Question about brass picked up at firing range

kpbeddin · October 3, 2008, 11:34 PM

Hello everyone; I am fairly new to reloading and while at the firing range I noticed what appeared to be once fired factory 0.270 WIN brass. Since one of my rifles is a 0.270 I could not stand to see it wasted so I brought it home. As I was cleaning the casings, I noticed that almost every one had a slightly crushed neck(~1/4 of circumference bent). What caused this? Is this brass acceptable to reload?
Thanks,
Keith

blu97 · October 4, 2008, 12:06 AM

clean it, resize it, and reload it.

I have a bunch of 270 that I don't need let me know if you are iterested in it.

zippy13 · October 4, 2008, 12:57 AM

Greetings, kpbeddin, and welcome aboard!

I would add inspect to blu97's list of things to do between resize and reload. If you're curious about the case crush, look for an identifiable off-set in the primer strike and see if the crush area is always at the same orientation when fired. It could be the result of poor ejection timing -- the cases hit the ejection port on their way out of an auto-loader.

butta9999 · October 4, 2008, 01:09 AM

it could be the simple thing of the case hitting the ground after firing. When ejecting the round it can sometimes cause a little dent in the neck. Nothing to worry about.

Be sure to carefully inspect the brass before reloading, tumble clean it, inspect it again. You will have to full size the brass to bring the shoulder back to factory specs also the walls of the case. This is due to the cases being fire formed to the rifle it was fired from. All chambers are different.

If they are once fired brass you should not have a problem with reloading them. Be sure to check the cases in your rifle before seating the primer to be sure they chamber.

Good luck.

Butta

kpbeddin · October 4, 2008, 09:15 AM

Thanks everyone for the good advice. Given the consistency of the damage to the necks, it makes sense that it occurred from being ejected from a semi-automatic. I was not sure since I have only owned bolt action rifles. I will heed your advice and perform close inspection and chamber them prior to reloading.
Keith

zippy13 · October 4, 2008, 11:54 AM

Most reloading handbooks will have a section on case inspection. Here's a link to an on-line guide exteriorballistics.com. A google search will turn up several more.

Art Eatman · October 4, 2008, 12:40 PM

Range brass is best full-length resized, to ensure it's not expanded such that it won't fit your chamber. Or, check before reloading, if you only want to resize the neck. After you've fired your reloads, neck-sizing is all that's needed.

October 3, 2008, 11:34 PM	#1
kpbeddin Junior Member Join Date: November 24, 2007 Location: Walhalla SC Posts: 13	Question about brass picked up at firing range Hello everyone; I am fairly new to reloading and while at the firing range I noticed what appeared to be once fired factory 0.270 WIN brass. Since one of my rifles is a 0.270 I could not stand to see it wasted so I brought it home. As I was cleaning the casings, I noticed that almost every one had a slightly crushed neck(~1/4 of circumference bent). What caused this? Is this brass acceptable to reload? Thanks, Keith

October 4, 2008, 12:06 AM	#2
blu97 Member Join Date: June 12, 2008 Location: California Posts: 81	270 brass clean it, resize it, and reload it. I have a bunch of 270 that I don't need let me know if you are iterested in it.

October 4, 2008, 01:09 AM	#4
butta9999 Senior Member Join Date: June 29, 2008 Location: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Posts: 692	it could be the simple thing of the case hitting the ground after firing. When ejecting the round it can sometimes cause a little dent in the neck. Nothing to worry about. Be sure to carefully inspect the brass before reloading, tumble clean it, inspect it again. You will have to full size the brass to bring the shoulder back to factory specs also the walls of the case. This is due to the cases being fire formed to the rifle it was fired from. All chambers are different. If they are once fired brass you should not have a problem with reloading them. Be sure to check the cases in your rifle before seating the primer to be sure they chamber. Good luck. Butta __________________ Knowledge is Power!

October 4, 2008, 12:57 AM	#3
zippy13 Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2008 Location: SoCal Posts: 6,442	Greetings, kpbeddin, and welcome aboard! I would add inspect to blu97's list of things to do between resize and reload. If you're curious about the case crush, look for an identifiable off-set in the primer strike and see if the crush area is always at the same orientation when fired. It could be the result of poor ejection timing -- the cases hit the ejection port on their way out of an auto-loader.

October 4, 2008, 09:15 AM	#5
kpbeddin Junior Member Join Date: November 24, 2007 Location: Walhalla SC Posts: 13	Thanks everyone for the good advice. Given the consistency of the damage to the necks, it makes sense that it occurred from being ejected from a semi-automatic. I was not sure since I have only owned bolt action rifles. I will heed your advice and perform close inspection and chamber them prior to reloading. Keith

October 4, 2008, 11:54 AM	#6
zippy13 Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2008 Location: SoCal Posts: 6,442	Most reloading handbooks will have a section on case inspection. Here's a link to an on-line guide exteriorballistics.com. A google search will turn up several more.

October 4, 2008, 12:40 PM	#7
Art Eatman Staff in Memoriam Join Date: November 13, 1998 Location: Terlingua, TX; Thomasville, GA Posts: 24,798	Range brass is best full-length resized, to ensure it's not expanded such that it won't fit your chamber. Or, check before reloading, if you only want to resize the neck. After you've fired your reloads, neck-sizing is all that's needed.