won't reliably function in the semi-automatic). I have some .45 brass which I have reloaded over 20 times. I wouldn't carry it for serious social work but it it still fine for practice. For rifle brass I generally discard the cases when they need to be trimmed for the fifth time.

Paul B. · October 5, 1999, 02:00 PM

Kingknives. I have brass from WW-1 that I still reload. The oldest has an FA 1917 headstamp. These are used strictly for light target loads. Also, the primer pockets are a different size, no longer available. I had to ream them out to use them. (That's what happens when you feed a .45 back in the early 50's, and are dirt poor. You take what you can get, especially when they were free.)
I have a lot of brass from WW-2 that I still load with target loads, and they work fine. I would imagine they've been loaded about 25 to 30 times.
I can't say much about case life on 9MM though. Haven't had one that long.
I usually shoot cast lead bullets, which seem to be easier on the gun. .45's shoot lead well, but many 9MM's do not. You just have to try them and see if they work. My P-85 Ruger shoots the same size groups as jacketed factory. My Taurus won't even feed them. An S&W I had scattered the shot so bad it looked like I was shooting buckshot from a shotgun. A friends Luger just loved them, but his P-38 (early wartime issue) shot worse than my Smith. These were all with a 125 gr. hardball shaped bullet, cast of a hard alloy.
Paul B.

kingknives · October 5, 1999, 08:09 PM

Wow, that's good to know. I was thinking maybe two or three reloads from each casing. I'll be using it for "plinking" only. So it will be pretty standard loads. Nothing "hot", but nothing to soft either. Mid-reange stuff, jacketed ball.
Thanks for the information.

------------------
Knee deep in brass, still shootin fast!

October 4, 1999, 05:10 PM	#1
kingknives Senior Member Join Date: June 15, 1999 Location: SW Florida Posts: 214	As a beginner reloader, I was curious as to how many rounds I should be able to get from a piece of brass. Assuming I'm shooting average 9mm & .45 loads. Thanks

October 4, 1999, 08:45 PM	#2
TEXAS LAWMAN Senior Member Join Date: August 27, 1999 Posts: 304	Unless you are hotrodding the ammo, you should be able to reload 9mm and .45ACP brass virtually indefinitely (or until the base [rim] is beat up so badly it won't reliably function in the semi-automatic). I have some .45 brass which I have reloaded over 20 times. I wouldn't carry it for serious social work but it it still fine for practice. For rifle brass I generally discard the cases when they need to be trimmed for the fifth time.

October 5, 1999, 02:00 PM	#3
Paul B. Senior Member Join Date: March 28, 1999 Location: Tucson, AZ Posts: 3,801	Kingknives. I have brass from WW-1 that I still reload. The oldest has an FA 1917 headstamp. These are used strictly for light target loads. Also, the primer pockets are a different size, no longer available. I had to ream them out to use them. (That's what happens when you feed a .45 back in the early 50's, and are dirt poor. You take what you can get, especially when they were free.) I have a lot of brass from WW-2 that I still load with target loads, and they work fine. I would imagine they've been loaded about 25 to 30 times. I can't say much about case life on 9MM though. Haven't had one that long. I usually shoot cast lead bullets, which seem to be easier on the gun. .45's shoot lead well, but many 9MM's do not. You just have to try them and see if they work. My P-85 Ruger shoots the same size groups as jacketed factory. My Taurus won't even feed them. An S&W I had scattered the shot so bad it looked like I was shooting buckshot from a shotgun. A friends Luger just loved them, but his P-38 (early wartime issue) shot worse than my Smith. These were all with a 125 gr. hardball shaped bullet, cast of a hard alloy. Paul B.

October 5, 1999, 08:09 PM	#4
kingknives Senior Member Join Date: June 15, 1999 Location: SW Florida Posts: 214	Wow, that's good to know. I was thinking maybe two or three reloads from each casing. I'll be using it for "plinking" only. So it will be pretty standard loads. Nothing "hot", but nothing to soft either. Mid-reange stuff, jacketed ball. Thanks for the information. ------------------ Knee deep in brass, still shootin fast!