Military Brass

tyrajam · December 5, 2007, 01:06 PM

I was given about 350 pieces of 223 military brass a while ago, so I cleaned/sized and loaded it up with the published starting load of Varget, and took it to the range. I chronographed the 50gr vmax loads at 3600fps! The guy I was shooting with said the military cases can have thicker walls which lead to higher presures and I should decrease by %20 to work up a load. I didn't see any pressure signs but it was a little scary. Has anyone had this happen? Any ideas?

snuffy · December 5, 2007, 01:39 PM

Reduce the max by 20% OR reduce the starting load by 10%. Yes, the military brass sometimes has thicker walls, in .223.

**Mike Irwin** · December 5, 2007, 02:44 PM

Not just .223, but military .30-06 and .308 is also known for having thicker cases.

It's done to promote reliability in automatic weapons by limiting the amount that the case head expands. At least that's the reason I've always heard.

December 5, 2007, 01:06 PM	#1
tyrajam Senior Member Join Date: July 24, 2007 Location: Indianapolis, IN Posts: 467	Military Brass I was given about 350 pieces of 223 military brass a while ago, so I cleaned/sized and loaded it up with the published starting load of Varget, and took it to the range. I chronographed the 50gr vmax loads at 3600fps! The guy I was shooting with said the military cases can have thicker walls which lead to higher presures and I should decrease by %20 to work up a load. I didn't see any pressure signs but it was a little scary. Has anyone had this happen? Any ideas?

December 5, 2007, 02:44 PM	#3
Mike Irwin Staff Join Date: April 14, 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 41,642	Not just .223, but military .30-06 and .308 is also known for having thicker cases. It's done to promote reliability in automatic weapons by limiting the amount that the case head expands. At least that's the reason I've always heard. __________________ "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind" -Theodorus Gaza Baby Jesus cries when the fat redneck doesn't have military-grade firepower.

December 5, 2007, 01:39 PM	#2
snuffy Senior Member Join Date: May 21, 2001 Location: Oshkosh wi. Posts: 3,055	Reduce the max by 20% OR reduce the starting load by 10%. Yes, the military brass sometimes has thicker walls, in .223.