Pistol brass - lot # and how many times shot

2DaMtns · December 19, 2008, 08:06 AM

First off, you guys have been great on here. I have been shooting and hunting for 20 years or so but am new in the reloading, and you've been a great help so far. Thanks, and keep up the good work.

How important is it to keep track of my brass when reloading for a pistol? What I mean is, am I gonna see a difference on a target or hunting if I use brass from different lots? I am thinking no, and I think doing that is only a big deal to match shooters, etc., but I am new to this reloading gig. Also, I know it is a good idea to record how many times a piece of brass has been shot, but if I inspect it well after each shooting session and before loading, do I really need to keep track? I figure if it looks good, I will use it even if it is the 30th time I load it, and if it for some reason looks like crap after the first shot, I am scrapping it. Am I offbase on either of these?

zxcvbob · December 19, 2008, 09:24 AM

I shoot pistol brass (mostly in revolvers) until it fails. I keep some target brass separated out by headstamp, but I don't know how many times it has been reused -- and they are not all the same number anyway.

Sport45 · December 19, 2008, 09:29 AM

When I get home from shooting my handgun brass is sorted by caliber, then cleaned and dumped into ice cream buckets. When I reload I take from the top of the bucket. I shoot it until it fails or is lost. I'm sure some of my active brass has been shot more than a dozen times while the stuff at the bottom of the bucket my be once fired. I'll get down to it someday. Maybe.

Ozzieman · December 19, 2008, 10:38 AM

I agree with Sport45, I shoot until failure.
A lot depends on load and pressure. For wheel guns the failure is normally when I bell the top of the case. That is when I get split cases and they go into the scrap bucket.
For autos its two things that I look for, again a split case but also the rim of the case. Autos can be very hard on cases and if I see to much deformation on the head caused by the extractor, scrap bucket again.
The only gun that I shoot once each case is the Contender in 44 mag. This is the only gun that I own that I load to really high levels. I also mark the cases so that I don’t accidentally shoot them in one of my N frame smiths.
These are loaded so hot that they have an almost crystal look to the brass near the head. These are thrown away after only one loading.
But to answer your question, there are 44 special cases that I load only target loads into that I have owned for over 20 years and have been loaded at least once each year in that time.
I know this because I purchased 1000 Federal 44 special cases back in 88 and those along with several hundred of other manufactures are the only 44 sp cases I have ever purchased. I reload them at a minimum of once a year. I only reload each caliber when they are just about all gone.
There may be years that I did not only reloaded those 44’s, but there are also years that I have reloaded more than twice and I have thrown away very few of those Federal cases over the years. Probably only a hand full.
I also don’t over work them. I bell the cases only just enough that I can start the bullet without shaving any lead off. I feel that belling the case is the worse stress that you can put a case through.
For ACP I would say 8 to 10 reloads, again if you don’t over work them.
ACP Guns with unsupported chamber like the Glock is very hard on cases and although I don’t shoot reloads in Glocks I do shoot that brass in other guns. But I also throw away many once fired cases after they have been resized.
They end up with a very sharp line on the case at the bottom of where the sizer stopped.
But that’s just the thing you have to put up with if you want to shoot Glocks, and I do.

zxcvbob · December 19, 2008, 12:36 PM

Quote:

These are loaded so hot that they have an almost crystal look to the brass near the head. These are thrown away after only one loading.

I loaded some good old-fashioned .38-44HV cartridges using .38 Special brass once that worked great (fired in a steel-framed .357 Magnum) but ruined the brass in one shot. I'm not going to tell you how much Blue Dot powder I used with a 158 grain hard SWC bullet.

I don't load those anymore.

Ozzieman · December 19, 2008, 12:52 PM

I was shooting those at a range and a friend shooting on the next position came over and asked if I had blown a gun up.
I also will not say how much H110 I had in them but I will say that I worked the load up and they were slightly compressed. I used a rifle magnum primer and crimped the H--- out of them.
No one else was at the range.
The primer totally filled the primer pocket, there was almost no gap between the primer and case.
4 foot long and about 3 foot in diameter flame. It went BARRRRROMMM, not bang.
The only real problem with that load was that it keyholed the target,,, I had pushed that little 240 Gr bullet a little to fast.

zxcvbob · December 19, 2008, 01:20 PM

Quote:

4 foot long and about 3 foot in diameter flame. It went BARRRRROMMM, not bang.

I use black powder when I want to do that.

DaveInPA · December 19, 2008, 01:50 PM

I don't bother sorting my .45ACP brass. I get rid of any brass that is defective or has an AMERC headstamp. Other than that, I load it all together.

Rifle brass is another thing entirely, though.

PCJim · December 19, 2008, 02:33 PM

If you are loading medium to mild loads, the brass will be lost before it gets worn out. Saves wear and tear on the firearm and your body, too.

I have 38spl brass from pre-80s that I'm still reloading. Can't say accurately how many times. After each firing, I look for a tale-tale split in the casing and if it's there, it gets tossed. These are with medium DEWC or HBWC loads shot in a Python.

The Lovemaster · December 19, 2008, 05:19 PM

You shouldn't shoot that old brass in a Python, send it to me and I'll feed it newer brass, plus it can keep my Python company!

December 19, 2008, 08:06 AM	#1
2DaMtns Senior Member Join Date: December 9, 2008 Posts: 457	Pistol brass - lot # and how many times shot First off, you guys have been great on here. I have been shooting and hunting for 20 years or so but am new in the reloading, and you've been a great help so far. Thanks, and keep up the good work. How important is it to keep track of my brass when reloading for a pistol? What I mean is, am I gonna see a difference on a target or hunting if I use brass from different lots? I am thinking no, and I think doing that is only a big deal to match shooters, etc., but I am new to this reloading gig. Also, I know it is a good idea to record how many times a piece of brass has been shot, but if I inspect it well after each shooting session and before loading, do I really need to keep track? I figure if it looks good, I will use it even if it is the 30th time I load it, and if it for some reason looks like crap after the first shot, I am scrapping it. Am I offbase on either of these?

December 19, 2008, 09:24 AM	#2
zxcvbob Senior Member Join Date: December 20, 2007 Location: S.E. Minnesota Posts: 4,720	I shoot pistol brass (mostly in revolvers) until it fails. I keep some target brass separated out by headstamp, but I don't know how many times it has been reused -- and they are not all the same number anyway. __________________ "Everything they do is so dramatic and flamboyant. It just makes me want to set myself on fire!" —Lucille Bluth

December 19, 2008, 09:29 AM	#3
Sport45 Senior Member Join Date: May 25, 1999 Location: Too close to Houston Posts: 4,196	When I get home from shooting my handgun brass is sorted by caliber, then cleaned and dumped into ice cream buckets. When I reload I take from the top of the bucket. I shoot it until it fails or is lost. I'm sure some of my active brass has been shot more than a dozen times while the stuff at the bottom of the bucket my be once fired. I'll get down to it someday. Maybe. __________________ Proud member of the NRA and Texas State Rifle Association. Registered and active voter.

December 19, 2008, 10:38 AM	#4
Ozzieman Senior Member Join Date: December 14, 2004 Location: Northern Indiana Posts: 6,117	I agree with Sport45, I shoot until failure. A lot depends on load and pressure. For wheel guns the failure is normally when I bell the top of the case. That is when I get split cases and they go into the scrap bucket. For autos its two things that I look for, again a split case but also the rim of the case. Autos can be very hard on cases and if I see to much deformation on the head caused by the extractor, scrap bucket again. The only gun that I shoot once each case is the Contender in 44 mag. This is the only gun that I own that I load to really high levels. I also mark the cases so that I don’t accidentally shoot them in one of my N frame smiths. These are loaded so hot that they have an almost crystal look to the brass near the head. These are thrown away after only one loading. But to answer your question, there are 44 special cases that I load only target loads into that I have owned for over 20 years and have been loaded at least once each year in that time. I know this because I purchased 1000 Federal 44 special cases back in 88 and those along with several hundred of other manufactures are the only 44 sp cases I have ever purchased. I reload them at a minimum of once a year. I only reload each caliber when they are just about all gone. There may be years that I did not only reloaded those 44’s, but there are also years that I have reloaded more than twice and I have thrown away very few of those Federal cases over the years. Probably only a hand full. I also don’t over work them. I bell the cases only just enough that I can start the bullet without shaving any lead off. I feel that belling the case is the worse stress that you can put a case through. For ACP I would say 8 to 10 reloads, again if you don’t over work them. ACP Guns with unsupported chamber like the Glock is very hard on cases and although I don’t shoot reloads in Glocks I do shoot that brass in other guns. But I also throw away many once fired cases after they have been resized. They end up with a very sharp line on the case at the bottom of where the sizer stopped. But that’s just the thing you have to put up with if you want to shoot Glocks, and I do.

December 19, 2008, 12:52 PM	#6
Ozzieman Senior Member Join Date: December 14, 2004 Location: Northern Indiana Posts: 6,117	I was shooting those at a range and a friend shooting on the next position came over and asked if I had blown a gun up. I also will not say how much H110 I had in them but I will say that I worked the load up and they were slightly compressed. I used a rifle magnum primer and crimped the H--- out of them. No one else was at the range. The primer totally filled the primer pocket, there was almost no gap between the primer and case. 4 foot long and about 3 foot in diameter flame. It went BARRRRROMMM, not bang. The only real problem with that load was that it keyholed the target,,, I had pushed that little 240 Gr bullet a little to fast.

December 19, 2008, 01:50 PM	#8
DaveInPA Senior Member Join Date: January 20, 2008 Location: Berks County, PA Posts: 1,106	I don't bother sorting my .45ACP brass. I get rid of any brass that is defective or has an AMERC headstamp. Other than that, I load it all together. Rifle brass is another thing entirely, though.

December 19, 2008, 02:33 PM	#9
PCJim Senior Member Join Date: July 11, 2008 Location: FL Posts: 570	If you are loading medium to mild loads, the brass will be lost before it gets worn out. Saves wear and tear on the firearm and your body, too. I have 38spl brass from pre-80s that I'm still reloading. Can't say accurately how many times. After each firing, I look for a tale-tale split in the casing and if it's there, it gets tossed. These are with medium DEWC or HBWC loads shot in a Python.

December 19, 2008, 05:19 PM	#10
The Lovemaster Senior Member Join Date: December 29, 2007 Location: Arizona Posts: 416	You shouldn't shoot that old brass in a Python, send it to me and I'll feed it newer brass, plus it can keep my Python company!