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Posted: 3/1/2013 2:32:16 AM EDT
| I remember when first reading on these forums that federal brass was brittle. Has anything changed? Are they good enough to reload now? |
| Federal is my main go to brass for .308 and so far haven't lost a single piece since I started this project. I've lost some of my 22-250 WIN and R-P brass but that stuff has been loaded as many as 10 times. I mainly neck size only so I get a lot of life out of my brass too. |
| Thanks guys, its because my friends just got a bunch of fed 100 pks from wally world and they are gonna shoot a lot this weekend, they asked me if i wanted the brass and i said ill get back to them. I just remember hearing a bunch of stories of how the primer pockets were weak and how the necks would split after 2 reloads. Just wanna make sure its decent enough to get reloaded. |
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Quoted:
I don't load FC rifle brass any caliber, I trade them off. Got tired of loose PP's. FC pistol brass is my favorite brand. Same, trade my FC 223 brass for Nato brass with a mate who makes inert rounds with it rather than the better brass. FC 9mm, thanks to various Police Forces is plentiful out our local ranges. Reloads well, and the best bit, is free! |
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The only problem I ever had from Federal brass was .308. It wasn't a huge one at the time, because I was getting my brass once fired, cheap from the Charlotte NC police department. At about a nickle a case three loadings was fine. By three loads the pockets on about a fourth of the brass was getting loose. By four loads it was well over half, so I tossed them. I should have kept them for scrap thinking back.
The M1a made more than four loads a little difficult anyway, as it was hard on brass. Now the FAL would go an extra couple of loadings on Hornady Match and Winchester, and the LR 308 would stretch it a couple more, maybe 6 or 7 total for plinking loads. For all the crap I give Remington, their .308 brass, and really most brass was pretty good, at least middle of the pack life wise, but not as consistent. I'd take it and load it. |
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Had a lot of blown primers reloading .223 FC brass with 55 grain fmj on top of 25 grains H335. Cut back to 24 grains and no problems
in 400+ rounds so far. Will reload these one more time (total 3 firings, 2 reloads) and then scrap. So in my experience, FC brass has is OK for 1 or 2 reloads at medium charge level. In the future, I won't reload FC brass but trade it off for better. |
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My experiences with Federal brass mirrors dryflash3's experiences. Federal .45acp brass is every bit the quality of Winchester. I'm comparing LP to LP, mind you. Case walls measure 0.010 just like Winchester.
Honestly guys, I load it all. Even Amerc if it sizes the first time it sizes every time. If'in it don't it's pitched. I don't come across Amerc enough to worry with it. SP, .45acp brass is a burr on my butt though. 
dc. |
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I take back what I said about loading FC .223 brass twice. Started processing the 400 reloads I've fired, found one
split throat and half the remaining cases show what I interpret as sign of imminent split: dark line from mouth to shoulder. I could be wrong on this, but not taking any chances. All 400 going to the scrap bucket. This was federal AE223 ammunition. Since I buy new ammo for reloading, no more AE223 for me. |
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