Purchasing brass

[Roland Thunder]

I have never had to purchase brass in the 7 years I have been reloading. But now, I am nearing the point where I may have to. What is a good price one should expect to pay for 500 or 1000 45acp brass cases (large primer).

Can you suggest a good source to get them from?

[Dufus]

These guys have always treated me well and the prices are competitive.

https://www.armorally.com/shop/once-...v=7516fd43adaa

[Aguila Blanca]

I have always been fortunate in scrounging once-fired brass at the range where I shoot, but that only works for popular calibers. I like Winchester brass and I usually have no trouble finding enough in .45 ACP, .40 S&W, and 9mm to fulfill my modest requirements.

For .45 Colt (as well as for .44 Colt, .45 Schofield, and .44 Russian) I just went directly to Starline. That way I know what I'm getting and I can feel comfortable that I can reload it more times that I'll likely be able to use in my lifetime.

[Reloadron]

When I have bought any 45 ACP Large Primer I have gone with Starline Brass. Just as mentioned I know what I am getting so no unhappy surprises.

45 ACP, 45 Automatic, 45 Automatic Colt Pistol
0.892 - 0.897 O.A.L.
.45 Auto Brass: Designed by John Browning, the .45 Auto, or .45 ACP, has been adopted at one point or another by several governments as their official military handgun chambering. It is still popular in the U.S. as a personal defense or target gun.

Box Size:
• 500 ($98.00)
• 1000 ($171.50)

Something to consider anyway.

Ron

[Marco Califo]

www.precisiononcefiredbrass.com
Sells 1000 At-Least-Once-Fired 45 ACP for $39.95, plus shipping $12. It is cheap, but I needed to clean, deprime, and wash well. Re: their 45 ACP brass, I think it is a mix of once fired "indoor" range brass, and, "any" range pick-up, in roughly equal parts. That second category was grimey, dirty. and sooty. I believe a lot of it was used for cast bullets outdoors, several times. One case was split from case mouth to near the rim.
On the other hand, my 1000 40 S&W ALL looked like indoor range sweep up of ammo bought as new, at the cash register.
I reviewed my purchase here:
https://thefiringline.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=601269
I have also bought new GBW from, https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.c...l-brass/45-acp $129.99 1,000.

[Charlie98]

I'm actually a big RP brass fan, it's always treated me well and seems to hold up over time, but brass from any mainstream manufacturer is probably just as good. Shop around and see who has the best price, just like anything else. Don't forget to factor in shipping vs free shipping, if it's relevant.

One other thing to consider... with cartridges like .45ACP, it may be just as cheap to just buy a case of loaded ammos, and then use that brass as your supply going forward. You get one 'free' load out of it, and if you factor in the complete component cost (to include the initial cost of the brass) sometimes it's a very close price... and if you factor in your time, it might even be to your advantage. That is the way I source my .45, 9mm, 5.56mm, and 7.62mm brass.

[1MoreFord]

My favorite .45 brass has always been once fired military. Takes a fair amount of prep but always felt it was worth it.

Next in about a tie was either Winchester White Box bought as ammo and StarLine.

Of course being the cheapskate I am I'd load about anything until it split.

[greentick]

Originally Posted by Marco Califo

www.precisiononcefiredbrass.com
....

Thanks for the site Marco. 3k of 9mm for 0.02 apiece. Shipping was as much as the brass. Don't mind if I do for non-high pressure plinkers.

[Unclenick]

I'll second Starline for new brass. Buy direct or watch for a sale on Midway at a time they've also got a free shipping offer going on. The ones I've bought had about half the weight variation of the Winchester and Federal and other big name brass I've had over time. Unlike Charlie 98, I've had bad experiences with R-P brass having thin neck walls that work hardened to the point a standard sizing die could not bring them down enough to hold onto a bullet and do that after only a couple or three reloadings (Lyman carbide sizing die). They work OK if I run them through Dillon dies, though, which seem to be a little extra tight.

[Dufus]

Unclenick posted:

I've had bad experiences with R-P brass having thin neck walls that work hardened to the point a standard sizing die could not bring them down enough to hold onto a bullet and do that after only a couple or three reloadings (Lyman carbide sizing die).

Me too. I relegate those to my oversize cast bullets. Works fine for those.