Nickel?

laymenshooter · February 8, 2016, 06:46 PM

I have a good amount of nickel rounds, mainly from my last job. Are they any good for reloading?

KEYBEAR · February 8, 2016, 06:49 PM

I load them what caliber are they ?

Dufus · February 8, 2016, 07:23 PM

You can load them but they are hard on the dies....abrasive and harder than regular brass cases.

Also, they can't be annealed as doing so makes them harder. Just shoot them 'til the wear out which sometimes ain't too long.

Xplan · February 8, 2016, 07:28 PM

Yes nickel plated brass is good for reloading. It does tend to become brittle and cases crack at a higher rate than pure brass. If they crack after sizing just toss them. Not a big deal.

Bill DeShivs · February 8, 2016, 07:42 PM

Annealing nickeled cases doesn't make them harder.

laymenshooter · February 8, 2016, 09:42 PM

All I have for nickel is 40 S&W.

RC20 · February 8, 2016, 10:20 PM

I have tried them and find them extremely difficult.

Not worth it in my opinion. YRMV

hartcreek · February 8, 2016, 10:54 PM

I you are having problems reloading with nickel plated cases then the problem is you. Yes they do not last as long for reloading but they should work the same. Steel cases is what you want to avoid as they are much harder on dies.

TimSr · February 9, 2016, 08:04 AM

Load them the same as any other brass. They tumble clean a lot quicker. They have a different feel when resizing like they are stiffer, but slide easier. No need for lube in carbide dies. Lube for standard non-carbide dies, just like any other. I've heard you get less reloads from them. I have yet to be convinced, as I have several sets, most over 10 loadings, that have never met their end of life. They are my preferred case for 38/357 snce they don't tarnish and discolor from handling.

FlyFish · February 9, 2016, 08:06 AM

Agree with TimSr 100%. Nickel plated cases are just fine for reloading. Along with lots of them in a variety of calibers, I have some .357 Super Vel plated brass that came along with the first centerfire handgun I ever bought (original - not Mark III - Colt Trooper, wish I still had it). Been reloading them for about 45 years now, with only a few getting tossed with neck splits. I've also still got, and still use, the dies that came in the same package deal. Only once ran into one small problem - I had a batch of Remington .38 Special nickel cases where the plating started flaking off, so I tossed those. Otherwise, just the same as brass except that they clean up a bit better and size a bit easier.

TimSr · February 9, 2016, 08:24 AM

I've had nickel flaking off around the case mouth, and continued reloading them anyways.

wcandres · February 9, 2016, 10:17 AM

My S&W 38Master prefers them to brass (feeding better). I've loaded them many times, using the common bull's-eye load, and have no more wear from usage than brass.

Tsquared · February 9, 2016, 11:22 AM

I take nickel cases and throw them in a mason jar. When I fill the jar I will load them with Hornady XTP or Sierra V-crown JHP. I have never bought any but everything has been range pickup. I have been doing that the past 16 years and I have put away a fair amount for the zombie apocalypse.

I used to reload them but the 9mm cases last about a quarter as long as what brass does. When I shot 38/357 they lasted about the same as brass but I was shooting mouse fart loads 99% of the time.

mikld · February 9, 2016, 01:58 PM

I started reloading in '69 mainly with brass I picked up at a police range and about 75% were nickel plated. Since this was pre-web, nobody told me nickel plated brass was any different so I just reloaded them the same as non-plated. I have had absolutely no problems related to nickel plated brass. Nope, my .38 Special Lee dies are still in good shape; no excess wear. I have reloaded some so many times I can see through the plating to the nekkid brass underneath. I have had no flaking of nickel. The cases get reloaded just like any brass and last just as long (with a wide variety of loads from pip squeak to +P+, and I have some nickel plated .357 Magnum brass that has had some "hot" 125 JHP rounds.).

Perhaps some have had problems, but with my equipment (started with a Lee Loader, then Lee dies, then Herter's dies, and an old Pacific set) and my loads from just enough to get the bullet outta the barrel to "barn burner", hot loads, I have had no problems related to nickel plating only (as different from non-plated).

I still have a few hundred nickel plated .38 Special and .357 Magnum cases and if you don't wanna try them I'll take any you want to get rid of...

T. O'Heir · February 9, 2016, 03:17 PM

They're just nickel plated brass. Reload just like any other case, but the nickel tends to come off. Found they get brittle on the mouth a bit quicker too.
They do not bother the dies in the least. Both nickel and brass are nowhere near as hard as any steel.
"...pre-web, nobody told me..." Ditto. Lotta stuff changed when whatisname invented the internet. Nobody tells me anything now either. Still expected to know though. snicker.

polyphemus · February 9, 2016, 03:31 PM

Quote:

Lotta stuff changed when whatisname invented the internet.

That was Vice President Gore but how was he to know that Ni plated brass reloads just fine?

**Unclenick** · February 9, 2016, 03:52 PM

I've had both good and bad nickel. Some of it flakes off, and I've had small flake particles cold weld to the nickel matrix than holds the carbide particles in the carbide sizing ring together and start scratching cases. Had to polish it out with abrasives to get the finish back. I've had other nickel that just gradually wore off and never flaked, and that caused no issues. Seems like more than one plating process has been used. But if you are using, say, Lee sizing dies, they aren't terribly expensive to replace. I'll just advise you to apply a spray lube to the cases (even though you aren't supposed to have to with carbide pistol dies), and see if that doesn't discourage flakes from sticking to the surface. If I'd thought of it at the time I still had a lot of nickel 357 Mag cases I reloaded, I'd have done that, too.

condor bravo · February 9, 2016, 04:24 PM

Speaking for some of the larger belted mag rifle calibers only, the nickel plated cases are more susceptible to cracked necks and somewhat more difficult to resize. This morning upon sizing some .416s, four split necks out of 40 nickel plated cases and zero splits out of 20 brass cases which is fairly standard ratio across the board. This apparently has something to do with difference in case thickness between the two. The nickel plated cases seem to be thicker. Take two sized cases, one nickel and the other brass of the same brand (R-P for the example), and the same volume of powder will fill more of the nickel case than the brass case. I've never had a flaking issue with the nickel brass, just lose a lot more due to cracked necks.

Dufus · February 9, 2016, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Annealing nickeled cases doesn't make them harder.

http://www.varmintal.net/arelo.htm#Nickel_Brass

William T. Watts · February 9, 2016, 11:02 PM

I've damaged two sizing dies with nickel cases, RCBS replaced the first die but told me they wouldn't replace another if damaged with nickel. FWIW I have never damaged a third sizing die and I gave up nickel cases many years ago.. They aren't worth the trouble they can cause.. William

Magnum Wheel Man · February 10, 2016, 11:09 AM

When I 1st started loading, all my 357 Magnum stuff was nickel cases... they load fine, but I started deeply scratching cases on a new set of dies, before 2 years...

... that was long ago, still have some 44 Mag cases that have had the nickel polished off them over the years, from multiple cob media tumbling...

... now I wet tumble, & I don't like wet tumbling nickel cases, as mine have a tendancy to pick up that black chrome look... so most of my nickel has been replaced with new brass over the years

mikld · February 10, 2016, 11:52 AM

Mr. Watts, just for my info.; what damage was done to your dies? What caliber were the damaged dies, and which particular die in the set was damaged?

hartcreek · February 10, 2016, 03:58 PM

Gritty cases will damage dies. It doesn't matter if the cases are aluminum, brass or nickel plated. I too have a damaged die and it did put these striations in my brass. I cleaned the die up and dressed it with some fine emery cloth and that ended the striations. Yes I havened to be using nickel plated brass at the time but the cases were a bit gritty so the situation was caused by me which is what I suspect was the case with some of you also.

My carry ammunition is done in nickel plated cases if I have it to prevent tarnishing.

mikld
Think about it and the steps used in reloading......the die that will get damaged is the sizeing die.

William T. Watts · February 10, 2016, 05:22 PM

The nickel flaked off and to some degree embedded in the die, whoever inspected the die knew it had been used on nickel cases plus knew what to look for. What happened to my 30/06 resizing die is not an unusual occurrence and happens quite often. Many of the dies I have are 30 or more years old, all were purchased new, dies are durable and if taken care will last a lifetime.. I always tumble my cases before sizing plus tumble a 2nd time to remove the sizing lubricant before loading, additionally I chamfer the case mouth & uniform all primer pockets before priming and loading. William

laymenshooter · February 10, 2016, 07:28 PM

My gal bought me a single stage press with some Lee's dies. I know steel isn't worth it, but didn't know what more seasoned reloaders thought of nickel.

February 8, 2016, 06:46 PM	#1
laymenshooter Member Join Date: February 3, 2016 Posts: 21	Nickel? I have a good amount of nickel rounds, mainly from my last job. Are they any good for reloading?

February 8, 2016, 07:42 PM	#5
Bill DeShivs Senior Member Join Date: April 7, 2006 Posts: 10,988	Annealing nickeled cases doesn't make them harder. __________________ Bill DeShivs, Master Cutler www.billdeshivs.com

February 9, 2016, 08:06 AM	#10
FlyFish Senior Member Join Date: January 20, 2009 Location: Overlooking the Baker River Valley Posts: 1,723	Agree with TimSr 100%. Nickel plated cases are just fine for reloading. Along with lots of them in a variety of calibers, I have some .357 Super Vel plated brass that came along with the first centerfire handgun I ever bought (original - not Mark III - Colt Trooper, wish I still had it). Been reloading them for about 45 years now, with only a few getting tossed with neck splits. I've also still got, and still use, the dies that came in the same package deal. Only once ran into one small problem - I had a batch of Remington .38 Special nickel cases where the plating started flaking off, so I tossed those. Otherwise, just the same as brass except that they clean up a bit better and size a bit easier. __________________ NRA Benefactor Life Member NRA Certified Instructor: Rifle, Pistol, Shotgun, PPIH, Metallic & Shotgun Shell Reloading; RSO Pemigewasset Valley Fish & Game Club

February 9, 2016, 10:17 AM	#12
wcandres Member Join Date: October 24, 2005 Location: MN Posts: 17	My S&W 38Master prefers them to brass (feeding better). I've loaded them many times, using the common bull's-eye load, and have no more wear from usage than brass. __________________ Bill Another bewildered traveler, on the information superhighway!

February 9, 2016, 01:58 PM	#14
mikld Senior Member Join Date: February 7, 2009 Location: Southern Oregon! Posts: 2,891	I started reloading in '69 mainly with brass I picked up at a police range and about 75% were nickel plated. Since this was pre-web, nobody told me nickel plated brass was any different so I just reloaded them the same as non-plated. I have had absolutely no problems related to nickel plated brass. Nope, my .38 Special Lee dies are still in good shape; no excess wear. I have reloaded some so many times I can see through the plating to the nekkid brass underneath. I have had no flaking of nickel. The cases get reloaded just like any brass and last just as long (with a wide variety of loads from pip squeak to +P+, and I have some nickel plated .357 Magnum brass that has had some "hot" 125 JHP rounds.). Perhaps some have had problems, but with my equipment (started with a Lee Loader, then Lee dies, then Herter's dies, and an old Pacific set) and my loads from just enough to get the bullet outta the barrel to "barn burner", hot loads, I have had no problems related to nickel plating only (as different from non-plated). I still have a few hundred nickel plated .38 Special and .357 Magnum cases and if you don't wanna try them I'll take any you want to get rid of... __________________ My Anchor is holding fast! I've learned how to stand on my own two knees...

February 8, 2016, 06:49 PM	#2
KEYBEAR Senior Member Join Date: January 11, 2012 Location: Indiana Posts: 1,059	I load them what caliber are they ?

February 8, 2016, 07:23 PM	#3
Dufus Senior Member Join Date: December 10, 2014 Posts: 1,965	You can load them but they are hard on the dies....abrasive and harder than regular brass cases. Also, they can't be annealed as doing so makes them harder. Just shoot them 'til the wear out which sometimes ain't too long.

February 8, 2016, 07:28 PM	#4
Xplan Junior Member Join Date: February 7, 2016 Posts: 9	Yes nickel plated brass is good for reloading. It does tend to become brittle and cases crack at a higher rate than pure brass. If they crack after sizing just toss them. Not a big deal.

February 8, 2016, 09:42 PM	#6
laymenshooter Member Join Date: February 3, 2016 Posts: 21	All I have for nickel is 40 S&W.

February 8, 2016, 10:20 PM	#7
RC20 Senior Member Join Date: April 10, 2008 Location: Alaska Posts: 7,014	I have tried them and find them extremely difficult. Not worth it in my opinion. YRMV

February 8, 2016, 10:54 PM	#8
hartcreek Junior member Join Date: April 22, 2014 Location: Washington Posts: 1,549	I you are having problems reloading with nickel plated cases then the problem is you. Yes they do not last as long for reloading but they should work the same. Steel cases is what you want to avoid as they are much harder on dies.

February 9, 2016, 08:04 AM	#9
TimSr Senior Member Join Date: March 8, 2013 Location: Rittman, Ohio Posts: 2,074	Load them the same as any other brass. They tumble clean a lot quicker. They have a different feel when resizing like they are stiffer, but slide easier. No need for lube in carbide dies. Lube for standard non-carbide dies, just like any other. I've heard you get less reloads from them. I have yet to be convinced, as I have several sets, most over 10 loadings, that have never met their end of life. They are my preferred case for 38/357 snce they don't tarnish and discolor from handling.

February 9, 2016, 08:24 AM	#11
TimSr Senior Member Join Date: March 8, 2013 Location: Rittman, Ohio Posts: 2,074	I've had nickel flaking off around the case mouth, and continued reloading them anyways.

February 9, 2016, 11:22 AM	#13
Tsquared Senior Member Join Date: January 26, 2016 Location: NE Atlanta Posts: 337	I take nickel cases and throw them in a mason jar. When I fill the jar I will load them with Hornady XTP or Sierra V-crown JHP. I have never bought any but everything has been range pickup. I have been doing that the past 16 years and I have put away a fair amount for the zombie apocalypse. I used to reload them but the 9mm cases last about a quarter as long as what brass does. When I shot 38/357 they lasted about the same as brass but I was shooting mouse fart loads 99% of the time.

February 9, 2016, 03:17 PM	#15
T. O'Heir Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 12,453	They're just nickel plated brass. Reload just like any other case, but the nickel tends to come off. Found they get brittle on the mouth a bit quicker too. They do not bother the dies in the least. Both nickel and brass are nowhere near as hard as any steel. "...pre-web, nobody told me..." Ditto. Lotta stuff changed when whatisname invented the internet. Nobody tells me anything now either. Still expected to know though. snicker. __________________ Spelling and grammar count!

February 9, 2016, 03:52 PM	#17
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,063	I've had both good and bad nickel. Some of it flakes off, and I've had small flake particles cold weld to the nickel matrix than holds the carbide particles in the carbide sizing ring together and start scratching cases. Had to polish it out with abrasives to get the finish back. I've had other nickel that just gradually wore off and never flaked, and that caused no issues. Seems like more than one plating process has been used. But if you are using, say, Lee sizing dies, they aren't terribly expensive to replace. I'll just advise you to apply a spray lube to the cases (even though you aren't supposed to have to with carbide pistol dies), and see if that doesn't discourage flakes from sticking to the surface. If I'd thought of it at the time I still had a lot of nickel 357 Mag cases I reloaded, I'd have done that, too. __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle

February 9, 2016, 04:24 PM	#18
condor bravo Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2014 Location: Nevada/Ariz/CA Posts: 1,753	Speaking for some of the larger belted mag rifle calibers only, the nickel plated cases are more susceptible to cracked necks and somewhat more difficult to resize. This morning upon sizing some .416s, four split necks out of 40 nickel plated cases and zero splits out of 20 brass cases which is fairly standard ratio across the board. This apparently has something to do with difference in case thickness between the two. The nickel plated cases seem to be thicker. Take two sized cases, one nickel and the other brass of the same brand (R-P for the example), and the same volume of powder will fill more of the nickel case than the brass case. I've never had a flaking issue with the nickel brass, just lose a lot more due to cracked necks. __________________ Ouch, the dreaded "M-1 thumb", you just know it will happen eventually, so why not do it now and get it over with?? Last edited by condor bravo; February 9, 2016 at 06:20 PM.

February 9, 2016, 11:02 PM	#20
William T. Watts Senior Member Join Date: January 20, 2010 Location: Central Arkansas Posts: 1,074	I've damaged two sizing dies with nickel cases, RCBS replaced the first die but told me they wouldn't replace another if damaged with nickel. FWIW I have never damaged a third sizing die and I gave up nickel cases many years ago.. They aren't worth the trouble they can cause.. William

February 10, 2016, 11:09 AM	#21
Magnum Wheel Man Senior Member Join Date: July 26, 2006 Location: Southern Minnesota Posts: 9,333	When I 1st started loading, all my 357 Magnum stuff was nickel cases... they load fine, but I started deeply scratching cases on a new set of dies, before 2 years... ... that was long ago, still have some 44 Mag cases that have had the nickel polished off them over the years, from multiple cob media tumbling... ... now I wet tumble, & I don't like wet tumbling nickel cases, as mine have a tendancy to pick up that black chrome look... so most of my nickel has been replaced with new brass over the years __________________ In life you either make dust or eat dust...

February 10, 2016, 11:52 AM	#22
mikld Senior Member Join Date: February 7, 2009 Location: Southern Oregon! Posts: 2,891	Mr. Watts, just for my info.; what damage was done to your dies? What caliber were the damaged dies, and which particular die in the set was damaged? __________________ My Anchor is holding fast! I've learned how to stand on my own two knees...

February 10, 2016, 03:58 PM	#23
hartcreek Junior member Join Date: April 22, 2014 Location: Washington Posts: 1,549	Gritty cases will damage dies. It doesn't matter if the cases are aluminum, brass or nickel plated. I too have a damaged die and it did put these striations in my brass. I cleaned the die up and dressed it with some fine emery cloth and that ended the striations. Yes I havened to be using nickel plated brass at the time but the cases were a bit gritty so the situation was caused by me which is what I suspect was the case with some of you also. My carry ammunition is done in nickel plated cases if I have it to prevent tarnishing. mikld Think about it and the steps used in reloading......the die that will get damaged is the sizeing die. Last edited by hartcreek; February 10, 2016 at 04:29 PM.

February 10, 2016, 05:22 PM	#24
William T. Watts Senior Member Join Date: January 20, 2010 Location: Central Arkansas Posts: 1,074	Nickle embedded in a 30/06 RCBS sizing die.. The nickel flaked off and to some degree embedded in the die, whoever inspected the die knew it had been used on nickel cases plus knew what to look for. What happened to my 30/06 resizing die is not an unusual occurrence and happens quite often. Many of the dies I have are 30 or more years old, all were purchased new, dies are durable and if taken care will last a lifetime.. I always tumble my cases before sizing plus tumble a 2nd time to remove the sizing lubricant before loading, additionally I chamfer the case mouth & uniform all primer pockets before priming and loading. William Last edited by William T. Watts; February 10, 2016 at 05:58 PM.

February 10, 2016, 07:28 PM	#25
laymenshooter Member Join Date: February 3, 2016 Posts: 21	My gal bought me a single stage press with some Lee's dies. I know steel isn't worth it, but didn't know what more seasoned reloaders thought of nickel.